Conan vol. 10: Iron Shadows in the Moon

This volume represents a couple endings as it collects the last four issues of the “Conan the Cimmerian” ongoing series and writer Tim Truman and artist Tomas Giorello’s final story about the title character’s adventures at this time in his life.  As “Conan” stories go, it’s pretty by-the-numbers as the barbarian’s escape with the beautiful Olivia leads them to an island filled with nasty wildlife, pirates, and the cursed remnants of a god’s vengeance.  Much fighting ensues, and while the setup may feel familiar, Truman and Giorello don’t phone it in and invest this romp with the same zest and excitement that has characterized their run on this series.  They’ll be tackling “King Conan” in a mini-series next and I’ll be looking to pick that up once it hits the trade format.

Also collected in this volume are two connected stories written and illustrated by Darick Robertson.  “Conan and the Mad King of Gaul” and “The Weight of the Crown” aren’t adapting any stories by Robert E. Howard, but they do rehash a theme that has been brought up from time to time in the ongoing series:  that for all of his ability, Conan isn’t meant to be a leader of men yet.  This leads us to some fairly predictable stories showing how the man comes to rule the land of Gaul and nearly destroy it under his rule.  Robertson shows himself to be a competent writer here, but that’s not enough to make these tales interesting.  His art proves a better fit for this character, as his years spent depicting the ultraviolent imaginings of Warren Ellis and Garth Ennis has made him a natural at realizing the brutality of Conan’s world.  That said, they’re not awful stories and no reason for anyone who has been following the series to skip picking up this volume.