Marvel Comics (1973–1995) Red Sonja was created by writer
Roy Thomas and artist
Barry Windsor-Smith for
Marvel Comics in 1973, partially based on Red Sonya, a female
swashbuckler from "
The Shadow of the Vulture". Red Sonja debuted in Marvel's
Conan the Barbarian #23 (1973). Thomas created a new origin story and transposed the timeline from the 16th century of Howard's original Red Sonya to the
Hyborian Age, another Howard creation, to have Sonja interact with
Conan the Barbarian. In 1975, Marvel Comics published the first issue of
Marvel Feature vol. 2 that was headlined by Red Sonja. The seven issues featuring Red Sonja were written by Roy Thomas and
Bruce Jones. From #2 on,
Frank Thorne provided the art for the series. In 1977, the character received her own, self-titled series. The fifteen issues of
Red Sonja were written by Clair Noto and Thomas, with art by Frank Thorne (#1–11), and later on, pencils by
John Buscema (#12–13, 15) and
Sal Buscema (#14), who were inked by
Joe Rubinstein,
Al Milgrom and
Tony De Zuniga. Red Sonja's origin story was told in the story "The Day of the Sword" in the Marvel magazine
Kull and the Barbarians #3 (1975), written by Roy Thomas and
Doug Moench and illustrated by
Howard Chaykin. The same story was later redrawn by
Dick Giordano and
Terry Austin and published in the magazine
The Savage Sword of Conan #78 (July 1982). In this version, Red Sonja lives with her family in the Western
Hyrkanian steppes. When she is 21, a group of mercenaries kills her family and burns down their house. Sonja attempts to defend herself, but cannot lift her brother's sword. She is
raped by the leader of the group. Answering her cry for revenge, the red goddess
Scáthach appears to her and gives her incredible fighting skills, on the condition that she never lie with a man unless he defeats her in fair combat. In the story "Sword of the She-Devil"
Marvel Team-Up #79 (December 1979), Red Sonja is reborn in the present-day of
Earth-616 when her sword is found by her descendant/reincarnation
Mary Jane "MJ" Watson (love interest of
Peter Parker / Spider-Man). In 1983, Marvel Comics published a second
Red Sonja series, a two-issue story written by
Christy Marx and Roy Thomas, with art by Tony DeZuniga and
Ernie Colón. The story also featured an appearance by the Robert E. Howard heroine
Valeria. That same year, Marvel launched a third series, running for thirteen issues. Writers included
Tom DeFalco,
Bill Mantlo, and
Louise Simonson, with art by
Mary Wilshire,
Pat Broderick, and
Rudy Nebres, among others. In 1985, Marvel published a two-issue adaptation of the
Red Sonja film starring
Brigitte Nielsen. The adaptation was written by Louise Simonson and Mary Wilshire, with art by Mary Wilshire and
Vince Colletta. In 1995, Marvel published the one-shot issue
Red Sonja: Scavenger Hunt, written by Glenn Herdling and illustrated by Ken Lashley. In 2007, Marvel teamed with
Dynamite Comics to publish
Spider-Man/Red Sonja, a five-issue series written by
Michael Avon Oeming with art by
Mel Rubi, in which Mary Jane "MJ" Watson again awakens as Red Sonja.
Dynamite Comics (2005–present) In 2005, Dynamite Comics began publishing
Red Sonja. The series debuted with an issue zero written by
Michael Avon Oeming and
Mike Carey and drawn by
Mel Rubi. It depicts the original Sonja's death in issue #34. A new character of the same name, described as a reincarnation, takes her place from issue #35 through the series end at issue #80. In 2013, Dynamite launched a second ongoing
Red Sonja series, written by
Gail Simone with art from Walter Geovani. Simone noted in interviews that her version was slightly "rebooted", showing the character's beginnings. Issue #1 of Simone's run was released in July 2013 to positive reviews. The series lasted 18 issues. After Simone's run, Dynamite launched a third
Red Sonja series in January 2016. The book featured
Marguerite Bennett as writer and a redesign of the character by artist
Nicola Scott. That series lasted six issues. In December 2017, a new
Red Sonja comic series debuted with a zero issue priced at 25 cents by writer
Amy Chu with art by Carlos Gomez. The series ran for 25 issues, ending in 2019. In November 2019, a new series by writer Mark Russell and art by Mirko Colak debuted to positive critical reception, leading into a spinoff series called
Killing Red Sonja. Russell left the series after issue 24 and was replaced with writer Luke Lieberman, with art by Drew Moss. The series ran 28 issues. In mid-2021, Dynamite released the anthology
Red Sonja: Black, White, Red. Each issue presents stories by different teams of artists and writers, including
Kurt Busiek, Benjamin Dewey, Amanda Deibert, Cat Staggs,
Mark Russell, and Bob Q. Also announced was a crossover with Project superpower. A sequel was released in November 2022 titled
Vampirella vs. Red Sonja. In February 2021, Dynamite released a series titled
Sonjaversal, depicting Red Sonja meeting her
multiversal counterparts. That same month, Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti co-wrote the series
Invincible Red Sonja with artist Moritat. In June 2021, the character appeared in
Die!namite and
Die!namite Lives. That same month, Dynamite Entertainment announced that a new series written by
Mirka Andolfo and drawn by Giuseppe Cafaro would debut in September 2021. The first issue sold out its initial run of 32,000 copies, prompting a second printing. In December 2021, it was announced that Red Sonja would appear in the sequel to
Die!namite and
Die!namite Lives called
Die!namite Never Dies.
Hell Sonja, a spinoff from
Sonjaversal, was released in January 2022. That same month, the
Immortal Red Sonja series by writer
Dan Abnett and artist Alessandro Miracolo was announced for April, which would depict Sonja in
King Arthur's
Camelot. In February 2022, Dynamite announced that it would debut
Red Sitha in May, set ten years after Andolfo's storyline, following Red Sonja's adopted daughter, Sitha. In March 2022, Dynamite announced another spinoff titled from Sonjaversal,
Samurai Sonja, written by Jordan Clark with art by Pasquale Qualano. In August, a one-shot fairy tale reimagining Red Sonja as Jack from
Jack and the Beanstalk was released.
Unbreakable Red Sonja was released in October 2022, and the crossover series
Hell Sonja/Red Sonja was released in December the same year. In April 2023, Dynamite announced that it would debut the next ongoing
Red Sonja series by writer
Torunn Grønbekk and artist Walter Geovani in celebration of the character's 50th anniversary. The first issue, released in July, featured dozens of variant covers by artists including
Jim Cheung,
Bryan Hitch,
Mike Mignola,
Joseph Michael Linsner,
Jenny Frison,
Frank Cho, and
Kevin Eastman.
Savage Red Sonja by
Dan Panosian and Alessio Petillo was released in November 2023, followed by
Red Sonja: Empire of the Damned by Steve Niles and Alessandro Amoruso in April 2024. The sequel to
Red Sonja: Birth of the She-devil called
Red Sonja: Death and the Devil was released in September 2024. An alternate reality version of the character will debut in
Sonja Reborn, set for release in August 2025. The series, written by Christopher Priest, will follow British diplomatic clerk Maggie Sutherland, who is transported from the 21st century to the world of Hyboria. In February 2026, Dynamite announced Red Sonja Volume 8,
Red Sonja: She-Devil With a Sword, would launch in May 2026, written by Rory McConville and drawn by Pablo de Bonis. == Depiction of sexuality ==