Editing Conan the Barbarian (section)

==Conan the Barbarian -- Modernity==
The above notwithstanding, in recent years, Conan has been invariably portrayed as a giant brute.  A heroic and fair-minded brute, but a brute nevertheless. Over 7 feet tall, and more than 270lbs of pure muscle, his strength was legendary. He was revered for his might in much the same way that Hercules or Thor would be. His sword was gigantic and hopelessly phallic, and despite its size and weight, he wielded it with a true warrior's mastery. While he was usually clad in only scraps of clothing or even just a loincloth (in Howard's books he actually used armour whenever he could, saving his life in many instances), this just made for a better showing of his incredible physique.

Depending on the story or setting he was being reflected, he originated from disparate places such as Gaul or Scandinavia, but most commonly, in environs reminiscent of <s>the ancient Middle East or Babylon</s> the pre-Romanic British Isles.

[[Red Sonja]] was basically written as an attempt to create a female counterpart to Conan (and was herself inspired by another of Robert's characters, specifically Red Sonya from The Shadow of The Vulture and Dark Agnes De Chastilon, both redheads, though like the original Conan, actually wore clothes). [[Elric]] of Melnibone was created by [[Moorcock]] as a kind of deliberate foil to him.

In recent years, the most famous portrayals of Conan were in the ''Conan the Barbarian'' films of the 1980s starring Arnold Schwarzenegger (one his earliest films), and the surprisingly impressive animated television series, ''[[Conan the Adventurer]]''.  The films at least ''attempted'' to capture a little more of the "surprisingly intelligent" aspect of the character (the first stresses his education in poetry, tactics, and philosophy and included a deleted scene of him melancholically reflecting on the harshness and sacrifices of his [[murderhobos|way of life]]), but was inevitably brought up short by the fact that the leading man was cast more for his charisma and physique than his ability to act or, you know, actually speak English.

Most interestingly, however, is that many fans believe that Conan <strike>was</strike> is one of earliest personas of the [[God-Emperor of Mankind‏‎]], of [[Warhammer 40k]] notoriety. Despite the fact that both characters are fictional imaginings which were created fifty years apart, there are some intriguing similarities.
They were both giant, mighty men from the times of early human civilization. They both came from early civilizations in the <strike>Middle East (though by some accounts Conan was from northern Europe)</strike> ACKCHYUALLY, the Cimmerians in Howard's setting were supposed to be a proto-Gaelic culture (modern day Scottish and Irish which Howard's own ancestry was traced from). They wandered the lands in search of adventure and causes to fight for. And of course, they boasted  flowing, raven hair and wielded incredibly large broadswords.

Of minor note: Marvel comics (not the media side, the pure comics side) has been engaging in a Conan push for a while now, as of 2020; why is an open question, but it's suspected to have something to do with a possible push for a new Marvel Cinematic Universe version of the character, or the fact that Marvel's 1970s-80s Conan run was widely beloved, and why not bring it back? Then again, 2022, the license went to Titan Comics, so.

It goes without saying that Conan the Barbarian will remain an awe-inspiring character for many years to come.