Before it was shuttered, DC Comics' Vertigo imprint was renowned for telling stories that were more mature than the publisher's regular superhero fare. Numerous memorable titles like Hellblazer, Sandman and Fables found their audiences with Vertigo. Many titles gravitated towards the dark and the supernatural, just like the classic fairy tale stories that walked the line between fascinating and horrifying.
Although Vertigo wasn't quite as celebrated in recent years as it was at the peak of its popularity, it still produced quality series like Red Thorn. Written by David Baillie and drawn by Meghan Hetrick, the series captures a lot of what made Vertigo great with a mix of Scottish Legends, supernatural horror, romance and a dash of cynical humor, as it followed a trickster demigod with a chip on his shoulder and a bloody plan for vengeance.
WHO IS RED THORN?
Although the comic is called Red Thorn, the main character of the story is a young American woman named Isla Mackintosh, who returns to her Scottish roots to learn what happened to her missing sister, Lauren. Isla has a unique gift, the ability to affect reality through her drawings. She can even create people who never existed, and reality is rewritten to accommodate their creation. Isla is haunted by visions of a gaunt and imprisoned figure and compelled to draw him repeatedly. But when her drawings cause disaster, she vows to never draw people again.
After she meets Alec, the love of her life, she's prompted to draw again and releases Red Thorn, an ancient Celtic demigod who was imprisoned in ancient times. After betraying and killing the rest of the ancient Celtic pantheon, the dark god Belatucadros kept Red Thorn alive to torture him.
As it turns out, Isla is a descendant of ancient gods and carries their bloodline in her veins. That connection is what allowed her drawings to gradually give Red Thorn the strength he needed to escape imprisonment. Upon his escape, Red Thorn makes himself known to Isla and rescues her from the bloodthirsty Red Caps, ferocious goblins who dip their caps in the blood of those who trespass on their territory. With Isla’s unwitting help, Red Thorn usurps the leadership of the Red Caps, giving him a power base to begin his campaign against Belatucadros. Wielding weapons made from the magic bones that imprisoned him, Red Thorn uses a blend of assassination, subterfuge, and rakish charm to bring down his enemy’s empire.
What Happened to Red Thorn?
At the center of his plans is Isla and Tarek, a young mute boy who also has a similar ability to make his drawings become real. But as Isla and Tarek fall deeper into Red Thorn’s plans and his bloody way of operating, the two begin to realize that Belatucadros may not be the only one who deserves retribution. Isla eventually discovers Thorn’s own treacherous behavior towards her, and ultimately beheads Red Thorn. When he's last seen, Thorn has his head reattached by his lover, the beautiful monster of Loch Ness. She places him in his bony prison once more in hopes of one day reviving him.
Like other Vertigo antiheroes, Red Thorn is a mixture of heroic and villainous qualities who ultimately has the best interests of humanity at heart, despite his unconventional and murderous methods.