Sword of Sorcery
| Sword of Sorcery | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Publication date |
Vol. 1: March 1973 - December 1973 Vol. 2: November 2012 - July 2013 |
| Number of issues |
Vol. 1: 5 Vol. 2: 9 (#1-8 and #0) |
| Main character(s) |
Vol. 1: Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser Vol. 2: Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld, Beowulf |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) |
Vol. 1: Denny O'Neil Vol. 2: Christy Marx, Tony Bedard |
| Artist(s) |
Vol. 1: Howard Chaykin, Walt Simonson, Jim Starlin Vol. 2: Aaron Lopresti, Jesus Saiz |
Sword of Sorcery was an American sword-and-sorcery comic book featuring Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, heroes and rogues created by Fritz Leiber. Published bi-monthly by National Periodical Publications, it ran for five issues in 1973, with a cover price of 20¢. The title was written by Denny O'Neil and featured art by Howard Chaykin,[1] Walt Simonson and Jim Starlin.
In June 2012, the series returned with a revival of Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld by writer Christy Marx and artist Aaron Lopresti. The title included a backup feature starring Beowulf written by Tony Bedard and drawn by Jesus Saiz.[2]
Publishing history
Wonder Woman
A prequel to the series appears the Wonder Woman series, in the last panel of #201[3] and all of #202.[4] In this story, written by Samuel R. Delany, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser team up with Diana Prince (Wonder Woman minus her super-powers), her kung-fu mentor I Ching, and Catwoman, to defeat the dimension-spanning wizard Gahwron.
#1: March–April 1973
untitled story — "adapted from Fritz Leiber's story, 'The Price of Pain Ease'" (1970 Swords Against Death, coll.)
- Writer: Denny O'Neil
- Pencils: Howard Chaykin
- Inks: The Crusty Bunkers
- Cover: Michael Wm. Kaluta[5]
#2: May–June 1973
"Revenge of the Skull of Jewels" — "from Fritz Leiber's story, 'Thieves' House'" (1943 Unknown)
- Writer: Denny O'Neil
- Art: Howard Chaykin
- Inks: The Crusty Bunkers (uncredited)
- Cover: Howard Chaykin (pencils) and Berni Wrightson (inks) (uncredited)[6]
#3: July–August 1973
"Betrayal!" — original story by Denny O'Neil
- Writer: Denny O'Neil (uncredited)
- Pencils: Howard Chaykin (uncredited)
- Inks: Michael Wm. Kaluta, Berni Wrightson (uncredited)
- Cover: Howard Chaykin (pencils) and Vincente Alcazar (inks) (uncredited)[7]
#4: September–October 1973
"The Cloud of Hate!" — "adapted from a story by Fritz Leiber" ("The Cloud of Hate", 1963 Fantastic)
- Writer: Denny O'Neil
- Artists: Chaykin, Inc.
"The Prophecy!" — original story by Denny O'Neil — featuring "Young Fafhrd the Barbarian"
- Story: Denny O'Neil
- Art: Walter Simonson
- Cover: Howard Chaykin (pencils) and Walt Simonson (inks)[8]
#5: November–December 1973
"The Sunken Land" — adaptation of Leiber's story (1942 Unknown) — featuring a romantically inclined, but mute, bird woman
- Story: Denny O'Neil, Fritz Leiber
- Art: Walter Simonson, Al Milgrom
"The Mouse Alone" — original story by George Alec Effinger — exploring the Gray Mouser's introduction to thievery —
- Story: George Alec Effinger
- Art: Jim Starlin, Al Milgrom
- Cover: Walter Simonson (pencils & inks)[9]
The New 52
The series was relaunched with issue #0 in September 2012 (cover dated November 2012, as part of DC's The New 52 line.[2] This series was written by Christy Marx with art by Aaron Lopresti and featured the adventures of Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld.[10] A backup story written by Tony Bedard and drawn by Jesus Saiz told the story of Beowulf.[11] DC cancelled the new series as of issue #8 (July 2013).[12][13]
Collected Editions
- Sword of Sorcery Vol. 1: Amethyst collects Sword of Sorcery vol. 2 #0–8, 238 pages, September 2013, ISBN 978-1401241001
References
- ↑ McAvennie, Michael; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1970s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9.
Fantasy became a DC Comics reality when writer/editor Denny O'Neil and artist Howard Chaykin brought forth a new comic based on Fritz Leiber's adventurous and virtuous warriors of myth, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser.
- 1 2 Rogers, Vaneta (June 8, 2012). "DC Adds Four to New 52, Including DiDio's Phantom Stranger". Newsarama. Archived from the original on June 10, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
This new series...will launch with the return of Amethyst to the New 52. Written by Christy Marx with art by Aaron Lopresti, the comic will show how Amethyst finds out she's the lost princess of Gemworld.
- ↑ O'Neil, Dennis (w), Giordano, Dick (p), Giordano, Dick (i). "The Fist of Flame" Wonder Woman 201 (July–August 1972)
- ↑ Delany, Samuel R. (w), Giordano, Dick (p), Giordano, Dick (i). "Fangs of Fire" Wonder Woman 202 (September–October 1972)
- ↑ Sword of Sorcery #1 at the Grand Comics Database
- ↑ Sword of Sorcery #2 at the Grand Comics Database
- ↑ Sword of Sorcery #3 at the Grand Comics Database
- ↑ Sword of Sorcery #4 at the Grand Comics Database
- ↑ Sword of Sorcery #5 at the Grand Comics Database
- ↑ Marx, Christy (w), Lopresti, Aaron (p), Lopresti, Aaron (i). "Homecoming" Sword of Sorcery v2, 0 (November 2012)
- ↑ Bedard, Tony (w), Saiz, Jesus (p), Saiz, Jesus (i). "Chapter I: The Perfect Soldier" Sword of Sorcery v2, 0 (November 2012)
- ↑ Sword of Sorcery vol. 2 at the Grand Comics Database
- ↑ Melrose, Kevin (February 7, 2013). "DC axes Deathstroke, Savage Hawkman and four other titles". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
DC Comics this afternoon announced the May cancellations of six more series, a mix of first-, second- and third-wave New 52 titles: Deathstroke, The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Man, The Ravagers, The Savage Hawkman, Sword of Sorcery and Team 7.
External links
- Sword of Sorcery at the Comic Book DB
- Sword of Sorcery vol. 2 at the Comic Book DB
- Sword of Sorcery at Mike's Amazing World of Comics