“Dragonsword” was a three-part original tale of wizards and dragons. You’ve probably never heard of it. It is one of the forgotten comics that I am looking at in this series. Back-up features usually don’t get remembered for long so we are digging up some treasures to admire.
After doing a two-part back-up of the failed Claw the Unconquered comic, Paul Levitz and Tom Yeates did “Dragonsword”in The Warlord #51-54 (November 1981–February 1982). Paul Levitz, along with Steve Ditko, had created Stalker back in 1975, though he has spent most of his career writing about superheroes for DC. Tom Yeates has done a number of projects including Swamp Thing, Tarzan for Dark Horse, and now draws Prince Valiant for the newspapers. He worked on the Groo Versus Conan crossover. These back-ups for The Warlord were most likely where I first came across his work.
Episode 1
We meet our hero, Thiron after successfully bathing his sword in the blood of dragon he killed. The blade now talks about destroying its owner. Thiron throws a baby-fit, demanding to have his weapon explained to him. His squire, the ape Dysillus, tries to calm him. Thiron defies the masters of his order, the Battle School, and challenges Master Gerrand. The wizard opens up a chasm in the ground, which Thiron tries to jump across. He falls into the depths but realizes as he falls that his sword will carry him out.
He gets to the other side and foolishly continues to strike Gerrand. The fight stops when the Archmage, the goodlady Anna, appears. She uses her magic to whisk Gerrand, Thiron and Dysillus to her throne room to talk. Using a skull to fuel a spell, Anna shows Thiron why his sword was created. It was necessary to kill the dragon and curse the wielder so that he had a magical weapon. The champion will need it to take on Emperor Quisel. While Anna rules the spiritual realm, Quisel rules the temporal. He has a magical ax that he took from the dark powers, corrupting him. It has the power defeat any spell and kill any soul. Thiron agrees to face the villain with the Dragonsword.
Episode 2
Handy-dandy teleportation takes wizards, hero and squire to the castle of the emperor. Thiron uses the sword’s power to blast open the front doors. Skeletons attack him. These are the skeletons of previous heroes that tried to kill Quisel. Thiron learns he is not special, but one in a long line. He defeats the warriors but Gerrand steps on the skull of one skeleton who is telling Thiron things he doesn’t need to know. “Do not let the witch and her fa—” Dysillus suspects the boy has been lied to.
The party finds the throne room. The door melts off and becomes lava. The fiery metal does not hurt Thiron’s feet. Anna congratulates Gerrand on the breeding that has created such a hero. Quisel shows up with ax in hand. After the usual pre-battle blah blah Thiron and Quisel fight. Thiron and the Dragonsword do alright, holding their own. Quisel decides to blast Thiron with chaos energy. Thiron falters. It looks like the hero has failed!
Episode 3
Emperor Quisel is about to finish the job when Thiron calls to Anna and Gerrand to help him. They do not intervene. Thiron regains his sword but Quisel continues to burn him with spells. Thiron is dying when he embraces his sword and transforms into a dragon himself. Using his dragonfire he burns Quisel to a cinder.The hero has won.
Returning to human form, Thiron greets Anna. Thiron asks why she would not help him. Anna reveals that Gerrand is her father and Quisel her brother. Gerrand buries his dead son while Anna proposes Thiron join her, offering knowledge and love. Thiron rejects her. “I have tasted the soul of a dragon now… and I know what it means to be free.” Thiron will depart to find his own adventures. He leaves the world to Dysillus. “B-but boss–what do I do with it…?” asks the ape squire. Thiron tells him to enjoy it and it he ever needs the help of the Dragonsword just call. (Do you want to do a series?)
I had a terrible sense of deja vu as I was reading this comic. The theme of the warrior that is groomed to fight the evil one, who finds out he is not the first but one of a line of heroes, all the others failed before him. “In a Far Off Land” by Steven Skeates and Berni Wrightson came to mind. As did “The Quest” written and drawn by Chic Stone. Several by Archie Goodwin. I think you get the point: this is an old trope. Did Paul Levitz do anything new with it? Well, he had the hero win for a change. All the 1960s and early 70s versions have the hero fail. (This was because they appeared in horror comic magazines and a bummer ending was expected.)
The idea of combining weapon and hero was certainly new. I liked the ill-temper of the sword, though we never got to see the dragon’s curse come to fruition. The story is a set-up for a series about our dragon hero, which we will never read. I wish he’d take the ape with him, since he was the most interesting character. The wizard folk and their enemy were all pretty standard stuff with little or no interesting quirks. (About as lifelike as a Masters of the Universe character. Or maybe one of their action figures.)
In a way, I think Levitz and Yeates finally put this old chestnut to bed. After 1982, it gets hard to find short comics following this pattern. Arak, Son of Thunder, Arion, Lord of Atlantis, Amethyst all came later from DC but they found a new groove for their heroes.
I loved that series! May have to go buy those issues (Warlord not too shabby either!).
Unfortunately it is too short for a collection. Maybe Tom will put it in a book of short stuff.