Classic space siren Barbarella is returning to Dynamite Entertainment with a new comic book series, which marks the comic book debut of writer Sarah Hoyt and will feature interiors by Madibek Musabekov. Hoyt is far from a newcomer to writing, however, as she has written over 34 novels, including her sci-fi series Darkship. The first book in that series, Darkship Thieves, won a Prometheus Award for science fiction. The rest of the Barbarella creative team includes colorist Ivan Nunes (Grimm Fairy Tales) and letterer Carlos Mangual (Nightwing).
Barbarella was originally created, written, and drawn by Jean-Claude Forest in the 1940s, the titular hero of a French sci-fi comic book. The character would hit the big screen in 1968 in the American film titled Barbarella with the heroine played by Jane Fonda. Barbarella has been in development as a live-action television series for some time now under the directorship of Nicolas Winding Refn with the series was recently picked up by Amazon Studios.
Dynamite Entertainment announced that the new Barbarella series would begin in July with the astronaut exploring Camelot in the first issue after receiving messages from a persecuted underclass. The press release promises Barbella will be traveling to several sci-fi locations and her mission will be "filled with danger, duplicity, and a dose of romance." The main cover for the first issue is by Lucio Parrillo. There will also be several variant covers from all-star comic talents, including Derrick Chew, Brian Bolland of Batman: The Killing Joke fame, and Dani, as well as a cosplay variant featuring cosplayer Rachel Hollon.
The series is based on a cult classic that is considered by some to be one of the best B-movie space operas (with plenty of over-the-top cheesecake). Hoyt talked about her experience creating comic books for the first time as well as her enjoyment of the character: "Writing the Barbarella stories was more fun than is probably legal in most states... The work of learning a new format was overshadowed by the fun of being able to think big and play with someone else’s no-holds-barred character. I’ve also loved the art I’ve seen so far from Madibek!" She will also be introducing two new characters to the world of Barbarella: an artificial intelligence called Tran who has a complicated relationship with Barbella and a talking creature similar to a fennec fox called Vyx (seen on Bolland's cover), who is Barbarella's pet.
This will be the second time Dynamite attempts a Barbarella comic book series. They previously brought back the sci-fi siren in a Barbarella series that ran for twelve issues from December 2017 to November 2018, which began during Barbarella's 55th anniversary and marked the first time in 35 years that she appeared in a new comic book story. They also did a crossover mini-series between Barbarella/Dejah Thoris. This new Barbarella series will begin with its first issue in comic book stores on July 14, 2021.
Source: Dynamite Entertainment