In RED SONJA (VOL. 5) #27, available from Dynamite Comics on May 26th, 2021, Red Sonja turns the tables on a sleazy sultan who wants to use her fighting prowess to fatten his coffers in the fighting games.
The Details
- Written By: Luke Lieberman
- Art By: Drew Moss, Vincenzo Federici
- Colors By: Dearbhla Kelly
- Letters By: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
- Cover Art By: Jae Lee, June Chung (cover A)
- Cover Price: $3.99
- Release Date: May 26, 2021
Was It Good?
Yes, it was good. It was good for resolving a mildly lackluster conflict in a clever way that gives Red Sonja everything she wanted (naturally) in a way that you didn’t see coming. Clever storytelling is a rarity these days, so it’s always a net positive when I get surprised.
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The art is fairly decent. The coloring is a bit too muted and it makes the pages visually bland, but coloring aside, it’s a nicely rendered book.
See for yourself in our RED SONJA (VOL. 5) #27 preview.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
We pick up with Red Sonja, Tristine, and Kentaro escaping the sultan’s palace, stealing his prized crown along the way, and head for the docks to escape by ship. Read our RED SONJA (VOL. 5) #26 review to find out how they got themselves in such a predicament.
Up to this point, the series lacked a little dramatic tension because you never felt the trio were in any real danger with Red Sonja at their lead. Where this issue improves on that flaw is by adding some excitement and energy into the chase. The lack of threat doesn’t go away, but at least you can have some fun watching them run.
Our heroes make it to the docks and “borrow” a boat to get away. The sultan’s pride won’t allow them to get away alive, much less with his crown, so he follows with all his slaves and his best warriors in his fastest ship.
Onboard Sonja’s ship, she makes a lesson out of teaching Kentaro to fish with proper bait. What you don’t appreciate at the moment, but do appreciate later on in the issue, is the life application to the situation at hand with the sultan. The sultan is simply a big, fat fish being lured with the right bait.
As the sultan’s ship gains on Sonja, he doesn’t realize his slaves are collecting the warriors’ weapons for cleaning and repair. He also won’t realize until later that his slaves have no intentions of giving the weapons back because Sonja has promised them freedom in Hyrkania in exchange for their help.
When their ships finally meet, the sultan’s forces are unarmed and powerless. I like the life application Sonja demonstrates to Kentaro of reeling in the fish (the sultan) with the proper bait (his crown).
What’s less obvious but equally valuable is the life application Sonja demonstrates for Trisitne by finding a way to beat the sultan through negotiating with his slaves, a clear weak spot.
I was initially down on the early issues of this run about showing a different side of Red Sonja as a teacher because the threat wasn’t big enough or challenging enough. My opinion has turned around a little by the cleverness with which Lieberman integrates those lessons into resolving the main conflict. I would have liked to see more of this earlier in the series.
Eventually, the sultan is dropped off back on land with his crown on his head, his slaves now in service to Hyrkania, and his tail between his legs.
How Does It End?
The sultan claims to have the last laugh. The Crows of Last Resort take flight. The biggest fight lies ahead.
Final Thoughts
RED SONJA (VOL. 5) #27 presents Red Sonja who not only teaches but leads by example. The art is better than average, but the cleverness of the writing makes this one of the better issues in the series so far.
Score: 8.5/10
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