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The Adventures of Red Sonja (Collected Editions)
The Adventures of Red Sonja Vol. 3
The third volume in the best-selling collection featuring the classic Marvel Comics adventures of the She Devil With a Sword! Presenting the definitive and remastered versions of Red Sonja #8 through #15, featuring the work of Roy Thomas and Frank Thorne, the classic tales are collected here for the very first time! Part of the Red Sonja 35th Anniversary Event.
153 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1977
About the author
Roy Thomas
4,594 books283 followersRoy Thomas was the FIRST Editor-in-Chief at Marvel--After Stan Lee stepped down from the position. Roy is a longtime comic book writer and editor. Thomas has written comics for Archie, Charlton, DC, Heroic Publishing, Marvel, and Topps over the years. Thomas currently edits the fanzine Alter Ego for Twomorrow's Publishing. He was Editor for Marvel comics from 1972-1974. He wrote for several titles at Marvel, such as Avengers, Thor, Invaders, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and notably Conan the Barbarian. Thomas is also known for his championing of Golden Age comic-book heroes — particularly the 1940s superhero team the Justice Society of America — and for lengthy writing stints on Marvel's X-Men and Avengers, and DC Comics' All-Star Squadron, among other titles.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 28, 2021
Sonja and Suumaro's love interest storyline was too long, boring and meandering in my opinion, to keep me interested.
Luckly the ending penciled by John Buscema, taking over the reins of the series after Frank Thorne leaving it to work on his creator owned heroine Ghita of Alizarr and a number of other erotic fantasy comics and characters, was a real good one.
Final two issues, drawn by "Big" John, his brother Sal Buscema and Tony DeZuñiga, are two awesome sword and sorcery masterpiece one-shots with the red haired she-devil fighting and winning against lecherous thugs, vile abominations, evil noblemen, and bloodthirsthy vampires.
And that scene with Red Sonja's rising out from a gian clam, like in a bloody version of Botticelli's The Birth of Venus painting, totally made my day.
Such a shame issues 14-15 were the series' swan song and Marvel abruptuly cancelled it because of poor sales, one of the events pointing the way toward Roy Thomas, Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief, leaving the House of Ideas after 15 years of steady and faithful employment.
Luckly the Hyrkanian metal-bikini clad swashbuckler survived becoming one of the most popular characters in comic books... "But that is another story..." Conan the Barbarian (1982).
June 29, 2023
Nice collection of these comic issues. Entertaining read. Recommended
January 4, 2024
After Frank Thorne leaves at #11, John Buscema and Sal Buscema do some issues but they feel like just basic (for them) attempts - really nothing special which is a shame.
The story is high fantasy but I didn't really get too in to it. More due to fatigue of reading too many Red Sonja and Conan comics the past few months.
The story is high fantasy but I didn't really get too in to it. More due to fatigue of reading too many Red Sonja and Conan comics the past few months.
April 29, 2021
Reprints Red Sonja (1) #8-15 (March 1978-May 1979). Red Sonja finds herself allied with a prince named Suumaro in a fight to win the crown of the kingdom of Skranos. With Suumaro’s sorceress mother Apah Alah fighting her ties to her son, Red Sonja and Suumaro become trapped in a mystical trap with Red Sonja blind…and solving the puzzle could mean the death of one of them.
Written by Roy Thomas and Clara Noto, The Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 3 is a Dynamite Entertainment reprint of the classic Marvel Comics series. Following The Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 2, the collection finishes the first run of the series and features art by Frank Thorne, John Buscema, Al Milgrom, and Tony de Zuniga.
I always liked Red Sonja. The movie was out when I was young and was like the unofficial sequel to the Arnold Schwarzenegger Conan films with Schwarzenegger in a role that looked just like Conan but wasn’t Conan. Though the movie was rather poor, the character of Red Sonja has a lot of validity…and these are her classic adventures.
The stories for Red Sonja are typical sword and sorcery type tales that feel just like Conan the Barbarian issues. You have the wandering swordswoman meeting people, battling demons, and breaking curses. This collection is a direct continuation of the previous collection with the story of Suumaro continuing…Suumaro’s story ends with Red Sonja (1) #13, and the series was filled out with a couple of stand-alone Red Sonja stories.
What is striking about Red Sonja is the weird contrast. With much of the collection famously illustrated by Frank Thorne, Red Sonja appears in her rather impractical iron bikini fighting demons. The character however has a strong moral code, stands for the rights of women, and doesn’t allow herself to be a pawn of men. In this sense the outfit is almost a means to fool the men she encounters (but I don’t think it is intended that way).
Normally, I don’t feel that the print takes a special notice, but Dynamite Entertainment “remastered” the color on all the issues in the collection…and it looks bad. While I’m sure that the art and pages probably needed sprucing up from the newsprint, the color pallet is too bright and too contrast to feel legitimate and it is a bad distraction to otherwise good art.
It is odd that Red Sonja didn’t do better and last longer (issue #12 proclaimed her the number one fantasy fighting female…the series was cancelled two issues later). The series is a good companion and enough of a contrast to Conan (and Kull) to justify its existence, and the exploration of a role of a woman in the world of Hyboria is something that was interesting in the 1970s in the post-feminist movement and in today’s world…the comic tried to explore it, but didn’t do it entirely. The Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 3 were followed by The Further Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 1 which looked at some of Red Sonja’s adventures outside of her own title (it is also a misnomer in that a second volume was planned but never released).
Written by Roy Thomas and Clara Noto, The Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 3 is a Dynamite Entertainment reprint of the classic Marvel Comics series. Following The Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 2, the collection finishes the first run of the series and features art by Frank Thorne, John Buscema, Al Milgrom, and Tony de Zuniga.
I always liked Red Sonja. The movie was out when I was young and was like the unofficial sequel to the Arnold Schwarzenegger Conan films with Schwarzenegger in a role that looked just like Conan but wasn’t Conan. Though the movie was rather poor, the character of Red Sonja has a lot of validity…and these are her classic adventures.
The stories for Red Sonja are typical sword and sorcery type tales that feel just like Conan the Barbarian issues. You have the wandering swordswoman meeting people, battling demons, and breaking curses. This collection is a direct continuation of the previous collection with the story of Suumaro continuing…Suumaro’s story ends with Red Sonja (1) #13, and the series was filled out with a couple of stand-alone Red Sonja stories.
What is striking about Red Sonja is the weird contrast. With much of the collection famously illustrated by Frank Thorne, Red Sonja appears in her rather impractical iron bikini fighting demons. The character however has a strong moral code, stands for the rights of women, and doesn’t allow herself to be a pawn of men. In this sense the outfit is almost a means to fool the men she encounters (but I don’t think it is intended that way).
Normally, I don’t feel that the print takes a special notice, but Dynamite Entertainment “remastered” the color on all the issues in the collection…and it looks bad. While I’m sure that the art and pages probably needed sprucing up from the newsprint, the color pallet is too bright and too contrast to feel legitimate and it is a bad distraction to otherwise good art.
It is odd that Red Sonja didn’t do better and last longer (issue #12 proclaimed her the number one fantasy fighting female…the series was cancelled two issues later). The series is a good companion and enough of a contrast to Conan (and Kull) to justify its existence, and the exploration of a role of a woman in the world of Hyboria is something that was interesting in the 1970s in the post-feminist movement and in today’s world…the comic tried to explore it, but didn’t do it entirely. The Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 3 were followed by The Further Adventures of Red Sonja—Volume 1 which looked at some of Red Sonja’s adventures outside of her own title (it is also a misnomer in that a second volume was planned but never released).
March 1, 2013
Big Red und die Argonauten
Diese Geschichten sind, wie auch bei den Vorgängerbänden, wenig hyborisch; sie fühlen sich sehr stark eher wie Geschichten aus der griechischen Mythologie an, mit Zentauren und Phönixen, und einem Fährmann Karon am Fluss Stagus. Howard-Fans werden sich winden anhand der Riesenelefanten im scheinbar tropischen Dschungel der Berge von Argos (!), doch wer sich damit abfinden kann, wird mit typischer Roy-Thomas-Qualität belohnt. Keine große Kunst, aber solide Fantasycomics.
Natürlich sind auch hier wieder die Zeichnungen der eigentlich einzige Grund, warum man sich diese Reihe anschauen kann. Thorne zeichnet noch die ersten paar Ausgaben, dann übernehmen die Buscema-Brüder. Wenn auch Thornes Zeichnungen manchmal etwas unanatomisch sind und fast laienhaft daherkommen, gerade bei Gesichtern, so ist doch die Gesamtwirkung durchaus ansprechend. Dieser Effekt geht leider bei den Buscemas verloren und das Comic wirkt ab dann etwas generisch. Interessanterweise ist die beste Zeichnung in diesem Band aber, wie auch Thomas in seinem Vorwort anmerkt, das Cover zu Ausgabe 12 von Frank Brunner. Äußerst gelungen, das werde ich mir vergrößern und als Poster an die Wand hängen. Das beste Comiccover, das ich bisher gesehen habe.
Zum Thema Rekolorierung - bei Band 2 ist dieses Vorhaben spektakulär gescheitert, siehe meine Rezension dort; dieser Band macht das nun deutlich besser. Immer noch sind die Farben etwas grell und unnuanciert, die Linien zu dick und die Repro schlechter, als sie sein müsste, aber insgesamt betrachtet kann man die Comics in dieser aufgearbeiteten Form nun gut lesen. Druck, Papier und Bindung sind gut gelungen. Die Originalcover sind separat am Ende abgedruckt.
Diese Geschichten sind, wie auch bei den Vorgängerbänden, wenig hyborisch; sie fühlen sich sehr stark eher wie Geschichten aus der griechischen Mythologie an, mit Zentauren und Phönixen, und einem Fährmann Karon am Fluss Stagus. Howard-Fans werden sich winden anhand der Riesenelefanten im scheinbar tropischen Dschungel der Berge von Argos (!), doch wer sich damit abfinden kann, wird mit typischer Roy-Thomas-Qualität belohnt. Keine große Kunst, aber solide Fantasycomics.
Natürlich sind auch hier wieder die Zeichnungen der eigentlich einzige Grund, warum man sich diese Reihe anschauen kann. Thorne zeichnet noch die ersten paar Ausgaben, dann übernehmen die Buscema-Brüder. Wenn auch Thornes Zeichnungen manchmal etwas unanatomisch sind und fast laienhaft daherkommen, gerade bei Gesichtern, so ist doch die Gesamtwirkung durchaus ansprechend. Dieser Effekt geht leider bei den Buscemas verloren und das Comic wirkt ab dann etwas generisch. Interessanterweise ist die beste Zeichnung in diesem Band aber, wie auch Thomas in seinem Vorwort anmerkt, das Cover zu Ausgabe 12 von Frank Brunner. Äußerst gelungen, das werde ich mir vergrößern und als Poster an die Wand hängen. Das beste Comiccover, das ich bisher gesehen habe.
Zum Thema Rekolorierung - bei Band 2 ist dieses Vorhaben spektakulär gescheitert, siehe meine Rezension dort; dieser Band macht das nun deutlich besser. Immer noch sind die Farben etwas grell und unnuanciert, die Linien zu dick und die Repro schlechter, als sie sein müsste, aber insgesamt betrachtet kann man die Comics in dieser aufgearbeiteten Form nun gut lesen. Druck, Papier und Bindung sind gut gelungen. Die Originalcover sind separat am Ende abgedruckt.
May 22, 2020
Another good volume of Sword and Sorcery adventure. Red Sonja's stories at time get more far out than Conan's but as I said in previous volumes that's a good thing as it differentiates the characters. Really sexy art here as well. Red Sonja's comics have probably been a little underrated over the years, as the story and art are pretty high quality.
March 29, 2020
The Final volume of the original Marvel Comics series. Definitely an underappreciated run of fantastic sword and sorcery stories.
September 20, 2023
Good fun, as per yewsh, but I found it funny that the one multi-issue storyline Roy Thomas takes specific credit for ("Red Lace") is the most confused and "Sonja is Not Like Other Girls" of all of them. I couldn't even quite tell you what "Red Lace" means again! Possibly a metaphor for magic blood? They say it at some point! But just once! Which is a pretty good indication of the idgaf nature of the plotting - just fill in enough panels with incident and intrigue to get a more-or-less standalone adventure on the shelves with enough of a hook for a spicy front cover. This is a delicate balance and, I'm sorry to say for about 40% of this collection, they're on the wrong side of it. Big lol at Sonja wondering if prince Suumaro wasn't worth sticking around for at the end of it -- he is not like other men...... babe he has a harem that is a dealbreaker and pretty much paints him as your average Hyborian dude!!
The Clair Noto scripted stand-alones fare a lot better, even managing to get some Howard vibes in, rather than the Moorcockian stuff from previous volumes. Loved Sonja's sojourn down the river Styx (and back!) and her confrontation with three vampire lords and their plant-based Renfield - both problems she solves by stabbing them in the face. They're solid adventures that managed to squeeze in at the tail end, leaving me with a more positive impression of this volume than it perhaps should have considering I was iffy about Red Lace, which comprises the majority of it.
This was it for Sonja's initial run, a mere 15 issues! By the time of cancellation, Thomas and Noto actually already had a backlog of stories plotted out, which they'd find homes for in the other Hyborian books still in print (and I will check out in "The Further Adventures of Red Sonja").
The Clair Noto scripted stand-alones fare a lot better, even managing to get some Howard vibes in, rather than the Moorcockian stuff from previous volumes. Loved Sonja's sojourn down the river Styx (and back!) and her confrontation with three vampire lords and their plant-based Renfield - both problems she solves by stabbing them in the face. They're solid adventures that managed to squeeze in at the tail end, leaving me with a more positive impression of this volume than it perhaps should have considering I was iffy about Red Lace, which comprises the majority of it.
This was it for Sonja's initial run, a mere 15 issues! By the time of cancellation, Thomas and Noto actually already had a backlog of stories plotted out, which they'd find homes for in the other Hyborian books still in print (and I will check out in "The Further Adventures of Red Sonja").
November 21, 2023
Excellent work from the top creators of 1970s Marvel comics!
October 23, 2026
The Adventures of Red Sonja vol 3 fantastic collection of none stop action fantasy stories, beautifully done art work. Overall the 1977 Red Sonja is my favourite and the best 👌
January 8, 2022
Estupendo. Lástima de recoloreado "moderno".
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews