DEJAH THORIS (VOL. 4) #1, from Dynamite Comics on March 8th, 2023, begins a new (old?) chapter in the Princes of Mars history as Dejah Thoris endures an attack on Barsoom years before John Carter’s arrival.
The Details
- Written by: Chuck Brown
- Art by: Emiliana Pinna
- Colors by: Ellie Wright
- Letters by: Jeff Eckleberry
- Cover art by: Leirix Li (cover A)
- Comic Rating: Teen+
- Cover price: $3.99
- Release date: March 8, 2023
Is It Good?
Cheese and Crackers, what happened with this issue?! DEJAH THORIS #1 is Dynamite’s latest foray into bringing the quintessential Princess of Mars back to comics after her last solo title wrapped up in 2021. Now, Chuck Brown and Emiliana Pinna bring Dejah back to the comic shelves with an adventure from early in the Princess’s adult life. Unfortunately, fresh time and place aren’t enough to bolster this surprisingly sub-par comic.
Chuck Brown’s script centers around the titular Princess enjoying her life in Barsoom when the city is attacked by an army of spiders controlled by King Moak of the Kaldenes. The premise is as straightforward a Princess of Mars adventure as you can get. There are alien races, monsters, political intrigue, and danger aplenty set against the Martian backdrop.
However, the setup is offset by jarring scene transitions, incredibly stiff, clunky dialog, and a lack of emotional weight. If the capital city, your home, was invaded by an army of spider creatures, you’d expect to feel something, anything. Here, Dejah takes the whole scenario in stride as if the invasion were nothing more than an irritating inconvenience.
Taken in context, this is the second Edgar Rice Burroughs (ERB) series we’ve reviewed from Chuck Brown, and the criticisms we had about Brown’s John Carter run are roughly the same as we have here. Make of that what you will.
The greater surprise in the issue is Emiliana Pinna’s uncharacteristically sub-standard art. We’re fans of Pinna’s work, especially in American Mythology’s ERB Universe titles, so to see a Dejah Thoris story come out with blobby figure work, sparse backgrounds, and misshapen faces was a disappointing shock. Truly, the art looks like it was whipped up in a hurry. We’re willing to extend the benefit of the doubt that something happened in scheduling, but we’ve seen much better work from Pinna.
Keep scrolling for a closer look at the covers, or Click Here to jump right to the story description with some spoilers.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
We begin with an ordinary day in Barsoom. Dejah Thoris gets dressed with the help of her handmaidens while she receives word of a potential border incursion by a clan of Green Martians.
Dejah’s eagerness to prepare for a potential fight is disrupted when the city is suddenly swarmed by an army of mind-controlled spider monsters. Dejah manages to get away with her personal attendant, Rroo, but several key officials in Barsoom’s leadership are encased in webs and carried off.
Later, we find out the attack was coordinated by a usurper to the throne. We conclude the issue with a demonstration, a tangled mess, and a sign of ambivalence.
Keep scrolling for a closer look at preview images of the internal pages, or Click Here to jump right to the score.
Final Thoughts
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DEJAH THORIS (VOL. 4) #1 sets the latest adventure off to a rough and rocky start for the Princess of Mars. Chuck Brown’s premise feels like a plot straight from an ERB novel, but the writing execution is stiff, jarring, and clunky, and the art execution is surprisingly sub-par.
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