Jonah Hex

[Joey_m]

I was wondering if Jonah Hex has been around for a while or is it a new title/character? I am coming back to comics after many years so that is why I am asking. I picked up Jonah Hex #1-5 and wow I love them. I am so happy I went ahead and bought them. I look forward to more and more of them in the future.

[Paul Newell]

I was wondering if Jonah Hex has been around for a while or is it a new title/character? I am coming back to comics after many years so that is why I am asking. I picked up Jonah Hex #1-5 and wow I love them. I am so happy I went ahead and bought them. I look forward to more and more of them in the future.
Old character. You'll probably love this:

http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=4426

[Joey_m]

OK I am ordering it :) Thanks for the lead on this.

[Apathy Boy]

Yeah, you're going to enjoy that SHOWCASE PRESENTS. Better than the current series, as far as I'm concerned. And it's certainly bigger, which we all know is the most important thing.

[Kirayoshi]

Actually, my favorite Jonah Hex story was an episode of Batman: the Animated Series, where Batman listened to a tape recorded by Ra's Al Ghul detailing a confrontation between Ra's and Jonah. Pretty damn cool ep.

[Baron Banter]

He appeared for the first time in All Star Comics #10. He was so popular that he took over the title and it was renamed Weird Western Tales with #12. At some point he left Weird Western Tales and starred in his own Jonah Hex series. His series lasted until 1986 and ended with issue 92.

Also earlier in the All Star Western series, Bat Lash was revealed. I think he might have been around before but I don't know.

Hopefully this one will last well beyond 92. :)

[Joey_m]

Yeah...I am hoping that also. I want it to go on and on. They really have a winner here. I wish I could meet the fellas who put this together. They are so talented. A real class act.

[matt levin]

Just want to add my enjoyment of Jonah Hex, the new series, and my recommendation, albeit late, for the Showcase book--a really great collection and let's all lobby for a follow-up Showcase volume, of the JH issues which followed Weird Western, eh?

I'd like to suggest AVOIDANCE of the Jonah Hex series "Hex" which sets him uncomfortably in the future, and careful consideration of the Tim Truman JH series of a few years ago-- very nice to look at, pretty odd reading. NOT the Jonah Hex stories I enjoy the best.

Matt

[hondobrode]

I've never read a Hex I didn't like, including "Mad Max" Hex. He's one of the consistently best presented characters I can think of.

[Joey_m]

I'm hoping to read something that will explain how he got the scars on his face. I am hoping this book:

http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=4426

will explain it. I look forward to getting it. Hopefully it will be monday or tuesday. Oh yeah and a new Jonah Hex will be in stores this wednesday :)

[Baron Banter]

Spoilers on how he got his face scarred (If I remember it correctly)









He was raised by Native Americans because his father sold him to one of the tribes however later on he did some things that they didn't like... including being a scout for the army... so he was given the Face of Death by one of tribes of the Indians. I can't recall which tribe. If he is ever captured on that tribe's lands, he is to be put to death.

Now this is based on my memory which can be faulty. ;)

[Economist]

According to Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah_Hex

1866:Jonah locates his old tribe and tells the chief how Noh-Tante betrayed him years before. The chief decrees that this must be settled by a tomahawk battle. Noh-Tante had sabotaged Jonah tomahawk so that the handle would break. In an act of desperation, Jonah pulls a knife and kills Noh-Tante. As punishment for breaking the rules, Jonah has a heated tomahawk pressed against the right side of his face and is given "The mark of the demon".

but I don't know how accurate that is because it also says this

The series was canceled during Crisis on Infinite Earths (in which Jonah also appeared along with Scalphunter and other western heroes) and Jonah was moved to an 18 issue run in a book titled Hex where he was transported to the 21st century to become a post-apocalyptic warrior like Mad Max. The series had mediocre success in the United States but was critically acclaimed and well received in Great Britain, Italy, Spain and Japan. There are even rumors of a Jonah Hex manga being planned in Japan but done in a more serious Lone Wolf & Cub style rather than the exaggerated cuteness that typifies current manga titles. Jonah Hex continues to appear in various DC Universe titles.

Critically acclaimed?!?!?!
Jonah Hex Magna?!?!?!?

[Count Vertigo]

I might be in the minority here but I liked the HEX series myself when he was sent to the future. It reminded me of Escape from NY meets Blade Runner to a certain degree.

I would be very pleased if DC brought him back in an ongoing series. Of course with Lansdale at the helm!

Hex is such an intriguing character. I used him in a Deadlands RPG (great game btw... horror and western? genius!) and it was great fun.

As for a Hex manga, I wouldn't mind it. Provided it IS done in a serious style. None of that cutesy shit that seems to be prevalent in all manga and anime nowadays.

[matewan1990]

If anyone wants to see some really cool Jonah Hex original art, including pages from All-Star Western 10, go to:
http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryDetail.asp?GCat=3650
That's my comicartfans.com gallery. Take a look in the John Albano, Ernie Chan, Ron Wagner, Mark Texeira, Tony DeZuniga, All-Star Western 10, Luke McDonnell and Gerald Forton subgalleries. There's a lot of old stuff, some new and some unpublished Hex art in those galleries.
Check it out and let me know what you think.
I'm one of the biggest Jonah Hex fans around. I loved his post-apocalyptic series and the Vertigo series by Lansdale, Truman and Glanzman (you can still get original drawings by Truman and Glanzman... they're online and you should be able to do a Google search and come up with contact info for both).
Only a few weeks before JH creator John Albano passed away, I spoke with him via phone. It was the only interview he'd ever done about Jonah Hex. John and I quickly became friends and he drew, for me, the only Jonah Hex commission he ever did. I was so pleased to get it, but was saddened only days later when I found out he'd died in Florida.
The one Jonah Hex creator interview that has evaded me is one with Michael Fleisher. He's a guy that no one seems to know how to contact. Even people who were friends with him don't know where he's at these days.
The new Jonah Hex series is great. Palmiotti and Gray are doing a great job and the art has been top-notch (especially issue 5 with Tony DeZuniga art... beautiful, if Hex can be called that...).
I hope everyone reads the new Jonah Hex series so it survives for a long, long time.
Mike Browning

[Baron Banter]

According to Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah_Hex

1866:Jonah locates his old tribe and tells the chief how Noh-Tante betrayed him years before. The chief decrees that this must be settled by a tomahawk battle. Noh-Tante had sabotaged Jonah tomahawk so that the handle would break. In an act of desperation, Jonah pulls a knife and kills Noh-Tante. As punishment for breaking the rules, Jonah has a heated tomahawk pressed against the right side of his face and is given "The mark of the demon".



The sabotaged tomahawk is familiar. I think this is accurate. Maybe he was exiled from the Indian lands for the reasons I gave... Hmm...

As for the Future Hex, it was the worst thing I've ever seen and prefer to forget it ever existed.

[matewan1990]

The sabotaged tomahawk is familiar. I think this is accurate. Maybe he was exiled from the Indian lands for the reasons I gave... Hmm...

As for the Future Hex, it was the worst thing I've ever seen and prefer to forget it ever existed.

I don't think the future Hex is something that needs to be retconned out of existence. It was a good idea and the stories and art were good. I loved it. It's a bad memory for Western purists, but, remember, we're talking about comics, so anything is possible.
And, heck, if it's never mentioned in the new series, then why retcon it? Just think of it as a Jonah Hex elseworlds story.
I can certainly see where people are put off by the future Hex, but I hope DC doesn't change Hex's future at all.
Mike B.

[Matt]

I'm greatly enjoying the new Jonah Hex series, every issue so far has been a winner.


Though that old future 'Hex' series ... ugh, that was simply awful.

[Baron Banter]

I don't think the future Hex is something that needs to be retconned out of existence. It was a good idea and the stories and art were good. I loved it. It's a bad memory for Western purists, but, remember, we're talking about comics, so anything is possible.
And, heck, if it's never mentioned in the new series, then why retcon it? Just think of it as a Jonah Hex elseworlds story.
I can certainly see where people are put off by the future Hex, but I hope DC doesn't change Hex's future at all.
Mike B.
I said nothing about retconning the future Hex. I said I prefer to forget it ever existed. Me. Not anyone else. I didn't like it. I'm allowed to not like it. The rest of the world is free to love and cherish it. BUt in my opinion it was a lousy idea.

As far as I'm concerned, the new Jonah Hex series is a new beginning. I don't care if they ever mention any thing about the previous series or if any of the history of the first series is used. I've never been a stickler for continuity. I couldn't care less if issue 8 recognizes 7 existed as long as its a good story.

In addition to the stories remaining good, I expect the character to be a bounty hunter in the old west. If he's not, then I'll remove the title from my pull list. And I prefer he keep his look with the Luke Ross art and not some abstract art that they tried pulling in the Hex series or repeat some of the hohum art of later issues of the first series or the art in issue 5 for that matter.

[Gordon Smith]

I am sorry to hear John Albano has passed away. I am also unhappy to learn that in all these years, only one person ever sought to interview him for his role in creating Jonah Hex. He deserved more in the way of recognition.

[Cash Lone]

Only a few weeks before JH creator John Albano passed away, I spoke with him via phone. It was the only interview he'd ever done about Jonah Hex. John and I quickly became friends and he drew, for me, the only Jonah Hex commission he ever did.

will u post the interview to read, sometime in the future?

As for Mad Max Hex - I thought the series was decent, no worse or better than the other out put from DC at the time.

[Count Vertigo]

Though that old future 'Hex' series ... ugh, that was simply awful.

Rubbish! I thought it was a very interesting and appealing series! :D

[braddok]

I just finished reading the first 2 issues of the new series. Very enjoyable so far. Is it me or is he being drawn to look like a young Clint Eastwood?

[Kevin Street]

Yeah, Jonah's good side looks a lot like Clint when Luke Ross draws him.I am sorry to hear John Albano has passed away. I am also unhappy to learn that in all these years, only one person ever sought to interview him for his role in creating Jonah Hex. He deserved more in the way of recognition.

I'm saddened as well. And you're right, Mr. Albano deserves greater recognition, particularly among fans of the current series.

[matewan1990]

I said nothing about retconning the future Hex. I said I prefer to forget it ever existed. Me. Not anyone else. I didn't like it. I'm allowed to not like it. The rest of the world is free to love and cherish it. BUt in my opinion it was a lousy idea.

As far as I'm concerned, the new Jonah Hex series is a new beginning. I don't care if they ever mention any thing about the previous series or if any of the history of the first series is used. I've never been a stickler for continuity. I couldn't care less if issue 8 recognizes 7 existed as long as its a good story.

In addition to the stories remaining good, I expect the character to be a bounty hunter in the old west. If he's not, then I'll remove the title from my pull list. And I prefer he keep his look with the Luke Ross art and not some abstract art that they tried pulling in the Hex series or repeat some of the hohum art of later issues of the first series or the art in issue 5 for that matter.

The art in issue 5 is by Tony DeZuniga, the co-creator of Jonah Hex. Have you ever read any of the original Tony DeZuniga issues? His art was awesome and I think it's gotten better over the years. DeZuniga got into fine art over the years and his style definitely got more intense. I loved issue 5's art more than any of the issues done by Luke Ross (although I like Luke's art, I don't like that he patterned Jonah after Clint Eastwood). I'm excited about the upcoming art by Jordi Bernet, but you probably won't like that art, either, because it's highly stylized.
The new Jonah Hex series should NOT be a new beginning. There's a rich history to pull stories from and Michael Fleisher's stories were some of the best western comics ever writtten.
Palmiotti and Gray have already tied Jonah into DCU continuity with the crossover with Bat Lash.
I really liked the futuristic Hex series. It was definitely the most original idea ever done in a western comic and, if you don't look at it through Jonah Hex-old-west-only-biased eyes, it stands as one of the best comics of the 1980s. It was way ahead of its time... (no pun intended) It had great art (Mark Texeira, Ron Wagner and Keith Giffen) and the stories were definitely unlike anything else on the stands at that time.
You may not be a stickler for continuity, but, obviously, the execs at DC realize that most comic fans are sticklers for continuity or else Infinite Crisis would never have happened to repair some of the continuity gaffs made over the last few years (John Byrne's Doom Patrol anyone?).
In Jonah Hex, continuity can be played with pretty loosly because the stories are from over a century ago. So, writers can start and stop wherever they want. But, when it comes to the end of the road for Hex, he should be sent to the future and die in the past — just as it was written by Fleisher.
And, about John Albano...
John was so pleased that anyone remembered he created Jonah Hex. His sister-in-law, who helped watch over him in the last few years of his life, said he was proudest of his creation and it made him happy that I interviewed him.
John was looking forward to talking with me again, but he died before we spoke a second time.
Tony DeZuniga had believed John died in the early 1980s, but, all along, John was writing DC novels for young readers and for Archie Comics.
I won't be printing the interview online, because I've got it — and a whole bunch of other interviews and original art — set for the first issue of my fanzine, Comic Book Issues, which is set to be printed sometime in the coming months.
In researching Jonah Hex, I've done interviews with DeZuniga, Albano, Sandy Albano (John's sister-in-law), Dick Ayers, Mark Texeira, Tim Truman, Joe R. Lansdale, Gerald Forton, Keith Giffen, Carmine Infantino, Jimmy Palmiotti and I'm working on getting an interview with Ernie Chan, who drew the origin of JH. I've tried, unsuccessfully, to contact Michael Fleisher, but, it appears no one knows where he is.
If you want to see the cover to the fanzine, here's the link:
http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=22694
Here's the link to a few of the breakdowns to Jonah's first appearance in All-Star Western 10:
http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=19373
Here's the link to my Ernie Chan Jonah Hex commissions:
http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=18619
Take a look.
Mike B.

[matewan1990]

Something else that's kind of funny...
A couple of years ago, you could buy Jonah Hex pages and covers pretty cheap. One dealer told me there's just no market for western art, just like there wasn't a market for sword and sorcery art, and there probably never would be.
So, I owned a Weird Western Tales Scalphunter cover by Jim Starlin. I was told it wasn't worth hardly anything. I'd given $1500 for it and everyone told me I was crazy. It had Bat Lash on the cover, too! So, I made a trade and got $2000 for it. The dealer who traded with me then sold it for $2000.
Nowadays, you can't find Jonah Hex covers and pages for sale hardly and Conan covers are going for as much as many Marvel super-hero covers from the 1970s.
So, all that JH art I bought for pennies is now a hot item... I hate to say it, but I told everyone so.

[Andy S.]

I heard that Luke Ross will be leaving the series soon. I don't know who will be the long-term replacement, but I've also heard that Tony Dezuniga will be returning for at least one more issue. I have mixed feeligs about him on the new series.

While I love his work on the original Weird Western Tales, and I appreciate the fact that he helped create the character, his current artwork in Jonah Hex #5 left me a little dissapointed. To me, it looked rough and murky, and there were a few places where I wasn't clear on what was happening.




As for the future Hex, how did he get to the future anyway? Did he get transported from the past, or had he lived his whole life there?

[matewan1990]

I heard that Luke Ross will be leaving the series soon. I don't know who will be the long-term replacement, but I've also heard that Tony Dezuniga will be returning for at least one more issue. I have mixed feeligs about him on the new series.

While I love his work on the original Weird Western Tales, and I appreciate the fact that he helped create the character, his current artwork in Jonah Hex #5 left me a little dissapointed. To me, it looked rough and murky, and there were a few places where I wasn't clear on what was happening.

DeZuniga's art has gotten better than when he first worked on the title.
It's not the hyper-realistic art of Luke Ross, which is very clean and computer inked. DeZuniga gives Jonah a dirtier quality, sort of like Tim Truman's JH was in the three Vertigo miniseries. Think about it... this is the old west. There wasn't a whole lot of places for Jonah to stop in and take a bath and he didn't have a home, so you would think he'd be quite dirty and scruffy. Yeah, he probably stayed in a lot of hotels. But, when he's travelling from town to town, he'd have a few days' journies so he'd be pretty nasty by the time he arrived.
DeZuniga's artwork captured this better than Ross.
When I look at DeZuniga's art, I can almost feel the grit between my teeth and the tumbleweeds are blowing by and dust devils rage in the desert. When I look at Luke Ross's JH, I see a polished and clean gunfighter and not the bounty hunter we all love.
Now, don't get me wrong — I love Ross's art on the series. It's been great. But, I'm ready to get back to the real old west.
I can't hardly wait for Jordi Bernet's version of Jonah Hex. I've seen some of the preliminary sketches and they looked brutal. Bernet's issue of SOLO featured a western story with a man that had a scarred face and I was told it was intended to be a Jonah Hex story, but was changed by DC do that it wasn't totally a Hex story. Whatever it was it was a great story.
Bernet is famous in Europe for his western work and for Torpedo 1936, a series on which he followed Alex Toth. Bernet's art is very stylized and is very gritty. But, his women are very beautiful and I think he's almost as famous for them as anything else.
Palmiotti told me a few days ago that Bernet will be drawing the definitive origin of Hex in his three-issue stint.
I can't hardly wait.
Mike B.

[matewan1990]

Here's the lowdown on the Hex series from a web site:
The Jonah Hex series was canceled during Crisis on Infinite Earths (in which Jonah also appeared along with Scalphunter and other western heroes) and Jonah was moved to an 18-issue series titled Hex where he was transported to the 21st century to become a post-apocalyptic warrior like Mad Max (water was the big prize in Hex's world). The series had mediocre success in the United States but was critically acclaimed and well received in Great Britain, Italy, Spain and Japan.
If you want to see some Hex pages, check out:
http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=18620
and:
http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=11799
and:
http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=12513
These are in my collection of original art. The Luke McDonnell gallery contains a commission Luke did that has both the old west Jonah and the future Hex on it.
Mike B.

[TCJohnson]

It's not the hyper-realistic art of Luke Ross, which is very clean and computer inked. DeZuniga gives Jonah a dirtier quality, sort of like Tim Truman's JH was in the three Vertigo miniseries. Think about it... this is the old west. There wasn't a whole lot of places for Jonah to stop in and take a bath and he didn't have a home, so you would think he'd be quite dirty and scruffy. Yeah, he probably stayed in a lot of hotels. But, when he's travelling from town to town, he'd have a few days' journies so he'd be pretty nasty by the time he arrived.

How I describe it is that Ross really captures the feel of old western comics from decades ago and old western movies. That is what Ross's work really reminds me of. DeZuniga's art captures what the old west was probably really like.

[Andy S.]

thanks for the info, Matewan! I actually want to hunt down some of those Hex issues now.

[matewan1990]

thanks for the info, Matewan! I actually want to hunt down some of those Hex issues now.


Buy the first eight or nine. Those with Texeira art are the best. I'll let you know when the fanzine is published. In it, Texeira tells the story of how Jonah Hex was really supposed to end and how Hex was really supposed to begin. It was a much better ending than what was published. DC had that final story written and drawn and didn't use it! Now, it's gone forever, except Tex's memories of it, which will be in that first issue of Comic Book Issues.
Part of one of my interviews with Tony DeZuniga about Jonah Hex appeared in Back Issue magazine a couple months back and, in another issue, another writer told the story of future Hex.
Mike B.

[hondobrode]

Jonah Hex is now and has always been one of my favorite characters that I've enjoyed every incarnation of. I too thought the futuristic story was unfairly savaged and enjoy both versions.

Luke Ross' version is good but I'm also greatly looking forward to Bernet's. His Solo issue was fantastic and I do remember being impressed with his 1936.

[Murdok]

I work for a comic book store and I have my concerns about how long this series will last. Only one customer ever buys the issues. I read the first issue but didn't like it much, it seems more for a middle aged or older crowd. If it lasted to 92 before though then it must just be selling poorly in our store and not everywhere.

[MrPunch0]

I'm loving the new Hex series.
I was a little young for much of the older western titles, but have fond memories of reading the tattered back issues at the barber shop where my dad got his hair cut.
I've picked up a few pages from the new Hex series by Luke Ross. If you think the book looks sharp, check these out.

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=25320

[Shellhead]

I have sporadically followed Jonah Hex over the years. I usually buy superhero comics, but I do enjoy some variety. I did skip the Hex series, because it looked like a weak imitation of Marvel's excellent Killraven series and also a bizarre and unsuitable setting for Jonah Hex.

I did buy the Truman series and thought it was okay, but I am really loving this current series. I honestly disliked the Dezuniga artwork for the same reasons as Andy S, but still enjoyed the writing in that issue. I'm surprised that I'm enjoying these fairly straight-up stories of the old west so much, though I wouldn't mind some low-key supernatural or weird science elements from time to time.

[matewan1990]

I have sporadically followed Jonah Hex over the years. I usually buy superhero comics, but I do enjoy some variety. I did skip the Hex series, because it looked like a weak imitation of Marvel's excellent Killraven series and also a bizarre and unsuitable setting for Jonah Hex.

I did buy the Truman series and thought it was okay, but I am really loving this current series. I honestly disliked the Dezuniga artwork for the same reasons as Andy S, but still enjoyed the writing in that issue. I'm surprised that I'm enjoying these fairly straight-up stories of the old west so much, though I wouldn't mind some low-key supernatural or weird science elements from time to time.

Did anyone notice the sheriff's badge with which Jonah killed the bad guy in issue 7? It says St. Roch, which is the town where Hawkman and Hawkgirl reside. I'm sure it's not a coincidence, even though Jimmy Palmiotti has assured me he's going to stick with straight-up western action each issue and won't be delving into the other corners of the DCU.
Mike B.

[Kevin Street]

Did anyone notice the sheriff's badge with which Jonah killed the bad guy in issue 7?

Yes! :cool:

Jonah may not cross over with Hawkman, but there was a flashback issue of Hawkman (in Geoff John's run) that showed Nighthawk and Cinnamon staying in St. Roch for a time. So he may cross over with Hawkman and Hawkgirl's earlier incarnation.

[Kevin Street]

So...anybody read #8?

I liked it. The artists were a bit different in style, but overall the story worked.

[Andy S.]

So...anybody read #8?

I liked it. The artists were a bit different in style, but overall the story worked.


I thought it rocked, personally. I liked the artist on the first half the best, but both of them carried the issue well. I also enjoyed how this particular story wasn't as much of a straight shoot-em up as it initially comes across. I also thought the moment between Hex and the prostitute was well done.

[Apathy Boy]

The latest issue was pretty good. I don't think Palmiotti and Gray have made this "their" Hex yet, as they're still riffing on stuff that was reprinted in SHOWCASE PRESENTS. But sometimes you can be satisfied with solid storytelling.

And I am very glad that they have done away with the scene titles. That was cute for a while, but was really starting to get on my nerves.

[Steve Brady]

This book just keeps getting better and better.

[Mon-el]

I'll second Steve's comments.

9 Issues, 9 complete great stories, That's got to be some kinda of record in todays Big 2 companies.

The only complaint I would ever give this book is that last time I looked at the sales figures, is that it's only pulling about 20,000 readers. I wish more people could see how good Hex really is.

[K'Nort]

The only complaint I would ever give this book is that last time I looked at the sales figures, is that it's only pulling about 20,000 readers. I wish more people could see how good Hex really is.

Niche genres limit your market though. It doesn't matter how good a western is, some (many) people just don't like westerns. On the plus side, it means that the standards of success will be lower too.

[The Confessor]

I just finished reading Jonah Hex #11 and as usual with this title...it was awesome! It was a really cool change of pace to have the Weird Western/Supernatural element making a re-appearance in this issue.

It's the first time the Supernatural has reared it's head in a Hex story since the final issue of Joe R. Lansdale's 'Shadows West' series, back in 1999. Not that the latest issue is anywhere near as supernaturally charged as Lansdale's run was, it's much more in keeping with the old Weird Western Tales Jonah Hex stories. Which I'm sure is what Justin Gray & Jimmy Palmiotti were going for.

The other thing that I really liked about this latest issue of Jonah Hex was that David Michael Beck has done a brilliant job of drawing the scarred side of Jonah's face. This is the first time in the current series that he's been drawn ugly enough, in my opinion.

I've loved a lot of the artwork in this current Hex series, especially Luke Ross' stuff, but I find that artists tend to draw him too pretty for my liking. I've always thought that the scarring on Jonah's face would be so horrific, that if you ever met him face to face it would make you feel scared just to look at him...almost like seeing an ugly monster or something. David Michael Beck has truly managed to create that effect in this issue I think. Check out these pics...

http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/6826/jh01pc9.jpg

http://img49.imageshack.us/img49/874/jh03zm1.jpg

http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/5403/jh02ex4.jpg

http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/6353/jh04ys2.jpg

Pretty ugly, huh? I tell you, this series started off great and it just keeps getting better and better.

So, who else out there is still reading this series?

If you are, what were your thoughts on issue #11 or the series in general? I'd be really interested to know.

[Matt]

Has Jonah's death ever been detailed? We all know his fate (he'll die, his body put on display, etc) but do we know what will cause his demise? When? Who will put his body on display? Does it survive to the modern DCU day?

[Peter M.]

Has Jonah's death ever been detailed? We all know his fate (he'll die, his body put on display, etc) but do we know what will cause his demise? I believe he gets it in the back.




Who will put his body on display? The guy who shoots his murderer in the back.

[swinebread]

I did a review of the Showcase Presents: Jonah Hex collection at rpg.net

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/12/12100.phtml

I was into the Post-Apocalyptic Hex when I was a kid, and that's what got me to seek out the Western tales.

Great Hex site here: http://www.lonely.geek.nz/jonahhex.html

[rick]

Has Jonah's death ever been detailed? We all know his fate (he'll die, his body put on display, etc) but do we know what will cause his demise? When? Who will put his body on display? Does it survive to the modern DCU day?


*SPOILERS*






Jonah, now an old man, gets both barrels of a shotgun in the chest while he is distracted and cleaning his glasses. George Barrow, the guy who killed him was then shot to death by the local sherif.

Jonah's body is stolen, stuffed and put on display at a wild west show.

This happened in Jonah Hex Spectacular #1 .

In Secret Origins #21 it's 100 years later and Hex's stuffed corpse is discovered as part of a small time side show. This bad guy who collects western artifacts steals Jonahs corpse, but somehow manages to get himself shot to death by Jonah's stuffed body. And after that, Jonah is finally laid to rest.

[Captain Jim]

And a darn good story it was! No, really!

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I was impressed by this latest issue. I dropped the book after Luke Ross left--his art was a huge draw for me.

Is this guy the new regular artist or just a fill-in?

[Gordon Smith]

In Secret Origins #21 it's 100 years later and Hex's stuffed corpse is discovered as part of a small time side show. This bad guy who collects western artifacts steals Jonahs corpse, but somehow manages to get himself shot to death by Jonah's stuffed body. And after that, Jonah is finally laid to rest.

In the Jonah Hex Spectacular, didn't someone get himself killed trying to adjust the pistol that was in Jonah's dead hand shortly after he was stuffed and being prepared for display?

[Bored at 3:00AM]

In the Jonah Hex Spectacular, didn't someone get himself killed trying to adjust the pistol that was in Jonah's dead hand shortly after he was stuffed and being prepared for display?

[/spoil]

Yup. He is indeed just as deadly dead as he was alive.

[Spastic Minnow]

*SPOILERS*
In Secret Origins #21 it's 100 years later and Hex's stuffed corpse is discovered as part of a small time side show. This bad guy who collects western artifacts steals Jonahs corpse, but somehow manages to get himself shot to death by Jonah's stuffed body. And after that, Jonah is finally laid to rest.

There's actually a couple untold stories there. It was the plan to put him to rest (cremation) at the end of that story but his stuffed corpse also finds its way to the final issue of Hex when he discovers it himself amongst stored circus artifacts. So, it was never told why he wasn't actually cremated or even how he ever he got back from the future. Of course it doesn't matter much as not many people like to remember Hex existed and I figure it will eventually be quietly written off.

[Captain Jim]

not many people like to remember Hex existed and I figure it will eventually be quietly written off.

I try to forget it existed. For me personally, it is no longer in continuity.

[rick]

I try to forget it existed. For me personally, it is no longer in continuity.

I know that I'm sort of twisted here.

But as much as I hated Hex, at the same time I get sort of a kick having it sort of float around in the continuity background. Never getting mentioned, but still just being there.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I know that I'm sort of twisted here.

But as much as I hated Hex, at the same time I get sort of a kick having it sort of float around in the continuity background. Never getting mentioned, but still just being there.

I feel the same way. The series wasn't particularly good, but the idea is just so kooky that I'd like to see it revisited again.

[Gordon Smith]

I try to forget it existed. For me personally, it is no longer in continuity.

I agree with this. I have no use for the Hex series. I consider it to be a failure at every level. That storyline should NEVER have been part of the Jonah Hex saga.

[swinebread]

Here they are
http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n141/swinebread/hex1.jpg

[The Shadow]

People are often going on about how there needs to be more diversity in comics today... and when a great book like Jonah Hex comes out it only sells in the 20-25,000 range. It's kinda sad such a great book is slipping under so many peoples' radar.

I started collecting when Hex went to space... so for a while that was the only Hex I knew (I was 10-ish) at the time) and I gotta admit to a 10 year old it was kinda cool. Upon re-reading my issues later on... not so cool. ;)

[swinebread]

People are often going on about how there needs to be more diversity in comics today... and when a great book like Jonah Hex comes out it only sells in the 20-25,000 range. It's kinda sad such a great book is slipping under so many peoples' radar.
Yeah I'm thinkin' it should be a Vertigo book... maybe.

I started collecting when Hex went to space... so for a while that was the only Hex I knew (I was 10-ish) at the time) and I gotta admit to a 10 year old it was kinda cool. Upon re-reading my issues later on... not so cool. ;)

He went into space?! :confused:

[Shellhead]

I feel the same way. The series wasn't particularly good, but the idea is just so kooky that I'd like to see it revisited again.

I would rather see DC retcon the Hex run into being about Slash Maraud.

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/75511343664.3.gif

[The Shadow]

He went into space?! :confused:
Yeah... it was the second cover 2 or 3 above yours.

I'll repost it!

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/40249153126.1.gif

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/40249153126.2.gif

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/40249153126.17.gif

Not his finest hour!

Here's a link to Mile High Comics' Hex section (http://www.milehighcomics.com/cgi-bin/backissue.cgi?action=list&title=40249153126&snumber=1) so you can see the rest of the covers.

[The Shadow]

I would rather see DC retcon the Hex run into being about Slash Maraud.

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/75511343664.3.gif
That looks more like Snake Pliskin or Mad Max!

:D

[The Confessor]

I would rather see DC retcon the Hex run into being about Slash Maraud.

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/75511343664.3.gif

:) LOL...Slash Maraud! To quote Obi-Wan Kenobi - "That's a name I've not heard in a long time". Man, I loved the Slash Maraud series when it came out (I was 14, alright?:o ). It was one of those early DC 'for mature readers' titles and I felt like a pretty big man reading it at that age ;)


That looks more like Snake Pliskin or Mad Max!

Yeah, that's about spot on for his charcater and the post apocolyptic world that he inhabited too! He wasn't quite as cool as Mad Max though, but on the other hand he was nowhere near as cheesy as Snake Pliskin.

As for the 'Hex' series, I've never read any and frankly, I don't intend to. I love the Jonah Hex western comics but the whole Jonah in the future idea just sounds awful.

[ducklord]

Personally, I don't think the Hex era of Jonah's life needs to be retcon punched, and neither do his handful of freaky crossovers with the Justice League, Swamp Thing, or Batman (they teamed up, right?)

Like all good goofy continuity, they just don't need to be mentioned, unless someone has a good story to tell.

Me, I think the story of how Hex finally got back to the 19th century would be a pretty good untold story. Perhaps a Brave and the Bold team-up between Hex and Gabriel Walker. You could call it "A Scar in Time" or sumptin...

Spends too much time thinking about such things,
Mike.

[Spastic Minnow]

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/40249153126.17.gif

Not his finest hour!

Here's a link to Mile High Comics' Hex section (http://www.milehighcomics.com/cgi-bin/backissue.cgi?action=list&title=40249153126&snumber=1) so you can see the rest of the covers.

No, he never went to space... he did battle aliens though (aliens who look alot like Geiger's Aliens). Some aliens (Xxggs) from the even farther future enslave humanity, an enslaved scientist travels back in time trying to enlist the Legion of Superheroes for help but instead ends up in Hex's time. He enlists a few of the time displaced warriors that were collected by the guy that captured Jonah. I believe it was a viking, a samurai (with a pet demon) and a Vietnam soldier. The Xxggs travel back in time to battle them and it becomes Mad Max(Jonah) vs. Aliens.
It sounds bad but it wasn't really so horrible.

Really the whole series isn't really so horrible. If it weren't centered around Jonah it could have been a decently respected Cold War era dystopian sci-fi.

[swinebread]

No, he never went to space... he did battle aliens though (aliens who look alot like Geiger's Aliens). Some aliens (Xxggs) from the even farther future enslave humanity, an enslaved scientist travels back in time trying to enlist the Legion of Superheroes for help but instead ends up in Hex's time. He enlists a few of the time displaced warriors that were collected by the guy that captured Jonah. I believe it was a viking, a samurai (with a pet demon) and a Vietnam soldier. The Xxggs travel back in time to battle them and it becomes Mad Max(Jonah) vs. Aliens.
It sounds bad but it wasn't really so horrible.

Really the whole series isn't really so horrible. If it weren't centered around Jonah it could have been a decently respected Cold War era dystopian sci-fi.

I didn't think he went into space. I haven't read them in a long time but thank god my memory is still intact. (whew!). I would also add that, yeah Hex cracks up the continuity but it is a fun series. Just take it on its own merits and don’t worry about whether it fits in or not. If you like post-apocalyptic stuff and you like Sci-Fi it’s worth a look. Plus the art in the early issue is quite good.

[Mr. Palmer]

I haven't read the HEX series since it was first released, but do remember enjoying it.

If I'm not mistaken, wasn't one of the titles "The Seattle Chainsaw Massacre"?

Hmm. Might have to dig these out and revisit em.

[swinebread]

I haven't read the HEX series since it was first released, but do remember enjoying it.

If I'm not mistaken, wasn't one of the titles "The Seattle Chainsaw Massacre"?

Hmm. Might have to dig these out and revisit em.

Yeah it was #5.

http://www.milehighcomics.com/cgi-bin/backissue.cgi?action=fullsize&issue=40249153126%205

[The Shadow]

I didn't think he went into space. I haven't read them in a long time but thank god my memory is still intact. (whew!).
I haven't read em in 15 years... so perhaps my memory isn't that good (yikes! :p )

Thanks for the clarification!

[K'Nort]

People are often going on about how there needs to be more diversity in comics today... and when a great book like Jonah Hex comes out it only sells in the 20-25,000 range. It's kinda sad such a great book is slipping under so many peoples' radar.

The thing is, diverse books are always going to sell fewer copies than mainstream books. By definition, you're going to have fewer people interested. No matter how good a western is, for example, some people just don't care for westerns. On the other hand, the standards for acceptable sales should be correspondingly lower for niche books, and frequently are.

[swinebread]

The thing is, diverse books are always going to sell fewer copies than mainstream books. By definition, you're going to have fewer people interested. No matter how good a western is, for example, some people just don't care for westerns. On the other hand, the standards for acceptable sales should be correspondingly lower for niche books, and frequently are.

Well, yes it will slip below the numbers of the mainstream, mainstream ‘comic readers.’ What they (DC) need to do is find people who don’t read comics, but like westerns to buy Jonah Hex. This is the big problem with the big two (Marvel and DC) they are so stuck in their old modes of selling they can’t even think of how to attract new people. Manga is supplying that diversity and doing a good job of it. Why can’t American comics companies do the same? If fanboys don’t want Jonah, sell it to the NASCAR Dads, or the urban cowboys, or the folks at the newsstand etc. Comics and comic readers are themselves are a nitch market, break out find the folks who would read it.

And from this thread there is an a group out there that likes westerns http://forums.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?t=143855

[The Purple Skull]

I absolutely love this book. I hope DC starts promoting this book more. I'd hate to see Jonah Hex get cancelled.

[Martin Mystery]

I'm hoping to read something that will explain how he got the scars on his face. I am hoping this book:

http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=4426

will explain it. I look forward to getting it. Hopefully it will be monday or tuesday. Oh yeah and a new Jonah Hex will be in stores this wednesday :)

Hex's origin -and how he got the scar- will be told over three issues beginning with #13 which will be out on Nov. 1st:
http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=84166

MM

[David O Burcham]

I love the "done-in-one" format of Jonah Hex. When a three-part story comes along in the book (#13-15), it now seems so much more special that having continual 6-part arcs, one after another.


Due to his appearance in Jonah Hex, Bat Lash is getting a mini-series. Can an El Diablo mini be far behind?

[Spastic Minnow]

The other thing that I really liked about this latest issue of Jonah Hex was that David Michael Beck has done a brilliant job of drawing the scarred side of Jonah's face. This is the first time in the current series that he's been drawn ugly enough, in my opinion.

I've loved a lot of the artwork in this current Hex series, especially Luke Ross' stuff, but I find that artists tend to draw him too pretty for my liking. I've always thought that the scarring on Jonah's face would be so horrific, that if you ever met him face to face it would make you feel scared just to look at him...almost like seeing an ugly monster or something. David Michael Beck has truly managed to create that effect in this issue I think. Check out these pics...
http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/6353/jh04ys2.jpg

Pretty ugly, huh? I tell you, this series started off great and it just keeps getting better and better.


Actually I'm not as much of a fan of the butt-ugly Hex. I prefer a more realistic depiction of a grotesque burn (it's the result of having his face burned severely with a red hot hatchet). Beck's drawing makes it look more like a birth defect. There also used to be a common problem (not so much anymore) of treating his scar not as a hole in his cheek but as a improbable piece of skin hanging over the side of his mouth. I also think that his unscarred side should be ruggedly handsome.

...

An Azzarello envisioned version of El Diablo had a Vertigo mini a few years ago. I do prefer this version of a non-paralyzed Lazarus cursed with El Diablo much more than Azzarello's ghostly avenger though. Although you could also explain Azzarello's version as a story of what happens to El Diablo if he's not grounded by Lazarus Lane.


...Scalphunter?

[Steve Brady]

There also used to be a common problem (not so much anymore) of treating his scar not as a hole in his cheek but as a improbable piece of skin hanging over the side of his mouth.


Ohhhhh...

I feel like I just "got" a negative space drawing. Thanks.

[Baron Banter]

I like the done in one too. And agree it makes the origin issues coming up more special. I hope they keep it to single issue stories with only the occassional multipart story.