It doesn't hurt Desperadoes that there isn't a lot of competition in the horror/western genre in the comics market. But even if there were, this would still stand out as a really good comic, and one that we see all too infrequently. This is the fourth Desperadoes story, but it remains as approachable as ever, and Mariotte does a nice job of picking up the threads left over from Quiet of the Grave without alienating the new readers who might have come onboard with the jump to IDW. This is also the fourth artist that Desperadoes has had, and while Haun has some impressive forebears to live up to in the three Johns (Cassaday, Lucas and Severin), he makes a good first impression.
First and foremost, Desperadoes is a western, and Mariotte and Haun get that across in the opening scene. It's one of those quintessential western scenes, where the heroes try to toast a fallen comrade only to be annoyed by some braggart, which results in either a fist or gunfight. With this scene, Mariotte serves notice that the reader can be comfortable in assuming that Desperadoes will play to familiar western genre tropes, but he certainly plans to tweak things along the way. Case in point, the fight between Gideon Brood and a few obnoxious bar patrons ends in a more realistic and decidedly undignified and unheroic way.
To the best of my knowledge, there hasn't been any explanation for the strangeness that follows Brood around, but it definitely does, and Banners of Gold hinges on another supernatural coincidence or two finding their way into Brood's life. The first is a medium from the East Coast who wishes to hire the group as protection for a protracted journey west, the second and third are unseen by the protagonists in the first issue for the most part. As he has always done, Mariotte sets up several plot elements early, tipping the readers off to the threats and dangers without fully showing his hand, leaving just enough information to draw us in.
Probably the most interesting element of Desperadoes for me is the characterization of the group. I've really enjoyed seeing these characters grow from strangers to a surrogate family, and I especially enjoy the happiness that Jerome Betts and Maria Lopez seem to have found. The death of Race Kennedy in the previous series and the addition of Maria to the cast has the side effect of making the characters seem more vulnerable to change as well, and that helps to bring them to life just a little bit more. But that's really only part of it, a lot of what makes the characters stand out is the way that Mariotte has them talking to one another, which extends to some of the new characters like Sarah Williams as well.
If the group dynamic and the genre are two of the linchpins of the series for me, than the artwork has always been another. Desperadoes has an impressive art legacy, and Jeremy Haun had big boots to fill when he came on this series. His style is different from that of everyone who has gone before, looser than Cassaday and Lucas, less detailed than Severin, but bringing its own strengths to the page, notably some excellent work on shadows and realistic clothing and some interesting choices in the action sequences that makes the violence more visceral and real. Quite honestly, I thought that Tom Long's colors were a little flat, drowning out some of the detail in Haun's art, but it's solid enough work that it's a minor complaint. 8/10
