BotTalk Reviews

Scourge of the Serpent part 4 (of 4): Unity or DEATH. The epic new Conan event from Heroic Signatures and Titan Comics is over. Kirowan, Kull and Conan are now in Set's dimension. The mysterious Set siren appears before our heroes. The siren is disappointingly just Set (the Great Serpent) in human form. Our heroes morph into their future selves: John Kirowan loses his right eye (Battle of the Black Stone #4), King Kull loses his flesh (Conan the Barbarian (2023) #10) and Conan the Barbarian loses his freedom and youth (Conan the Barbarian (2023) #25). Set introduces our heroes to a Woeful dark god who has awaken from his slumber... The Woeful Eye/Shuma-Gorath is coming to earth (as revealed in Conan: Spawn of the Serpent God). Set remarks that the "END WAR" is upon us. We see an extremely unlikely future... Kirowan, Kull and Conan accompanied by their serpent-descendants are fighting the Black Stone Beasts of the Woeful Eye (last seen in Battle of the Black Stone #4). To...

A shōnen manga by Keiichiro Ryu, Tetsuo Hara and Mio Aso (Translation: Andrew Love) Spoilers! Spoilers!  CHAPTER 1 (book 1 of 18): The Sanctioned Kabukimono This is the story of Maeda Keiji (inspired by real-life samurai Maeda Toshimasu (1543-1612)), an eccentric, invincible Kabukimono, the illegitimate son of Takigawa Masuuji (1527-1635?) who was adopted by Maeda Toshihisa (1537-1587), the older brother of Keiji's uncle, Maeda Toshiie (1538-1599). It is the Azuchi-Momoyama period (the late  Sengoku period of feudal Japan). The soldiers of Takigawa Kazumasu (1525-1586. Military commander of Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582)) encounter a gigantic wild horse. Furuya Shichirobei (a General of Hojo Ujikuni (1541-1597). An homage to actor Kyusaku Shimada) failed to domesticate the monster steed. Keiji (who is also a Kōga-ryū ninja) tames the feral stallion in only ten days and christens it Matsukaze. Keiji defeats Furuya Shichirobei, Furuya kills himself to motivate his troops. CHAPTER 2: B...

Robert E. Howard's Solomon Kane, the dour English Puritan Swashbuckler, gets a revised complete collection of his classic Marvel suggested for mature readers sword and sorcery adventures.  The omnibus is available in two versions: with a Mike Mignola dust jacket (available everywhere) or with a direct market Howard Chaykin dust jacket (only available from comic book stores). Inside this magnificent hardcover you will find the following: Stories in full color: Kane versus looter Le Loup (Red Shadows by Robert E. Howard, Roy Thomas and Howard Chaykin) Kane versus looter Le Loup (Red Shadows by Robert E. Howard, Ralph Macchio, Steve Carr and Bret Blevins) Kane versus a werewolf (And Faith, Undying... by Ralph Macchio and Bret Blevins) Kane versus kidnaper Sir George Banway (Blades of the Brotherhood by Robert E. Howard, Ralph Macchio, Bret Blevins and Al Williamson) Kane versus Prince Ali-Ben Ar (The Prophet by Ralph Macchio, Mike Mignola and Al Williamson) Kane versus vampires/zombie...

48 restored and fully colored pages of barbaric savagery! Inside this magnificent full-color magazine you will find the following: Classic remastered art pin-ups: Conan the Barbarian by Mike Zeck from Savage Sword of Conan (1974) #15 Conan the Barbarian by John Buscema from Savage Sword of Conan (1974) #15 Conan ad by Gil Kane from Savage Sword of Conan (1974) #5 THE DEVIL IN IRON by Robert E. Howard, Roy Thomas, John Buscema and Alfredo Alcala. (New Colors by GFB Group/GFB.it) Terror on a time-lost isle! On the uninhabited island known as Xapur the Fortified, Conan the Barbarian protects Princess Octavia from a gigantic snake, the iron-skinned giant Khosatral Khel (the ancient from the Abyss, the god of Dagonia) and Jehungir Agha (lord of Khawarizm).  A 1976 INTERVIEW WITH CONAN ARTIST JOHN BUSCEMA conducted by John Collier & John Wren What I did like: The giant sleeping snake that tried to eat Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Conan the Barbarian 1982 film was taken from THE DEVIL...

Jim Zub's The Conquering Crown part 2 (of 3): The Ill-suited Guest Conan is now an Aquilonian General (Count Trocero/Poitain's new military leader), he has received word that King Numedides wants to see him at his castle in Tarantia (capital of Aquilonia aka The Flower of The West). Conan and some of his Westermarck Wolves mercenaries arrive to meet the King. King Numedides flatters Conan and thanks him for HIS victory. Conan mentions his fallen comrades, not wanting to take full credit for winning the great BATTLE OF POITAIN. Conan is forced to mingle with the nobles of Aquilonia. The Cimmerian is introduced to the the obese Baron Dion of Attalus, Baron Maloric of Cantrium, the diminutive Count Volmana of Karaban, Lord Brocas of Conawaga, Count Ulric of Raman, Baron Thasperas of Schohira and Baron Phineas of Tauran. King Numedides reveals to Conan that he received visions of a DARK FUTURE from The Woeful Eye. The mad King is aware that Shuma-Gorath aka The Woeful Eye (mentione...

eBook by Brendan Deneen Cover by E. M. Gist  From Titan Books, Heroic Signatures & Conan Properties International LLC Spoilers! Spoilers!  The City of Thieves aka Arenjun, Zamora. Fabian, the leader of the Thieves' Guild gives an eighteen-year-old Conan of Cimmeria a down payment of jewels to meet with the Duchess Amelia (third cousin of King Hadranor of Zamora) and her bodyguard Tomas.  The Duchess wants her stolen family heirloom, the crimson amulet of the demon Nakamar, a gift from the King, back in her possession. Conan is told to go to a walled mansion surrounded by abysses near the Skarpash Mountains. Conan surmounts the estate's stone barricade, enters the residence via a servants' door, makes his way to the basement and finds the amulet. Conan notices that the heirloom is giving off hellish heat, Conan hears the voice of the demon Nakamar asking to be released. Two older thieves, also sent by Amelia to retrieve the amulet, enter the basement, the barbarian bu...

eBook by Francesco Dimitri Cover by Alex Horley (aka Alessandro Orlandelli) Illustrations by Patrick Zircher  From Titan Books, Heroic Signatures &  Conan Properties International LLC Spoilers! Spoilers!  The hills of Zalgara, cloud river, a small riparian village appears out of thin air. King Kull the Conqueror and Brule the Spear-Slayer meet with village chief Elspeth Thrace. They spend the night exploring the novel village.  The stars in the firmament start swirling. Kull and Brule spot a future, possible version/reflection of Kull as an elderly man with a woman. The old couple explodes into water, showering Kull. Kull and Brule see an older Kull stuffing his face... obese, angry, sad and alone. The vision turns into mist. Kull and Brule witness an alternate rendition of Kull's past, they see a young Kull and his girlfriend Elpis, dead, murdered by five thieves.  Kull vividly recalls that, as a youth, he had killed all five of the robbers and that Elpis h...

Scourge of the Serpent part 3 (of 4): Behind the Mask. The epic new Conan event from Heroic Signatures and Titan Comics is almost over. The Thurian Age of Kull of Atlantis (from Robert E. Howard's The Shadow Kingdom). Gonar the Seeker (from Kings of the Night) reminds the reader once again that the impossible to comprehend verity is that time and space do not exist, that EVERYTHING is transpiring NOW. The Hall of Society, King Kull sits upon his throne and gazes upon the courtiers, the ladies, the lords and the statesmen. The King of Valusia wonders... are they all shape-changers plotting his demise? Chief councilor Tu alerts his King that the hour of the council is at hand. Kull and his Pict ally, Brule follow the councilors to the council room.   The door of the council chamber is now closed, all seventeen councilors place themselves in the order of their rank before Kull's dais. Brule remains by Kull's side. The councilors begin moving toward Kull. Brule utters the words...

A Scourge of the Serpent Novel by Tim Waggoner Cover by Jeffrey Alan Love  From Titan Books and Conan Properties International Also available unabridged on audiobook from Blackstone Publishing, read by Bradford Hastings  Spoilers! Spoilers!  The Deities of Robert E. Howard's Hyborian Age are rallying against the sinister snake-god Set (the great serpent Jörmungandr) who is busy preparing for the arrival of the even more wicked Woeful Eye (Shuma-Gorath?) who is planning a conquest of Conan's planet. Set recruits Stygian sorcerer Uzzeran (Master of the Revenants (corpses steered by Set shadow-snakes)), Shengis (Uzzeran's Stygian servant who wears the Snare amulet that ensnares Serpent-Men) and Rynthia (a Zamorian woman who was raised by sorceress Nabishut). Ishtar (fertility goddess of the Shemites) recruits Conan and Valja (a Zamorian woman). Mitra (god of the Hyborians symbolized by The Phoenix) recruits Naerys (an Ophirian priestess of Mitra & a former test subject o...

Jim Zub's The Conquering Crown part 1 (of 3): The Implausible General A CAPITAL, BRAND-NEW CONAN ARC BEGINS NOW! Poitain, Aquilonia's southernmost province is under siege by the soldiers of King Ferdrugo de Ramiro III of Zingara.  Count Trocero of Poitain and his knights get ambushed by Zingaran archers.  Captain Prospero of Poitain (King Conan's future right-hand man) is defending Culario (capital of Poitain).  Tarantia (capital of Aquilonia). Numedides the Mad King of Aquilonia, whose subjects are starving in the streets, wants his army and his knights (The Black Dragons) to stay by his side... he will send a lesser, more expendable force to assist Trocero... the Mercenaries. The leader of the Westermarck Wolves, Sumner (an homage to Andrew Sumner, COO of Titan Entertainment Group) rouses his sellswords, including Conan and Ular. Conan & Co arrive in Poitain to meet with Count Trocero.  Count Trocero and his knights + the Westermarck Wolves fight the Zingarans,...

Sword-brothers, sword-sisters, your local spinner rack is once again showcasing another brand new issue of SSOC!  64 startling pages of barbaric savagery in black-and-white printed on newsprint! Inside this stunning magazine you will find the following: Terrific art pin-ups: Conan the Barbarian by Thomas Nachlik Conan the Barbarian by Fernando Dagnino Guerra CONAN: TATTERED WINGS chapter 1: Mirrors of the Soul by Liam Sharp Conan and his Hyrkanian mercenaries have been hired to rescue the "kidnaped" son of wizened warlord Marrik Ban Torr. Shemu, Batu and the rest of Conan's comrades get taken out by unseen Wolven (wolf-men) slingers. Conan gets tapped twice in the head and passes out. Conan wakes up the next day and builds a funeral pyre for his fallen friends.  The ancient Bel-Karun, Uruk-Tah and another guard escort Conan to "the aerie" to meet the Master of the forgotten Fortress of Ekur-Gal: King Anzu-Kur, the bird mage of the Black Pinions... who is a twin ...

Scourge of the Serpent part 2 (of 4): Words of Power. The epic new Conan event from Heroic Signatures and Titan Comics continues. The Thurian Age of Kull of Atlantis (from Robert E. Howard's The Shadow Kingdom). Gonar the Seeker (from Kings of the Night) proclaims that time and space do not exist, that EVERYTHING is happening NOW. Brule the Spear-Slayer reminds Kull (the king of Valusia) that Serpent-Men, similar to an actor donning a mask, can resemble anyone they decide to impersonate. Uncounted centuries ago, we see the race of men who battled with the grisly beings of the ELDER UNIVERSE. Men in combat with hideous monsters, vanquishing a planet of frightful terrors: the bird-women, the harpies, the bat-men, the flying fiends, the wolf-people, the demons, the goblins, the wolf-men and the serpent-men. To conceal it from view, Brule picks up the carcass of the doppelgänger of chief councillor Tu and vanishes with it through another secret door. Kull wonders... Are the people of V...

64 restored and fully colored pages of barbaric savagery! Inside this magnificent full-color magazine you will find the following: Classic remastered art pin-ups: Conan the Barbarian by Alfredo Alcala from Savage Sword of Conan (1974) #1 Conan the Barbarian by John Buscema from Savage Sword of Conan (1974) #17 Conan ad by Jeff Aclin from Savage Sword of Conan (1974) #24 THE FROST GIANT’S DAUGHTER by Robert E. Howard, Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith. (New Colors by GFB Group/GFB.it) The uncensored version. Atali, Ymir's daughter lures Conan into an ambush, the barbarian cuts down Atali's brothers and the frost-giant retrieves his offspring.  OGRES, NYMPHS, AND ROCK STARS. SOME THOUGHTS ON THE SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN by Patrick Zircher (Solomon Kane: The Serpent Ring) The Z-Man waxes lyrical about The Tower of the Elephant and The Frost-Giant's Daughter. CIMMERIA (a poem) by Robert E. Howard, Barry Windsor-Smith and Tim Conrad. (New Colors by Jão Canola) Conan wrestles a wol...

eBook by Brian D. Anderson Cover by E. M. Gist  From Titan Books and Heroic Signatures Spoilers! Spoilers!  Central Kush. Conan and others are protecting their employer Marisova Mella, Mella's caravan full of silks and linens, Mella's wife Shayistra and young Joni (Shayistra's secret lover). Kushite mercenaries attack the convoy! Titus Havarius (also a Kushite) saves his Cimmerian friend's skin once again. Mella gets murdered. The attackers retreat. Titus suspects that Mella's wife hired the killers to kill her husband. Shayistra refuses to pay Conan and company, Conan threatens her gigolo and to make her mariticide known to the magistrate... they get paid in gold. Conan, Titus, and the Hyrkanian cousins: Asher & Cabil leave the caravan for the small village of Albon.  Titus has to leave Conan, he is wanted back home. Kush. Conan and twenty soldiers of fortune are now working for Lord Gulan Adria to end a siege. Lord Adria had seized nearly all the harvest of hi...