Legends Of Red Sonja #5 - A Review

Legends of Red Sonja #5 ends this wonderful mini-series on a high note.  It is notable that there hasn't truly been a bad story in this anthology (no surprise given the talent involved) but there have been several stories that weren't really about Red Sonja.

The first tale in this issue is a prime example of this, being focused upon one of the mercenaries tracking down our favorite fire-haired amazon.  Written by Attack Of The Show host Blair Butler, The Pazyryk delivers a lot of action but isn't truly a legend of Red Sonja.  Sure, she shows up at the end to dispatch the titular warrior, but the tale isn't really hers.



Ironically, the same can't be said of the second chapter in this volume - The Play's The Thing.  Scripted by Captain Marvel writer Kelly Sue DeConnick, Sonja doesn't appear in this story but it is definitely about her.  The humor is heavy in this tale where a group of players describe their encounter with the She Devil of Hyrkania to villains by putting on a show!



All of this is ably illustrated by some equally talented artists.  Leaving Megapolis artist Jim Calafiore does a truly epic job on The Pazyryk.  Valentine De Landro's sketchy style leaves The Play's The Thing fittingly looking like a painted woodcut.  And Jack Jadson - one of the finest sword and sorcery artists in the business - brings everything to an epic conclusion along with Gail Simone in the final pages.