Mike Eakins
The air is getting cooler, the leaves are changing, and that can only mean one thing…It’s comic-con season! MCM Comic-Con London is in full swing with news, special releases, basically all the comic-con goodness. Announced earlier today were more details to Marvel’s initiative in bringing Robert E. Howard’s characters to Marvel. Robert E. Howard’s swashbuckling heroine, Dark Agnes, is getting her own five-issue limited series, however we get our very first look at her in December’s Conan: Serpent War. The series is being manned by writer Becky Cloonan (Punisher) and her first mate Luca Pizzari (Blackest Night) who is taking on art duties.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if you told me you’d never heard of Dark Agnes. Well, that’s about to change,” says Cloonan. “Agnes is the unsung anti-hero of Robert E. Howard’s legendary body of work. She’s a swashbuckling, musket wielding, doublet wearing bad ass swordswoman from the early Renaissance. A fierce warrior, a stalwart friend, and a brutal, unrelenting force in a bloody, chaotic world. Agnes is just as relevant today as she was when Howard dreamed her up, and as she is in her own time: the filthy 1500’s. Join us for a tale of mystery, adventure, and revenge!”
“Considering Howard is mostly known for his male protagonists, it’s perhaps surprising to new readers of his works that the original Sword Woman story was written back in the 1930s as a woman in first person,” says Joakim Zetterberg, Executive Vice President at Conan Properties. “It shows that Howard’s heroines equal his heroes in being whirlwind adventurers. We’re certain Becky, Luca and the Marvel team will make this series truly kick-ass, befitting Agnes herself.”
DARK AGNES #1 (OF 5)
Written by BECKY CLOONAN
Penciled by LUCA PIZZARI
Cover by STEPHANIE HANS
ROBERT E. HOWARD’S SWORDWOMAN IN HER FIRST SOLO COMIC SERIES!
Forced into an arranged marriage, Agnes de Chastillon took matters into her own violent hands to free herself from the yoke of a life she never wanted. Now, the woman known as DARK AGNES, along with her mercenary partner ETIENNE VILLIERS, make their way through 16th century France as sellswords on their way to join the wars in Italy, where the real money is! But when Etienne is captured by the DUKE OF ALENCON’s forces and set for execution, it’s up to Dark Agnes to save the day! But what evil designs are being enacted on Agnes, and will she doom herself by saving Etienne?
An all-new story following up Robert E. Howard’s tales, the swashbuckling saga of DARK AGNES in Marvel Comics starts here!