Red Sonja One-Shot Written By Jen Van Meter

It looked like such a simple job: Zepur, a princess of the nomadic Talakma Horsemen, sought Sonja’s sword to defeat an unwelcome suitor and his army. When Sonja discovers she’s led her mercenary band into the middle of a bitter and vicious rivalry for leadership of Zepur’s clan, she’s got to figure out who’s lying to her the least, which promises she can keep, and how to fight the soul-eating avatar of an angry ape god.

“It had been awhile since I’d gotten the opportunity to write a character like Sonja–an unapologetic badass who answers to little outside herself–so I dove into this gleefully,” says writer Jen Van Meter. “Red Sonja: Break the Skin is my effort to really look at her mercenary, sword-for-hire life in a world in which the lies and political machinations that are handled comparatively cleanly in other genres are visceral and passionate and immediate, and in which angry gods are active players who can be manifest, grotesque and cruel. The great thing about Sonja, to me, is that she feels like a lone gunslinger and a wild-eyed pirate captain at the same time; there’s tons of charisma, lusty bravado and brazen ego there, alongside this wonderfully quiet isolation. There aren’t a lot of female characters who have both those modes available to them so readily, so it’s been a real delight to write her.”

“We’re extremely grateful that Jen was able to make time in her schedule for this very special story,” says Dynamite President and Publisher Nick Barrucci. “With Edgar’s beautiful art complimenting Jen’s story, we hope to work more with Jen down the line!”

Red Sonja, the She-Devil with a Sword, is a high fantasy sword and sorcery heroine created by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith. She first appeared in Conan the Barbarian #23 by Marvel Comics. Red Sonja has become the archetypical example of the fantasy figure of a fierce and stunningly beautiful female barbarian who typically wears armor resembling a bikini or lingerie. The character now appears monthly in her own series, Queen Sonja, as well as a series of mini-series and one-shots from Dynamite Entertainment. So enjoy this special issue of Red Sonja Annual #3 coming this May!