The Cimmerian in Iron Shadows In The Moon #1

The Cimmerian in Iron Shadows In The Moon #1

Ablaze Publishing 2021

Adapted from the work of Robert E. Howard

Written & Illustrated by Virginie Augustin

Lettered by Dezi Sienty

A young woman in danger is pursued by her vile master. Conan, whose family has just been wiped out by this same master, puts an end to the beauty's pursuer, and saves her with a blow of his sword. Bound by fate, the couple decide to hit the road together. Their journey takes them to an island where they discover strange ruins inhabited by dark magic. Their paradise-like refuge soon turns into a suffocating nightmare where shadows lurk. Who knows the extent of the dangers that lie there? They will quickly learn that on an island, the biggest threat does not always come from the outside…

This has become one of my favourite series since the first issue of the first arc hit stands. I may not have always been a Conan fan but this series with different creators taking on short stories and bringing them to life they way they have has been completely and utterly phenomenal! This is great because it’s unapologetic in every facet and I gotta say with the reputation that he has he sure does find a lot ways to be the good guy or a nice enough man to help out those in need.

I loving the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. I mean that we don’t see her run away to open up the issue, we see that in a flashback, and instead start off where Olivia is found first by Shah Amurath and then saved by Conan is just the way it should be. The character development that we see is fabulous and as we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances they encounter alongside the dialogue really manages to flesh them out as people. The pacing is fantastic and as it takes us through the pages and sets up the story at hand it pulls us into this crazy world they inhabit.

With how we see this being structured and how we see the layers emerge and move alongside the main arc we get to see a broader look at the nooks and crannies in this world that seem to be unexplored and/or abandoned. With how everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow and works to move everything forward is beautifully done.

The interiors here are gorgeous! The linework is exquisite and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create the attention to detail is pretty stunning. So while we see Conan looking more caveman at times it feels more like a reflection of how he’s seen rather than who he actually is and it’s really an interest boost. The way that backgrounds are utilised to enhance the moments and bring us this great depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story is perfectly rendered. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a marvellous eye for storytelling. The colour work is magnificent. How we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work shows some great talent. As does seeing how colour is utilised for definition in the green foliage or the gold armour and all throughout the book there are numerous examples of how colour is utilised to really bring out the extra features.

The way this is being told is just brilliantly done through the writing and interior artwork and even more impressive is that Virginie does everything on her own. So what we see is precisely as she intends it to be seen, felt and experienced by the reader. It is no wonder that Ablaze very quietly has become home to some of today’s most consistently amazing storytelling.