Every now and then, I hit the local flea market as a vendor in an effort to clear out some space in my apartment. I have a LOT of comics that are constantly threantening to completely overwhelm my two-bedroom apartment. One question I get often -- almost more than than any other -- when I'm selling at flea markets is this: "Got any Jonah Hex?" People don't care if it's 1970s Western comics or the post-apocalyptic Hex, they just love the character and crave more. What few old Jonah Hex comics I have I'm holding onto, but I've been telling folks of the advent of this new series. Hex is no longer a Vertigo character, but the new creative team hasn't left the character's edgier qualities behind. This debut issue's greatest strength is the artwork, and while I like where the writers are headed, I found the pacing and framework of this self-contained opening story to be a bit off.
Gun for hire Jonah Hex lands a new job for a wealthy landowner, but it's not a hunt for a criminal, dead or alive. Instead, he's tasked with finding a 10-year-old runaway, and the trail leads the scarred gunfighter to a travelling carnival. Among its attractions is a gruesome sport that pits young boys against the ferocious dogs of nearby residents. The runaway is nowhere to be seen, but the depraved bloodsport and the carnival manager's attitude catch Hex's attention.
Luke Ross begins a stint on this title, and he demonstrates why he was chosen for the job. His recent work on Dark Horse's Samurai: Heaven and Earth demonstrated he can handle period pieces quite well, but he also shows range here, bringing a much more raw quality to the untamed setting and title character. Ross's work here is comparable to Greg (Ultimate Fantastic Four) Land's photorealistic art or the style of John (Astonishing X-Men). I would imagine there will be a brief moment of disappointment for some readers when learn that cover artits Frank Quitely isn't handling the interior visuals, but given the strength of Ross's work, that disappointment will be fleeting.
The writers explore the lawlessness and rough qualities of the dated backdrop in an unconventional manner. The notion of a bloodsport pitting boys against vicious dogs rings true and spotlights the uncivilized quality of a society still under construction, still trying to define itself. I also appreciated that Hex -- who's dedicated his life to killing wicked men -- finds himself in a crisis of conscience when he's forced to kill for a benevolent, less vengeful reason. I was a bit disappointed, though, that a couple of key character traits mentioned earlier on -- the missing boy's hair color and scar -- don't seem to play any role in the resolution of the plot.
This issue read like a three- or four-part storyline crammed into a single issue. Palmiotti and Gray seem to spend a lot of time introducing characters and information that really play little role in how the story unfolds. The landowner's daughters are nothing but window dressing, and the old man's pontification about how hunting has cost him so much in his life seems a bit pointless. We get to know these characters far too well given their incidental nature, and Hex's investigation moves ahead too smoothly and too quickly. 6/10
