I wasn't entirely satisfied with my original entry.
Which is why five years later, I've created the definitive version.
Albums
Molly Hatchet
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| Beatin' the Odds (1980) - Conan the Conqueror (1967) aka Berserker |
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| Flirtin' with Disaster (1979) - Dark Kingdom (1976) |
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| Molly Hatchet (1978) - Death Dealer (1973) |
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| Dust - Hard Attack (1972) - Snow Giants (1967) |
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| Wolfmother - Wolfmother (2005) - The Sea Witch (1966) |
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| Nazareth - Expect No Mercy (1977) - The Brain (1967) |
Miscellany
Willow Pattern (1985) vs Éowyn vs. the Nazgûl Lord¹ (1975)
¹From unused portfolio for J. R .R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.
Azure Dreams (1997) vs Pony Tail (1970)
Ramparts² (1987) vs Snow Giants³ (1967)
²Rampage clone shouldn't be confused with futuristic 1990 Atari arcade Rampart, credited for establishing the tower defence genre.
³Used for the cover of 1969 novel Conan of Cimmeria.
Adol Christin - Ys III: Wanderers of Ys (1989) vs Seven Romans (1979)
Z-Out⁴ (1990) vs Conan Man-Ape (1967)
Winged monster rings a bell, yes?
⁴16-bit only sequel to X-Out.
Multiples
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| Tarzan and Bolgani⁵ (1962) |
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| Dynasty Wars (1990) |
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| Shang Fei depicts 'Tarzan'. |
Towards the end of the Amiga's life, weird games started to pollute back catalogue. One such example is Polish side-scrolling hack and slash Doman: Sins of Ardan, developed by World Software.
Who does goofy character to the left in ending screen remind you of?
(Laughs).
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| Rygar - C64, Spectrum and Amstrad CPC (1987) |
L-R: The Huntress (1977), Swords of Mars (1966) and Conan the Usurper (1967) aka Chained Conan
And the beat goes on.
Kentilla (1984) and Galivan (1986)
Loading screen - Golden Axe: Beast Rider (2008) vs The Destroyer (1971)
Zooming in.
Loading screen - Golden Axe: Beast Rider (2008) vs The Destroyer (1971)
Zooming in.
Title screen - Gauntlet (1985) vs Conan
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| The Norseman⁶ (1972) |
⁶Used for the first edition cover art of Flashing Swords! #1 (April 1973).
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| Castlevania (1986) |
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| The Sorcerer of Claymorgue Castle⁷ (1982) |
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| ⁷I don't know artist's identity, but signature confirms work wasn't Frazetta. |
(Rolls eyes).
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| Woman with Scythe (1969) |
Vampirella #11 - May 1971
Creepy #91 - August 1977
'Adaptations'.
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| The Witch Who Came from the Sea (1976) |
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| Ian Gillan Band - Scarabus (1977) |
But the most obscure piss take came from our friends in Spain.
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| Beyond Terror (1980) |
Parodies
Adventure Time - His Hero title card (S1 E25), September 2010 vs Death Dealer III (1987)
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| Conan the Adventurer (1965) |
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| Crazy #90 (September 1982) |
Even hardened comic geeks will be impressed by this one.
Death Rattle #1, June 1972 - Ronald Rabbit story⁸ vs 1966 novel
⁸Tired of his poor treatment by John Pound, Ronald breaks out of comic strip and murders cartoonist.
He imagines himself as Ronald the Barbarian (the greatest adventure hero of all time), based on the character created by R.E. Rabbit (an obvious play on R.E. Howard).
Highlander #8 Cover B, June 2007, by David Michael Beck vs The Brain
Eventually, Pound returns as a zombie and takes revenge.
Yes, it's as batshit as it sounds.
Ghita of Alizarr - 1994⁹ #17, February 1981 vs The Executioner (1967)
King Conan the Conqueror Part 3 of 6, April 2014, by Tomás Giorello and José Villarubia vs Green Death (1967)
Ultimate X-Men #30, Return of the King Part 4 of 7, May 2003, by Adam Kubert vs Against the Gods (1966)
⁹Title was changed from 1984 (starting with #11 in February 1980), at the request of George Orwell's estate.
Tributes
Conan the King #50, January 1989, by Mike Kaluta vs A Princess of Mars (1970)
King Conan the Conqueror Part 3 of 6, April 2014, by Tomás Giorello and José Villarubia vs Green Death (1967)
Ripping up the rule book, this is buried within.
King Conan: The Scarlet Citadel #1, February 2011, by Tomás Giorello vs Conan the Usurper (1967) aka Chained Conan
The Incredible Hulk #81, July 2005, by Lee Weeks vs Death Dealer
Below LW '05' and delgado, 'apologies to Frazetta' is written.
Funny.
A few more.
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| Fist of the North Star (1986) Raoh riding his mighty steed Kokuoh. |
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| The Archer: Fugitive from the Empire (1981) Gar the Draikian's axe-wielding antagonist cannot be a coincidence. |
Rip offs
King Vortigem (Demon Knight form) - King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017) vs Death Dealer II (1986)
Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior (1987)
Instead of artwork, Palace Software hired models Michael Van Wijk as the eponymous Barbarian (who would later become famous as Wolf in the UK TV series of Gladiators), and Page 3 favourite Maria Whittaker as Princess Mariana.
Marketing campaign sparked controversy and made game a commercial success.
8-bit magazine advert¹⁰ vs Conan the Adventurer
¹⁰Also used for the cover of BBC Micro/Acorn Electron version.
Films
Ignoring Fire and Ice (1983), pickings of actual Frazetta are extremely slim.
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| Gremlins (1984) The Brain can be seen in Billy's bedroom. |
Guillermo del Toro states Nomak feeding above a staircase strewn with corpses is his tribute.
While he's never said what, I'd suggest set piece was based on The Destroyer.
Phew!
Tune in next time for Boris Vallejo.
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