All Star Western Vol. 1- Guns and Gotham

Quick Summary

Pros: This book offers a compelling story, beautiful art, interesting characters, and even a little bit of humor. If you like Westerns, if you like old-timey crime, or if you like Gotham then you will find a bunch of greatness in this collection.

Cons: The story goes a little off the rails once or twice.

Overall: This book is like Clint Eastwood stared in a series of Law and Order that was set in the 1880s, which oddly enough ends up being amazing. The story and art are different and interesting which makes the book’s few shortcomings easy to look over. This is absolutely one of the greatest “hidden gems” of DC’s New 52.

Story

I will probably end up saying this a lot in this review and here is no exception, I really like this weird mashup of Western and Victorian style. All Star Western Vol. 1: Guns and Gotham also does a great job with its protagonists and manages to make them really compelling, especially seeing these two opposites interact with one another. I really think this is one of the better books in the entire New 52 and am shocked at how little I hear about it. This is why it stands out as one of the best “hidden gems” of the New 52 and why I would highly suggest it to anyone.

(spoilers start here)

Hex and Arkham propel the story forward and their interactions are a real sight to see. I especially like that we get to see Hex through Arkham’s eyes and see him attempt to decipher the enigma that he is. As they follow the main plot, its twists and turns also make for a very compelling story. I really like the plot in general and loved the twist at the end; I never expected the rich couple to be running the child slavery ring and thought this was a very neat twist. Overall I liked this plotline a lot and only have one small problem with it, which I will address in a little bit.

I also am looking forward to even greater things from All Star Western as many seeds are planted here to keep interest. The story moving to New Orleans sounds good already but hints at further stories sound good too. A potential story behind Arkham’s heard-but-not-seen mother, an abundance of owls possibly indicating a Court of Owls reference, and Hex’s history and motivations in general are all things I am looking forward to from this series.

The only part I did not like in this storyline was when Hex and Arkham end up fighting Native American’s and a prehistoric bat in the caves. This small section felt very out of place with the rest of the story and simply did not seem to fit. Everything else in the story flows very naturally from one situation to another and then, all of a sudden, BAM! weird and supernatural occurrences propel our heroes out of their dire situation. This was the only real problem with an otherwise stellar story.

In addition, the two supplementary stories were also pretty good, not my favorites but still good. They are reminiscent to All Star Western’s Silver Age days, which enhances them as a unique throw back to how comics used to be. This is perhaps their greatest strength as they feel like they could genuinely be authentic to that period.

(spoilers end here)

Art

The art, by Moriat, sits in the same weird yet delightful spot that the story sits, between a gritty western and a dark Victorian piece. Locations and people go from being stylized like cowboys to being turn of the century fancy from page to page in a very charming way. This cool combination is really a winning one.

The highlights here are the depiction of Gotham and the main characters. Gotham is simply beautiful here, from the first page’s bird’s eye city view you can see the old world charm shine over the usually familiar landscape. It is also just neat to see things like the city, future Arkham Asylum, and stately Wayne Manor looking like they do here. The main characters are drawn with similar skill and also look amazing. From the snazzy suits of the men to the intricate dresses of the women, the main characters are drawn very well and look perfect for the time period.

Continuity

All Star Western Vol. 1: Guns and Gotham starts All Star Western series and only makes vague references to events before the New 52.

The story here continues in All Star Western Vol. 2: War of Lords and Owls, (Review).

• The series is somewhat a continuation of Justin Gay and Jimmy Palmiotti’s work on the previous Jonah Hex series. However, this continuation is really in spirit only as you do not need to know anything from that series to enjoy this one.
• Amadeus Arkham’s origin and subsequent history are originally detailed in Grant Morrison’s Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth. However, one does not need to read this to enjoy All Star Western. In fact, it might make it a little better to read All Star Western first.
• Subtle owl imagery around the book’s conclusion suggests a connection to Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (Review) and Batman Vol. 2: The City of Owls (Review).