"Heavy-handed did he seize the decaying throne of ancient Valusia — and with a heavier hand does he hold it — a man — against a nation"
— Kull the Conqueror #1
Kull the Conqueror (later retitled Kull the Destroyer) is a 1971 series from Marvel Comics, starring a version of Robert E. Howard's fantasy hero Kull. The series was initially written by Roy Thomas, with art by Ross Andru and Wally Wood, but the creative team changed several times during its run.
Set many thousands of years ago, it stars Kull, a barbarian from Atlantis, who has survived many misfortunes and adventures to become the newly crowned king of Valusia. However, the conspiracy that led to the downfall of Valusia's last king did not intend Kull to become his successor, and is already plotting to depose him.
Kull is broadly similar to Howard's most famous hero - Conan the Barbarian - and Marvel took much the same approach in adapting the two characters. However, whereas Conan is a wanderer, Kull is a king, and his enemies frequently rely on illusions, doppelgängers and betrayal to undermine his rule.
The Kull the Conqueror series stands alone, but later crossover appearances also linked Kull, and the events of this series, to the shared Marvel Universe.
Kull the Conqueror contains the following tropes:
- Advertising by Association: The comic was originally billed as "From the creator of Conan!" on its covers. Robert E. Howard had been dead for thirty-five years and had nothing to do with the adaptation of his Kull stories, though.
- Adaptation Name Change:
- Sareeta, the woman whose execution leads Kull to leave Atlantis, is named Ala in the original stories.
- Two members of The Conspiracy to depose Borna and Kull are renamed for the comics. Gromel, the military commander, becomes Enaros. Volmana, count of Karaban, becomes Ducalon, count of Komahar.
- Animal Battle Aura: Kull was raised by the white tigers of Atlantis and the tiger is his spirit totem. At key moments - in battle or making important decisions - a tiger image appears around or behind him. It's invisible to most people, but narration confirms that sorcerers can see it.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: Shiva, the king's favourite servant, is hypnotised by Thulsa Doom's magic and sent to steal the serpent-eye gem from his quarters. Killing Kull isn't her priority, but she does kill his guardsman Arctorus to gain access.
- Canon Character All Along: When the conspiracy finally launch an outright coup attempt, in "By This Axe I Rule!", their new ally is the mysterious Ardyon, a new arrival. In the books, their ally is a well-known bandit leader, Ascalante. It's not just a name change, though - Ardyon is an entirely different character, and he's actually the ancient sorcerer Thulsa Doom.
- Close-Call Haircut: When Kull duels King Borna, one of Kull's near misses takes a chunk of the king's long hair.
- Comic-Book Adaptation: The series is an adaptation of Robert E. Howard's Kull stories, although it's mostly using entirely new plots.
- Confronting Your Imposter: After surviving assassination attempts by the snake-men, Kull discovers that one of them has already copied his form and gone to the throne room. The court then witness a duel between two versions of their king, unsure which is the real Kull.
- The Conspiracy: Kaanuub, Enaros, Ducalon and the minstrel Ridondo plot to kill Borna, the king of Valusia. They're successful, too - Ridondo tricks Kull into believing that the king is about to abolish Kull's Black Legion, leading to a fatal duel between the two men. However, they didn't expect Kull to claim the throne himself after killing Borna, so, they promptly start plotting against Kull as well.
- Duelling Scar: Kull has a long scar just below his right eye, continuing down his cheek. It's from his duel with King Borna, when he first claimed the throne of Valusia. Borna drew first blood with his battle axe.
- Evil-Detecting Dog: The Picts offer Kull a tiger as a gift. It immediately escapes its handler, intent on attacking the ancient sorcerer Thulsa Doom, who's visiting Kull's court in human guise. Kull swiftly kills it, but may regret that decision after Doom's true nature is revealed.
- False Flag Operation: The sorcerer Melkori, allied with The Conspiracy to unseat Kull, creates wax doppelgängers of the Red Slayers and sends them to kill civilians and create unrest.
- Glowing Eyes of Doom: Thulsa Doom is an evil, immortal sorcerer with a Skull for a Head. His eyes glow like stars within the darkness of the skull's empty sockets.
- I Have No Son!: A flashback shows Kull at the Public Execution of Sareeta of Atlantis, who is to be burned at the stake for marrying a Lemurian. The woman he speaks to turns out to be Sareeta's mother, who disowns her and fully supports the death sentence.Kull: But, what of her family...?Woman: She was my daughter once — but no longer.
- I'm Melting!: After Kull realises that Jirane's drugged his wine, she's taken prisoner and tied to the ship's mast. It's a hot, sunny day - and Kull's summoned by the horrified crew when the beautiful woman starts liquefying into a ghastly, bloodless mess, but still lives and speaks. She's one of Melkori's wax doppelgängers, his finest creation.
- Kill It with Fire: A flashback shows Kull witnessing the Public Execution of the Atlantean woman Sareeta, burned at the stake for marrying a Lemurian pirate. Crowds and chains mean that he can't rescue her, but a thrown dagger provides a Mercy Kill.
- King Incognito: While out hunting, Kull and a stranger both shoot the same stag. The other man, a foreigner, assumes that Kull is a peasant. Kull, in turn, accuses him of being a poacher. Even when the stranger mentions that he's travelling to meet the king, Kull doesn’t reveal his identity. And it's not until later that Kull realises the stranger H'Nar is Regent Prince of his own land, and also chose not to reveal his nobility.
- Klingon Promotion: After killing King Borna, Kull picks up the crown and declares himself king of Valusia.
- Let's You and Him Fight: The minstrel Ridondo, acting on behalf of The Conspiracy, misleads Kull into believing that King Borna is about to abolish Kull's Black Legion, leading to an argument between Kull and the king that swiftly escalates into a duel. Kull wins and the king dies - however, to the conspirators' horror, the outsider Kull then claims the throne himself.
- Melee Disarming: King Borna, fighting with a battleaxe, manages to knock Kull's sword out of his hand. Unfortunately, when he moves in to finish his foe, he discovers that Kull also had a dagger hidden away.
- Mercy Kill: A flashback to Kull's youth shows the Public Execution of the Atlantean woman Sareeta, burned at the stake for marrying a Lemurian pirate. He can't rescue her, but a thrown dagger ends her suffering. The furious crowd then turns on Kull...
- Murder Into Malevolence: Subverted, as those slain by the snake-men become ghosts under their control. King Eallal of Valusia, dead for a thousand years, comes to slay Kull and Brule at their command, but Kull only sees sadness in the ghost's face.
- My Instincts Are Showing: Thulsa Doom's magic allows Kull's Brainwashed and Crazy servant Shiva to transform into a giant bird, but when Kull attacks her she panics - and her human mind then loses control of her avian form's instinctive flight.
- Offerings to the Gods: The people of Demascar accompany their prayers with sacrifices, as first seen when H'Nar offers up the animals he killed while hunting. It takes a much darker turn once it's revealed that they also offer Human Sacrifices to the gods, and Kull and his men are destined for that fate.
- Our Werewolves Are Different: The werewolf curse that Kull encounters is tied to the full moon, but doesn't seem to infect those wounded by werewolves. However, as Demontur explains, anyone who kills a werewolf in its hybrid form will be haunted and transformed by its spirit.
- Plot-Triggering Death: King Borna of Valusia dies after The Conspiracy manages to start a feud between Borna and Kull, commander of the king's Black Legion. They don't expect Kull to claim Borna's throne himself, which becomes the starting point for the series.
- Poison Ring: The high priest of Demascar wears a spiked ring that can discreetly inject poison. It's used to secretly kill one of Kull's young sailors, who falls from the mast to the sea when the poison paralyses him. His death is a Human Sacrifice to ward off storms.
- Public Execution: A flashback shows the execution of Sareeta, an Atlantean woman who was condemned for marrying a Lemurian pirate. She's to be burned at the stake, and Kull can't get close enough to save her - but does offer a Mercy Kill via a thrown dagger.
- Raised by Wolves: Kull was raised by the white tigers of Atlantis and considers the tiger his totem and spirit animal.
- Ruler Protagonist: The first issue starts just after Kull's claimed the Valusian throne, and his role as a ruler is key to most subsequent plots. The Conspiracy wants him deposed and tensions with other nations repeatedly bring him challenges that can't solely be resolved by a barbarian's brawn.
- Secret Test of Character: The Pictish messenger Brule claims that he is forbidden to raise his spear within Kull's palace. Kull, not trusting the Pict's invitation to a meeting, feigns rage and swings his sword towards Brule's head. Brule visibly sweats, but does not reach for his weapon to defend himself. Kull deliberately misses and decides that the Pict is trustworthy.
- Skull for a Head: The ancient sorcerer Thulsa Doom still has a human body and neck, but his head is a bare skull with Glowing Eyes.
- Slave Galley: After fleeing his people, diving from the cliffs of Atlantis and swimming out to sea, Kull is taken aboard a Lemurian galley, where he's kept as a galley slave for two years before escaping.
- Snake People: There are serpent-headed snake men lurking behind the scenes in Valusia, survivors of a great war with the humans. They can adopt a convincing human form, but revert whenever they're killed.
- Stab the Scorpion: When H'Nar and Kull first meet while hunting the same stag, they almost come to blows. H'Nar then throws a long dagger at Kull - and kills the wild boar approaching behind him.
- Tampering with Food and Drink: Having lured Kull away to a sea journey, to distract him while her allies cause chaos in Valusia, Jirane also drugs Kull's wine, causing a sudden fever that makes him black out.
- The Speechless: Melkori's wax doppelgängers look exactly like the people they're based on, and can write, but cannot speak. The exception is Jirane, his finest creation, who does have a voice.
- This Was His True Form: The snake-men of Valusia revert to their real form whenever they're killed.
- Trust Password:
- The snake-men of Valusia can masquerade as humans, but the phrase "Ka Nama Kaa Lajerama" acts as a shibboleth and they cannot say it. On the other hand, it's been used that way for a very long time, and any snake-man hearing the phrase knows exactly what's happening (and will normally react with violence).
- Kull and his guards have a password for anyone wishing to visit the king's chambers at night, which seems to change each day. When Thulsa Doom sends a Brainwashed and Crazy palace servant, Shiva, to steal a magic gem from Kull, she doesn't know the correct word and is challenged by the guard.
- Wham Episode: Issue #11 adapts "By This Axe I Rule". The Conspiracy finally succeeds, and Kull is deposed as King of Valusia - although two of the four plotters die while ousting him. The new king is then revealed as a disguised Thulsa Doom, who has no use for the remaining conspirators - and Kull is overpowered and imprisoned, awaiting the headsman's axe. The comic's title also changes, becoming Kull the Destroyer.
- You Kill It, You Bought It: The werewolves Kull encounters don't infect their victims, but anyone who slays a werewolf in its hybrid form will be haunted by its spirit and becomes a werewolf themselves, as Demontur discovered the hard way.
