Joe the Barbarian is an eight-issue comic book

Comic book

A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

 limited series

Limited series

A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....

 written by Grant Morrison

Grant Morrison

Grant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer, playwright and occultist. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings, as well as his successful runs on titles like Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, The Invisibles, New X-Men, Fantastic Four, All-Star Superman, and...

 and drawn by Sean Murphy

Sean Murphy (artist)

Sean Gordon Murphy is an American animator and comic book creator known for work on books such as Batman/Scarecrow: Year One, Teen Titans, Hellblazer, Shaun of the Dead and Joe the Barbarian.-Early life:...

.

Publication history

Morrison has discussed the inspiration behind the series:
The first issue was released in January 2010 (cover dated March 2010).

Plot summary

Joe is a teenage boy with Type 1 diabetes. When his blood sugar drops and he enters a state of hypoglycemia

Hypoglycemia

Hypoglycemia or hypoglycæmia is the medical term for a state produced by a lower than normal level of blood glucose. The term literally means "under-sweet blood"...

, he begins to hallucinate, and enters a fantasy world populated with his toys and other fantasy characters. Here he becomes embroiled in a war with King Death, while in the real world he searches for a soda to fix his blood sugar.

Collected editions

The series will be collected into an single volume

Trade paperback (comics)

In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...

:

• Joe the Barbarian (224 pages, DC Deluxe Edition hardcover, September 2011, ISBN 1-4012-2971-9)

Reception

The first issue had estimated sales of 25,543, placing it at number 77 in the sales rankings. The second issue had 17,512 estimated sales and slipped to 97th in the sales lists, after which sales then stabilised with issue three estimated to have sold 17,674 (119 in the rankings) 17,102 for issue #4 (108 in the rankings) 16,725 with #5 (118 in the rankings) and 16,219 with #6 (118 in the rankings).

External links

• Joe the Barbarian on the Graphic Content blog, DC Comics.com

Reviews

• Review: Joe the Barbarian #1, Comic Book Resources
  Comic Book Resources
  Comic Book Resources, also known as CBR is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book-related news and discussion.-History:Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1996 as a development of the Kingdom Come Message Board, a message forum that Weiland had created to discuss DC...
  
  
• Sunday Slugfest: Joe the Barbarian #1 Review, Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...
  
  
• Joe the Barbarian #1 Review, IGN
  IGN
  IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
  
  
• Joe the Barbarian #1 -- Hot Ink Advance Review, Comics Alliance
• Joe the Barbarian #1 Review, Comics Should Be Good!, Comic Book Resources
  Comic Book Resources
  Comic Book Resources, also known as CBR is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book-related news and discussion.-History:Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1996 as a development of the Kingdom Come Message Board, a message forum that Weiland had created to discuss DC...
  
  
• Joe the Barbarian #2 Review, Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...
  
  
• Joe the Barbarian #2 Review, IGN
  IGN
  IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
  
  
• Joe the Barbarian #2 Review, Comics Should Be Good!, Comic Book Resources
  Comic Book Resources
  Comic Book Resources, also known as CBR is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book-related news and discussion.-History:Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1996 as a development of the Kingdom Come Message Board, a message forum that Weiland had created to discuss DC...
  
  
• Joe the Barbarian #3 Review, Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...
  
  
• Joe the Barbarian #4 Review, Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin
  Comics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...