Conan the Barbarian #12
Conan the Barbarian #12 is a production-history landmark as well as a character milestone: it introduces Queen Fatima, the servant girl Yaila, and Captain Yulek to Marvel's Hyborian world — all in a single self-contained story that showcases Barry Windsor-Smith's increasingly confident linework at roughly the midpoint of his celebrated run on the title. The lead story's troubled path to print — drafted for a cancelled magazine, reshaped by the Comics Code — makes the issue a tangible record of the creative and institutional pressures Barry Windsor-Smith and Roy Thomas navigated while building a sword-and-sorcery aesthetic within the mainstream comics market. Narratively, Conan's willingness to throw a queen to a dungeon monster rather than negotiate, and then to hand power to a slave girl purely out of practicality, crystallises the amoral pragmatism that distinguished the character from Marvel's superhero output of the same era. The issue also carries the distinction of being the first Marvel comic to bear a 20-cent cover price, marking a concrete transition in the Bronze Age economy of the medium.
In "The Dweller in the Dark," Conan rises as Captain of the royal guard in the city-state of Zahmahn and finds himself entangled in a dangerous web of loyalty and desire, torn between Queen Fatima and the servant girl Yaila. When their secret is exposed, both are cast into the dungeon to face the monstrous Dweller in the Dark—only to survive through cunning and betrayal. Written by Roy Thomas and brought to life with bold, dynamic art by Barry Smith, this issue features a striking cover by Gil Kane and Vince Colletta, capturing the raw tension of a tale where power, passion, and survival collide.
In "The Dweller in the Dark," Conan, now Captain of the royal guard and lover to Queen Fatima of Zahmahn, finds himself trapped in the city’s depths when the queen discovers him with the servant girl Yaila. Forced into the dungeon to face the legendary Dweller in the Dark, Conan and Yaila must survive the creature’s lair—and the queen’s wrath—before the city’s fate is decided. With tradition binding Zahmahn to a female ruler, Conan’s choice will reshape the throne.
In the kingdom of Aqilonia, the warrior Conan faces a deadly challenge when the noble Kalligor rides forth to slay the fearsome Hydragon—not for glory, but to win the hand of the Baron’s daughter. With sword in hand and sorcery in the air, Conan must confront both beast and rival in a clash of strength, cunning, and fate.
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The lead story 'The Dweller in the Dark,' scripted by Roy Thomas and drawn by Barry Windsor-Smith (who inked himself here), was originally slated for Savage Tales #2 before that magazine was cancelled on its first run; to meet the needs of the Code-approved colour comic, Windsor-Smith partially redrew several pages, and the less-censored version did not see print until Savage Tales #4 (1974). A review of the Marvel Original Years Omnibus introduction (as summarised by collectors) notes that the notably muddy printing of the issue's linework is also documented there, with Thomas and Windsor-Smith discussing the production difficulties that surrounded getting the book out. The back-up story 'The Blood of the Dragon,' a standalone 'Tales of the Hyborian Age' feature scripted by Thomas and pencilled by Gil Kane (inked by Kane, Tom Palmer, and Bernie Wrightson), was both the first and apparently the only episode of what was intended as a recurring anthology feature in the expanded 25-cent format.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Title of lead story: 'The Dweller in the Dark'; cover date December 1971, on-sale September 14, 1971 — Marvel Comics.
- First appearances in this issue: Queen Fatima (dies in this issue), Yaila, and Captain Yulek (dies in this issue), as confirmed by both the Marvel Database and the Conan Wiki.
- Lead story written by Roy Thomas, pencilled and inked by Barry Windsor-Smith; letterer Sam Rosen; editor Stan Lee.
- The lead story was originally prepared for Savage Tales #2 before that magazine was cancelled; artwork was altered to comply with the Comics Code Authority before publication here. The less-censored version appeared later in Savage Tales #4 (1974).
- This issue marks the first use of a 20-cent cover price at Marvel Comics.
- The cover was pencilled by Gil Kane and inked by Vince Colletta; the cover logo redesign credited to letterer Gaspar Saladino (revealed in Conan #45's letters column).
- Back-up story 'The Blood of the Dragon' is the first (and only published) instalment of the 'Tales of the Hyborian Age' anthology feature; scripted by Thomas, pencilled by Gil Kane, inked by Kane, Tom Palmer, and Bernie Wrightson.
- The lead story has been reprinted in numerous collections including Essential Conan (2000), The Chronicles of Conan Vol. 2 (Dark Horse, 2003), The Barry Windsor-Smith Conan Archives Vol. 2 (Dark Horse, 2010), Conan the Barbarian: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2018), and the Conan the Barbarian: The Original Marvel Years Epic Collection Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2020).
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Reprints
Reprinted in Conan #1/1973 (1973), Savage Tales #5 (1974), Seriebladet #2/1974 (1974), Savage Tales #4 (1974), Savage Tales #8 (1975), Savage Sword of Conan #13 (1975), Giant-Size Conan #5 (1975), L'Inattendu #7 (1976), Conan #5 (11696) (1978), L'Écho des Savanes Spécial U.S.A. #9 (1978), Conan #4 (1979), L'Écho des Savanes Spécial U.S.A. #10 (1979), Conan #6 (11697) (1979), Conan Pocket Book #4 (1980), Conan de barbaar #5 (1981), Conan de barbaar #6 (1981), Superaventuras Marvel #1 (1982), Conan el Bárbaro #74 (1985), Conan Saga #5 (1987), Conan #1/1991 (1991), Conan Le Barbare #33 (1992), Conan Saga #3 (1994), Conan el bárbaro #12 (1998), Essential Conan #1 (2000) + 12 more
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