D&D General Reassesing Robert E Howards influence on D&D +

[Vikingkingq]

Conan has an arc, absolutely. From youthful barbarian to grizzled king, it's part of what has made the character so compelling (combined with, as you said, having room for any number of tales in between).

I think a lot about comics and continuity. It's a medium that wasn't originally intended to have 50-90 years of continuity in storytelling. When you read golden and silver age comics, while you have recurring villains, you don't have necessarily linear tales other than some multi-issue arcs. There'd be callbacks, individual issues were designed to be able to read without context. Now, good luck trying to jump into reading an X-Men issue cold.

Well, the Silver Age is where the continuity focus really started, especially as Marvel really emphasized the shared universe thing, so that editorial would keep close track of who was where/when so that Spider-Man or the X-Men weren't in two places at the same time. This was also the time before the sliding timescale when Marvel made more of an effort to have things happen in real time, so that teen characters would graduate high school and go on to college, etc. and referenced current events.

This was abandoned sometime in the late 80s/early 90s as editorial wanted to preserve continuity and keep characters at their peak marketable age while throwing top-selling characters into as many books as possible. Ultimately, I think they chose to preserve the wrong things and that Claremont's model where characters would mature organically and had a beginning, middle, and end was the right one - as long as you modified it with the Cimmerian method to keep selling stories stuck in between.

 

[Yora]

110 year old Batman would be an interesting series, though.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Well, the Silver Age is where the continuity focus really started, especially as Marvel really emphasized the shared universe thing, so that editorial would keep close track of who was where/when so that Spider-Man or the X-Men weren't in two places at the same time. This was also the time before the sliding timescale when Marvel made more of an effort to have things happen in real time, so that teen characters would graduate high school and go on to college, etc. and referenced current events.

This was abandoned sometime in the late 80s/early 90s as editorial wanted to preserve continuity and keep characters at their peak marketable age while throwing top-selling characters into as many books as possible. Ultimately, I think they chose to preserve the wrong things and that Claremont's model where characters would mature organically and had a beginning, middle, and end was the right one - as long as you modified it with the Cimmerian method to keep selling stories stuck in between.

It's a hard thing to manage, to be sure. I can't say that I could successfully thread that needle if I was in their shoes. And the problem is exacerbated in the movies, where you have main characters that age in real life, when their comic book counterparts do not.

It's a shame that the Conan adaptations in cinema didn't continue. He was written to age, something you don't always get in pop culture. Still hoping for that King Conan movie one day.

 

[cbwjm]

It's a hard thing to manage, to be sure. I can't say that I could successfully thread that needle if I was in their shoes. And the problem is exacerbated in the movies, where you have main characters that age in real life, when their comic book counterparts do not.

It's a shame that the Conan adaptations in cinema didn't continue. He was written to age, something you don't always get in pop culture. Still hoping for that King Conan movie one day.

Would be kind of cool to get Arnie back to play an older Conan.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Would be kind of cool to get Arnie back to play an older Conan.

They've toyed with it over the years, but I think that ship has probably sailed. If Jason Momoa can't get butts in seats for Conan (in an admittedly boring movie), I'm not sure 76 year old Arnold Schwarzenegger could get people to come out for King Conan.

 

[Yora]

If they aim for a similar look, I'm sure it can be profitable as straight to video.

 

[cbwjm]

In case anyone is interested, it seems a number of Howard's stories have been digitised at the Gutenberg project this year. It's a good chance to read some of his other works.

Books by Howard, Robert E. (Robert Ervin) (sorted by release date)

Project Gutenberg offers 72,386 free eBooks for Kindle, iPad, Nook, Android, and iPhone.

www.gutenberg.org

 

[Voadam]

110 year old Batman would be an interesting series, though.

I see one possible option

 

[corwyn77]

110 year old Batman would be an interesting series, though.

Batman Beyond is close enough for me.

 

[Azzy]

I see one possible option
View attachment 340996

What in the failed anatomy lessons is that?