Red Sonja: Queen of Plagues by Gail Simone, Walter Geovani
Series: Red Sonja, Volume 1, #1-6
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Gail Simone (BATGIRL, BIRDS OF PREY) gives the iconic fantasy heroine a fresh new attitude! Red Sonja, the She-Devil with a Sword, intends to pay back a blood debt owed to the one man who has gained her respect… even if it means leading a doomed army to their certain deaths! Who is Dark Annisia, and how has this fearsome warrior accomplished what no god nor demon has been able to do: force Sonja to her knees in surrender? An epic tale of blood, lust, and vengeance, “Queen of Plagues” takes Red Sonja from the depths of her own grave to the heights of battlefield glory.
I’ve never read anything about Red Sonja before. The whole barbarian thing was just never my thing. BUT, I was incredibly excited for this story by Gail Simone.
The story didn’t disappoint.
There are plenty of flashbacks to satisfy the casual reader that doesn’t know Red Sonja’s history, and this is both a good thing – and a bad. It tended to slow the overall story down. And I kept wondering if her history was being re-written for this story, or just told in a new way.
Either way, it was somewhat distracting…just enough to detract from my enjoyment a bit. The only other thing that was slightly unenjoyable was the speech. It felt jarring and unrealistic, like what someone thought people in ancient times spoke like, though I’m fairly sure that this type of speech is centuries after this fantasy-time-period.
Then again, it’s a fantasy. It can be whatever it wants.
I enjoyed this story. I’m not sure I’ll purposefully seek out more barbarian stories (unless they contain Jason Momoa, perhaps).
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