'Conan the Barbarian: Into the Crucible' – Zub, Antonio, Gill, Pizzari, Silva (Marvel)

This is going to be a quick post, I'm afraid. Today totally didn't go the way I was expecting (not a bad thing, to be fair) and now it's almost over. So yeah, let's see what I can do in the next hour...

It didn't feel that long since I'd last read a new 'Conan' comic but a little look back at the blog proved otherwise with my having read 'The Life and Death of Conan: Book 2' a year and a bit ago. It wasn't a bad read (it was a great read in fact) but I wasn't up for reading any of the other 'Conan' books, out at the time, so I thought I'd give it a break and come back to the series when I was more in the mood. That time came a few days ago (funnily enough, at exactly the same time as
payday) when I saw 'Into the Crucible' on Amazon and thought I'd give it a go...

Unfamiliar ground! Conan has faced many foes since leaving Cimmeria, but the greatest challenge lies ahead — in the mystical Uttara Kuru, farther on the eastern border than the young barbarian has ever traveled! When Conan inadvertently agrees to be the latest entrant to the Great Crucible, the people of the city support their foreign champion — but what deadly dangers does the Crucible hold, and what will Conan sacrifice to overcome his ordeal? Armed with only his strength and wits and a local boy named Delian to translate for him, Conan must survive a series of lethal traps and a cadre of murderous rivals out to end his participation — permanently! But when the barbarian sets his sights on the Tooth of the Nightstar, will he claim the deadly blade, or will it claim him...?

One of the things that I love about 'Conan' stories is the fact that our hero's wanderlust takes him all over the place and that means a lot of potential for exciting stories to be told. That is very much the case here with a book that (despite some of the artwork, more on that in a bit) that was very easy to keep reading. The thing is, we all know that Conan will ultimately survive to fight another day so the question is, how does a writer hold our interest in the meantime? Well, if you're Jim Zub, you throw Conan into a dungeon filled with traps and betrayal and then sit back to see how he does. The end may not be in doubt but watching Conan pit his strength, and wits, against everything is what it's really about and Zub hits the target every time with a good mix of riddles and action in the Great Crucible. It's not just about the Crucible though as Zub delves into that familiar trope of 'Barbarism vs. Civilization' and shows us that Conan's morals and honour not only lead him to do the right thing, on this occasion, but it also opens up the story itself; we're looking at more than one volume's worth of tale here and while one thread looks like it's resolved for now, another is still to be finished off. I like that mix of closure/cliffhanger and will be sure to pick up the next volume when it's available.

It's very straightforward storytelling but there's a lot going on here and it's worth your time if you're a 'Conan' fan or even if you just like a bit of Sword and Sorcery in your comics. The only thing I wasn't too keen on was the art and I suspect that's because I've been spoiled by the superb work of Tomas Giorello in the old Dark Horse collections. Antonio, Gill and Pizzari are all good at what they do but it all felt very much like I was readng a 'Marvel Conan Story' rather than getting a look into Conan's world, if you know what I mean (and I'm rubbish at talking about artwork so that's not guaranteed). The artwork grew on me but Conan's world is rough round the edges, and I didn't get that feeling here.

That's a small complaint though. 'Into the Crucible' is a fun read that promises more fun if you pick up the next book and Jim Zub clearly has a handle on Conan himself. That's all I need really so yep, I'm still on board.