THONGOR! WARRIOR OF LOST LEMURIA (1973-1974)

This weekend’s light-hearted, escapist superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog looks at the Marvel Comics adaptation of Lin Carter’s sword and sorcery hero Thongor.

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #22 (Mar 1973)

Title: Thongor! Warrior of Lost Lemuria

Villain: The Demon of Zangabal

NOTE: Pop fiction writer Lin Carter started writing stories about his character Thongor in the 1960s. He was like a cross between two Robert E. Howard creations – Conan the Barbarian and Kull the Conqueror, whose adventures were set on the ancient continent of Atlantis before it sank beneath the waves. Thongor was a sword and sorcery barbarian of sorts whose adventurers were set on ancient Lemuria, the Pacific Ocean version of Atlantis, before it sank.   

Synopsis: Thongor (at right), as always wielding his father’s god-forged sword Sarkozan, is working as a thief in the city-state of Zangabal. During one caper Thongor comes close to being captured by the authorities but is given shelter by Kaman Thuu, a Priest of the Seven Gods of Zangabal.

Kaman Thuu is a fallen priest who wants the ancient relic called the Black Mirror of Zaffar, which is currently owned by the sorcerer Athmar Phong. Zangabal’s Thieves Guild is too frightened to steal it from Athmar Phong so Kaman Thuu hires Thongor to steal it.

Our hero goes through underground tunnels to sneak into Athmar Phong’s palace but winds up captured by the demon inside the Black Mirror.

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #23 (May 1973)

Title: Where Broods the Demon

Villains: Athmar Phong and the Demon of Zangabal

Synopsis: The Demon imprisons Thongor in the dungeon of Athmar Phong’s palace while waiting for the sorcerer to return home. He meets his fellow prisoner, the thief Ald Turmis, Kaman Thuu’s previous hireling sent to steal the Black Mirror.

Thongor frees himself and Ald. They wind up caught between the Demon and Athmar Phong as he arrives and unleashes his magic. Our heroes begin losing, so Thongor desperately shatters the Black Mirror with the Shield of Cathloda, which causes the Demon to be sent back to the Ultracosmos (Hell) dragging Athmar with it. 

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #24 (Jul 1973)

Title: Red Swords, Black Wings

Villain: Prince Jeled Malkh of Thurdis

Synopsis: Thongor and Ald have been thieving together for eight months now. At present they have been operating in Thurdis, the City of Dragons. Thongor gets captured and fed to the city’s Vampire Plants.

Ald frees Thongor this time, and with his debt to our hero paid, the pair part ways. When Thongor tries to leave Thurdis he is spotted by Prince Jeled Makh, who sics his troops on him.

Thongor fights his way to a magical lighter than air vessel anchored to a building. He takes off in it and escapes. The winds take him far off-course however and he gets attacked by a flying lizard called a Grakk. The Grakk overturns the floating vessel, which causes it to drop lower and lower until another, unseen creature approaches.

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #25 (Sep 1973)

Title: The Wizard of Lemuria

Villain: Sharajsha of Zaar

Synopsis: The lighter than air vessel crashes into the jungles of Chush (Lin Carter’s obvious imitation of Robert E. Howard’s Kush) and battles a few large crocodile-like monsters. Their numbers threaten to overwhelm him until he is saved by a wizard named Sharajsha of Zaar.

The wizard and Thongor make their way through the jungle and its creatures until they come to Sharajsha’s fortress at the foot of the Mountains of Mommur, which run like a spine along the entire Lemurian Continent, from its jungles to its wintry northern lands.

Sharajsha and his servant girl Slissa (at right) feast Thongor and the wizard tells him he needs his help.

To motivate him he conjures up visions of the warrior’s impending doom if he fails in his mission.

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #26 (Nov 1973)

Title: Tower of the Serpent Women

Villains: The Dragon Kings

Synopsis: Sharajsha explains to Thongor that he, like countless other warriors, will fall to the Dragon Kings, who are about to return. Before humanity was created by the Nineteen Gods led by Gorm the Father of Stars, the Dragon Kings ruled Lemuria. Phondath the First Born and his wife Evalla led humanity at the start of civilization and in the Thousand Year War against the evil Dragon Kings. 

Human beings only triumphed in the end because Gorm gave a warrior named Thungar the divine Star Sword. Thungar defeated the Dragon Kings but was slain in turn and the Star Sword broken. If humanity is to have any chance of stopping the Dragon Kings from trying to retake the Earth the Star Sword must be repaired and that can only be done via the mystical mineral Star Stone, found only in Tsargol, southernmost kingdom (Sarkdom) on Lemuria.

Using the floating vessel which brought Thongor to the Chush jungle, Sharajsha flies himself and our hero to Tsargol to steal Star Stone. Thongor defeats the Serpent Women called Slorgs (at right) and steals some but is captured on his way back to the ship. He and his newfound ally Karm Karvus, rightful ruler of Tsargol, are condemned to fight an enormous reptile in an arena to save the sacrificial woman Kora.

The duo manage to kill the beast, then Thongor slays the usurping Sark in the audience. 

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #27 (Jan 1974)

Title: In the Crypts of Yamath

Villains: The Dragon Kings

Synopsis: Even though the crown of Tsargol should now belong to Karm Karvus, Archdruid Yelim Pelorvus grabs the crown from the dead Sark’s head and names himself the new Sark. The villain then has soldiers attack Thongor and Karm Karvus. The pair defend themselves and Kora from the troops until the wizard Sharajsha aboard the floating ship drops down from hiding.

Yelim Pelorvus is killed and Karm Karvis dons the crown. Thongor and Sharajsha fly off with Kora and enough Star Stone to repair the Star Sword. Kora (lower right) and our hero canoodle and such enroute to her home village, where she is dropped off after sharing a last kiss with Thongor.

The warrior and the wizard fly on until they reach Patanga, the City of Fire, where Sharajsha plans to have the Eternal Fire under the altar of the fire god Yamath forge the broken pieces of the Star Sword back together.

Patanga’s Sarkaja (queen) Sumia of the House of Chond was the rightful ruler of Patanga but she had been robbed of the throne by rebellious Yellow Druids (their robes were yellow).

She agrees to guide Thongor and Sharajsha to the Eternal Flame in the subterranean caves. They are opposed by Yellow Druids and monsters of the Dragon Kings.

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #28 (Mar 1974)

Title: Mountain of Thunder

Villains: Servants of the Dragon Kings

Synopsis: In the Crypt of Yamath, Thongor, Sharajsha and Sumia fight the guardsmen of the Yellow Druids.

On top of that they must also take on the subterranean lizard-men who serve the Dragon Kings.

Sumia (at right) and our heroes manage to forge the Star Sword back together.

Its divine power hopefully will prove capable of defeating Thongor’s immediate foes.

In addition, it may also prevent the return of the Dragon Kings if ancient Lemuria is to be saved. 

CREATURES ON THE LOOSE Vol 1 #29 (May 1974)

Title: Lord of Chaos

Villains: The Dragon Kings and Iao-Thamungazoth the Lord of Chaos

Synopsis: On the largest of the Four Dragon Islands in the Inland Sea of Neol-Shendis, Thongor, Sharajsha, Sumia and their recovered ally Karm Karvus are in the Castle of the Dragon Kings for the final confrontation.

Sssaaa, High Priest of the Dragon Kings, plans to sacrifice Sumia, Karm Karvus and Sharajsha to the Lord of Chaos in order to pave the way for the Dragon Kings to resume their reign of terror on the Earth.

The life-energies of the three sacrifices will enable those evil beings to return to our world. Gorm the Father of Stars transported Thongor to the castle just in time. He uses the Star Sword to take on the Dragon Kings (at right) and with Gorm’s help they are destroyed, forever ending their menace.