Conan the Barbarian #7
Conan the Barbarian #7 marks the debut of Thoth-Amon in Marvel Comics — the Stygian sorcerer who, through the hands of both prose pastiche writers and Marvel's own scripters, would become the defining arch-nemesis of Conan for decades of storytelling. In a shrewd creative move, writer Roy Thomas chose not to have the two characters meet directly here: Conan merely glimpses the sorcerer's terrifying face staring out of the golden bowl at the story's climax, a teaser that promised a rivalry the series would build upon for years. The issue also marks the first mention of Set, the serpent god central to Hyborian mythology, in Marvel's Conan comics. Narratively and editorially, issue #7 carries extra weight because it was the last published installment before Stan Lee officially — if briefly — cancelled the series due to declining sales; Thomas's successful pushback kept alive what would become one of Marvel's most popular titles of the Bronze Age.
In "The Lurker Within," Conan the Barbarian faces a deadly mystery in the city of Numalia, where a stolen bowl from Stygia hides more than treasure—it harbors a serpent-man with a human head. Written by Roy Thomas and Robert E. Howard, with bold art by Barry Smith and inks by Buscema and Adkins, this 1971 Marvel classic blends perilous intrigue and ancient sorcery. The cover by Barry Windsor-Smith captures the tale’s dark, primal tension.
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The story, titled 'The Lurker Within!', is a free adaptation of Howard's 'The God in the Bowl,' a manuscript rejected by Weird Tales during Howard's lifetime and not published until 1952, sixteen years after his death. Roy Thomas scripted the issue and Barry Windsor-Smith pencilled it, with inking split between Dan Adkins (believed to have handled pages 1–6) and Sal Buscema (the remainder), and Stan Lee served as editor. Thomas made several deliberate changes from the source text, most notably gender-swapping the aristocratic betrayer Aztrias from male to female and having Aztrias killed by the serpent rather than by Conan's hand. The issue landed at a pivotal moment for the series: sales had declined with every issue since #1, and the sales report for #7 was the trigger that led Lee to issue a cancellation order, which Thomas — not in the office that day — successfully argued against upon learning of it.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Thoth-Amon in Marvel Comics (Earth-616), appearing only as a disembodied visage glimpsed by Conan in the story's final panel — Conan and Thoth-Amon do not meet face to face.
- First mention of Set, the Stygian serpent god, in Marvel's Conan comics continuity.
- Story titled 'The Lurker Within!' is a free adaptation of Robert E. Howard's 'The God in the Bowl,' a Conan manuscript rejected by Weird Tales in Howard's lifetime and first published posthumously in Space Science Fiction, September 1952.
- Creative team: script by Roy Thomas, pencils by Barry Windsor-Smith (signed as Barry Smith), inks by Dan Adkins and Sal Buscema, edited by Stan Lee.
- Thomas altered the source text: the character Aztrias is male in Howard's original story but is written as a woman (Lady Aztrias) in this adaptation, and her fate differs from Howard's version.
- Issue #7 was the title that triggered Stan Lee's cancellation order for the series due to steadily declining sales from issue #1 onward; Thomas argued successfully for the title's survival, though it was subsequently demoted to bi-monthly status beginning with #14.
- Thoth-Amon was originally created by Robert E. Howard for 'The Phoenix on the Sword' (Weird Tales, December 1932); Howard's Conan and Thoth-Amon never met in person in any of Howard's own stories — the arch-enemy relationship was a construct of later pastiche writers, which Thomas carried into Marvel continuity.
- The issue has been reprinted in numerous formats and languages, including Conan Saga #3 (Marvel, 1987), Essential Conan Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2000, black and white), The Barry Windsor-Smith Conan Archives Vol. 1 (Dark Horse, 2010), and the Conan the Barbarian: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2018).
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Reprinted in Serie-nytt [delas?] #8/1972 (1972), Climax Adventure Comic #11 (1974), Peptoe #[26] (1974), Eclipso #53 (1975), Savage Sword of Conan #7 (1975), Giant-Size Conan #4 (1975), Conan #1 (1978), Conan #3 (11694) (1978), Conan #1 (1979), Conan de barbaar #1 (1979), Conan Pocket Book #3 (1980), Conan el Bárbaro #70 (1985), Conan el Bárbaro #71 (1985), Conan Saga #3 (1987), Conan #1/1990 (1990), Conan Saga #2 (1993), Conan Classic #7 (1994), Conan el bárbaro #7 (1998), Essential Conan #1 (2000), The Chronicles of Conan #1 (2003), The Barry Windsor-Smith Conan Archives #1 (2010), Conan el Bárbaro. Edición 35 Aniversario #[nn] (2017), Conan the Barbarian: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus #1 (2018), Conan le barbare : L'intégrale #1970-1971 (2019) + 6 more
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