Created by Robert E. Howard all of the way back in 1932 as the star of a collection of fantasy tales, Conan the Barbarian remains an instantly-recognizable character. The character broke out of his initial run in the magazine Weird Tales, making it into comics, books, TV shows, video games, RPGs, and, of course, movies.
Perhaps the most famous rendition of the character was by the fittingly muscle-bound Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1982 Conan movie and its 1984 sequel. In the 80s, the Austrian was such an easy choice to play the low fantasy hero, and the first movie remains one of the most revered films of its genre. Arguably, it set a standard in fantasy filmmaking that went unmatched until Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy some 20 years later.
After long going dormant, or at least ignored in a more recent showing, Conan is back and bigger than ever across two entertainment mediums and with another reportedly on the way.
Titan brings Conan back to comics
On July 26 this year, Conan The Barbarian makes his epic return to comics. Written by Jim Zub with artists José Villarrubia and Roberto de la Torre, the cover of the first new instalment has been revealed by co-publishers Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures. Best of all, this won’t be another run retreading the origin story of Conan or the demise of his homeland.
Instead, he’s heading home years after the Battle of Venarium only to find out that there’s a new threat on its way from the Pictish wilderness. So, the tired and weary Conan must spring into battle again to protect the Cimmerians from this new invading horde. This new series marks the character’s first run with a new publisher following the IP’s break with Marvel, starting with a free issue on May 6.
Conan’s powering up the reels
Joining the increasing horde of creations based on TV and movies, which includes The Expendables, Game of Thrones, Rambo, Jumanji, and Vikings, Conan is now among the popular slots library at Wildz NZ. Helping to get fans into the game is the welcome bonus that comes with free spins, which can be played through on any slot, including the new Conan game.
It features 24 paylines, a medium-high volatility rating, and 96 percent RTP, but more importantly, it’s loaded with everything Conan. Much more comic Conan than the maligned Jason Momoa-led take, you’ll find the Barbarian himself, Toth-Amon, Valeria, and the helmet, sword, and grappling hooks on the reels. Being Conan, the features are rather mighty as well, with Tower Wilds and Battle Wilds the main attractions.
A Conan TV show is in the works
Conan can boast a bunch of video games, an 80s movie that was groundbreaking, and a complete flop from 2011. As it turns out, in 2018, he was also set to get a modern TV show adaptation helmed by Ryan Condal. Taken to Prime Video to help Amazon get its own Game of Thrones, as Jeff Bezos craved, Condal’s plan was turned away, reportedly due to “toxic masculinity.”
So, Condal left and ended up as the lauded showrunner of the superb House of the Dragon and the Conan show moved over to Prime Video’s main rival, Netflix. In September 2020, it was announced that the live-action epic was in the works under Pathfinder Media at Netflix and that the streaming platform holds an exclusive option to acquire the rights to the Conan library.
Conan The Barbarian is making a huge comeback right now across entertainment media, and hopefully, it won’t be long before the mighty character is slaying his foes on our TVs.
Evan McKenzie is a contributor at Vaughantoday.ca, covering a wide range of topics including local news, politics, business, technology, sports, entertainment, and lifestyle. He focuses on clear, balanced reporting that helps readers stay informed about current events and issues that matter to their communities. His work aims to provide useful information, timely updates, and relevant stories presented in an accessible and reader-friendly way.