Chapter 107: A Better Mouse Trap

[Scalenex]

Sometimes (most of the time) pointing out ridiculous things in movies is hilarious.  But this time, I don't know.  This was one of the coolest parts in this fight scene and it seems diminished now that it was explained.  But I guess it was necessary due to the build up in earlier strips.

[Matt Albrecht]

Well, "necessary" only in that I pushed towards this intentionally.  To be frank, the actual spike trap only has the tripod releasing the boulder, to spin the spike.  I just beefed it up for comedy.

However, I think it's an odd scene, personally.  That's not to say I think it shouldn't be there, but it is a unique part of the film.

This death trap depends upon a deception technique, and a really specific one, too.  Careful viewing shows Conan tricking Thorgrum to just the right place, and, though we don't see it, we can tell by Conan later being without his helm that he put it on the trap after tricking Thorgrum.

On a similar note, I had initially figured that the trap was meant to be a deception with the skeletons.  See, the film sets up the battle with Conan and Subotai placing the skeletal remains all around the battle ground.  I'm assuming it's to fool Doom into thinking that certain parts of the site are heavily guarded, and it pushes him to attack the place where Subotai and Conan are actually waiting.  Those skeletons would also have the benefit of confusing a foe in a heated battle, where seeing one of those in the corner of your eye would make you strike at the wrong thing.  However, this isn't ever shown in the film.  All those skeletons seem to do is give an odd, misplaced atmosphere.

Perhaps repeated viewings of the film frame-by-frame has given me a skewed sense of the film.