Akaneiro #1
Written by Justin Aclin
Illustrated by Vasilis Lolos
Colored by Michael Atiyeh
Lettered by Michael Heisler
Cover by Shu Yan
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: May 22, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99

Little Red Riding Hood may not have been as helpless as we all thought. Dark Horse introduces us to a new take on the classic fairytale in Akaneiro. Written by Justin Aclin with art from Vasilis Lolos, we find a young girl eager to become a warrior in a world infested with demons.

During a ceremony to the gods, the Japanese village of Ainu in which Kani lives is attacked by the Yokai””demons from another world. Two warrior women known as Red Hunters from The Order of Akane, are hot on the demons’ trail but are not able to get to Ainu in time in order to protect it. The Yokai takes over the body of the sacrificial bear, becoming a hideously grotesque beast. As her father is about to be slaughtered, Kani saves his life, attacking the monster with an ax and helping the newly arrived Red Hunters kill the Yokai. Once the mayhem has concluded, the Ainu elders seek war against The Order of Akane for their lack of help in preventing the devastation that has occurred. In a desperate plea to avert this outcome, Kani chooses to join The Order as a representative of the Ainu and both parties agree; but Kani, now donning a red cloak, will need to prove her worthiness to The Order of Akane by making a long and arduous journey on her own””in which Yokai and tricksters alike will stop at nothing to thwart her progress.

Once again, Dark Horse Comics has given Geeks of Doom exclusive access to five great new comics coming in May and June. And you know what? We want to give you a sneak peek, too! Because trust me, these are some great books here. Check out all five covers here below!

First off, releasing on May 29, is King Conan: Hour of the Dragon #2 (of 6). This second installment in the adaptation of Robert E. Howard‘s only actual Conan novel is sure to please. I know the cover by Gerald Parel definitely gets you interested with that vicious claw reaching forth towards our hero. Then, just in case you didn’t get your Cimmerian fix with that one, we have Conan the Barbarian #17 arriving on June 19 with a wonderful aquatic cover by Massimo Carnevale (I loved his Orchid covers, too).

But the big release day is June 26! Showing off the Shu Yan cover to Akaneiro #2 (of 3), I find myself really interested in this set. Look how kickass she looks! Remember, this is based upon the new release from Spicy Horse Games (be sure to check that out, too). Next up is a comic that originally debuted in Dark Horse Presents: Amala’s Blade #3 (of 4) has a very eye-catching cover from Michael Dialynas. Although I know next to nothing about this miniseries, the sheer quantity of skulls in the art gets my attention. And last, but certainly not least, we get to show you Mind MGMT #12. MTV Geek named this comic one of the top ten comics in 2012. I’m impressed with this series across the board, especially since Matt Kindt is the only person working on this book…yeah, that’s right, he does it all!

A big thanks to Dark Horse for letting us have first crack at these wonderful comics. But enough from me, here is YOUR first look: