Will Sonja survive her next tale? In Killing Red Sonja, fans are introduced to the boy who may be responsible for her death. The new companion limited series offers a crucial component to the current ongoing saga written by Mark Russell (The Flintstones, Year of the Villain).
If you’ve been reading the first year of Russell’s book, you know that the central story is about Sonja the Red waging war against emperor Dragan The Magnificent. In issue #2, the warlord bid goodbye to his young son Cyril, but now with his family and birthright torn apart, the boy is ready for revenge against the flame-haired warrior. Unfortunately this includes dark magic.
Russell heads up the companion series with writer Bryce Ingman (Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Terror), while Craig Rousseau (Impulse, Batman Beyond) joins them on art. Dearbhla Kelly is on colors and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou is on letters. As for covers, Christian Ward (Thor, Black Bolt) will be handling those. Collectors will also have limited variants of Ward’s cover.
Even though the miniseries can be read as a standalone tale, it will play a vital part in Russell’s plot, setting up adventures and tragedies of characters important in the next arc of the main book.
“Killing Red Sonja is a chance to offer readers a different sensibility than the main series, and also to allow us to dive deeper into the story of a character who will become the most ominous villain the main series has yet to see,” said Russell. “We hope to maintain the balance between humor and the meditation on power that the main series has become.”
Ingman shared, “It’s the heartwarming tale of a sweet little boy who dreams of murdering a woman he has never met. It’s a book filled with wild stuff like human-eating giants, flocks of killer birds, amoral dwarfs, double-crossing sorcerers, and a smart-ass, talking boar. We’re working hard to ensure that each issue is thrilling, thought-provoking, and filled with the unexpected.”
“They had me at ‘talking 400-pound boar,’ and so far, I’ve just been trying to keep up, drawing all the stuff Mark and Bryce are throwing into the script…speaking of which, back to the drawing board!” said Rousseau.
Dynamite editor Nate Cosby added, “The world of Red Sonja is too big for just one series! Fans of the ongoing Red Sonja series can expect the same masterful storytelling here, with Mark and Bryce concocting a killer story, and (one of my personal favorite artists) Craig bringing brilliant, visceral visuals…along with fantastic work from Sonja regulars Dearbhla and Hassan!”
Killing Red Sonja #1 is slated to release in March 2020. Fans are encouraged to preorder in January at their local comic shop. It will also be available digitally at Comixology, Kindle, iBooks, Google Play, Dynamite Digital, ComicsPlus, and more.
