Red Sonja (cartoon character)

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Red Sonja is a comic figure invented in 1973, who has been a sporadic protagonist since 1977 and has been a permanent protagonist of a fantasy comic of the same name since 2005 . Her nickname is " she-devil with a sword ".

history

Roy Thomas (2008) - the inventor of Red Sonja

In 1934, fantasy author Robert E. Howard wrote a short story called The Shadow of the Vulture with the character of "Red Sonya of Rogatino" (note the "y"), a bellicose, red-haired pistol shooter. When comic book author Roy Thomas wrote Conan the Barbarian # 23 for Marvel Comics in 1973 , he took Red Sonya as inspiration for a new character, the also red-haired swordsman Red Sonja . Draftsman Barry Windsor-Smith illustrated her as a muscular, attractive barbarian who only covered her body with a tight chainmail bikini . This outfit soon achieved cult status and has been retained by all artists ever since. The similarity between "Red Sonja" and "Red Sonya" later led to legal problems that were finally resolved only in 2008 (see below).

Red Sonja proved popular and established herself as an important supporting character in Conan the Barbarian . In 1975, Red Sonja's backstory was featured in the spin-off series Kull the Conqueror (Issue # 3). After that, Sonja lived peacefully with her family in West Hyrkania (Real World: Ukraine ) as a teenager , until they were attacked by mercenaries who killed and rape everyone except Sonja. The "red goddess" Scathach (alluding to the Celtic warrior princess of the same name ) takes on her thirst for revenge and gives her fabulous sword fighting skills in exchange for the vow never to sleep with a man unless he defeats her in a fair duel.

In 1977 Marvel Comics published the first series of Red Sonja , in which Red Sonja was the main character in her own series. 15 issues of this series were published in which the authors established the black magician Kulan Gath, invented by Marvel Comics in 1972 but previously used in the X-Men series, as Red Sonja's archenemy. After that, Red Sonja appeared as a minor character in Conan , until the second and third Red Sonja series were started in 1983 , of which two issues were published in the second series and 13 issues in the third. After these series ended, Red Sonja continued to appear on Conan until Marvel discontinued the series in 1995.

In 2005 Dynamite Entertainment started the fourth Red Sonja series in cooperation with Marvel . In this series, which continues uninterrupted to this day, author Brian Reed Red had Sonja die in issue 34 (2008) fighting Kulan Gath and resurrected 20 years later in the body of a distant relative. The new Red Sonja is a young, happily married noblewoman, whose husband Daniel is killed by pirates. She wants to avenge his death and meets Osin, who is himself a reincarnation of a bard who was good friends with old Red Sonja. Under him, she trains a great martial art, which, however, does not come close to that of her predecessor.

Prices

  • Academy of Comic Book Arts Awards: Best Individual Story (Dramatic). The Song of Red Sonja. Roy Thomas and Barry Smith (1973).
  • Dynamite Entertainment: "Best New Publisher" (2005) for Red Sonja (Vol. 4)

Forces, Appearance and Controversy

Cosplayer in the typical Red Sonja metal bikini

Red Sonja's background story, which is still valid today, was told in 1975, according to which her family was massacred by mercenaries and she was raped by them as the only survivor. The goddess Scathach took on her demand for vengeance. She gave her fabulous sword fighting skills in exchange for the oath never to surrender to a man unless he defeated her in a fair duel. Red Sonja was consistently portrayed as a “warlike, unearthly beautiful barbarian warrior with erotic and impractical scarce armor” ( archetypical example of ... a fierce and stunningly beautiful female barbarian who typically wears sexy, but impractically skimpy armor ) who wears little more than a metal bikini . Since the fourth series of Red Sonja , this has been explained within the comics by the fact that Red Sonja is aware of her effect on her mostly male opponents and uses their excitement in order to be able to defeat them more easily. Red Sonja's typical metal bikini was inspired by the Spanish illustrator Esteban Maroto by chance , it quickly became popular and quickly achieved cult status . This clothing was used for fantasy pin-ups (by Boris Vallejo, among others ) and was often mentioned in parodies. This metal bikini is often used for cosplay at comic conventions , similar to Princess Leia from Star Wars .

The fact that Red Sonja gets her powers from a rape and can only give herself to a man who defeats her is controversial to this day. The comic book author Peter David described the story of how it came about as "scary" because it was clear to him that Red Sonja could only start a family with a man to whom she could physically submit. The fact that Red Sonja runs around so provocatively after her rape because, according to the comics, she wants to torture all indecent (!) Men with it, was seen by critics as "unrealistic and hypocritical". Comedy critic Mark Morrison, on the other hand, compared its genesis with that of Batman , who also experienced a terrible trauma as a child (murder of his parents), and sees no contradiction. He also argues that Red Sonja is not an example of sexism, but rather feminism, as she is capable of friendship and romance despite being raped with honorable men (such as Conan or Kull); it is never implied that it will lose its powers if defeated; and is constantly written by the authors in such a way that they use their beauty not to submit, but to dominate.

The current interpretation of Red Sonja's genesis comes from Red Sonja # 12 (Vol.4) (2006) by Michael Avon Oeming . The Fanzine Comics Bulletin praised Oeming's "uncompromising attitude with which the rapists are portrayed as the monsters they really are", that the rape is not explicitly interpreted as "a predetermined fate, but as tragic misfortune" and that the goddess Scathach's motive is not revenge is, but justice. Comics Bulletin gave the story five stars out of five. The current interpretation of the relationship between her swordsmanship and her chastity comes from Red Sonja # 31 (Vol.4) (2008), in which Red Sonja falls in love with the wise but inferior King Teran: the goddess Scathach shows understanding, but asks them to "consider how unique their gift is". When Red Sonja wants to lie down with Teran anyway, he is attacked by assassins who Red Sonja defeats with her swordsmanship - which she would have lost after a night of love with him. With a heavy heart she separates from him because she doesn't want “Teran and many other innocent people to die just because Red Sonja is no longer there”.

Another point of criticism is Red Sonja's tight metal bikini. During the 1970s it was often used only as an "eye-catcher" that otherwise contributed little to the plot , which is why Red Sonja was criticized by feminists as an example of sexism in the comic industry. Over time, however, she was interpreted as a strong, independent character who so confidently uses “fighting strength, strength of will and beauty” against her male opponents that today, according to opinion, she can also be seen as an example for emancipated women.

In an article in the comic book magazine Sequential Tart , Rebecca Buchanan critically analyzed the credibility of a "tall heroine with a gigantic sword and a metal bikini that barely covers the lush curves". The idea that Red Sonja is primarily a vehicle for “male instinct fulfillment” is put into perspective by Red Sonja's “strength, martial arts and energy”, with which she “cuts the heads of villains without hesitation”. Above all, she praises that Red Sonja is strong enough not to allow herself to be destroyed by her rape. Since she uses her sex appeal (often self-deprecatingly) to subjugate men, Buchanan sees her as an "example of self-discipline, bravery, compassion, strength, wit and righteous anger" and as a "feminist heroine".

Film and series appearances

In 1985 the film Red Sonja was shot with Brigitte Nielsen as Red Sonja and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Kalidor, which retains Red Sonja's original genesis and lets her fight the evil queen Gedren. The film flopped, was panned by the critics and broke Nielsen a nomination for the Golden Raspberry .

In 1998, Red Sonja had a brief appearance on the series Conan, the Adventurer , in which she was portrayed by Angelica Bridges .

Publications

List of German comic albums (Panini Verlag)

List of German-language novels by David C. Smith & Richard L. Tierney

  • Die Rote Sonja 1: Der Ring von Ikribu, 1985 Heyne, ISBN 3-453-31257-0 , Red Sonja 1: The Ring Of Ikribu, 1981
  • The Red Sonja 2: The Night of Demons, 1985 Heyne, ISBN 3-453-31260-0 , Red Sonja 2: Demon Night, 1982
  • Die Rote Sonja 3: Die Hölle laughs, 1985, Heyne, ISBN 3-453-31263-5 , Red Sonja 3: When Hell Laughs, 1982
  • Die Rote Sonja 4: Endithors Daughter, 1986, Heyne, ISBN 3-453-31266-X , Red Sonja 4: Endithors Daughter, 1982
  • Die Rote Sonja 5: Der Prinz der Hölle, 1986, Heyne, ISBN 3-453-31269-4 , Red Sonja 5: Against The Prince Of Hell, 1983
  • Die Rote Sonja 6: Der Stern des Untergang, 1986, Heyne, ISBN 3-453-31272-4 , Red Sonja 6: Star Of Doom, 1983

Litigation: Red Sonja LLC V. Paradox Entertainment Inc

In 2006 a lawsuit arose between Red Sonja LLC, which owns all rights to the character Red Sonja, and Paradox Entertainment, who hold all rights to the works of Robert E. Howard (and thus also Red Sonya). At the beginning of 2008 the following regulation came into effect:

  • Red Sonja LLC paid Paradox a symbolic amount of one US dollar, so Red Sonja LLC holds all rights to both Red Sonja and Red Sonya.
  • Paradox paid Red Sonja LLC a symbolic amount of one US dollar so that Paradox holds all rights to the short story The Shadow of the Vulture .
  • Paradox retains all rights to all Conan publications, but allows Red Sonja LLC to publish comics with Red Sonja in this universe.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ RED SONJA , dynamiteentertainment.com, accessed November 19, 2018
  2. ↑ ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: Red Sonja / Red Sonya dispute settled for $ 1 swap, newsarama.com )@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / blog.newsarama.com
  3. ↑ Red Sonja: History ( Memento from April 7, 2010 in the Internet Archive ), redsonja.net. (Archive version dated April 7, 2010. Retrieved November 16, 2013.)
  4. ↑ A Treasure Trove of Retro Cosplay , fanboy.com, April 20, 2011
  5. ↑ ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: Star Wars Cosplay: Princess Leia's Metal Bikini and the Women Who Wear It, Yahoo! News. )@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.associatedcontent.com
  6. ↑ a b Feminist Icon or Misogynist Fantasy? Part One , insidepulse.com, February 5, 2007
  7. ↑ a b Red Sonja: Feminist Icon or Misogynist Fantasy? Part Two , insidepulse.com, February 12, 2007
  8. ↑ Red Sonja # 12 Review , comicsbulletin.com, July 29, 2006
  9. ↑ In Red Sonja # 15 (Vol.4) (2006) by Michael Avon Oeming, Red Sonja spends a night with the god Kalavel, but since Kalavel is not a "man", according to the storyline, this has no consequences for her martial arts.
  10. ↑ ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: Red Sonja: From Exploitation to Empowerment )@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.associatedcontent.com
  11. ↑ ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: Red Sonja: From Exploitation to Empowerment (Part 2) )@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.associatedcontent.com
  12. ↑ Red Sonja: Feminist Heroine In a Chainmail Bikini , sequentialtart.com, May 1, 2006
  13. ↑ ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: Settlement: Red Sonja LLC V. Paradox Entertainment Inc, busines )@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.businesswire.com

Web links