King Conan: The Conqueror #1 is a new 6-part series written by Timothy Truman and published by Dark Horse chronicling Conan’s quest to acquire the Heart of Ahriman, an ancient gem that could help him regain his throne. A scribe has been commissioned to write the stories from King Conan’s life in his advanced age as he recounts them because there are many stories out there and this would serve as the true record of his life. And even though Conan would recount his earlier days and how he was freed from a dungeon by the woman who would eventually become his wife and queen, one notable tale was when he would seek the gem to reclaim his kingdom after it was used to summon a wizard who called upon an undead army to crush Conan and his forces. Conan had the gem within his grasp, and the key to reclaiming his kingdom, but it was stolen by a thief named Beloso, who Conan ended up tracking to the city of Messantia. But the story would only begin there as Messantia was a city that had its fair share of smugglers and pirates, and at one time even Conan was counted among them. So he knew very well that the allegiance of old acquaintances was shaky at best. But he would have an even bigger issue as hooded hunters would arrive in the city seeking the same thing he was, the Heart of Ahriman. So the scribe wouldn’t be going anywhere soon as the tale of how Conan reclaimed his kingdom was just beginning.

I was interested in this series because I do enjoy Conan stories in general, and the angle of a wiser, older king Conan recounting his days was a very interesting angle to me. This angle doesn’t take away from any of the suspense of the story because it’s not as if one would expect Conan to die in any current story while younger anyway, and there’s no hint as to how events unfolded until it’s told while Conan is recounting them. What it does do is add more gravitas to the tale, and it’s a refreshing take as we can see both the events taking place as well as Conan’s current view in his older age. And Timothy Truman does a wonderful job of weaving this tale together and making the older Conan easily relatable and laying out his current situation and mindset, which is still recognizable in ways. And the city of Messantia was a great setting as its back alleys and fair share of shady characters was the perfect backdrop for Conan’s actions that portray him in a wiser light, and a perfect backdrop for the type of characters he was up against. There’s plenty of action along the way and of course there are mystical elements in the story adding to the fun and intrigue. And with the developments that occur this issue there’s plenty of potential going forward to make every issue in this series as enjoyable as the first one.

SUMMARY

King Conan: The Conqueror #1 is a very solid start to a series that portrays Conan in the most enjoyable light I’ve seen in a while. I loved everything about the tone set through the recounting of the tale to the way the story unfolded as well as the setting it took place in. And the pacing was perfect as there was enough action worthy of a Conan issue but enough story development to keep the tale moving forward and fully engrossing. And after this issue I have high expectations for the rest of the series and with everything set in motion I believe it can live up to them easily.

Release Date: 2/26/14

Writer: Timothy Truman

Artist: Tomas Giorello