Conan: Born on the Battlefield [Hardcover]

Kurt Busiek (Author), Greg Ruth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 25, 2008

Writer Kurt Busiek and artist Greg Ruth team up to give you the story of Conan's early life, from his birth on a Cimmerian battlefield to his coming-of-age as a warrior in the pivotal Battle of Venarium. Sewing the seeds of the Barbarian's momentous career, this chronicle of Conan's youthful conquests - both martial and carnal - also showcases master storytellers Busiek and Ruth's work at its finest.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Dark Horse; First Edition edition (May 25, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159307980X
• ISBN-13: 978-1593079802
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,152,077 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Volume 0 of the Dark Horse Series, November 7, 2008

By 

Juan carlos Veras "El Kenny" (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Conan: Born on the Battlefield (Conan (Dark Horse Unnumbered)) (Paperback)

If "The Frost Giant's Daughter" is the 1st volume of DHC's series Conana, then this one is its volume 0. Same quality level writing, different but still awesome art, and great characterization of Conan and the people of Cimmeria (of which we see very little of). All in all, if you like Conan in any shape or form, get this book.

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great!, August 15, 2008

By 

C. S. Nelson (Midwest, U.S.A.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Conan: Born on the Battlefield (Conan (Dark Horse Unnumbered)) (Paperback)

If you enjoy reading fantasy, enjoying a great tale, or just a good read, then you really should read this Graphic Novel. Yes, a graphic novel is nothing but a collection of 'comic' books into one volume and yes, I know how many people look down on comics. However, this is a very good read.

It is the story of Conan's youth in Cimmeria, from his birth until just after the sack of Vennarium. It is written by Kurt Busiek and illustrated by Greg Ruth. Busiek as usual shows his depth of understanding not only of the medium, but of his character. Conan was not created by Busiek, of course, but he almost seems to have inherited the same spirit that Howard often mentioned when he talked about the genesis of his Conan stories.

Ruth, the books illustrater is just, how should I put it? If you remember the old Frazetta covers to the Conan books published in the 70's then you should be awed by how much Ruth's art seems to channel that same feeling.

These two do not recreate the feely-touchy-smiley happy go lucky Conan of the live action TV series. They ignore the animated saturday morning shows almost as if they never existed (Thankfully!). They also studiously ignore the almost feminine Conan from Conan the Destroyer (can anyone say Polittically Correct? I knew you could ) and the "Im so stupid I cant stop drooling" Conan from Conan the Barbarian.

These books most resemble the stories by Howard and the very best of the old Savage Sword of Conan series. I remember buying those oversized SSoC comics as a kid. I was as much in awe of them as I am awed by the current crop of Busiek stories.

These books are a great read. Lots of fun.

I would recommend almost anything by Dark Horse in general, but the adaptation of Conan really stands out in my mind. It once again proves that Busiek is one of our greatest living authors in this field, equaled only by Frank Miller (perhaps! ) as well that Dark Horse is, perhaps, the best of the major comic publishers.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Portrait of the warrior as a young man, September 5, 2011

By 

GenesiusRedux "GR" (Chillin' at my place....) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Conan: Born on the Battlefield (Conan (Dark Horse Unnumbered)) (Paperback)

This addition to the Conan series has become one of my favorites. In adding to the Howard corpus, one of the dangers is in trying to out-Howard Howard. Kurt Busiek's story wisely refrains, showing a restraint in developing the character from childhood in ways that look forward to Conan's later adventures but do not attempt to "continue" where Howard "left off." We see a young Conan struggling to establish himself among the other children as well as the elders of his clan, sporadic encounters with wolves and mountain lions, introduction to love, supernatural encounters, all leading up to the grand battle that eventually set him on the path that would take him away from his homeland. Ruth's artwork complements the story very well, with pencilling which is kept deliberately loose, heavy inking, and muted tones of brown, red, and green. It's as if we're looking at sepia-tinged photographs of an art rendering which is already half-impressionistic.

It's worth noting that some readers may not be happy with this art direction. One reviewer on this site goes so far as to claim that Ruth is attempting an imitation of Howard that looks inexpert and childish. In fact, there is very little of Howard in Ruth's work (the final image included in the sketchbook at the end of the book is a kind of loving parody of Howard). Those readers who are insistent on the pristine lines and dramatic contrasts of classic comic art may be similarly disappointed. But those who can open their minds to different approaches may find this quite wonderful.