The Chronicles of King Conan, Vol. 6
Written by Alan Zelenetz and Don Kraar
Illustrated by Mark Silvestri, Geoff Isherwood, Mike Docherty, and Art Nichols
Rich Parker and Janice Chiang
Colored by George Roussos
Covers by Michael Kaluta
Dark Horse Comics
Release date: October 9, 2013
Cover Price: $19.99

The Chronicles of King Conan, Vol. 6, collects the Conan the King double-sized issues from 26-30, originally released in 1985, and long after Roy Thomas, John Buscema, and Ernie Chan had left the King Conan series, reprinted in The Chronicles of Conan volumes 1 and 2.

And unfortunately, this volume, as with the previous one, is nowhere near the quality of those Thomas/Buscema/Chan collections. It exhibits the signs of Marvel Comics flogging a waning franchise, employing B and C-list creators, and it’s most noticeable in the art dept.

Conan the Phenomenon
Written by Paul M. Sammon
Foreward by Michael Moorcock
Art by Various
Edited by Philip Simon
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: October 1, 2013
Cover Price: $19.99

The title of this compendium sounds like the third Ahnuld Conan movie if Joel Schumacher had directed it.

All kidding aside, Conan The Phenomenon, by Paul M. Sammon, is a chronological examination of Conan the Barbarian, starting at the beginning, and going right up to 2007 “” and as expected, it contains a lot of Frank Frazetta art, and a detailed look at the making of the Conan films.

But this book is also loaded with little-seen material “” my interest in Conan runs fairly deep, and I found plenty of material that was new to me. Beyond the informative biographical material and comprehensive list of all the published novels, I loved the relatively clean-cut Conan, illustrated by Wally Wood, and clearly bearing the likeness of popular actor Victor Mature. And I almost laughed out loud at British publisher T.V. Boardman‘s cover to Conan the Conqueror. I want a poster of that cover.

Korak, Son of Tarzan, Vol. 2
Hardcover
Written by Gaylord DuBois
Illustrated by Russ Manning
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: September 17, 2013
Cover Price: $49.99

A list of comic book artists inspired by Russ Manning would be a long one, and the fact that San Diego Comic Con gives out an annual award in his name is testament to that influence. Truly, Manning is a comic artist’s “artist,” one whose influence clearly exceeds his stature. Thankfully, the Dark Horse reprints of his Edgar Rice Burroughs works, as well as his own Magnus Robot Fighter series, are rectifying that.

Korak, Son of Tarzan, Vol. 2 is the second Dark Horse volume collecting Manning’s Gold Key Korak comics, and as with the first volume, these are original stories, written by Gaylord Dubois. They’re fun, imaginative, and move along at a brisk pace. However, as with those previous volumes, this collection is really all about the art. Simply, Manning is one of the medium’s masters. His line work is confident and expressive, and his command of the human (and animal) form is right up there with the likes of Hal Foster. Clearly, there wasn’t anything he couldn’t draw, and when one compares him with numerous artists of today who rely on photographic reference, that distinction becomes much more impressive.

Baltimore: The Infernal Train
Written by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden
Art by Ben Stenbeck
Cover by Ben Stenbeck with Dave Stewart
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: September 4, 2013
Cover Price: $3.50

I took on this assignment without knowing that there was an illustrated novel and several comic book series preceding it. Mike Mignola‘s name stood out, I like his Hellboy stuff, and have several volumes of that series on my shelf. Plus, it was a #1, so I figured this was a good place to start.

It wasn’t. Baltimore: The Infernal Train #1 is intended for readers already familiar with the characters, both seen and unseen. And because it’s so spare, there’s little else to grab your interest. Unless you’ve been chomping at the bit for more stories about vampires. (I haven’t).

Visual Funk: Jim Mahfood Art
Hardcover
By Jim Mahfood
IDW Publishing
Release Date: August 28, 2013
Cover Price: $49.99

Visual Funk: Jim Mahfood Art isn’t an examination of Jim Mahfood‘s comics work, that is, the work that made him famous (a brief look at Tank Girl notwithstanding), so there’s no narrative structure, nor a chronological exploration. And unlike similar books examining an artist’s oeuvre, there’s minimal text, save for brief subject introductions by Mahfood.

What it is, is a compendium of mostly posters, showcasing Mahfood’s angular, cartoony, street-level, graffiti, hip-hop via manga style “” page after page crackling with energy and attitude. I also saw many elements in his ink work that reminded me of the art of Bill Sienkiewicz, Ted McKeever, Ralph Steadman, and Joe Ollmann.