Everybody must get stoned!

I don't think I appreciated this one enough when it came out, since I don't think I had as many by him then, but it's nice to see him get a plot credit as well. From 1984, Conan the Barbarian #159, "Cauldron of the Doomed!" Plot and art by John Buscema, dialogue by Michael Fleisher.

We open with Conan doing a bit of pit-fighting: it wasn't uncommon for him to be forced into that sort of thing, but this time Conan was a voluntary participant, in to pick up a bit of coin. Local noblewoman Marielle de Bruvahr takes an interest in him, faking a twisted ankle to 'meet-cute' the barbarian and invite him to dinner. At her estate, she shows off her statue collection, sculpted herself. Despite a few warning signs, like when she's about to whip a serving girl for spilling wine, Conan still has drinks with Marielle, an "exquisite example of the vinter's art," that's drugged as hell. Now a mindless slave, Conan is turned into a simpering ponce for a page: it's pretty funny, really.

When the wine starts to wear off, Marielle orders more for him, then notices the serving girl trying to slip Conan the plain, undrugged stuff. Sending the girl to be whipped, Marielle re-dopes Conan, then takes him to the basement, where he'll be dipped in a vat and turned to stone! (Somehow. Chemical, magical, concrete, whatever.) The serving girl, walking off multiple lashes, arrives in time to save Conan, with a sweet knife toss: everyone knows a steak knife embedded in your arm snaps you out of drugged wine. Conan has to kill Marielle's men to get out of there, most of them going into the stone dip; while the girl decks Marielle. Surprisingly, she doesn't go into the dip, but the girl and Conan escape, as Marielle seethes like Veronica after Archie messes up a date. Seems like a bit more retribution was warranted, but okay.

Also this issue: a Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation: Paid circulation, actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date; 426,733.