Wednesday Comics on Thursday - October 14, 2010 - Warlord of Mars

I was going to write about the comics that I picked up at New York Comic Con this past weekend, but instead I feel compelled to write about a comic that I picked up yesterday. I am a HUGE fan of Edgar Rice Burroughs and in particular his Barsoom or Mars series.

I first read the books as a preteen and occasionally reread them. I have a set with covers by Robert Kennedy Abbett, which were published in the 1960s.

The books in the Mars series:

A Princess of Mars
The Gods of Mars
The Warlord of Mars
Thuvia, Maid of Mars
The Chessmen of Mars
The Master Mind of Mars
A Fighting Man of Mars
Swords of Mars
Synthetic Men of Mars
Llana of Gathol
John Carter of Mars

These are scans of my books:

A Princess of Mars is the first in the series. The back cover reads:

One of the most extraordinary writers of the century, author of the Tarzan books, the Mars series and many other titles, EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS wrote in the grand tradition of Rider Haggard, Jules Verne, H.G. Wells and other spinners of fantastic and wonderful adventure stories.

His heroes became household names and, over the years, his books have become collector's items.

Now, Ballentine Books is proud to announce that they have been authorized to reprint the entire Martian series for the first time in lowcost paperbound form. The series will be released in sequence, as they were originally published, starting with the first two - A PRINCESS OF MARS, and THE GODS OF MARS.

From inside the book cover:

A PRINCESS OF MARS is the beginning of an odyssey in which John Carter, gentleman from Virginia, embarks on the daring adventure which leads him to the fantastic dying planet of Mars with its multilimbed carnivores, fierce giant green men, weird vegetation, ancient cities and the incomparable Dejah Thoris, Princess of Helium-

A Princess of Mars was originally published in 1912 in All-Story Magazine as Under the Moon of Mars.

Imagine my delight when I walked into my local comic shop and saw Warlord of Mars, a new comic published by Dynamite Entertainment. (This is not the first comic series based on Burrough's Mars novels.) Here are a description of the series and the covers, some of which remind me more of the Frank Frazetta's Mars series illustrations than the Abbett covers.

The original warrior of Mars returns from Dynamite! Warlord of Mars is an enhancement of the classic Edgar Rice Burroughs story, Princess of Mars! If you thought you knew the story, think again! This series will capture the grit and action of the original while expanding on it with new elements. The story is about John Carter, an ex-cavalry officer in the Confederate Army who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars! Joining him in his adventures there are Tars Tarkas, his Martian comrade, and Dejah Thoris, a Martin Princess. This series is written by Arvid Nelson and is illustrated by Stephen (Avengers/Invaders) Sadowski and Lui Antonio, and features covers by Alex Ross, J. Scott Campbell, Joe Jusko and Lucio Parrillo! Dynamite

Alex Ross cover

J. Scott Campbell cover

Joe Jusko cover

Lucio Parillo cover

There are also 3 variant covers, which I had to have. I like John Carter that much!

Campbell B&W Sketch Variant

Campbell Reverse Negative Variant

Ross Virgin Variant

The first comic certainly captures the spirit of the book. I am looking forward to reading this entire comic series. Note that the comic is for the 16+ age group.