In a story from delawareonline.com that's shaking pop culture to its core, two companies have begun battling in a federal courtroom in Wilmington to determine the legal ownership of–depending on how you spell it–Red Sonya/Red Sonja. The scantily clad sword-slinger was created by Conan originator Robert E. Howard in 1934, and was revived as a Marvel Comics character in the '70s before making her big-screen debut (courtesy of a pre-Flavorfied Brigitte Nielsen) in the 1985 fantasy flop Red Sonja. Lately she's popped up in what appear to be some pretty horrible comics published by Dynamite Entertainment.
The fine print of the case is predictably convoluted and tedious, though the article does hilariously quote a 21-year-old comic-shop employee named Mike Newcomb–henceforth to be known as Comic Book Guy Jr.–as saying that Red Sonya's admittedly limited popularity stems from the fact that "she's more attractive to look at" than Conan. Not to be outdone in the uncanny insight department, Jr.'s boss Tom Trettel adds that Red Sonja/ya "is basically a sexy woman in a bikini who fights monsters."
And now for a peek inside the courtroom…