Gold Key comics were often like...a panel van with a bitchin' Frazetta airbrushed on the side...that smelled like mushrooms inside. Actually, this one isn't too bad! From 1975, Tales of Sword and Sorcery Dagar the Invincible #11, "It Lurks By Moonlight" No credits within, but per the GCD story by Don Glut, art by Jesse Santos. You would be forgiven for just calling this book "Dagar," but it had that long-ass title in the indica.
Dagar was Gold Key's barbarian hero, because every company needed one. At least one: this issue actually features a so-rare-I-didn't-think-it-existed bit of cross-title continuity with Gold Key's other barbarian hero, Tragg and the Sky Gods. Glut and Santos had created both Tragg and Dagar, and established the Neanderthal-times Tragg as an ancestor of the sword-and-sorcery era Dagar. I could've sworn I read a Tragg issue lately: I feel like he was a thoughtful guy for his time, while Dagar is a bit of a grumpy brute. In fact, in flashback this issue we see Tragg inventing a primitive mini-Stonehenge calendar. Which a blobby monster takes up residence in later, and the local peasantry create a cult around it and make yearly sacrifices to it. The head cultist isn't thrilled about the sacrifices, but worries if they don't the monster will rise up and eat them all. Yeah, he says he isn't thrilled, but when you make culty little outfits with hoods...
Not terrible, but I don't know what Dagar's hook was supposed to be, to try and differentiate him from other barbarian comics. I mean, Tragg had some sci-fi flavor, and Dagar had...? Ah, well. Sometimes vanilla still hits the spot.
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