The B-Side Barbarians!

Zangar #2

2011-06-15T04:58:00.000-07:00

Zangar #1

2011-06-13T20:15:00.000-07:00

Zangar! Skywald Superstars of The Jungle!

2011-06-13T18:47:00.000-07:00

A jungle lord from SKYWALD?? With SHEENA back up tales!! All hail ZANGAR!

Luana by Russ Manning

2010-08-16T17:34:00.000-07:00

The Euro Jungle Girl flick LUANA sure did have an awesome batch of help. Frazetta poster art and here we have Russ Manning doing a short strip. Enjoy!! Click the strips and soak up the awesome!

ALTAR...The Turkish Conan!!

2010-08-12T05:11:00.000-07:00

I have FINALLY seen ALTAR, which like many other Turkish films before it ends up with a "Turkish..." tag. This one is a Conan riff that is loads of fun to watch. It isn't the fastest paced, most violent or even the most exciting--but like so many Turkish films before it, ALTAR is utterly unique and interesting.
And here is a whole bunch of Altar!!

Turkish Lobby Cards! And there are more (and some amazing others) at TURKISH POSTERS!

Barbaric Postal Pugilism!!

2010-08-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

I can't say I've ever played a game by mail...but this looks quite cool. Has anyone reading this had an experience with this kind of RPG? Click the scan and wonder...

Barbaric Beasts and Wicked Werewolf Fun!!

2010-07-29T04:11:00.000-07:00

Another year, another vacation for me...just a short hop, but I wanted to leave something cool up here. I'm really excited to see ASCENSION OF THE BLIND DEAD getting unleashed in the upcoming ZOMBNIBUS from Asylum Press entitled ZOMBIE TERRORS! With artwork by the one and only Billy George of Ruined Earth-this story will pop out your eyes, toss them down a werewolf woman's throat, she'll spit 'em out in to the face of an Undead Templar and they you'll have to squeeze the pulp back in with the hope that your psyche will recover!
That is if the Blind Dead don't steal that gooey eye pulp.

But the fun doesn't stop there! No sir...ya see, Zombie Terrors is loaded with some amazing creators and artwork. Look at the preview...go ahead.

See, I told you! I'm a fan of Szymon Kudranski and that stuff looks damn wild. Never mind that it is published and features work by the one and only Frank Forte. I've spent a good amount of time reading the stuff he's written and drawn (is there really any better guy with a gun that has a giant stinger thing on his head than Warlash?)-pretty damn cool. There is a hopping vampire story!! Wow. Yep, we need that. And then, to top it off...Tim Vigil. Now, say what you will, the guy draws horror like nobody else. New Tim Vigil? Happy Halloween!!

Overall, this looks like a great book and I'm thrilled to be a part of "and many more..." as well as a reader.
Amazon has it for a nice discount right here, or you can order from the publisher. Be sure to send them a shout out that YOU love The Blind Dead and are chomping at the bit to see them ravage the earth! I have a few crazy ideas you might enjoy...

THEY CAN SENSE THE RHYTHM OF YOUR BLOOD...and this Halloween, you can read them under the covers with a flashlight!

Enjoy the weather and see everyone once I get back from the beach!! Hopefully The Ghost Galleon is docked and waiting for me...

John Carter-Warlord of Mars via Gold Key!

2010-07-26T12:47:00.000-07:00

And a little bonus Marvelized John Carter!

Sorceress! Jack Hill and the Barbarian Vixens!

2010-07-24T10:29:00.001-07:00

Graveyard Rendevous #35 Truly Released!! Guy N. Smith fans rejoice!

2010-07-21T09:54:00.000-07:00

After many stops, starts, mis-steps and hurdles I'm pleased to see that Graveyard Rendezvous, the fanzine for the Gun N. Smith fanclub has released Issue 35. A great buy for fans that are still in to GNS as well as those that may not know that much about the Great Scribbler! This issue includes short fiction by GNS (Howling On The Moors), fiction by Brooke Vaughn and Stuart Neild, a list of available back catalog items from Black Hill Books, The Old Brides Column (a must have), Writers Forum, miscellania and reviews. Nice to see Bruce from Bookgasm there, and I will admit to feeling a great sense of pride at seeing one of my reviews in the lead off spot for the issue.

This is probably the first printed matter from a certain project I had been working on, and it makes me happy to see it. Ringin' the DEATHBELL is always fun.

Show GNS some love and try this 'zine out...perfect to stoke your fire for killer crustaceans, bad boy bankers and nymphomaniac housewives! Email blackhillbooks@hotmail.com and tell Ceri you need your GNS!

The Vorpal Sword!

2010-07-20T11:21:00.000-07:00

Thor The Conqueror - Tonino Ricci Rages and Rushes a Barbarian

2010-07-16T10:30:00.000-07:00

Tonino Ricci is easily one of the great low budget directors of Italian genre schlock that ever walked. Now, I'm not advocating for the guy, I leave that to my irresistible lust for the cinema of Alfonso Brescia, but he does have a certain charm to his films. Thor The Conqueror has little in the way of plot, logic or political correctness, but it does have a lot to give the Barbarian completest. Thor is a played with little expression by Conrad Nichols (Bruno Mininti) and follows our hero, who is a complete dolt by the way, as he is guided by a truly he-man woman hating owl mystic that never shuts up. Hell, that owl man actually promises to die early in the film...never does. I guess they forgot that part of the script as they went along.

But what it does offer us, is a bunch of entertaining action scenes, a use of music that may actually be the worst I've heard from a Ricci film, Malisa Longo (always welcome) and a "full blooded" attitude that would make Manning Lee Stokes say "tone it down a bit man..." if he heard it. When Thor first meets a woman his Owl Guide tells him to "Lie her down, play with her, for what else is she good for?" Needless to say, a horde of evil barbarians burst in on Thor learning about women (?) and kill her immediately. Thankfully for Thor, there are women to hear lamentations from and bad guys to slay. Not a good film, but a very special entry in to a genre I really enjoy. The NeoPeplum will always hold a special place in my heart.

Besides...any film that gives Jess Franco's CANNIBALS a run for the least impressive cannibal tribe ever shown on screen is GREAT to me. Not sarcasm folks, I love some bad cannibals!

Yor-The Zanotto Comics!!!

2010-07-14T11:59:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had an item from your want list pop up unexpectedly for a reasonable price? I do on occasion, but very very VERY few items have given me the satisfaction of the arrival of the gorgeous color volume of YOR, IL CACCIATORE from Italy this morning. Maybe you remember my YOR WEEK? If not, click the link and see one mans obsession laid bare.
Now, I have at least some of the original source for Antonio Margheriti's movie and look forward to seeing what was used and tossed aside. Here are some scans for you to enjoy a bit of my happiness. Zanotto's artwork would feel at home in the later Warren magazines for sure.

The Cover of the Casa Editrice Eura YOR album

The first page of volume 1

and the last page. Dig that montage and the appearance of....

THAT DAMN TALKING BOX!!

Yor's World...he's the man! When he's TRIPPIN'!

Now, anyone want to translate 150 pages of YOR??

Thongor Comics Part The Second!

2010-07-13T20:29:00.000-07:00

Kobold-"An Oversized Death Bringing Barbarian!!"

2010-07-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

This widescreen 8 pager brings us in to the world of KOBOLD...all two page spreads? AWESOME!!

Romeo Tanghal and Alfredo Alcala look like they had a lot of fun designing this story of the end of the world and man vs. magic! Click the thumbs and enjoy...

Yor-Hunter From The Future...A Poster Explored!

2010-07-08T10:10:00.000-07:00

Yep, I'm just a big old geek for Yor-Hunter From The Future. YOR WEEK has come and gone, but the other night I found myself unfolding some posters in my collection and pulled out the jumbo 4-sheet from France for the masterwork of cinema we know as Yor. I found myself walking around the room and snapping photos of favorite bits. So, I figure I'd share them. Just a bunch of details that catch my eye, this awesome art from Philippe Druillet is one of my favorite possessions, especially at the awe inspiring size of the edition I have.
Click the images for big versions...and yes, I am just this much a geek for YOR!

The Overlord needed that huge CYBER-ARM!!

SAVAGERY MEETS SCIENCE!!

The 'bots are Badass in Druillet Vision

The background city battle!!

Ka-Laa looks fantastic eh?

THE MAN!!

Now that is a badass Gauntlet/mini-shield!

And more awesome arm stuff and axes!
And I could not resist adding this Druillet piece for Star Wars....AWESOME and quite similar in the robo bad guy department!

Richard Blade #1- The Bronze Axe!

2010-07-07T09:25:00.000-07:00

"Blade kept trying to remember--he flexed his right hand at his side, extending the thumb and tightening the muscles, pulling the fingers straight in to a chopping edge... Yes it was coming back to him now. His right hand was, literally, a flesh axe!"

My friend Bruce from Bookgasm handed me a stack of Richard Blade books, something I had never encountered and as soon as I read the synopsis I figured this would be right up my alley. And is it ever. Add in the fact that the first 5 volumes are penned by Manning Lee Stokes (of Killmaster infamy) and I was hot to get my eyeballs on #1, THE BRONZE AXE.
This was even better than I imagined.
Richard Blade is introduced to us as a tough, yet swingingly 60s, spy for Her Majesty. He is dashing and cool, and is also due for a vacation of course. However, his enigmatic superior that goes by the name J calls him in for a quick trip in to London first. There he meets Lord Leighton, a hunchback scientist that has a new super computer (remember this is 1969) and wants THE PERFECT MAN that our agent Blade is to be his test subject.
Things go a bit wonky. After being hooked up to the computer Blade blacks out and just wakes up in the middle of Lankhmar St. and Cimmeria Ave. Luckily, his crack training provides him all he needs to adventure in this weird dimension X. He immediately saves the sexy, young and virginal Princess Taleen as she tries to escape the clutches of a wicked Queen. He also bumps headlong in to a crazed bunch of cannibal women along the way, as well as a pirate crew, a warrior pit where he must slay bears, an old hag with a good body that he must service while noting her false teeth carved of animal bone and yes...he gets blowjobs from a sexy cannibal. Talk about putting it all on the line for Princess, Queen and Country!! Aided by his man servant, the wackily deformed Sylvo, Blade conquers all-and in this short novel goes from secret agent to ultra man of Dimension X.

The final chapters are truly classics of trash entertainment in novel form...the reader knows what is going on, Blade begins to realize it as well, as Lord Leighton tries to summon our hero back to his own reality. So, in truly staggering fashion, Blade decides to screw it all, literally, taking the princess and making her not only cry out her love, but proclaim him the largest (ahem) most amazing man on the planet. And then he goes home! J and Leighton are left to wonder what has happened and also realize that the agent has brought back physical evidence of his trip with a perfectly form pearl of a material that has never been seen before by human eyes! The potential!! The Mighty United Kingdom shall rise again!
And I think that Blade is going to smash a lot of heads, bust a lot of teeth and bed many maidens before we are through.
Manning Lee Stokes pushes the envelope of being flat out sexist and gore mongering without going in to the philosophical nonsense of certain other authors-and while he is not going to be the permanent author of the "Jeffrey Lord" titles, this one really got me interested in the entire series. Fast paced Fantasy mixed with a little spysploitation and a hero that is of course invested in the scenario, one that can change with each book no less, is a great idea and has a Maciste like feel that appeals. We are never led to believe that Blade is invincible in Dimension X-and he actually does come up physically shorter, except for sexually, than many of the barbaric hordes he encounters.
I'm hooked. Aside from this, I'm fascinated by the series history. It appears the US version cease at #37, but the Gerard de Villiers factory of fleshy fantasy and ballistic brazen badness has kept "Jeffrey Lord" and Blade alive for more than an additional 150 novels! Incredible...I must know more. So, I shall read all the English language novels in the next year and report back! Check THE B-SIDE BARBARIANS for many more Blade updates in the future!

One more classic...

"This was sensual witchcraft beyond his experience, and in the throes he did not know if she were human or not. That she was the mother of all fellatrices he did not doubt..."

Thongor Comics!!

2010-07-06T09:55:00.000-07:00

Now this brings back some great memories, I only recently started reading the THONGOR novels, but the comics adaptation was a favorite back when it came out and I have pulled these issues out quite a few times. The adaptations are pretty good, the first novel is neatly condensed to say the least! Here are the first four issues, with the second to follow shortly!
The first cover by Steranko is awesome, and the interior artwork by Val Mayerik surpasses even my love for Void Indigo! Barbarian fanatics, you want these comics!!

ATOR! Joe D'Amato Brings The Barbarics to the B-Squad

2010-07-02T13:05:00.000-07:00

Anyone that loves European Trash Cinema loves the filmography of Joltin' Joe D'Amato. He cranked out all kinds of oddball genre films-and when they took up the swords and spun the sorcery the hero ATOR was created. Knock him if you please, but I love these threadbare flicks. We'll look at them all, but lets start the weekend with the first film. Sabrina Siani alert!!

And this is just the first film!

Going BALZAN to the wall...and putting the sword to the Pussy(cats)!

2010-07-01T12:46:00.000-07:00

The Lyle Kenyon Engel factory brings us another fun Burroughs styled adventure as "The Tarzan Of Outer Space" battles cat men in the BALZAN series. Even better, author Wallace Moore is comics maestro Gerry Conway! Doesn't this just scream out for a comics adaptation circa the 70s??

Dax The Warrior!

2010-06-30T14:37:00.000-07:00

Time for some DAX THE WARRIOR! This was an Estaban Maroto piece that blew my young mind, the quality of work-as is usually the case for his strips-just smashes me right in the sensory portions of the brain and leaves me wanting more. Show me a better intro splash... click the thumbs for readable copies and be sure to buy yourself all the Eerie reprint volumes!

Throne Of Fire - Sabrina Siani Slashes

2010-06-29T05:40:00.000-07:00

The Throne of Fire is one of my favorite ULTRA cheap Italian barbarian films, this time released by the always reliable Cannon Films! Starring Peter McCoy (Pietro Torrisi), Harrison Muller Jr. and the beautiful Sabrina Siani, it has bikinis, head bashing, a fast pace and one of the best goopy jelly child creatures ever presented in Eurotrash Barbarism.

After a prophecy is established and the evil Belial impregnates an old woman with his glob beast boy we are introduced to the evil Morak. Now, both Belial and Morak are played by Harrison Muller Jr, so any film with double Muller is double good already! Regardless if he is a post nuke warrior or Barbarian, the man does not change his facial hair. Morak wants to sit on The Throne of Fire, which is literally a throne that burst in to flames if the prophecy parameters are not met. Morak likes to prove the point with his flunkies, flambeing them for the hell of it. But we need the Princess, this time played by Sabrina Siani, so we meet Princess Valkari! She can smack down foot soldiers (who wear motorcycle helmets???) but needs a little extra beef in her bikini to help out. Luckily Peter McCoy is lurking around as Siegfried. He's big, he's tough and he is all for the side of good.

Actually, he is on the side with the hot woman in the bikini...smart barbarian.

Basically, they fight, they escape, they are captured, they escape and then we have a great meltdown as everything goes sideways for our man Morak. Good fun.

"ma...maaaaaaa"

"Who ordered a barbaric pummeling?"

"Thanks Sabrina!!"

Throne of Fire is cheap cheap cheap...producer Ettore Spagnuolo did a number of films covered in the book Tough To Kill (plug from co-author!) and he is not really the kind of person to slather on production values. But that doesn't matter, because it gives the film a really unique vibe. It could easily be a post nuke film with one or two background matte paintings added. The effects are crude, but Paolo Ricci works a little bit of his magic when the goo needs to ooze across the screen. Also, the film is "blessed" with one of the wonkiest heroic blooping and bleeping from the synthesizers of Paolo and Carlo Rustichelli I have heard. I think someone misheard the words "rousing heroics" with "R2D2 spasming while attempting to project an image of Princess Valkari!"

The performers are...limited. I'm always glad to see the rather flat yet oddly compelling Muller Jr and anything, and I do mean anything, with Sabrina Siani is welcome in my media players! She did not have a long career, but if you needed a girl in a bikini (or a lot less) to be in your jungle, action, barbarian film-she can't be beat.

And well, if you see the name Franco Prosperi in your 80s Barbarians (and I'll be watching more soon), you can expect some sub Enzo Castellari slow motion and a lot of zooming in on axes hitting flesh. Not bad really, though I don't think anyone would complain about his habit of lingering on the carnage. A fun film, perfect for a quick shot of B-Side Barbarian Bliss.

Huh? Heavy Metal??

Thongor Returns for Paperback Pugilism!

2010-06-28T08:46:00.000-07:00

Here are the second set of Thongor paperback scans. I read the first novel and enjoyed it quite a bit, Lin Carter takes the familiar aspects of Sword and Sorcery and writes a fast paced and often funny bit of barbarism that I'm looking forward to enjoying further. Next up...THONGOR in the comics!!

Kromag The Killer...The Second Coming

2010-06-25T11:54:00.000-07:00

I found the other KROMAG THE KILLER! Here you go...feast your eyes on that artwork, barbaric and beautiful bashing awaits. Click the thumbnails for fiction so powerful it will punch your nose off!

The Barbarians-Deodato Brings The Beef!

2010-06-24T10:30:00.000-07:00

When you say Ruggero Deodato to me I think of Cannibal Holocaust, the amazing KILLER PHONE VS. CHARLOTTE RAMPLING masterwork DIAL:HELP or Atlantis Interceptors or...well, lots of things. Outside of his dabbling in Peplum very early on, I don't think of Barbarians. Well, that has changed.
You have to love the first 20 minutes of this film. Gore! Violence! Action! Richard Lynch as an evil wizard! Cool Masked Warriors! Floggings! Training Scenes! This is good fun Neo-Peplum with lots of head banging and muscle flexing. And then...well, I still love it, but your miles may vary.
After a traveling circus holding twin boys Kutchek and Gore is captured by the evil Kadar the film chronicles the boys rise to being GIANT dudes that love to fight. After being kept apart and made to fight, they quickly recognize each other and team up for adventures and running about while calling each other BONEHEAD! Monsters fall, sexy evil women abound, sexy good gal women abound and the brothers argue over everything along the way.
Welcome to Cimmeria, NJ (or The Hyborean Shore) once the Barbarian Brothers start talking. The film switches gears multiple times, bouncing between comedy and action with the kind of ease that makes me a fan of European Trash Cinema. I found both elements very satisfying and this is like eating an ice cream cone as big as the beefcake brothers pecs...filling, maybe a bit too sweet, but it is still ice cream. I'll eat it til I explode.

SEEK Books...and you shall find them!

2010-06-23T15:25:00.000-07:00

Just a brief break from Barbarism and Brutality to share a recommendation. Located about 20 minutes from my home is SEEK BOOKS, which is a virtual Wheel Of Pain for me to decide what to spend my limited allocation of BrutalBucks on. Now, there are lots of bookstores online, but being around these books is something I enjoy as much as reading them. Every spine glance reveals a surprise and I have a long "short list" I'll be working on. On Father's Day I picked up the THONGOR series and can't wait to get back and hit the bricks n' mortar again when I can.
Check out Brad's website, and definitely give the "About Us" section a read. It contains one of the best reasons to shop in the store if possible right here..."10. I encourage browsing and you can spend hours here and not buy and it won't get you a sour look, only a "come back again."
You can't put a price tag on that. Add the fact that the owner knows, and LOVES, these titles and can help you find not only what you are looking for, but things you know nothing about, is a great bonus. You can work with them on the net as well, and I bet you'll be pleased. Join the Facebook group and you even get a discount!
So, if you live anywhere near the Boston area, get your directions and head on down. On top of that, you'll find a nice variety of food will keep you sustained as you take a lunch break and then start staring in awe at the collection of the first 100 DAW titles.

Onward Barbarians...more brutality coming your way...lets SEEK out something truly weird and wonderful!

My hand must have been shaking to make the picture blurry, but this is just BLADE books...seriously.

Neat! Tidy! Still Barbaric! Ahh....I love it!

Kromag The Killer! Jack Sparling Gets Barbaric!

2010-06-22T13:53:00.000-07:00

Time for some Barbaric Banging and Bashing from the dawn of time....KROMAG THE KILLER by Jack Sparling and Gabe Levy! Click the thumbnails for reading copies. One of the best stories in this very very excellent magazine!

Thongor!!

2010-06-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

I blame Creatures On The Loose! Stuck in my dim memory of barbarians gone by, I had a bit of Lin Carter stuck in my mental craw with THONGOR OF LEMURIA. I still have those comics, but for some reason it never dawned on me to get the novels.
Well, Father's Day 2010 has come and gone, and I now have a set of the 6 novels in my hands. More soon, here are some images and synopsis to get your thong in a bunch of or!
More Thongor coming your way with a look at both the novels and comics...

Ironjaw-The Origin!

2010-06-20T07:01:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite B-Side Barbarians is none other than Ironjaw. Who could forget the amazing issue #4? At last, the origin of the big bear trap on Ironjaws face was revealed and it still holds up as great jaw dropping comics. Get it? Jaw...aw you get it.
While the book started out as just being an OK idea, when Pablo Marcos took over on the art with the second issue the whole thing came together. Barbarians, magic, monsters and mayhem galore. But NOTHING could have prepped my wee brain for this origin back when 25 cent comics were the norm! Check it out, these pages are burnt into my (then impressionable and now just plain warped) mind. From Ironjaw #4.... THE flashback! Click the thumbnails for full sized copies!

All you can say is OUCH!! Beautiful Marcos artwork on that page 11 as well. This is a great series that sadly only lasted the four issues-grab em if you enjoy the sword and sorcery genre-or just like plain old good bashing action. Ironjaw is quite the sexist heel as well...

Here is the World Of Ironjaw text from the first issue as well....

Ironmaster - An Umberto Lenzi Bash of Barbarism!

2010-06-18T06:15:00.000-07:00

To know Ironmaster is to love it! Director Umberto Lenzi takes a screenplay that not only includes work by Dardano Sacchetti, but also from uber-nut Alberto Cavallone and puts together one of my favorite Budget Barbarians of them all. DeAngelis Brothers music, George Eastman towering over all as Vood and some nasty effects by Paolo Ricci ensure a good time if you are looking for something a bit different in your diet of smashing swordplay.

Poster by Renato Casaro!

Welcome to the B Side of Barbarism and Brutality!

2010-06-17T11:51:00.000-07:00

I've long been fascinated by "the others" in my favorite genres-and as a long time fantasy reader and film fan I've seen an insane amount of Off Brand Barbarics. Don't get me wrong, I love Robert E. Howard and his mighty men of action. I enjoy the classics, but nothing...and I mean NOTHING...is finer for me than the flipping over a gaudy cover, reading a breathless synopsis of something that sounds LIKE a scintillating sword and sorcery novel, only to discover that the insides are more bizarre than expected. And it doesn't stop with books. Comics have had their share...and I've long delighted in the Neo Peplum / Post Pop Conan era of Eurotrash Cinema.

I admit, I'm no expert on this subject, but I'm looking forward to digging up exciting images, strange synopsis and even some raging reviews of the fantasies you did not know you had...on THE B-SIDE BARBARIANS.
-David Z of TOMB IT MAY CONCERN

And here is the picture that started it all...thanks to Bruce Grossman of BOOKGASM!

With all this in front of me I expect to be swinging my sword for a long time...hacking through some hacked out blissful Barbarian Bashing. Bring on Blade. Bring on Ator. Bring on the gore!!

Also, if any barbaric scholar has a favorite series they would like to share images from or reviews of, please feel free to pass them along to me at dr.orlof@gmail.com.

Stay shirtless!