Saddest Conan moments (both canon and pastiche)
Apr 4, 2017 16:34:43 GMT -5
Post by lordyam on Apr 4, 2017 16:34:43 GMT -5
You don't usually think of Conan tales as something that make you sad but occasionally there are moments that render even the most hard hearted bastard a bawling mess.
Canon - Belit's death and the funeral pyre; This is the one every howard fan knows. The death of Conan's first love and the ensuing funeral pyre is as iconic in it's own way as Conan breaking Baal Petor's neck. It's a moment of power and sorrow that puts many to shame. Even Brian Wood was unable to completely ruin the scene when he adapted it. In many ways the gold standard for all events that follow.
Pastiches
The Day of Farewell - Throughout the previous issues we saw Conan bond with the Aesir band and with the lovely Iasmini, a Turanian noble enslaved to Lord Aishti'ana. Conan finds out that Aishti'ana plans to enact his day of farewell.....which basically involves him jumping of a ledge. This would be fine except it involves dragging all his slaves with him. Conan persuades Iasmini to give him the plant that fights the drugs used to keep them under thrall to start an uprising.....which fails. Conan avoids recapture because he was thought dead, Iasmini and the others are brainwashed and despite Conan's best efforts Aishti'ana swats him aside forces him to the ground and then makes him watch as everyone jumps off the ledge. Conan makes it to the bottom....and finds their broken corpses. Even worse is that this is in a way Conan's fault. Iasmini trusted him to get her out but he tried to save both her AND his friends. As such he wound up saving neither. The shadow of what happens hangs over Conan for a good long time as a result of this (when Conan is in a similar situation he chooses to stay and fight rather than abandon his friends to the dark wizard chasing them) and it takes Conan being in a similar situation and succeeding (defeating Thoth's avatar and saving the people of Hanumar) before he forgives himself. Even then Conan is still scarred forever. His distrust of wizards turns into a boiling hatred.
Nestor's death - Poor Nestor. He starts out as Conan's enemy but over an adventure they become friends and even comrades. Sadly, Nestor had been cursed to die if he didn't kill Conan and then hunt him even as a zombie. In an act of true friendship Nestor refuses to carry out his orders even though he knows he seals his own fate. This results in Nestor getting captured, tortured brutally, and then hung from the gallows. Even Conan killing the priest responsible doesn't undo what happened, and Poor Nestor's suffering doesn't end there. Atalis drags his body back to Yaralet and the enchantment makes Nestor's corpse seek out Conan to kill him. It's only when Conan kills him AGAIN that he finds peace. Seriously. Rest in peace man. You really earned it.
The Illbars Massacre - Up until 2010 the event had not been depicted on page and Tim Truman did a good job. This is, what else, the slaughter of the Free Companions at the hands of Shah Amurath's men. The men Conan has led, bonded with and cared for all get slaughtered to a man with Conan escaping purely due to luck. Even worse is that you get to know the men over the proceding issues, and see them as people, and thus like Conan feel like you are loosing friends.
Wraal and Sephra - A little context; in order to delay Wraal Thulsa Doom conspires with Xuthal to call in a debt. The debt involves Wraal seducing the purest woman in the world, Sephra (daughter of Count Trocero) and offering her up to Xuthal. Wraal just wants to kill Conan and destroy the universe but his sense of honor compels him....but Sephra is so good that Wraal ends up falling in love with her and even contemplates abandoning his plans. Unfortunately Xuthal is a sadistic jerk and the moment they kiss he flambes her. This proceeds to destroy Wraal's sanity, leaving him open to defeat at Conan's hands. Ultimately the gambit works but poor Sephra is still dead. Even though it ultimately saved all existence it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. This worked because Sephra was a genuinely likable person, and her effect on Wraal was believable. Unfortunately, events conspired against them and so they couldn't get a happy ending.
Canon - Belit's death and the funeral pyre; This is the one every howard fan knows. The death of Conan's first love and the ensuing funeral pyre is as iconic in it's own way as Conan breaking Baal Petor's neck. It's a moment of power and sorrow that puts many to shame. Even Brian Wood was unable to completely ruin the scene when he adapted it. In many ways the gold standard for all events that follow.
Pastiches
The Day of Farewell - Throughout the previous issues we saw Conan bond with the Aesir band and with the lovely Iasmini, a Turanian noble enslaved to Lord Aishti'ana. Conan finds out that Aishti'ana plans to enact his day of farewell.....which basically involves him jumping of a ledge. This would be fine except it involves dragging all his slaves with him. Conan persuades Iasmini to give him the plant that fights the drugs used to keep them under thrall to start an uprising.....which fails. Conan avoids recapture because he was thought dead, Iasmini and the others are brainwashed and despite Conan's best efforts Aishti'ana swats him aside forces him to the ground and then makes him watch as everyone jumps off the ledge. Conan makes it to the bottom....and finds their broken corpses. Even worse is that this is in a way Conan's fault. Iasmini trusted him to get her out but he tried to save both her AND his friends. As such he wound up saving neither. The shadow of what happens hangs over Conan for a good long time as a result of this (when Conan is in a similar situation he chooses to stay and fight rather than abandon his friends to the dark wizard chasing them) and it takes Conan being in a similar situation and succeeding (defeating Thoth's avatar and saving the people of Hanumar) before he forgives himself. Even then Conan is still scarred forever. His distrust of wizards turns into a boiling hatred.
Nestor's death - Poor Nestor. He starts out as Conan's enemy but over an adventure they become friends and even comrades. Sadly, Nestor had been cursed to die if he didn't kill Conan and then hunt him even as a zombie. In an act of true friendship Nestor refuses to carry out his orders even though he knows he seals his own fate. This results in Nestor getting captured, tortured brutally, and then hung from the gallows. Even Conan killing the priest responsible doesn't undo what happened, and Poor Nestor's suffering doesn't end there. Atalis drags his body back to Yaralet and the enchantment makes Nestor's corpse seek out Conan to kill him. It's only when Conan kills him AGAIN that he finds peace. Seriously. Rest in peace man. You really earned it.
The Illbars Massacre - Up until 2010 the event had not been depicted on page and Tim Truman did a good job. This is, what else, the slaughter of the Free Companions at the hands of Shah Amurath's men. The men Conan has led, bonded with and cared for all get slaughtered to a man with Conan escaping purely due to luck. Even worse is that you get to know the men over the proceding issues, and see them as people, and thus like Conan feel like you are loosing friends.
Wraal and Sephra - A little context; in order to delay Wraal Thulsa Doom conspires with Xuthal to call in a debt. The debt involves Wraal seducing the purest woman in the world, Sephra (daughter of Count Trocero) and offering her up to Xuthal. Wraal just wants to kill Conan and destroy the universe but his sense of honor compels him....but Sephra is so good that Wraal ends up falling in love with her and even contemplates abandoning his plans. Unfortunately Xuthal is a sadistic jerk and the moment they kiss he flambes her. This proceeds to destroy Wraal's sanity, leaving him open to defeat at Conan's hands. Ultimately the gambit works but poor Sephra is still dead. Even though it ultimately saved all existence it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. This worked because Sephra was a genuinely likable person, and her effect on Wraal was believable. Unfortunately, events conspired against them and so they couldn't get a happy ending.
