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Post by geneweigel on Jun 27, 2008 13:30:06 GMT -5
I was just reading SAVAGE TALES #5 (JULY 1974) and along with Conan and Brak the Barbarian stories there is also a Ka-Zar story titled "THE LEGEND OF THE LIZARD MEN" which has straight up fantasy lizard men ala D&D. Although they later turn out to be all the male villagers and the sorceress is actually a lizard man in a dress, this entire story arc is set in a misty magic land within the well known "Savage Land of Antarctica" we all know from Spiderman, X-Men, etc. fame. Since this predates their inception into the game in 1976's GREYHAWK SUPPLEMENT, I'd say it may have influenced the inclusion (Conan fan's picking up SAVAGE TALES, etc.). Here's some scanned images of it:   |
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Post by amalric on Jun 27, 2008 16:37:49 GMT -5
Oh, man ~ I think I bought the first 20 editions or so of "KA-ZAR the SAVAGE" when it was re-issued years later, in colour. Early 80s I think. I threw them away, of course, in youthful ignorance. Along with my Conan annuals #1 and #3...
Gah.
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Post by geneweigel on Jun 28, 2008 8:31:59 GMT -5
Wait its even older than I thought. When I went to look up KAZAR THE SAVAGE I found an older Ka-Zar presentation than the Savage Tales in "ASTONISHING TALES#9 FEATURING KA-ZAR LORD OF THE HIDDEN JUNGLE" (DECEMBER 1971):  Still, I'd wager the influence was from SAVAGE TALES magazine because of the Conan S&S connection. BTW, Wasn't KA-ZAR THE SAVAGE all new stories that were done in the 1980's? I have a vague memory of them but I thought they were drawn in a new style with new tales. |
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ghul
Enchanter
Posts: 272
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Post by ghul on Jul 18, 2008 19:14:01 GMT -5
Ahh, I think the color does the piece a disservice. I have the issue, BTW, thanks for making me dig up my old Savage Tales. I wonder how much my #1 is worth these days . . .
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Post by geneweigel on Jul 23, 2008 12:05:57 GMT -5
Unless somebody says otherwise this may be it. I don't seem to recall lizard men in anything but Merrit's FACE IN THE ABYSS and they seem to lean towards troglodytes:
Cockscombs
General reek that became more intense
Although this association is still no Poul Anderson (troll & gnome) or Tolkien (Ent/treant, spectre/nazgul, halling/hobbit, typeVI demon/balrog, black willow/old man willow, giant black squirrel/Mirkwood squirrel, giant spider/Mirkwood spider, etc.), you can take the GREYHAWK lizard man or the MONSTER MANUAL troglodyte from FACE IN THE ABYSS.
Was the GREYHAWK lizard man a generic representation and then the MONSTER MANUAL troglodyte a correction to make it more "Merrit-esque"?
Although Merrit's lizard men are not camou-ed (they appear as metal club-bearing, visually repulsive with yellow coloration, stubby appendages ), they are still notably stinky, cockscombed and underground cave dwellers. Perhaps, this is what the above Anderson and Tolkien creatures should have been. That is more of an homage than a direct take.
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