Red Sonja #75
Written by Eric Trautmann
Pencils by Marcio Abreu
Colors by Salvatore Aiala Studios
Lettered by Simon Bowland
Covers by Mel Rubi, Erik Jones and Walter Geovani
Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: May 22, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99

Red Sonja #75 is the last issue of Dynamite Entertainment’s longest running title. Although the series ends on an OK note story wise, in my opinion, it deserved a much better send off than it got.

Writer Eric Trautmann gives us a pretty satisfying ending to the latest story line within the title, but for a title that’s been coming out for the last 8 years, I wanted something WAY more out of this issue than just a last chapter to a the latest 6 month story line. The issue is about 99% war between Sonja and her army against Omaju and his. With, a surprise enemy thrown in for good measure and “shock” value. Again, what it fails to deliver is an ending to the SERIES or this chapter in her life. It’s simply just a turning point in Sonja’s life. This could’ve been issue #34 or #58 or any other natural story break. Simply put, the issue was good. Just not good enough.

Red Sonja #74
Written by Eric Trautmann
Pencils by Marcio Abreu
Colors by Salvatore Aiala Studios
Letters by Simon Bowland
Cover by Walter Geovani
Edited by Joseph Rybrandt
Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: April 17, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99

Red Sonja #74 is CLASSIC sword & sorcery stuff! It’s a really fantastic book that took me back to reading this title and Conan when I was a kid. Classic stuff, told with modern storytelling.

Eric Trautmann does a great job here with the script and the overall story, which has been building for some time now. This is the penultimate chapter of both the story AND the series, so it’s fitting that he would choose to tell a “gather everyone for the big fight” tale. A bunch of mysteries are explained, things get heavy with the villains chasing Sonja & company, and it’s a perfect cliffhanger ending to lead up to the next issue.

How awesome is this? One of the premiere writers in comics, Gail Simone, who’s best known for her work on DC series such as Batgirl, Birds Of Prey, Secret Six, and Wonder Woman, will be writing an upcoming relaunched Red Sonja for Dynamite Entertainment beginning this July, the publisher announced on Friday.

This is huge for a variety of reasons. Primarily, Red Sonja is one of those comics that unjustifiably winds up thrown in the pile of other comics with scantly clad super heroines – ones who aren’t necessarily presented in a positive light for female readers, with art and writing that rarely has a strong female voice or vision behind them. With Simone being one of the most outspoken and progressive voices in comics, however, a truly awesome, kick-ass, brutal lead lady will surely be within the pages of Red Sonja, especially without the restrictions of a major corporation-backed publisher.

Red Sonja Unchained #1
Story by Peter V. Brett
Pencils by Jack Jadsen
Colors by Marcelo Pinto
Letters by Simon Bowland
Covers by Mel Rubi & Walter Geovani
Edited by Joseph Rybandt
Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: February 13, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99

Red Sonja: Unchained #1 is a different kind of Red Sonja comic than we’ve had in a while. It has many of the classic elements we’ve come to know, love, and expect from a Red Sonja book, but it’s got a little bit more that makes this a great start to this comic series.

I’m not sure where writer Peter V. Brett‘s tale takes place continuity-wise, but it seems like Sonja is a little bit older here. Not as old as say, Queen Sonja, and by no means near the end of her life, but it seems like she’s more experienced about the facts of life and is a little more battle weary and skeptical about life. This is a really entertaining story about Sonja and her falling ass-backwards into a plan to rob a hidden tomb of its riches. But, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Half the book is an awesome fight between Sonja and a group of barbarian wanderers that are (naturally) up to no good. Any more story details than that would be spoiling, so I recommend you pick this one up and find out for yourself.

Red Sonja: Atlantis Rises #4
Written by Luke Lieberman
Pencils by Max Dunbar
Colors by Mark Roberts
Letters by Simon Bowland
Cover by Lucio Parrillo
Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: December 12, 2012
Cover Price: $3.99

Red Sonja: Atlantis Rising #4 is a good, solid sword and sorcery comic. If you’re looking for classic She-Devil with a sword action, this is where you’ll find it. It does have some flaws, but you can overlook most of them.

Writer Luke Lieberman knows his Red Sonja, and it’s obvious in this book. He knows the character and her universe inside and out, and that helps make this an exciting, fun read. If you haven’t read the previous issues, you may be a little lost at first, but Lieberman does a great job catching you up in a natural way, through dialogue, which is a nice treat when you compare it to the many books that have recap pages or paragraphs inside the front cover. It’s all-out action and adventure, and it flows really nicely.