Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Warlord Wednesday: Sins of the Father...(Part 3)

Let's re-enter the lost world with another installment of my issue by issue examination of DC Comic's Warlord, the earlier installments of which can be found here...

"Sins of the Father...Fate of the Son" (part 3)
Warlord Annual #4 (1985)
Written by Cary Burkett; Penciled by Pat Broderick; Inked by Bob Smith.

Synopsis: In his tower, the Evil One scries the approach of Travis and Jennifer Morgan. He recognizes the Hellfire Sword (which he knows as the sword of Baroth). He doesn't plan to fall prey to it again.

The tower opens to disgorge hordes of creatures at our heroes.  Father and daughter throw themselves into the fray:


Morgan is in a berserker rage and near invulnerable with the power of the hellfire blade. Tinder follows in the wake of his father and sister (though none are aware of the relationship), stepping over the bodies and gore.

Morgan charges into the sanctum of the Evil One.  He leaps forward and buries his sword to the hilt in his foe’s chest.  But:


The Evil One returns to corporeal form, then smashes Morgan’s wrist, causing him to drop the sword.  He lays the Warlord low, and then does the same to his daughter.  He gloats over his foes and begins to torture them with his magic. 

He doesn’t notice Tinder enter the room.  Tinder sees the Hellfire sword and manages to wrench it from the Evil One duplicate.  Jennifer tells the boy to run.  After all, he can’t wield the sword—only someone of the blood of Travis Morgan can do that.


The Evil One dies. His tower crumbles. While Tinder cradles the body of his dead friend, Chakka, Jennifer ponders what just occurred. She knows that only a descendant of her father could wield the sword. Her father had a son, but he’s dead, killed by their father’s own hand—or so everyone assumed.

Morgan remembers nothing of what happened, and Jennifer doesn’t share her suspicions.

Tearfully, Tinder buries Chakka.  He decides to go away for a while.  How could anyone else understand his grief at having to kill someone he loved?

Things to Notice:
  • How did the Evil One create that duplicate of himself? (I know, magic, but still, he's never done it before.)
  • Why doesn't Jennifer tell her father what happened?

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