Dan Abnett Returns To Barsoom For ‘Dejah Thoris Vs. John Carter of Mars’ This July

Writer Dan Abnett is headed back to Barsoom.

Dynamite Entertainment announced Thursday morning that the writer will join artist Alessandro Miracolo on Dejah Thoris vs. John Carter of Mars. The series picks up from Abnett’s previous John Carter tales and sees the title characters reunited. But their love is tested by a “grave new threat and cataclysmic planet-wide war.” Barsoom is in crisis thank to a change in the weather indicating a coming ice age. Meanwhile the planet’s many tribes and nations have renewed old tensions. And though Dejah Thoris was able to quell some of the unrest is John’s absence, the hero’s reappearance raises new questions.

“Now that John Carter has returned, is he still the legendary hero they all respect?” Abnett said of the series in a statement. “And are he and his beloved Dejah still working to the same ends? It’s a tale of swords, sorcery, space gods and true love, an interplanetary romance in the true sense of both those words.”

The space gods he mentioned are The Longborn. They’re old, powerful, and possibly responsible for the origins of Barsoom and the Solar System itself. And as they attempt to reclaim the red planet for themselves, it is up to Dejah, John, and their allies to take on their biggest threat yet.

“This is a big responsibility … these characters have previously been portrayed by great artists like Frank Frazzeta, Boris Vallejo, and my friend Pasquale Qualano,” added Miracolo. “But more then anyone else, I was able to recover some of my father’s drawings from when he enjoyed to paint the old stories of [Edgar Rice] Burroughs. See you soon on Barsoom, folks!” Joining Abnett and Miracolo on the title are colorist Dearbhla Kelly and letterer Simon Bowland. The first issues will also feature covers by Miracolo, Lucio Parrillo, Joseph Michael Linsner, and a photo featuring cosplayer Rachel Hollon aka FacesByRachie.

Dejah Thoris vs. John Carter of Mars #1 is set for release in July.