Monday, January 22, 2018

FRAZETTA'S DEATH DEALER

 

The Sword and Sorcery genre has always kept its sandal-ed foot in the realm of fantasy films and literature. It will even occasionally dip its bloodstained blade in the cauldron of horror with its elements of the occult and the supernatural, as well as a having well-stocked menagerie of monsters to boot.

Robert E. Howard's Conan of Cimmeria has remained the hallmark of the Sword and Sorcery (aka Heroic Fantasy character). Thanks to Lancer Books (you know, the paperback publisher with the purple fore edge pages), Conan enjoyed a pop-culture resurgence in the 1960s at the hands of Lancer's re-issues of the Howard's Conan chronicles. The books were a smash hit with fans, thanks not only to Howard's adventurous and lusty writing, but also by the dynamic and moody artwork of Frank Frazetta, whose cover images leaped into the imaginations of readers from the spinner racks of liquor stores and Pickwick Bookshops across the nation.

Frazetta revisited the Sword and Sorcery theme many times, and in 1973 created a painting featuring a character he named of Death Dealer. The dark warrior gained traction and later spin offs off his character could be found in novels, statues, comic books, and even role-playing games and a rock album cover (Molly Hatchet). He has even been cast as the "mascot" of the 3rd Army Corps, where a life-sized statue of the Death Dealer stands at the Fort Hood military base in Texas.

In 2016, a beautifully-cast Death Dealer plastic model was released by Moebius. Priced considerably lower than the 2017 release of the Death Dealer action figure, with enough patience you can have a fine reproduction of the famous barbarian warrior to show-off in your monster museum. As always, when it comes to buying monster models that are currently available on the market, my first "go-to" source is CULT TV MAN.


Death Dealer by Frank Frazetta (1973)



An unfinished Death Dealer watercolor by Frazetta.

The "Death Dealer" LP album cover for the southern rock group, Molly Hatchet.
Death Dealer by Don Marquez.

Death Dealer model ktt.

Death Dealer model kit prototypes.




The dramatic Death Dealer "Hell on Earth" action figure.
Death Dealer Hell On Earth 1/6 Scale Figure Super Deluxe Version Frank Frazetta
larger image $319.99

A massive 50 ft wall of stone and wrought iron that separated a land of evil and the unholy was constructed by an ancient civilization thousands of years ago. No one knows exactly when it was built, but its intent was to keep the evil that lurks within separate from the good and holy outside its perimeters.

Behind this wall are thousands of acres of swamp and mountain ranges that are forbidden to be visited by mankind; anyone who entered was never heard from again. An ancient tribe spoke of a demonic figure that lived among the dead. He was called The Death Dealer. He had eyes of fire, and was the embodiment of darkness.

During the time of the Norsemen around 1200 A.D., there was a kingdom miles from the gated entrance to this evil place. It was ruled by a powerful king named Jaro, who feared no man and used this land as a sacrificial place to deal with men that committed brutal and violent crimes; if one would be found guilty of murder, they would be sentenced to the Bad Lands, left behind the towering walls, never to be seen again.

The land inside the walls were not to be visited by those who were good and lawful, and everyone knew that if they crossed over into the Death Dealer's domain they would never return. The Death Dealer rode atop a large, black horse, and would execute any who visited this place with one fell swoop of his axe. He was even so powerful that he had an army of the living dead at his command.

The Death Dealer stands enormous, draped with a chain-link skirt, a dark cloak, and a horned helmet. His eyes burn like fire and no one is certain of his origin. It is told that he is as old as time itself.

Officially licensed and Authorized by Frazetta Jr. Enterprises, LLC

Parts List:
1.Four slave girls
2.Throne
3.Base with one removable skeleton accessory
4.Death Dealer figure set:
1 pc x armed head
1 pc x Phicen the 5th. generation seamless male body with metal armature for 1:6 figure
5 pairs x interchangeable hands
1 pc x shoulder strap 
1 pc x cape
1 pc x breastplate with toothed accessories
1 pc x black sleeveless robe
1 pair x briefs
1 pair x shoulder guards
1 pc x thread accessory to fasten on one arm
1 pair of wrist guards
1 pc x midsection armor skull plate & belt
1 pair x lower leg guards
1 pc x chainmail-like leg shirt with thigh guards attached 
1 pair x battle footwear with spurs 
1 set x battle sword & sheath
1 pc x machete
1 pc x shield

1 set x 4 color packaging












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