Red Sonja: She-Devil With A Sword - Volume 01 Issue 04

My Rating

“By Blood Betrayed!”

Three days have passed since Red Sonja smuggled the last descendant of Elarr Vorn into the Pirosin Tower for treatment. Surely, an elixir or ancient remedy existed that could rid Aretha Vorn of her bloodline curse. Sonja had watched village healers perform minor miracles with far less at their disposal. Yet the Kothian scholars, so highly praised for their extraordinary library and knowledge, could not produce a single solution.

The scholars, Jeffe and Nayle, seem awfully young to Sonja. Were these really the most qualified researchers the library had to offer? Kids these days. If it weren’t for the angry mob gathering outside, she might have given the head scholar a piece of her mind. Wait…there’s a riot outside?!

Does the Rising Sun have enough extremists left in its ranks to conquer the entire city of Khorshemish? Will Aretha Vorn be forced to surrender her blood for their new world order? What would Prince Eaymon do in a situation like this? Collect the series to find out!

Review

Dynamite Entertainment continues to deliver a solid Red Sonja adventure with She-Devil With a Sword #4. The story is entertaining, the swordplay is plentiful, and the mystery surrounding Aretha Vorn’s cursed bloodline has kept me interested. I also enjoyed watching Sonja deal with scholars, religious fanatics, and an angry mob in the only way the She-Devil knows how. Sometimes diplomacy works. Other times, you just need a really big sword.

My biggest complaint is one I seem to have with quite a few Dynamite titles. They have a good story here, but they are stretching the damn thing out longer than necessary. There just isn’t enough meat on the bone to justify dragging every storyline across so many individual issues. What could have been a fast-moving sword-and-sorcery adventure occasionally feels like it is waiting for the next issue before anything substantial can happen. Come on, Dynamite! Pick up the pace and let Sonja get to the killing!

Complaints aside, I still enjoyed issue #4. The characters remain interesting, the artwork fits the world of Red Sonja nicely, and there is enough action and mystery to keep me coming back for the next chapter. I just wish Dynamite would tighten up the storytelling and give each individual comic a little more bang for my buck. Red Sonja: She-Devil With a Sword #4 earns a solid 3 out of 5 stars.