Red Sonja: Noir #[nn]
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeRed Sonja: Noir #1 is significant as the first deliberate genre-transplant one-shot to anchor Red Sonja squarely in hard-boiled detective and pulp-noir territory, grafting Raymond Chandler-style plotting — a murdered partner, a MacGuffin artifact, and a web of betrayal — onto the Hyborian Age setting without abandoning the sword-and-sorcery framework. Writer David Avallone has since confirmed in press materials that the story is constructed as a classic noir detective riff, which 'eagle-eyed fans easily spotted,' signaling an intentional meta-layer of genre homage rare in Sonja's publishing history. The one-shot proved successful enough that Dynamite immediately commissioned a follow-up, establishing 'Red Sonja: Noir' as a recurring sub-brand within the franchise. It stands as a demonstration of the character's adaptability across genre registers, continuing a tradition of experimental Sonja specials that began with Dynamite's anthology and crossover output.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The project was announced by Dynamite Entertainment in March 2025, pairing writer David Avallone — whose prior Sonja work included a story in Red Sonja: Black, White, Red and several Savage Tales specials — with artist Edu Menna, making it a reunion of sorts for Menna, who had last drawn the character roughly a decade earlier on Red Sonja Annual #4. Avallone brought a proven track record with Dynamite's pulp-inflected properties, including The Shadow and Zorro, making him a natural fit for the genre experiment. The issue shipped on June 18, 2025 (with a second wave of variant covers arriving in July), formatted as a 40-page one-shot with cardstock covers and a Teen+ rating, carrying the internal story title The Crimson Calypso.
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- Published by Dynamite Entertainment as a standalone one-shot (no series number); ships June 18, 2025, with additional variant covers following July 16, 2025.
- Written by David Avallone (The Shadow, Zorro, Elvira) with interior art by Edu Menna; colors by Adriano Augusto; letters by Jeff Eckleberry; edited by Joseph Rybandt.
- Interior story is titled 'The Crimson Calypso,' a hard-boiled mystery in which Red Sonja investigates the murder of her mercenary partner while hunting a coveted artifact of the same name.
- Edu Menna's involvement marks a return to the character approximately a decade after he illustrated Red Sonja Annual #4 for Dynamite's original ongoing series.
- Cover A is by Lesley 'Leirix' Li; Cover B by Joseph Michael Linsner; Cover C is a cosplay photo variant featuring Molly Stewart; a Blank Authentix variant (Cover D) was also produced, along with numerous retailer-exclusive and incentive variants.
- The one-shot carries a 40-page count (with 28 story pages per initial solicitations) and cardstock covers, formatted as a deluxe special rather than a standard pamphlet.
- Avallone confirmed in 2026 press materials that the story is a conscious genre-mash riff on a classic detective narrative, describing it as a 'fun experiment in genre-mash-up, placing the She-Devil with a Sword in a classic detective story.'
- The issue's commercial and critical reception led Dynamite to commission a direct follow-up one-shot, Red Sonja: Noir — The Plunder & The Princess (2026), with Avallone returning alongside new artist Edson Novaes.
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