Red Sonja Unchained #4 - A Review

Red Sonja Unchained #4 finds our heroine in dire straits.  Twice cursed by the demon Bhamothes, Sonja awakens to find herself trapped in his hellish domain.  It will take all her cunning and courage to win free of the demon's clutches and escape with her soul.  Can even Sonja's indomitable spirit win free of a realm of pure thought and will?


Peter V. Brett lends the proceedings the same drama and pathos he did earlier in the series.  His take on Sonja has been a powerful one and has offered some real insight into the character.  Brett's Sonja has survived much and made hard choices that she hates herself for but will not waste breath justifying.  Unfortunately, the final confrontation between the amazon and the demon seems somewhat rushed and one wishes there had been another issue to allow for a truly epic final battle.


The art of Jack Jadson seems oddly rushed as well.  Jadson's streamlined style - somewhat reminiscent of Bruce Timm - has been a fitting match for Brett's scripts so far.  Yet this issue has Jadson depicting far more detailed and disgusting violence than we've seen so far and the gore looks odd next to his lightly inked, cartoonish figures.  It doesn't look bad per say, but it seems at odds with what we've seen so far. 

Still, if you've come this far in reading this series, you'll want to see the conclusion.  And Red Sonja fans old and new would be well advised to give the whole of this story a try.  It is not the ending I had hoped for but it's not a bad one at all. 

Red Sonja Unchained #3 - A Review

In truth, I can think of only one glaring flaw with Red Sonja Unchained #3.  Namely that when you have a book with a title like Red Sonja Unchained, you shouldn't have Red Sonja in bondage on the cover.  It smacks of false advertising, no matter how ready she seems to break the chains and start delivering grievous bodily harm upon whoever chained her up in the first place! 


The plot thickens from last issue, with Sonja and her current employer - the scholar Merisan - selling off the journal Sonja retrieved from a deadly tomb.  The two have a good working relationship but an easy life playing bodyguard for a librarian doesn't sit well with the adventurous Sonja.  Luckily - or unluckily from another point of view - Sonja's life quickly ceases being easy and Sonja must cope with the latest gang of bounty hunters seeking the latest price on her head as well as the magical curse she unwittingly acquired.  


The script by fantasy author Peter V. Brett is exciting and well-paced.  I think this may be one of the few sword-and-sorcery stories (let alone Red Sonja stories)  I've ever read that passes the Bechdel Test.  Jack Jadson matches the material with his artwork, proving a great illustrator of expressions as well as action.  If you've never read a Red Sonja comic before, this mini-series would be a fine one to start with.   

Red Sonja: Unchained #2 - A Review

Red Sonja Unchained #2 continues the epic tale started by fantasy author Peter V. Brett in the Red Sonja: Blue one-shot.  Despite this being only the third issue of the storyline, Brett has kept the story moving quickly with multiple conflicts and plot threads being introduced in each issue.  In this way, this story feels more like a novel with chapters than a comic book storyline with issues.

The main plot follows Sonja has she explores the tomb of a famed warrior queen, searching for a journal on behalf of her historian employer.  After a random encounter with the standard crypt-guarding monster, Sonja discovers that the rumors of the queen's death are greatly exaggerated.  Indeed, dark magics have kept her alive and trapped for many years and she requires Sonja's help to be freed.

 

Brett provides a rather neat little in-joke for long-time sword-and-sorcery comics fans and a slight tip-of-the-hat to legendary Red Sonja artist Frank Thorne.  After he ended his run on Marvel Comics' Red Sonja book, Thorne worked on a number of independent projects - most of which were mature in nature.  Perhaps the most famous of these was an erotic sword-and-sorcery series detailing the exploits of the courtesan turned amazon Ghita of Alizarr.  

To say that Ghita borrowed heavily from Sonja (or, at least, Thorne's idea of what Sonja should be) would be something of an understatement!  Still, it seems only fair that if Thorne could borrow from Sonja to tell his own tales, Brett can borrow from Thorne for his Sonja story to give us the figure of Queen Gheta.  Sharpe-eyed fans may note that the names of Queen Gheta's court wizard and sworn enemy are anagrams for Ghita of Alizarr's own wizard companion and her sworn enemy.  It's a jest only one reader in a thousand may get but it speaks to the detail and attention that Brett pays to all the other aspects of this story.

 
Sadly, the artwork by Jack Jadson is more problematic but it is no less enjoyable.  Jadsen has a fine gift for expressions, reminiscent of Kevin Maguire and his action-scenes flow neatly.  Sadly, some of the physical poses he places Sonja and Getha in during their fights seem somewhat improbable.  There are also some panels which seem curiously undefined and under-inked.   Despite this, I'd still recommend the series to all fans of a good ripping yarn and anyone curious about Red Sonja who cannot wait until Gail Simone's new series starts later this year.

Red Sonja: Unchained #1 - A Review

I never had the chance to review Red Sonja: Blue, coming out as it did in the middle of a summer when I was short on cash for new comics and and short on time for writing.  However, I did eventually pick up a copy of it and was greatly amused by fantasy author Peter V. Brett's examination of the Red Sonja mythos and a charming tale that turned the traditional sword-and-sorcery story on its' head.  Red Sonja: Unchained picks up right where Red Sonja: Blue left off, neatly summarizing the story of that one-shot for those who missed it.

In brief, Sonja was hired by an innkeeper to save her virgin son from being sacrificed by an evil wizard.  Sonja won the day but her infamous armor was ripped in the process and she fashioned a new outfit for herself from the blue fur of the demon she slew.  She was ready to settle down for a long winter, guesting with her client while waiting for her armor to get repaired, when the adventure-minded stable boy she'd rescued challenged her to a duel while she was drunk.  His intent was to defeat Sonja in battle and win her heart, so that he could run away from his mom and go live a life of high adventure.


Sadly - for him - annoying Sonja when she's drunk is one of the most common forms of suicide in Hyboria, second only to stomping on snakes in Stygia.  As this story opens, Sonja is arranging for a fast exit from town and a decent burial for the village idiot.  Naturally Sonja doesn't stay at liberty for long, running across a scholar in search of treasure being harassed by bandits.  One fight scene later, Sonja is employed again and on her way to some cursed tomb full of lost lore and treasure.

Peter V. Brett's script is engaging, presenting Sonja as an interesting and conflicted heroine.  While Red Sonja: Blue explored the expectations of Sonja as both a woman and a warrior and set her against her own legend, Unchained offers us an introspective look at Sonja's soul.  Despite this more thoughtful tone, this issue still has action aplenty, ably illustrated by Jack Jadson.  


If you haven't given Red Sonja a shot before as a character, this would be a fine story to start with.  The artwork avoids the cheesecake that so frequently plagues Sonja's titles and the story is an interesting introduction to Sonja's character.  All in all, its a fine effort that leaves me anxiously awaiting the next issue.