134 replies to this topic

[brianwood]

Bêlit in Cimmeria!

CONAN THE BARBARIAN #7
Brian Wood (W), Becky Cloonan (A), Dave Stewart ©, and Massimo Carnevale (Cover)
On sale Aug 8
FC, 32 pages
$3.50

Artist Becky Cloonan rejoins Brian Wood for a new story arc! Hearing of an impostor committing atrocities in his name, Conan returns to Cimmeria to confront the scoundrel. In the frozen North of Conan’s birth, it is now Bêlit who is out of her element!

• New arc! Great jumping-on point!

• From the powerhouse team of Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan!

“[Becky Cloonan’s artistic] voice is not a typically feminine lilt, but a frost-bitten, guttural snarl . . . she now draws with ferocious energy and incredible detail.” —GraphicEye.com

[johnnypt]

I saw the cover this morning and thought "Whoa, that's an interesting idea." So this is where that panel in #3 comes from.

[Aquilonia]

Wow, what a shift... Never thought about Belit going to Cimmeria. Don`t find it convincing.
Nice colors, though.

[Officer Aggro]

She's wearing too much clothing! But really, good cover. Much better than the previous ones, I think. I'm very interested to see how Belit acts here when she's way out of her element.

[Taranaich]

She's wearing too much clothing!

Heh, I know you're being facetious, but this is an example where I'm perfectly happy to see Belit out of her formal attire: only Cimmerian women can go into battle naked.

While I'm very intrigued by the possibility of Belit going to Cimmeria (even if I'm not a fan of N'Yaga having gone there before, considering what tends to happen to most foreigners on Cimmerian soil), I'm a bit nonplussed about the reasons. Conan's a renowned name in Cimmeria, of course; and I can see an imposter living off Conan's name. I just think it's a stretch for an imposter to live off Conan's name in Cimmeria. Not a big fan of showing Cimmeria as perpetually snowy as opposed to dark and mist-shrouded, but we'll just assume it's winter or something.

But, as ever, we'll have to wait and see where Wood's going with this.

EDIT: Another thing that bothers me is how they get to Cimmeria. It seems they've set anchor on a cold, snowy landscape, which suggests they go to Cimmeria via Vanaheim. If you've read my posts on how Thulsa Doom couldn't get in - or, more pertinently, out - of Cimmeria, you see the problem. Now, a covert mission with just Conan & Belit (and maybe N'Gora and N'Yaga) could mean they could slip through Vanaheim unnoticed, and make for a tense little arc as they evade the Vanir, so hopefully that's where Wood's going with this.

Also, how did Conan learn of goings-on in Cimmeria all the way down south, where it's viewed as "half-mythical" by the Shemites and more southerly Hyborians?

I'm sure Wood will answer these questions, but still, they pose something of a quandary to me.

Edited by Taranaich, 10 May 2012 - 10:14 PM.

[VenariumDisease]

This dark horse series has had more pastiche taking place in Cimmeria than anything that's come before it. The challenge now is making everything consistent with not only REH, but like it or not, Busiek and Truman. Last time Dark Horse brought Conan home he lost a lover, maybe this time, his mother. Get that "mirth and melancholy" dynamic working.

[brianwood]

She's wearing too much clothing!

Heh, I know you're being facetious, but this is an example where I'm perfectly happy to see Belit out of her formal attire: only Cimmerian women can go into battle naked.

While I'm very intrigued by the possibility of Belit going to Cimmeria (even if I'm not a fan of N'Yaga having gone there before, considering what tends to happen to most foreigners on Cimmerian soil), I'm a bit nonplussed about the reasons.  Conan's a renowned name in Cimmeria, of course; and I can see an imposter living off Conan's name.  I just think it's a stretch for an imposter to live off Conan's name in Cimmeria.  Not a big fan of showing Cimmeria as perpetually snowy as opposed to dark and mist-shrouded, but we'll just assume it's winter or something.

But, as ever, we'll have to wait and see where Wood's going with this.

EDIT: Another thing that bothers me is how they get to Cimmeria.  It seems they've set anchor on a cold, snowy landscape, which suggests they go to Cimmeria via Vanaheim.  If you've read my posts on how Thulsa Doom couldn't get in - or, more pertinently, out - of Cimmeria, you see the problem.  Now, a covert mission with just Conan & Belit (and maybe N'Gora and N'Yaga) could mean they could slip through Vanaheim unnoticed, and make for a tense little arc as they evade the Vanir, so hopefully that's where Wood's going with this.

Also, how did Conan learn of goings-on in Cimmeria all the way down south, where it's viewed as "half-mythical" by the Shemites and more southerly Hyborians?

I'm sure Wood will answer these questions, but still, they pose something of a quandary to me.

You put a lot of speculation thought speculation into this.  You should just read the comic when it comes out!  

b

[wulfhere]

She's wearing too much clothing!

Also, how did Conan learn of goings-on in Cimmeria all the way down south, where it's viewed as "half-mythical" by the Shemites and more southerly Hyborians?

He takes Belit home to meet his mother and finds out while he's there.

[Primeval]

It's ony fair to balance my usual negativity about the DH comics with positivity when the opportunity arises - I like Belit in that cover and I like the idea behind this storyline. It will be interesting to see what happens with it.

[Ironhand]

Gorgeous picture! Belit is reacting to raw northern weather exactly as I would expect her to.

[Slashing Sword]

I like the cover even though Belit is too much covered

Belit is Cimmeria...??? Hmm...

[ZackDavisson]

You put a lot of speculation thought speculation into this. You should just read the comic when it comes out!

Oh come on now, Brian! Do you really expect people to sit passively and wait for their entertainment? That's like telling sports fans not to speculate on how their favorite players will do this season, and to just wait for the game.

I used to own a comic shop, and most of the fun about reading comics was hanging around talking about comics, speculating on what would happen next, about what would have been cooler if , about what team messed up what character, etc ... that's all these internet message boards are. Local comic shop chat expanded to an international audience.

If the only fun I ever got out of comics was reading them, they would be a pretty poor dollar-to-minute ROI as an entertainment medium.

Edited by ZackDavisson, 12 May 2012 - 12:35 AM.

[THE KID]

I like the way Belit was drawn! She reminds me of a movie actress Megan Fox of Transformers.


No offense but I visualize Conan looking more rugged and not so similar to Solomon Kane, 18 years old, and thin. If that blade is sharp wouldn't Conan get cut?

If Conan was bulkier, more rugged looking, and the cover artist did the interior art I'd like that very much. I have to admit I'm more visual and if the art is really good I'll keep reading but not vice versa.

I hope not to offend anyone but I just had a beer and my fingers are typing on their own.

[monk]

I like the way Belit was drawn! She reminds me of a movie actress Megan Fox of Transformers.


No offense but I visualize Conan looking more rugged and not so similar to Solomon Kane, 18 years old, and thin. If that blade is sharp wouldn't Conan get cut?

If Conan was bulkier, more rugged looking, and the cover artist did the interior art I'd like that very much. I have to admit I'm more visual and if the art is really good I'll keep reading but not vice versa.

I hope not to offend anyone but I just had a beer and my fingers are typing on their own.

agree on the bulkier more massy conan being the ideal- on the sword no he wouldn't get cut because the odds are good he's not hefting a razor edged blade, some medieval sword attacks and counters require a hand on the blade. gloved usually, or armored, but the effective sharpness of swords that have been cut tested show even unsharp swords can slice and be handled, and still result in significant corporal damage- meaning that swords probably were not sharpened to the degree many people assume.

[monk]

in this cover I love Belit, and I like the gear Conan is kitted out in. He seems to have lost his bronze though. like the composition a lot too, and the palette. so far I think this is one of carnevale's best conan covers.

[johnnypt]

Preview's up here: http://www.comicbook...?pid=13025&pg=1 (hopefully the link works, it did it on its own).

I think I want to wait and read the whole issue before commenting on what we see here. Since it starts in mid-story, we don't get the "why are they there" explanation yet.

Edited by johnnypt, 18 July 2012 - 09:48 PM.

[Officer Aggro]

Preview's up here: http://www.comicbook...?pid=13025&pg=1 (hopefully the link works, it did it on its own).

I think I want to wait and read the whole issue before commenting on what we see here. Since it starts in mid-story, we don't get the "why are they there" explanation yet.

Yeah, we still don't know why they're going to Cimmeria, but at least the forested terrain and climate is right in Conan's village. So far it looks interesting, and I like how Conan's mother is depicted.

[Aquilonia]

I really like Becky`s art and it is a shame that she is not doing the whole story.
The changing of artists is something that is leaving something to be desired I think, specially after seeing # 8 preview that is so awkward. It turns out that this arch will end up without any artistic identity.
Sigh...

[Taranaich]

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH.

That's it, complete moratorium from me starting now.

Edited by Taranaich, 20 July 2012 - 01:45 PM.

[Battleborn]

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH.

That's it, complete moratorium from me starting now.

Alright Taranaich.....I was wondering when you were going to make a stand against this train wreck.