Dejah Thoris and the Green Men of Mars Volume 1

Dejah Thoris and the Green Men of Mars, Volume 1: Red Meat - Mark Rahner, Ludwig Nagl, Lui Antonio I've followed Dynamite Entertainment's various comic series based upon "Warlord on Mars" and this is one of the better adventures I've come across in a while. The last volumes I perused had Dejah Thoris, one of the main characters, really not doing much of anything and being something of a damsel in distress in environments that really went for show rather than being anything remotely that I could believe. Suffice to say, I was more than disappointed perusing those.

Thankfully, that changes with this particular volume, a compilation of four issues in the "Dejah Thoris and the Green Men" line. Dejah Thoris, Tars Tarkkas, and John Carter all make appearances in this volume, but Dejah's taking the reins as she's captured by a rogue group of Green Men who torture and brutalize their prisoners, auctioning off body parts of their victims to the highest bidder. Dejah's on the run and fighting for her life. Fair warning for graphic violence and torture scenes.

The consistency of the artwork is much better in this particular installation, and the story held my attention for all of the thirty minutes it took for me to read it. The volume also contains a full color risque cover gallery, which I appreciated from an artistic rendering perspective (warning: contains graphic nudity).

In sum it was a well written compilation written by Mark Rahner and illustrated by Lui Antonio. I would read future installments of the series based on this one, and I hope the momentum of the storylines and the artwork quality continue with it. It was a quality compilation for what it offered.

Overall score: 3.5/5 stars

Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher.