Season 18 Episode Zubteen: Jim Zub Returns to talk Conan Comics

Greetings Cromrades! We are so excited to bring you the return of Jim Zub to the show. In the time since we last spoke, Jim has been a part of a high flying launch of Titan Comic's Conan the Barbarian monthly series. If the numbers are any indication, we're guessing most of you are already reading it. If you aren't though, tune in to hear from Jim about what you are missing out on. Plus, you can easily catch up with the first trade paperback, due out next month. Even more exciting, the upcoming return of The Savage Sword of Conan. King Conan has returned to conquer your local comic shop, so get your copy!!

Upcoming publications

https://titan-comics.com/c/1972-conan-the-barbarian-vol-1/

https://titan-comics.com/c/2020-the-savage-sword-of-conan/

Connect with Jim at his home base: https://www.jimzub.com/

Questions? Comments? Curses? 

Call us at (859) 429-CROM!

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We're posting photos on the Instagrams!

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We're also on Google Play!

Legal Mumbo-Jumbo

Our episode is freely available on archive.org and is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ 

Themes by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. 

Outro: "Icon of Sin" by The Cimmerian. Music obtained legally; we hope our discussion of this content makes you want to go out and purchase the work! 

Season 18, Episode 9: Conan in Comics with Jim Zub!

Welcome back to the show, Cromrades! This week we are thrilled to share a conversation we had with sword and sorcery fan and comic book writer Jim Zub! Jim tells us about the upcoming Conan comic series from Titan Comics. By now, hopefully you've all had a chance to pick up the Free Comic Book Day copy of Conan the Barbarian Issue #0! The art by Robert De La Torre absolutely rips, and the story in Issue #0 is a big way to start anew with Conan in comics at Titan! Issue #1 goes on sale July 26, so be sure to add it to your pull list! Check out more information here!

Visit Jim Zub's website to keep up with his projects, and tell him The Cromcast sent ya! 

Check out Jim's TED Talk, titled "Raised by Dragons!"

Next time - come with us to the Black Coast! 

Questions? Comments? Curses? 

Call us at (859) 429-CROM!

You know you want to follow us on Twitter!
Did you know that we're on Facebook?
We're posting photos on the Instagrams!
Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner!
Or, check us out on iTunes!
We're also on Stitcher Radio and Google Play!

Legal Mumbo-Jumbo

Our episode is freely available on archive.org and is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Themes by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. Outro: "We Don't Need Another Hero" originally by Tina Turner, but covered here by Ghost. Music obtained legally; we hope our discussion of this content makes you want to go out and purchase the work! 

Season 12, Episode 7: Hellboy - The Crooked Man

 

There was a crooked man, and he walked a crooked mile,He found a crooked sixpence against a crooked stile;He bought a crooked cat which caught a crooked mouse,And they all lived together in a little crooked house.

 Welcome back to the mountain trail, Cromrades! We were just about to get dinner started - a little tin of sardines, some saltine crackers, and a big bottle of homebrew, you know... trail food. All of a sudden, this big red feller come runnin' up the trail. Seemed to be in a hurry, so we let him pass. We figured we'd catch up with him, sooner or later. What's that? You know him? He looked a lot like this... 

This week we're diving into The Crooked Man by Mike Mignola, with art by Richard Corben, originally published from July through September, 2008. Hellboy has a lot in common with John the Balladeer, and we think you'll agree, and this story is heavily influenced by Manly Wade Wellman's mountain wanderer. If you haven't read this, you owe it to yourself to check it out. The best way to pick it up these days might be in the Hellboy: The Complete Short Stories omnibus. 

The villainous Crooked Man is brought to horrifying life by the artistic talents of Richard Corben. He's a visually striking character, and we could easily imagine him going up against Silver John. 

Josh mentioned some literature about witch balls. Check it out here: Sympathetic Magic in the Kentucky Mountains: Some Curious Folk-Survivals

One Things

Jon: Hunting Eichmann: Chasing Down the World's Most Notorious Nazi

Josh: The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

Luke: Philip K. Dick Energy - Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said, and A Scanner Darkly

Next time - we go to the movies to watch the Cohen brothers classic, O Brother, Where Art Thou? It's bonafide! 

Questions? Comments? Curses?

Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)

You know you want to follow us on Twitter!
Did you know that we're on Facebook?
We're posting photos on the Instagrams!
Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner!
Or, check us out on iTunes!
We're also on Stitcher Radio and Google Play!
Finally.... Call us! (859) 429-CROM!

Legal Mumbo-Jumbo

Our episode is freely available on archive.org and is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Themes by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. 

Outro: "Crooked Man" by Those Poor Bastards. Music was obtained legally; we hope our discussion of this content makes you want to go out and purchase the work!

Season 11, Episode 2- An Invitation to Cross Plains

Hey cromrades! Today we have a surprise addition to our western season. Instead of covering a story, we got to talk with Robert E. Howard super-fan, "Indy" Bill Cavalier! Think of this as an open invitation to come to Cross Plains, TX this summer so you can take part in Howard Days 2020. This year everyone will be celebrating 50 years of Conan in the Comics and we get to do so with "Rascally" Roy Thomas! So tune in and hear all about why you should mark your calendars for June 12-13th and pack your saddle bags! We'll see you there!

Check out Howard Days on the web at the links below!
https://www.facebook.com/RobertEHowardDays/
http://www.howarddays.com/
Be sure to register for dinner and bring some petty cash with you so you can participate in the silent auction!

Special thanks to our guest Indy!

"Indy" Bill Cavalier himself!

Questions? Comments? Curses?

Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)

You know you want to follow us on Twitter!
Did you know that we're on Facebook?
We're posting photos on the Instagrams!
Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner!
Or, check us out on iTunes!
We're also on Stitcher Radio and Google Play!
Finally.... Call us! (859) 429-CROM!

Legal Mumbo-Jumbo

Our episode is freely available on archive.org and is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Themes by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. 

Outro: "For a Few Dollars More" by Ennio Moriconne. Music was obtained legally; we hope our discussion of this content makes you want to go out and purchase the work!

Season 9 Episode 5: The Adaptations of "Queen of the Black Coast"!

Greetings, Cromrades! This week we set sail yet again, aboard The Tigress this time and with a different captain! We return to the Hyborian Age to discuss "Queen of the Black Coast", focusing on the original text and two comic book adaptations of the story; one from Marvel by Roy Thomas and John Buscema, and the other from Dark Horse by Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan! We also dig into the philosophy of adapting materials from one medium to another. Get ready, this one's an adventure!

Cover for Weird Tales, May 1934
Art by Margaret Brundage

One Things
Jon: Aquaman, Vol. 6 from ca. 2003.  (Water hand? King Shark? Sub Diego? Pure comic book fun!)
Josh: Civilization V (The Ultimate Time Sink!)
Luke: HBO's Game of Thrones! (Ever heard of it?)

Next time: We face Viking armies on the eastern coast of Ireland in the year 1014!!!

Questions? Comments? Curses?

Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)

You know you want to follow us on Twitter!
Did you know that we're on Facebook?
We're posting photos on the Instagrams!
Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner!
Or, check us out on iTunes!
We're also on Stitcher Radio and Google Play!
Finally.... Call us! (859) 429-CROM!

Legal Mumbo-Jumbo

Our episode is freely available on archive.org and is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Themes by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0. 

Outro: "Queen of the Black Coast" by Manilla Road.  All music was obtained legally; we hope our discussion of this content makes you want to go out and purchase the work!

Microsode 01 - The Cromcast vs ComiXology and DRM (A Short Discussion)

Hello, Cromrades! While we were preparing the Red Nails discussion last night, we sort of went off on a tangent about ComiXology, DRM, and online "virtual" media. Read a bit more about the acquisition of ComiXology by Amazon at PC Magazine and at Engadget.

What do you think? Does this move make you angry? Happy? Are you indifferent? Let us know! Email, tweet, or call us! (859-429-2766). Do you read comics on a mobile device? Do you use Steam to purchase games? Why or why not?

Questions? Comments? Curses? Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)
You know you want to follow us on Twitter!
Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner! Or, check us out on iTunes!

Beginning theme: "Sudden Defeat" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Bonus Episode: Side Quest #1 (or, The Long Con)

The Cromcast recently went on an adventure... a side quest To the 2014 Lexington Comic and Toy Con!
 
We're excited to showcase some of our schwag, and we were able to snap a few pictures along the way! If you're interested, then please read on! If comics aren't your thing, then just sit tight. Episode #20 will be dropping before you know it!

This first sketch was given to us by our buddy, Justin Stewart! You remember him, right? Awesome artist and fellow podcaster? We talked with him back in Episode #15 about Conan and comics! He and the rest of the Beaucoup Pop crew were holding down the "1000 section" of the con... Kentucky Proud!

And here's a Red Sonya sketch that Luke commissioned Jay Myers! Jay's another Lexington artist and, man, he KILLED it with this commission! Seriously, this guy has some chops. Check out loads of his art here!

 

And then we come to Stephen Moore's piece... Stevie's the brain and art behind Studiospectre. It was awesome to talk with him about weird fiction and his interest in paleo-art.You can be sure we'll be talking with Stevie down the road. But until then, you can check out some of Stevie's work here!

And one more Kentucky Proud artist! The pics above are from Sara Turner's new mini-comic, "The Boneyard!" Sara writes The Ghosts of Pineville (buy it here), which is hands-down one of the best all-ages ghost stories out there. Do you have a "weird" little niece or nephew in your life? Daughter or son? Seriously, buy them one of these books... They will love it. Or end up peeing their pants. Maybe both.

And now how about an interview photo or two?

This first photo is of Mr. Gary Kwapisz, a comics stalwart! Gary was kind enough to talk with us about his past work on Marvel's Savage Sword of Conan and also about his upcoming work, Stonewall's Arm! Gary's run in comics is amazing. Check out his body of work here!

This second photo is the hardest workin' man in the comics industry, Victor Dandridge! Victor's on the right, calling out Mark Waid and doing one of the best "bad" Schwarzenegger impressions you've ever heard. The "mic man" is our very own Cromcaster Josh,  and Mr. Smiley there is Cromcaster Jon!

As you'll hear in the interview, Victor has a hand in a LOT of projects. The guy's energy is astounding. Check out his company, Vantage Inhouse Productions here. You can get the scoop there about U Cre-8 Comics, his line of 8 bit art, and all of his company's comics work!

And finally.... How about we wrap things up with some of our biggest scores from the con....

 

Jon made out like a villian with a slew of some comics, and was able to get killer autographs from Jim Steranko and Mike Royer. No lie, those fellows are living legends!



In addition to some Kentucky Proud sketches, Luke was able to bag over 500 pages of The House of Mystery, as well as a collection of the first issues of the original Vampirella series. Horror anthology goodness!

All in all, the Lexington Comic and Toy Convention was a huge success. 2015 will be the fourth year for this event, and it looks to be even bigger and better, with even more guests and vendors! Be sure to keep your eye on the LCTC website and think about adding it to your calendar next spring!

Questions? Comments? Curses? Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)
Also, you know you wanna follow us on Twitter!
Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner! Or, check us out on iTunes!

Beginning theme: "Sudden Defeat" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Episode 15: Savage Sword of Comics! (Or, Conan vs. Sequential Art)

This week we take a look at the history of Conan comics, in particular The Savage Sword of Conan from Marvel Comics. With some help from our good friend Justin Stewart we discuss Roy Thomas as an adapter and as a creator, the artistic differences between Barry Windsor-Smith and John Buscema, and finally talk about comic book inking and comparing Alfredo Alcala and Tony Dezuniga!

The stories for the week are...

The Frost Giants Daughter, The Citadel at the Center of Time, and The Flame Knife!



Here is some original art by Buscema and Alcala from The Citadel at the Center of Time:

If you are interested in reading any of the articles we discuss, check out the following links:

Tom Scioli article on Barry Windsor Smith

Roy Thomas interviews John Buscema

Great moments in Savage Sword of Conan!

If you want some digital Conan goodness, here is the Dark Horse Comics digital app!

Thanks again to Justin for agreeing to do a show with us!

Pretty great sketch, huh? That's from his "Inktober" Project that we discuss on the episode. Check out this project and his larger body of work at his website. Or just pester him on the Twitter (@justin3000). He'd love that.

Our next story is The People of the Black Circle (read it on Project Gutenberg Australia).

Beginning theme: "Sudden Defeat" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
The ending theme was pulled from the Youtube and used without permission.

Thanks for listening!

Questions? Comments? Curses? Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)

Follow us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner! Or, check us out on iTunes!

Comic Episode Primer

Hey everyone! This is Jon. Up next on the show will be our episode dedicated to the Savage Sword of Conan, a comic series published by Marvel for over twenty years. Now, we understand that not everyone is as into comics as we are. Due to that I am hoping that by providing this primer on the cast of creators involved everyone can listen to and enjoy episode fifteen!

The Company

Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin Goodman (more on him in a bit) as Timely Publications. The company first found success in WWII by publishing comics with heroes like Namor the Submariner, The Human Torch, and Captain America. After the war the company became more widely known as Atlas Comics and produced a wide variety of knock off horror, western, crime, and romance comics. The comic book industry as a whole slumped with the introduction of The Comics Code Authority, a government sponsored program to ensure comics didn't corrupt children. By the 60's superhero comics were coming back into the style and Goodman told his nephew and editor in chief, Stan Lee, to create him a super hero line. Lee along with Jack Kirby introduced the Fantastic Four in November 1961. Of course today they publish the world's most famous comics and are a multimedia presence with TV shows, cartoons, and obviously movies. At the time we meet them in our story about Conan comics, the company has recently overtaken DC as the top selling company. 

Art Party Friday: January 10th 2014

Hello Cromrades! Luke here, standing in for Sir Jon. We want to show off some cool Howard inspired art out there on the interwubz. If you have any art you wish to share, be you the creator or just an admirer, please email us at thecromcrast@gmail.com with the image and source and we will try to feature it here on the blog! Also, please visit one or all of the sites for these talented folks. You can always find art for purchase, prints, or even coffee mugs to buy!

Since we're prepping for an upcoming episode focusing on Conan in comics, let's focus on some of the artwork from Marvel's Savage Sword of Conan magazine! It's crazy how long that magazine ran... 235 issues! Seriously, if you have 15 minutes to kill, just take a trip over to Comic Vine and look over all the great stories and articles that ran in that series.

First off, here's Tim Conrad's Conan in "The Forever Phial" in Savage Sword of Conan #8...

And here's the killer Red Sonja by Frank Thorne found in "Wizards of the Black Sun" from Savage Sword of Conan #23...

Finally, here's the great opener from Baron Yoshimoto's "In the Desert of Dreams," found in Savage Sword of Conan #67...

Varied art styles, same great series!

If you're interested in reading any of the comics we'll be specifically discussing in our upcoming comics episode, check out the Barry Windsor Smith art for "The Frost Giant's Daughter" (reprinted in Savage Sword of Conan #1), as well as the Buscema / Alcala art on "The Citadel at the Center of Time" (Savage Sword of Conan #7), and the Buscema / DeZuniga art team-up on "The Flame Knife" (Savage Sword of Conan #31). All penned by Roy Thomas, we hope to delve into his strengths when adapting material versus developing original content. The first couple stories are in the first Dark Horse volume and "The Flame Knife" is in the third Dark Horse volume.

That's it for this week!!! 

Look for some sweet jams early next week when the new episode drops!

Art Party Friday: January 3rd 2014

Hello Cromrades! It is I, Jon! I am here to show off some cool Howard inspired art I have found in my wanderings on the internet. If you have any art you wish to share, be you the creator or just an admirer, please do email us at thecromcrast@gmail.com with the image and source and we will try to feature it here on the blog! Also, please visit one or all of the sites for these talented folks. You can always find art for purchase, prints, or even coffee mugs to buy!

Today we will be all Conan, all the time!

Cover to Conan the Cimmerian #20 by Cary Nord

http://carynord.deviantart.com/ or @carynord

Conan in the Snow by Benito Gallego

http://www.benitogallego.com/index.php

@Benito_Gallego

Cover to Conan Saga #4 by Barry Windsor Smith 

http://barrywindsor-smith.com/

Conan the Barbarian by Darren Goodacre

Conan the Barbarian movie poster redesign by We Buy Your Kids

http://wbyk.com.au/

@WEBUYYOURKIDS

Cover to Giant Size Conan the Barbarian by Jack Kirby

http://kirbymuseum.org/

That's all for this week everyone! Check out the newest episode:

But also steel yourselves for our next ear smashing and vertigo inducing episode:

Episode 10 - Iron Shadows in the Moon (Or, Nothing Surprises Conan)

Art by Mark Shultz

"They were statues, apparently of iron, black and shining as if
continually polished. They were life-sized, depicting tall, lithely
powerful men, with cruel hawklike faces. They were naked, and every
swell, depression and contour of joint and sinew was represented with
incredible realism. But the most lifelike feature was their proud,
intolerant faces. These features were not cast in the same mold. Each
face possessed its own individual characteristics, though there was a
tribal likeness between them all. There was none of the monotonous
uniformity of decorative art, in the faces at least.

"They seem to be listening--and waiting!" whispered the girl uneasily..." 

Time for adventure! The Cromcast is back, making our way down The Road of Kings! This week's tale is called Iron Shadows in the Moon (AKA Shadows in the Moonlight - Read it on Project Gutenberg Australia). If that alternate title made you expect a romantic comedy featuring Conan the Barbarian, we're sorry to disappoint you. This is a tale of revenge, island adventure, pirates, and more!

Our next story continues the pirate theme - Queen of the Black Coast! (Read it on Project Gutenberg Australia!) We're all very excited for this one! Let us know what you think of it!

Beginning theme: "Sudden Defeat" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Ending theme: Tuba of Crom! Anvil of Crom arranged for six tubas. Found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=au-xtvEANWg. Arrangement of  "Anvil of Crom" by Basil Poledouris, from the Conan the Barbarian: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Original Score: (c) 1982 Basil Poledouris; Original Album: (c) 2010 Prometheus Records. Used without permission.

Thanks for listening!

Questions? Comments? Curses? Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)

Follow us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner! Or, check us out on iTunes!

Howard's Horrors: The Black Stone!

Hey all, Luke here! Just finished another REH story last night, The Black Stone.
Here's the Roquefort Raider's interpretation of that strange obelisk...

Pretty ominous, huh? This widely-lauded "Cthulhu mythos" story was first published in Weird Tales in November of '31... Right out of the gate I noticed that REH set a very different tone from both Haunter of the Ring and Pigeons from Hell (the other straight horror stories from REH that I've read)... REH "grounds" this story with a backdrop of mythical books and poetry that surround an unnatural, perhaps mystical, obelisk in the rural landscape of Hungary. 

Needless to say, the nameless narrator of the story can't be happy with just reading about such weird landmarks, he is compelled to take a little holiday to investigate this obelisk... And did I mention it happens to be around the time of the summer solstice?

Once darkness falls, the story takes on a dream-like quality. And as the events of that night build to a fever-pitch, the story turns into a blood-curdling nightmare! This tale has by far the most striking and horrific act(s) of violence that I've read by REH, though I would say not gratuitous in the least.

I think this is a tremendous story! While there are arguments to be made about its derivative qualities (see this well-written essay by Price), I am of the mind that this is as much a tale that exhibits "Howardian" themes as those typically associated with Lovecraft.... Without spoiling too much, there is a heavy reliance on civilization and race, which I think is a nice contrast with the theme of doomed familial relations and heritage that are more commonly acknowledged Lovecraftian tropes. 

If you've read this story, what do you think? Sound off in the comments section below!

I give this story a hearty recommendation. It's free on Project Gutenburg or, if you're on the hunt for an audio retelling of the story, check out an older post by SFF Audio. They give some great shout-outs to podcasts that narrated the The Black Stone. Their post also presents some additional art inspired by the story! 

And on that note, I'll leave you with the cover art for Bantam's 1979 edition of the "Wolfshead" collection... Who knows what that being that lurks on the top of the dread black stone?

And from when?!?!?!

Episode 09 - Howard's Horrors: The Haunter of the Ring and Pigeons From Hell (or Zuvembies Just Wanna Have Fun...)

Oh, greetings! I didn't notice you were there! I was just admiring this ring... Do you like it? I found it at auction last week. Isn't it curious? Shaped like a serpent eating its own tail, it is. Eyes with gems that glow, see? Like an unholy fire... You know, they say this ring belonged once to a wizard, long ago, the ill-fated Thoth-Amon himself! It is written in Unaussprechlichen Kulten of the dark and terrible magics Thoth-Amon wrought with this ring. They say that the ring "was found in a nighted tomb a league beneath the earth, forgotten before the first man crawled out of the slimy sea..." If you believe such things... But may as well believe in this passage dealing with voodoo and the creation of zuvembies! And you don't... do you?!

My ring... (Artist Unknown)

Our first Howardian Horror episode is stacked with two tales of terror! You should download it here! First, we tackle The Haunter of the Ring, first published in the June 1934 issue of Weird Tales (read it on WikiSource!) We follow up that discussion with one of our new favorite horror stories, Pigeons From Hell (read it on Project Gutenberg!). This latter story was published posthumously by Weird Tales in 1938. From our perspectives, we've always known Howard as a visionary in the pulps, and progenitor of the sword and sorcery genre. But, the man had a keen eye for horror as well! We hope you enjoyed these stories as much as we did! Check out Amazon if you're looking for a discount-priced copy of Those Across the River or Twilight... Both are great! 

He heard the call of the zuvembie... Art by Robert Sanker

Happy Halloween! Beginning theme: "Grave Blow" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Ending theme: "Conan the Barbarian Theme for Piano". Arrangement of  "Anvil of Crom" by Basil Poledouris, from the Conan the Barbarian: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Original Score: (c) 1982 Basil Poledouris; Original Album: (c) 2010 Prometheus Records. Used without permission.

Thanks for listening!

Questions? Comments? Curses? Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)

Follow us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner! Or, check us out on iTunes!

It's a zuvembie attack!

Another spine-tingling episode is in the works...

Until then, check out some Gene Colan art from Strange Tales #171! And dig into that old stack of horror comics you have laying around the house!

What are some of your favorites?

Episode 08 - The Frost Giant's Daughter (or, Gods of The North)

"...To fields of the dead she comes, and shows herself to the dying! Myself when a boy I saw her, when I lay half-slain on the bloody field of Wolraven. I saw her walk among the dead in the snows, her naked body gleaming like ivory and her golden hair unbearably bright in the moonlight. I lay and howled like a dying dog because I could not crawl after her. She lures men from stricken fields into the wastelands to be slain by her brothers, the ice-giants, who lay men's red hearts smoking on Ymir's board..."

Hear now of a time in our hero's life, when he was very young, when rage and passion overtook his heart! Hear now of the meeting between Conan, the Cimmerian, and Atali, the Frost Giant's Daughter! And woe to you if you encounter her, in the frozen wastes of the North! Download the episode here!

The Frost Giant's Daughter has a murky publication history. It was rejected by Weird Tales and submitted to The Fantasy Fan where it was published as Gods of the North. Years later, L. Sprague de Camp released a version of it titled The Frost Giant's Daughter, published in Fantasy Fiction in 1953. This version was extensively rewritten. The version we read is from The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian by Del Rey. 

Interested in some of the mythology behind this story? Check out this link with some of the info Jonathan mentions in the episode... Then just get lost in a myriad of great Norse stories.

Interested in some great audio recordings of this story? Check out the these episodes from Podcastle, Athena Audio Theater Company, and Protecting Project Pulp.

Next time, we're getting scary! October is Cromtober here at The Cromcast! Howard not only invented the sword and sorcery genre, but made some great contributions to the horror genre as well! Read your Howard Horror for the end of October! Next time, we'll be taking a short break from The Cimmerian and discussing The Haunter of the Ring (read it here), as well as Pigeons from Hell (read it here). 

Beginning theme: "Sudden Defeat" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Ending theme: "Double 8Bit Remix - Conan The Barbarian Theme & Prologue". Found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr9cde0dQEg. Arrangement of  "Anvil of Crom" by Basil Poledouris, from the Conan the Barbarian: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Original Score: (c) 1982 Basil Poledouris; Original Album: (c) 2010 Prometheus Records. Used without permission.

Thanks for listening!

Questions? Comments? Curses? Email us! (thecromcast at gmail dot com)

Follow us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our feed on FeedBurner! Or, check us out on iTunes!

Notes From the Road... Cincy Comic Con 2013!

The Cromcast recently took a trip to the Cincinnati Comic Con...

And what a day! I think it's safe to say that we "pulped it out" as much as possible. Some great buys were found, some great discussions were had, and we made some new friends of the show!!! 

What kinds of finds did we run across? Who did we meet? Well, a string of images and notes follow... If you're interested, then please read on! However, if this seems like a bit of over-indulgence, then just sit tight... Episode #6 will be coming your way lickety-split!!!

The first image here is a great commission from Alejandro Bruzzese. I asked for a Red Sonya, specifically one that was "a bit more foreboding, and a bit less cheesecake..." Needless to say, you can see that Alejandro flat-out nailed it. It's already on display in Cromcast Central. 

Besides the sketch we were able to talk a bit with Alejandro about some of his ongoing work. His webcomic, Proxy, is AMAZING! Seriously, there's not much else out there that I think does such a good job of blending the weird with the psychedelic. And then, for good measure, add just a touch of horror. JUST LOOK AT THAT ALIEN! 

The next on our list is a sketch from John Sebastian...

John is a multi-faceted guy. First, as you can tell from the above work, he is one hell of a visual artist. Lots of heavy metal linework, lots of love for the genre, lots of horror. Some serious weirdifiied and pulpified goodness there. John told me he thought this could be best described as "some sort of eldrtich sorceror trying his hand at summoning an Old One..." Or something along those lines. Regardless, it is truly horrific. And excellent!

But beyond these sketches, John is also part of the Cincinnati-based band, Grey Host! Check out their Bandcamp page and you can stream their full album, Dawn for Vultures, and buy it for a mere $6. If you're into any sort of doom / sludge metal, this is some great stuff. It's been on heavy rotation for me since we left the convention. Here's the opening track from the album... Queue it up and get yer metal on! 

From our talks with John it looks like Grey Host is in the studio prepping some new material, and at least one song has some serious Conan connections! These guys have agreed to let us feature this new song in the upcoming music episode of the podcast, so be looking for a premiere release of that song right here on THE CROMCAST!

And finally...

These images are some of the books we picked up. Some great finds, both comics and prose!

Whewww, I think that about wraps it all up. What a weekend! 

See ya on the next podcast!

How Cool was John Buscema?

Rhetorical question... 'Cause if you've read any classic comics, then you know that he was one talented fellow. Yeah, I know, I know, we're flogging a dead horse here, but he absolutely tore it up on Savage Sword of Conan! Here's a bit from issue #22 with inks by Sonny Trinidad...

And, if you have the time, check this out!

It's a great interview piece presented in Savage Sword of Conan #15.
(Thanks to Diversions of the Groovy Kind for initially posting this)

Have you read "The Pool of the Black One" yet? You best be getting on that!

Don't Get Left in the Dusk...

Have you read "The Slithering Shadow" yet? If you haven't, then by the voluptuous hips of Ishtar, what are you waiting for?!?! THE TIME IS NIGH! Another Cromcast will be here before you know it...

This story is chock-full of all the sword & sorcery you crave! But don't take our word for it... Get a load of some of the Buscema & Alcala art from their adaptation in Savage Sword of Conan #20!

Episode 03 - The Tower of the Elephant (Or, Sayonara Yara! An Elephant Alien Demon God Man Never Forgets!)

Episode three time! This week, we discuss the classic Conan the Cimmerian tale "The Tower of the Elephant"! (Download mp3 here!) You can read the story on Wikisource here.

The awesome cover for Savage Sword of Conan #24, as done by Earl Norem! This issue includes one of Marvel's multiple "Tower of the Elephant" adaptations.

Here are some resources for this week's tale!

1. Gary Romeo's essay on REHUPA.

2. The online / open-source text-based computer game.

3. General comments about TotE in relation to other contemporary stories (Tolkien, Dunsany, etc).

4. Dungeons and Dragons module for TotE.

5. Bandcamp Page for The Tower of the Elephant, a stoner rock band. Check 'em out, and send us other Robert E. Howard inspired music!

6. Here's a nice Comics Alliance article about Barry Windsor Smith, artist from some of Marvel's fine Conan adaptations! His interpretation of Conan is unique. Let us know who you think drew the best Conan!

In two weeks, join us for the next thrilling Conan the Cimmerian adventure, Black Colossus!
(Read it on Wikisource.)

"Sudden Defeat" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

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See you in a couple weeks!