Red Sonja: Age of Chaos #2

If you’ve read my review of issue 1 of this little crossover series then you’ll know that I enjoyed it. I didn’t know the character well going into that issue but I found it a fun, accessible read. It sold me on the rest of the mini-series but after this latest issue I’m not so sure anymore.

The first issue of this miniseries was pretty heavy on the action. There was some exposition to establish the plot but it was balanced with humour and none of it felt unnecessary. Burnham wrote the issue well. In this latest issue the exposition is the focus though and it’s quite jarring. There’s still a touch of the self-aware humour I enjoyed previously but issue two reads like it was written in the silver age. Over half of the book is Lady Demon simply explaining last issues events to Red Sonja and Chastity. By the end of the issue she’s told Sonja what she has to do to restore the temporal problems created last issue but it feels like a lot of time was wasted on this exposition dump considering that this series is only set for 3 issues.

On the plus side the art done by Jonathan Lau for this issue is gorgeous. The level of detail the man puts into every panel is stunning. Even the tiniest of bloodstains or engravings on a sword handle look like they’ve been given high levels of attention. In particular there’s a panel of Sonja on page 19 of this issue that took my breath away. It’s just a shame that specific panel wasn’t given the full page it deserved. I’m really hoping that I get to see Lau’s work more often in future since he’s easily the best thing about this mini-series.

In short, this issue was weak on the fun, heavy on the exposition and strong on art. Issue two isn’t entirely devoid of action or fun but it definitely made me feel like I’d been the victim of a bait ‘n’ switch. I’ll still be reading the finale to this series since I’m a completionist but I’ve lost most of my optimism regarding this series and I can’t recommend this issue.