Savage Dragon #10
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeSavage Dragon #10 is the payoff issue of Erik Larsen's reader-facing 'Ultimate Character Creating Contest,' announced in the very first issue of the ongoing series — making it a genuinely interactive milestone in early Image Comics publishing, where a fan-created character stepped into an official story. The issue delivers the full debut of R. Richard Richards, the relentless newspaper publisher who becomes one of Dragon's most persistent human antagonists, as well as the first appearance of Bad Axe, deepening the Vicious Circle's roster. Beyond its new characters, the issue showcases Larsen's willingness to let Dragon be outwitted rather than outfought — deliberately throwing his bout with Jimbo Da Mighty Lobster to prevent further civilian casualties — a characterization choice that set Savage Dragon apart from the era's more straightforwardly power-fantasy superhero books.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The issue was written, penciled, and inked entirely by Erik Larsen — consistent with his solo creative control of the series throughout its run — with coloring by Reuben Rude and lettering by Chris Eliopoulos. The contest that drives the issue's central story was announced back in Savage Dragon #1 with a submission deadline of July 31, 1993; Larsen received several thousand entries and ultimately selected Jason Merritt's Jimbo Da Mighty Lobster as the winner, with the creator retaining the copyright to the character. The issue shipped in two editions: a direct market cover showing Dragon and Jimbo in combat, and a newsstand cover depicting a battered, bleeding Dragon.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First full appearance of R. Richard Richards (he appeared image-only in Savage Dragon #6), the Chicago Voice newspaper publisher who becomes a long-running media antagonist of Dragon, ultimately dying in Savage Dragon #160.
- First appearance of Bad Axe, a new Vicious Circle member introduced alongside the series' ongoing Overlord-led criminal organization.
- Debut of Jimbo Da Mighty Lobster, a fan-created character designed by contest winner Jason Merritt, who retains copyright ownership of the character.
- The 'Ultimate Character Creating Contest' was announced in Savage Dragon #1 (1993) with a July 31, 1993 deadline; the issue's back-matter essay by Larsen details the contest's origins, submission process, and winner selection.
- Dragon deliberately throws his fight with Jimbo, allowing the lobster-creature to believe he has won in order to end the destruction — a key early example of Dragon's pragmatic, non-ego-driven heroism.
- The issue was published in two distinct cover variants: a direct edition and a newsstand edition with a different image.
- Issue was reprinted in the 1996 Image Comics trade paperback series as Savage Dragon Vol. 3: The Fallen, and again in the 2023 German Zauberstern Savage Dragon series (#4, June 2024), and was also included in the 1995 Erik Larsen CD-ROM Comic Book Anthology (Think Multimedia Entertainment), which collected Savage Dragon #1–10.
- Written, penciled, and inked by Erik Larsen; colored by Reuben Rude; lettered by Chris Eliopoulos — published with a cover date of May 1994.
Cast · 21 characters
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Reprinted in Savage Dragon #4 (2024), Savage Dragon #3
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