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Red Sonja: She-Devil with a Sword (2005) (Collected Editions) #1-3
Red Sonja: She-Devil with a Sword Omnibus, Vol. 1
Dynamite presents the first 18 issues of the acclaimed Red Sonja series in one massive omnibus, featuring the work of Mike Carey, Michael Avon Oeming, Mel Rubi, Pablo Marcos, Lee Moder, Stephen Sadowski, Michael Turner, Alex Ross, John Cassaday, Joe Linsner, and many more.
464 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
73 people are currently reading
246 people want to read
About the author
Michael Avon Oeming
823 books64 followersMichael Avon Oeming is an American comic book creator, both as an artist and writer.
His 1998 comic book Bulletproof Monk was made into a film of the same name.
The previous mentioned collaborations are The Mice Templar from Image Comics, which he draws and co-authors with Bryan J.L. Glass,[1] and Powers from Icon Comics which he draws, and sometimes co-authors, with Brian Bendis. His creator-owned projects include Rapture, on which he collaborated with his wife, Taki Soma,[2] and The Victories, both for Dark Horse Comics.
As of 2010, he is employed as a staff member of Valve Corporation, working on Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2 webcomics.
His 1998 comic book Bulletproof Monk was made into a film of the same name.
The previous mentioned collaborations are The Mice Templar from Image Comics, which he draws and co-authors with Bryan J.L. Glass,[1] and Powers from Icon Comics which he draws, and sometimes co-authors, with Brian Bendis. His creator-owned projects include Rapture, on which he collaborated with his wife, Taki Soma,[2] and The Victories, both for Dark Horse Comics.
As of 2010, he is employed as a staff member of Valve Corporation, working on Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2 webcomics.
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May 27, 2025
the saga goes on without end
⚔️ I believe this was about two hundred pages containing perhaps seven or eight different stories with different writers, artists, colorists, etc. Some stories had conclusions and some did not.
I was surprised to see Sonja with a male lover for whom she bared all. Mind you, he was a god. Yet, like all her boyfriends, he was slain nevertheless, though not by her.
The art varies though overall I’d say the reader receives a good graphics book illustration vibe. And the full page animation is typically a cut above the regular storyline art.
One monster slain is replaced by another. One evil king or queen laid low is followed by others just as evil. One wicked empire falls and another rises. And our sword lady must defeat them all.
⚔️ Red Sonja is a saga without an end ⚔️
3.75
⚔️ I believe this was about two hundred pages containing perhaps seven or eight different stories with different writers, artists, colorists, etc. Some stories had conclusions and some did not.
I was surprised to see Sonja with a male lover for whom she bared all. Mind you, he was a god. Yet, like all her boyfriends, he was slain nevertheless, though not by her.
The art varies though overall I’d say the reader receives a good graphics book illustration vibe. And the full page animation is typically a cut above the regular storyline art.
One monster slain is replaced by another. One evil king or queen laid low is followed by others just as evil. One wicked empire falls and another rises. And our sword lady must defeat them all.
⚔️ Red Sonja is a saga without an end ⚔️
3.75
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 15, 2018
Episches Blutvergießen!
Hier ein Fundstück aus "Von Ehefrauen und Ehrenmännern", Band 85 der Reihe KARL MAYS GESAMMELTE WERKE:
"Anders als in seinen Reiseerzählungen spielen die erotischen Beziehungen zwischen Mann und Frau in Mays frühen Romanen eine wichtige Rolle; und mag auch der Frauentypus der gefährlichen, die Geschlechtergrenzen überschreitenden Frau ein gängiges Motiv, wenn nicht gar der Mythos des ausgehenden 19. Jahrhunderts schlechthin sein, so weist er doch in dieselbe Richtung. Die zwischen sadistisch-mörderischem Pirat und verführerischem Vollweib changierende Kunstfigur der "Miß Admiral" weckt männliche Ängste, die May geteilt haben dürfte: "Wer von uns hätte nicht von diesem Frauenzimmer gehört, die ein Teufel in Menschengestalt gewesen ist!"
(Gabriele Wolff in ihrer Einführung zu Karl Mays FRAU POLLMER. EINE PSYCHOLOGISCHE STUDIE)
Wenn es stimmt, was Wolff schreibt, dürfte der Typus der Frau als "Teufel in Menschgestalt" (Red Sonja ist eine (oder gar die) "She-Devil (!) with a Sword") zu Beginn von Robert E. Howards Laufbahn als Schriftsteller ein starkes Sujet gewesen sein, dass sich über die Pulps bis heute gehalten hat. So wäre vielleicht eine Linie zu ziehen zwischen Red Sonja und Mays Segelmeisterin "Miß Admiral" auf dem Schiff "l'Horrible", von der es heißt:
"Es ist ganz unmöglich, alle ihre Verbrechen zu kennen. Sie ist das einzige Kind eines alten, originellen Seefahrers [...], der die Schrulle hatte, sich nicht von ihr trennen zu wollen. Er steckte sie in Knabenkleider und nahm sie [...] mit an Bord [...] sie machte nach und nach alle Stufen vom Schiffsjungen bis zum Offizier durch [...] hatte [...] Talent für die See und brachte es [...] so weit, ein Schiff bei jedem Wind und Wetter zu regieren. Aber [...] sie war schon als Kind eine wilde Katze, und je größer und älter sie wurde, desto mehr entwickelte sich ein Teufel in ihr [...]"
Die enorme Ähnlichkeit zur Biografie von Red Sonja ist jedenfalls nicht von der Hand zu weisen, auch wenn Red nicht zur seefahrenden Zunft zählt.
Doch genug der schönen Theorie, was erwartet uns in diesem Omnibus?
Damit wäre gleich zu Beginn die Sache mit dem chain=mail=bikini und der Frage des Sexismus geklärt.
Und nicht weniger schnell wird deutlich, dass Red Sonja den Leser auf Reisen mitnimmt, bei denen sie durch das Blut abgetrennter Extremitäten watet:
"Was", sagt ihr Blick, "nicht das Schwert ziehen?"
Schauen wir uns das in der Vergrößerung an:
Und wer´s immer noch nicht sieht: noch mal ran=zoomen und wir wissen, was Red von dieser Zurückhaltung denkt:
Ihr Ziel verliert Red nie aus den Augen:
Okay, weihnachtlich wird einem als Leser also nicht, wenn man im Dezember Red auf ihren Abenteuern begleitet. Blutige Rache; nicht die Sorte mit Pistole oder Gift, sondern die mit Schwert und Pfeil: mit dem vergossenen Blut könnte man Schwimmhallenbecken befüllen und Red könnte darin kraulen lernen. Ansonsten würde mir der Begriff "educational" bisher eher weniger in den Sinn kommen …
Soviel Blut muss wohl fließen, wenn Red ihrem Erzfeind, dem allerbösesten Magier Kulan Gath entgegentreten muss.
Sword & Sorcery eben; plus eine ordentliche Portion Erotik.
Hier ein Fundstück aus "Von Ehefrauen und Ehrenmännern", Band 85 der Reihe KARL MAYS GESAMMELTE WERKE:
"Anders als in seinen Reiseerzählungen spielen die erotischen Beziehungen zwischen Mann und Frau in Mays frühen Romanen eine wichtige Rolle; und mag auch der Frauentypus der gefährlichen, die Geschlechtergrenzen überschreitenden Frau ein gängiges Motiv, wenn nicht gar der Mythos des ausgehenden 19. Jahrhunderts schlechthin sein, so weist er doch in dieselbe Richtung. Die zwischen sadistisch-mörderischem Pirat und verführerischem Vollweib changierende Kunstfigur der "Miß Admiral" weckt männliche Ängste, die May geteilt haben dürfte: "Wer von uns hätte nicht von diesem Frauenzimmer gehört, die ein Teufel in Menschengestalt gewesen ist!"
(Gabriele Wolff in ihrer Einführung zu Karl Mays FRAU POLLMER. EINE PSYCHOLOGISCHE STUDIE)
Wenn es stimmt, was Wolff schreibt, dürfte der Typus der Frau als "Teufel in Menschgestalt" (Red Sonja ist eine (oder gar die) "She-Devil (!) with a Sword") zu Beginn von Robert E. Howards Laufbahn als Schriftsteller ein starkes Sujet gewesen sein, dass sich über die Pulps bis heute gehalten hat. So wäre vielleicht eine Linie zu ziehen zwischen Red Sonja und Mays Segelmeisterin "Miß Admiral" auf dem Schiff "l'Horrible", von der es heißt:
"Es ist ganz unmöglich, alle ihre Verbrechen zu kennen. Sie ist das einzige Kind eines alten, originellen Seefahrers [...], der die Schrulle hatte, sich nicht von ihr trennen zu wollen. Er steckte sie in Knabenkleider und nahm sie [...] mit an Bord [...] sie machte nach und nach alle Stufen vom Schiffsjungen bis zum Offizier durch [...] hatte [...] Talent für die See und brachte es [...] so weit, ein Schiff bei jedem Wind und Wetter zu regieren. Aber [...] sie war schon als Kind eine wilde Katze, und je größer und älter sie wurde, desto mehr entwickelte sich ein Teufel in ihr [...]"
Die enorme Ähnlichkeit zur Biografie von Red Sonja ist jedenfalls nicht von der Hand zu weisen, auch wenn Red nicht zur seefahrenden Zunft zählt.
Doch genug der schönen Theorie, was erwartet uns in diesem Omnibus?
Damit wäre gleich zu Beginn die Sache mit dem chain=mail=bikini und der Frage des Sexismus geklärt.
Und nicht weniger schnell wird deutlich, dass Red Sonja den Leser auf Reisen mitnimmt, bei denen sie durch das Blut abgetrennter Extremitäten watet:
"Was", sagt ihr Blick, "nicht das Schwert ziehen?"
Schauen wir uns das in der Vergrößerung an:
Und wer´s immer noch nicht sieht: noch mal ran=zoomen und wir wissen, was Red von dieser Zurückhaltung denkt:
Ihr Ziel verliert Red nie aus den Augen:
Okay, weihnachtlich wird einem als Leser also nicht, wenn man im Dezember Red auf ihren Abenteuern begleitet. Blutige Rache; nicht die Sorte mit Pistole oder Gift, sondern die mit Schwert und Pfeil: mit dem vergossenen Blut könnte man Schwimmhallenbecken befüllen und Red könnte darin kraulen lernen. Ansonsten würde mir der Begriff "educational" bisher eher weniger in den Sinn kommen …
Soviel Blut muss wohl fließen, wenn Red ihrem Erzfeind, dem allerbösesten Magier Kulan Gath entgegentreten muss.
Sword & Sorcery eben; plus eine ordentliche Portion Erotik.
March 14, 2020
Aw. Red Sonja, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Red–Son–Ja. Her name contains the affirmation she deserves in itself (at least if you understand German).
With over 450 pages, this omnibus-volume was by far the most extensive of her adventures to date, which I had the pleasure of reading. Although I already knew a little about her background and how she became what she is (namely the She-devil with a Sword), I learned quite a bit more about her childhood and youth through a parallel story in many flashbacks. This is as informative as it is instructive and explains to a large extent her character today.
In summary, Sonja does not hesitate to eliminate enemies in pursuit of her goals. This is how we know her; this is how we love her ... busily slicing & dicing through her adversaries and sometimes decapitating them for a change (which is probably the most painless way).
Over the course of these 18 issues the villains become more numerous and vicious in this volume. So it is no wonder that Sonja sometimes needs help from others. In the end even a long forgotten deity fights alongside her on the just battlefield of blood and death!
In the beginning the martial utterances got on my nerves a bit, but at some point I got carried away ——— you just have to rid yourself from your sense of deeper meaning and any expectation of literary quality and become a teenage boy (or girl) again in order to enjoy comic books like this.
One of the highlights of the story might be the heroine’s bath in a river of blood (which she hasn’t shed herself).
That made me think of Siegfried from the Nibelungen saga, who bathed in the blood of a slain dragon and thus became invulnerable. Well, Sonja is not invulnerable and her chain-mail bikini isn’t exactly suitable as armor to protect her. There is a rather simple and plausible reason for her somewhat poor apparel, namely that most of the Sonja’s male foes pay attention to everything but the sword she’s carrying – generally a fatal mistake.
Some Humor and self-irony are also present, although perhaps a little less than in other books I have read.
When I consider that there are four other omnibus-volumes of similar size from this series alone, I am not worried about a possible quarantine because of the corona virus. I look forward to the former, the latter I try to avoid as best I can.
Stay healthy, everyone!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
With over 450 pages, this omnibus-volume was by far the most extensive of her adventures to date, which I had the pleasure of reading. Although I already knew a little about her background and how she became what she is (namely the She-devil with a Sword), I learned quite a bit more about her childhood and youth through a parallel story in many flashbacks. This is as informative as it is instructive and explains to a large extent her character today.
In summary, Sonja does not hesitate to eliminate enemies in pursuit of her goals. This is how we know her; this is how we love her ... busily slicing & dicing through her adversaries and sometimes decapitating them for a change (which is probably the most painless way).
Over the course of these 18 issues the villains become more numerous and vicious in this volume. So it is no wonder that Sonja sometimes needs help from others. In the end even a long forgotten deity fights alongside her on the just battlefield of blood and death!
In the beginning the martial utterances got on my nerves a bit, but at some point I got carried away ——— you just have to rid yourself from your sense of deeper meaning and any expectation of literary quality and become a teenage boy (or girl) again in order to enjoy comic books like this.
One of the highlights of the story might be the heroine’s bath in a river of blood (which she hasn’t shed herself).
That made me think of Siegfried from the Nibelungen saga, who bathed in the blood of a slain dragon and thus became invulnerable. Well, Sonja is not invulnerable and her chain-mail bikini isn’t exactly suitable as armor to protect her. There is a rather simple and plausible reason for her somewhat poor apparel, namely that most of the Sonja’s male foes pay attention to everything but the sword she’s carrying – generally a fatal mistake.
Some Humor and self-irony are also present, although perhaps a little less than in other books I have read.
When I consider that there are four other omnibus-volumes of similar size from this series alone, I am not worried about a possible quarantine because of the corona virus. I look forward to the former, the latter I try to avoid as best I can.
Stay healthy, everyone!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
November 28, 2015
Well, it starts off strong - Mike Carey's 6 issues I've reviewed elsewhere, but they are included and set the stage here. But after that, things go off the rails. Sonja loses all her humor as the story becomes a war epic, tied into Sonja's origins (which make some very poor choices in their setup; whether they belong to this writer or to the Sonja mythos, the way they are used here is really crude), and sending her to be a pawn of gods in a major battle. Some of my issue may be the formatting (I read the ebook, and the villain's dialogue was for some reason illegible, and lots of the other text difficult to make out, and unfortunately accented to boot), but for the most part it just gets dreary and dark and loses the personality of the character. And the action scenes, while big, aren't particularly well executed. And even with 19 collected issues, it manages to end with a fairly big plot thread left loose.
Ultimately, it's not horrible, but I've read enough other Red Sonja (including the beginnings here) to know that the character and the world can be portrayed better than most of this collection displays.
Ultimately, it's not horrible, but I've read enough other Red Sonja (including the beginnings here) to know that the character and the world can be portrayed better than most of this collection displays.
June 24, 2019
I was surprised to find old gods speaking Google translated Finnish, and even more surprised to find our national epic Kalevala mentioned randomly as some magical code with seemingly zero actual connection to Finnish mythology or the epic itself. I guess it’s flattering in a way that they thought Finland to be such a mythical and distant land that just throwing around a random reference and not even spell checking wouldn’t get caught.
I loved Sonja’s character or at least the concept of her, and would like to read more of her. I also enjoyed the unique feel of the world, but the fumbling with Finnish mythology made it suddenly seem shallow. Missed proper dialogue as well, and some of the epic heroic stuff didn’t work for me as well as it could. Altogether I feel like this lacked some kind of intelligence and the depth I love in the work of masters like Moore and Gaiman.
I loved Sonja’s character or at least the concept of her, and would like to read more of her. I also enjoyed the unique feel of the world, but the fumbling with Finnish mythology made it suddenly seem shallow. Missed proper dialogue as well, and some of the epic heroic stuff didn’t work for me as well as it could. Altogether I feel like this lacked some kind of intelligence and the depth I love in the work of masters like Moore and Gaiman.
July 9, 2014
I know that my judgement may be clouded by my fandom for Red Sonja's character, but I loved this story line.
Epic battles, cheesy dialogs, blood and gore, old gods and new, vengeance and power...
Also stunning art by Mel Rubi.
This Omnibus is like reading and epic fantasy epos, and while a lot of things may be set a bit too easy, and the story pattern is an old one, it still works. For me at least. I can relate to the characters, their hopes and needs and desires (not including walking around in a chain-mail bikini though) and I love the grandness of it all.
Red Sonja is the perfect read for lazy evenings in stressful times. It takes you away from everything and gives you all the Awesomeness that is heroic comic books.
Epic battles, cheesy dialogs, blood and gore, old gods and new, vengeance and power...
Also stunning art by Mel Rubi.
This Omnibus is like reading and epic fantasy epos, and while a lot of things may be set a bit too easy, and the story pattern is an old one, it still works. For me at least. I can relate to the characters, their hopes and needs and desires (not including walking around in a chain-mail bikini though) and I love the grandness of it all.
Red Sonja is the perfect read for lazy evenings in stressful times. It takes you away from everything and gives you all the Awesomeness that is heroic comic books.
June 19, 2022
RED SONJA: SHE-DEVIL WITH A SWORD is a collection of the first ongoing of Red Sonja as reinvisioned by Dynamite Entertainment. In this case, she's at her classic of being a woman who lost her village, made a deal with the goddess, and is hunting down the people involved. The big difference is that she had her family massacred by a cult to a mysterious god that she has finally located the high priest of in a isolated city. Sonja is at her least sympathetic here as she ends up sacking the city with genocidal revolutionaries to get her revenge.
It's very good but not the best of Dynamite's stories starring the She-Devil with a sword.
It's very good but not the best of Dynamite's stories starring the She-Devil with a sword.
August 22, 2021
Basic fantasy. To this books credit, it does attempt to answer the one question scholars have been pondering for decades… Why on earth does Red Sonja wear a metal bikini into battle?
August 24, 2023
Really enjoyable little slice of Red Sonja’s Dynamite adventures. Looking forward to more of these!!
June 7, 2018
Definitely regret reading this book after seeing how utterly boring it was in both artwork and writing. The only times the artwork was lively and full of personalty could be found only in the variant covers done by industry professional.
Don't expect to find anyone particularly interesting in the hundreds of pages presented here; no one has much of a distinct personality, no interesting speech patterns, no other indication of being more than one or two dimensional characters. Red Sonja does seem a to have a bit more depth, but she still falls into a sort of generic tough action woman of high fantasy. And it certainly doesn't help when half the pages are dedicated to show her in T&A shots to show off as much of her body as possible. Seriously, the very first issue's first page is entirely focused on nothing but her ass.
I wonder if if this book could've been a lot better if it had been more self aware and campy in its stories, instead of doing these gritty and serious stories that I simply can't be invested in. Even Red Sonja's infamous and implausible armor is taken seriously now, even though its basically a relic that's only really used for parodies or deconstructions.
Don't expect to find anyone particularly interesting in the hundreds of pages presented here; no one has much of a distinct personality, no interesting speech patterns, no other indication of being more than one or two dimensional characters. Red Sonja does seem a to have a bit more depth, but she still falls into a sort of generic tough action woman of high fantasy. And it certainly doesn't help when half the pages are dedicated to show her in T&A shots to show off as much of her body as possible. Seriously, the very first issue's first page is entirely focused on nothing but her ass.
I wonder if if this book could've been a lot better if it had been more self aware and campy in its stories, instead of doing these gritty and serious stories that I simply can't be invested in. Even Red Sonja's infamous and implausible armor is taken seriously now, even though its basically a relic that's only really used for parodies or deconstructions.
August 27, 2013
If the re-lunch of Red Sonja kept the quality of the first six issues ( co-written by the brilliant Mike Carey) this would have been four or more stars. Sadly all the refreshing life and generally good writing gets bogged down by finding ways to keep Sonja from her ultimate goal while having sword fights of increasingly meaningless irrelevance. Khulan Gath takes 6 issues or more to finally enter this world and then Sonja is dragged away for no other reason than the writers wish to drag it out pointlessly into the next volume. I hoping this is going to be fixed in later volumes or else Dynamite hasn't learned how to make Sonja a true leading character anymore than Marvel could.
September 19, 2020
I enjoyed it and hope to get the next volume at some point. Sonja is portrayed as such a badass, I'm interested in reading more adventures of hers. Her focus on vengeance is gripping. I also like the pragmatic reason she gave for her bikini armour. It made me laugh a little but it was a good point (I think). I liked the art style. I don't have the vocabulary to convey my appreciation fully but the smooth textures and use of vibrant colour was a real treat for the eyes.
May 30, 2017
The first few issues in the volume are pretty good, but then it goes off the rails. The story isn't great, Red Sonja the She-Devil with a sword ends up being continually rescued by Osin the completely forgettable warrior. At one point she has sex with a god in the ruins of her hometown, on the graves of her family, which was just bizarre.
March 24, 2021
Então.
É uma porcaria.
Tem bons momentos, uma ou outra piadinha, o desenho é bacana, mas é bem ruinzinho.
Meses atrás eu li a Red Sonja da Gail Simone e fiquei encantado, era uma personagem com personalidade, com falhas, com qualidades, com vontades, era uma pessoa que sobreviveu a circunstâncias horríveis e deu um jeito na vida. Aqui nós retrocedemos para mil novecentos e cruzeiros, numa daquelas histórias da Espada Selvagem de Conan em que a Sonja era reduzida a "só entregarei meu corpo a quem me vencer em combate" e não tem mais nada.
Eu achei isso muito estranho, uma história engessada, sisuda, rígida, reduzida ao mínimo. Porra é o Mike Carey? O cara escreveu Lúcifer na Vertigo. É o Michael Oeming? Porra, não existira o Bendis sem o Oeming desenhando Powers.
O Oeming não desenha aqui, é o Mel Rubi, que faz um trabalho regular, ainda que sexualmente exagerado.
Talvez a história da Red Sonja chegando à Gathia e enfrentando o "Escolhido" que levou ordem a uma cidade perdida em meio a selvageria do seu tempo não seja tão ruim e o problema resida no fato de que eu li uma Red Sonja maravilhosa escrita pela Gail Simone, e aí não tem comparação.
Ou talvez seja ruim mesmo.
É uma porcaria.
Tem bons momentos, uma ou outra piadinha, o desenho é bacana, mas é bem ruinzinho.
Meses atrás eu li a Red Sonja da Gail Simone e fiquei encantado, era uma personagem com personalidade, com falhas, com qualidades, com vontades, era uma pessoa que sobreviveu a circunstâncias horríveis e deu um jeito na vida. Aqui nós retrocedemos para mil novecentos e cruzeiros, numa daquelas histórias da Espada Selvagem de Conan em que a Sonja era reduzida a "só entregarei meu corpo a quem me vencer em combate" e não tem mais nada.
Eu achei isso muito estranho, uma história engessada, sisuda, rígida, reduzida ao mínimo. Porra é o Mike Carey? O cara escreveu Lúcifer na Vertigo. É o Michael Oeming? Porra, não existira o Bendis sem o Oeming desenhando Powers.
O Oeming não desenha aqui, é o Mel Rubi, que faz um trabalho regular, ainda que sexualmente exagerado.
Talvez a história da Red Sonja chegando à Gathia e enfrentando o "Escolhido" que levou ordem a uma cidade perdida em meio a selvageria do seu tempo não seja tão ruim e o problema resida no fato de que eu li uma Red Sonja maravilhosa escrita pela Gail Simone, e aí não tem comparação.
Ou talvez seja ruim mesmo.
December 24, 2023
The first six issues are solid and tell a compelling and interesting narrative. Unfortunately, after that it started to fall off a cliff, and once Kulan Gath was introduced I started skimming. The writing, especially in the latter issues, was too on the nose and lacked nuance. The art was pretty good in general, except for the guest art in the flashbacks. Which brings me to one of my biggest problems with this: once Sonja's backstory is revealed in issue 8, it is brought up again and again. every. single. issue. It's like the only way the writer knows how to tell the story is to keep referencing her trauma over and over. If you do decide to check this run out, I would recommend stopping after issue 6.
October 16, 2024
This is a really good start for this series. The art is clean, the story is interesting, and I liked more of the characters than I didn't.
But it has some pretty major drawbacks. Like the fact that there's nothing new here, and the fact that the sword fights are only like 3 or 4 panels. Give me some shock and awe. Give me some character development over the course of the series. Give me one comic that ends in a splash page of nothing but one sword fight! For a comic called "She-Devil with a Sword" the longest sword fight she had was like 3 or 4 panels.
And I know that this was written awhile ago, but am I the only one that rolls their eyes at the chainmail bikini? Just me? Good to know. I was told that her outfit gets updated. I'm excited to read that.
But it has some pretty major drawbacks. Like the fact that there's nothing new here, and the fact that the sword fights are only like 3 or 4 panels. Give me some shock and awe. Give me some character development over the course of the series. Give me one comic that ends in a splash page of nothing but one sword fight! For a comic called "She-Devil with a Sword" the longest sword fight she had was like 3 or 4 panels.
And I know that this was written awhile ago, but am I the only one that rolls their eyes at the chainmail bikini? Just me? Good to know. I was told that her outfit gets updated. I'm excited to read that.
August 24, 2025
I could tell the moment Mike Carey left the book it all went downhill after that. The first part issues 0-6 were good and that is what Mike Carey co-wrote, but 7-19 was either okay or bad. I thought the character Osin was “dead” after the first story arc, but then he just miraculously appears about 6 or so issues later and Sonja doesn’t even react to his showing up. So the editing could’ve been a lot better. That wouldn’t have happened if Mike Carey was still on the book I’ll tell you that much.
Anyway, the story just kind’ve just gets more fantastical and absurd which isn’t necessarily bad, but in this instance it wasn’t all that great. It is hard to top that first story arc. 4/5 for issues 0-6 and 2.5/5 for issues 7-19.
Anyway, the story just kind’ve just gets more fantastical and absurd which isn’t necessarily bad, but in this instance it wasn’t all that great. It is hard to top that first story arc. 4/5 for issues 0-6 and 2.5/5 for issues 7-19.
April 7, 2020
There's some solid sword-and-sorcery going on in this hefty volume. There's a lot of good worldbuilding, action, imaginative monsters and locations, compelling gods and villains, and rather deep characterizations throughout. There's no denying the pin-up, cheesecake element of Red Sonja, but even with this, a rich backstory and engaging motivations are written for her. The artwork throughout is quite good as well, with the artists depicting complex fight-action sequences, exotic locales, monsters, gods, and wizards, and Sonja herself, with clarity, vitality, and beauty. This is a fun, engaging read.
February 2, 2018
There was some great and awful stuff in here. Some of the writing is fantastic and really took me by surprise. Then there were parts of the story where it made me roll my eyes. Like her armor, I swear I think this book would be better if she wore practical armor. I get it, its part of what makes Red Sonja her, but I don't need every other page to be some fan service. Ugh, still there were moments where I really liked what I was reading. If you can get over the fanservice/perverted stuff, it is a decent read.
August 18, 2019
The beginning of an epic new Red Sonja saga. Collects the first 18 issues. High fantasy adventure in the time of Conan, these issues feature great writing paired with impressive artwork. Sonja’s current quest ties into her first motivations as a young girl that would lead her down the path of a She-Devil with a Sword.
January 1, 2023
i would rate this higher if not for all the racism, sexism, unnecessary rape that is Sonja's entire backstory, oddly added bestiality, and just kind of overall cringe dialogue style in the middle of the book that gets dropped immediately because it's super cringe
(edit) oh yeah i forgot about the wild amount of queerphobia in the last act like. what. what was that.
(edit) oh yeah i forgot about the wild amount of queerphobia in the last act like. what. what was that.
March 5, 2018
I should be outraged by the overly sexed up Sonja but I cannot be. She is too awesome. She kicks ass, she is strong, smart and fun. I liked Gail Simone's version of Sonja the most so far therefore only 4 stars
November 15, 2023
Great book but
This is a great book I loved reading all of the comics but my biggest issue was the download and how long it consistently takes the original Kindle downloaded 10 times faster and did not make me wait 3 to 4 days to get a single book
This is a great book I loved reading all of the comics but my biggest issue was the download and how long it consistently takes the original Kindle downloaded 10 times faster and did not make me wait 3 to 4 days to get a single book
March 12, 2019
It starts off strong, then it becomes retarded. Specifically, once the siege occurs, it becomes a very stale, tiring affair.
March 13, 2019
Fantastic visual sword and sorcery. Every fan of Conan will probably love it.
June 10, 2019
This is better than most people would expect. If you are a fan of Howard's original stories of Conan, you will be pleasantly surprised with these.
February 23, 2023
Nice art, and decent fantasy adventure plot, which is engaging in parts. Great that this volume ends a mini story arc, while building a bigger overall story.
May 10, 2023
A long-time favorite character alongside of Conan, this Robert Howard creation has seen a long life in comic books and even a film. This book covers a story arc seeing Sonja seeking revenge against a god whose people destroyed her village and raped her, igniting the fury tapped by another goddess to create the She-Devil with a Sword. The art flows nicely, and I appreciated the jokes about Sonja’s choice of armor. Sonja is depicted as one would expect a person set on revenge to act, but there are other layers to her character woven into the tale.
February 7, 2015
This comic was lent to me by someone who knows that I like Wonder Woman and strong female protagonists. I had a number of problems with it, but I stuck with if out of a self-imposed obligation to finish. I'm glad I did, however, because the story ultimately grew on me.
Initially I was leery of the work because the main character is hyper-sexualized in the art. In one spot there was a series of three or four panels that were a close-up of just her rear. The majority of frames have her spine weirdly contorted in such a way that both her chest and backside are prominently visible. There is also the infamous chainmail bikini. Clearly this is a comic intended for the male gaze, and the way she is drawn can certainly be seen as offensive. Yes, there is an explanation for wearing next to no armor/clothing into battle, but it is a weak one.
In the beginning I was also unimpressed by the story. Red Sonja lives in a high fantasy land filled with various religions, slavery, and mythical creatures (the same universe as Conan the Barbarian, or so I'm told.) The first few issues do very little to elaborate on her personal history. Basically we see her hack and slash her way through a kingdom where a tyrannical leader has enslaved weaker populations and set himself up as a god. Red Sonja rides in, leads a rebellion, and puts a stop to it. Things do not turn out the way anyone would want, and the reader quickly learns that there are grave consequences to her actions. Perhaps this is what aggravated me the most about this story. It seemed that all Sonja did was kill people. She did it in the name of justice and protecting the weak, but she didn't really show any signs of intelligence or awareness of the situation. After this arc is finished, there is an issue that shows her in a new location also going around and killing bad people. This is the point where I nearly stopped reading.
As I went further, however, I started to learn of her back story and her epic quest to find and kill a god responsible for the death of her loved ones. She took on an apprentice of sorts, and this is where she started exhibiting some intelligence. I started liking her character more, and I wanted to know if she would succeed on her quest.
This sword and sorcery comic doesn't have a lot of depth to it. There is sex, slavery, violence against women, children, and animals. A lot of it is offensive. Perhaps as I was reading I became desensitized to it, in a similar manner to watching Game of Thrones. And toward the end, I couldn't wait to see what would happen next. Even though the book itself says that it is rated teen, I would only recommend it to mature readers. That is not to say, however, that plenty of teens (especially guys) might not pick it up on their own and really enjoy it. This will also appeal to readers of series such as The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones and players of Dungeons and Dragons and rpg videogames.
Initially I was leery of the work because the main character is hyper-sexualized in the art. In one spot there was a series of three or four panels that were a close-up of just her rear. The majority of frames have her spine weirdly contorted in such a way that both her chest and backside are prominently visible. There is also the infamous chainmail bikini. Clearly this is a comic intended for the male gaze, and the way she is drawn can certainly be seen as offensive. Yes, there is an explanation for wearing next to no armor/clothing into battle, but it is a weak one.
In the beginning I was also unimpressed by the story. Red Sonja lives in a high fantasy land filled with various religions, slavery, and mythical creatures (the same universe as Conan the Barbarian, or so I'm told.) The first few issues do very little to elaborate on her personal history. Basically we see her hack and slash her way through a kingdom where a tyrannical leader has enslaved weaker populations and set himself up as a god. Red Sonja rides in, leads a rebellion, and puts a stop to it. Things do not turn out the way anyone would want, and the reader quickly learns that there are grave consequences to her actions. Perhaps this is what aggravated me the most about this story. It seemed that all Sonja did was kill people. She did it in the name of justice and protecting the weak, but she didn't really show any signs of intelligence or awareness of the situation. After this arc is finished, there is an issue that shows her in a new location also going around and killing bad people. This is the point where I nearly stopped reading.
As I went further, however, I started to learn of her back story and her epic quest to find and kill a god responsible for the death of her loved ones. She took on an apprentice of sorts, and this is where she started exhibiting some intelligence. I started liking her character more, and I wanted to know if she would succeed on her quest.
This sword and sorcery comic doesn't have a lot of depth to it. There is sex, slavery, violence against women, children, and animals. A lot of it is offensive. Perhaps as I was reading I became desensitized to it, in a similar manner to watching Game of Thrones. And toward the end, I couldn't wait to see what would happen next. Even though the book itself says that it is rated teen, I would only recommend it to mature readers. That is not to say, however, that plenty of teens (especially guys) might not pick it up on their own and really enjoy it. This will also appeal to readers of series such as The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones and players of Dungeons and Dragons and rpg videogames.
December 16, 2014
Dressing to distract is actually a rather plausible argument, considering that Celtic warriors were known for going into battle BUCK NAKED for similar reasons.
Historically, battle armor was a rarity reserved for kings and nobles, except among some empires. Many native people, man and woman, dress in nothing more than a loincloth to this day, even in battle. There is a long and well established history to fighting in a nude or semi-nude state. Even the original Olympics were nude.
Considering her background, and the Hyborian Age in general, I would say she's a bit overdressed. Though I don't care for the bare flesh, I'm in it for the pulpy weirdness.
The story was great. My favorite part had to do with a man taking a drink of water. Pure awesomeness.
Historically, battle armor was a rarity reserved for kings and nobles, except among some empires. Many native people, man and woman, dress in nothing more than a loincloth to this day, even in battle. There is a long and well established history to fighting in a nude or semi-nude state. Even the original Olympics were nude.
Considering her background, and the Hyborian Age in general, I would say she's a bit overdressed. Though I don't care for the bare flesh, I'm in it for the pulpy weirdness.
The story was great. My favorite part had to do with a man taking a drink of water. Pure awesomeness.
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