Letters to WEIRD WESTERN SPECTACULAR #1

Okay. I'm going to be the first guy again (this is turning into a worrisome trend). I'm going to try to give each story a equal shake but I've also just finished indexing this thing as well as making it available over on Feedbooks so I'm tired. Cut me some slack if I'm not as verbose as I should be. Naturally, I'm not going to comment on my own work.

EDIT: I've now gone back and expanded my comments now that I've gotten some time to rest and collect my thoughts.

"The Circle Unbroken"
Ah. Good to see Hawk and Windrunner again and this was an interesting choice to open up the issue with. Even more so that you used it as a frame to tell the story of Tomahawk and Miss Liberty. Even though it's Revolutionary rather than the Old West, I do hope that you revisit these two characters again.

I really liked how to twisted some of the initial conversation between Thomas Jr. and Chris into something completely different. A conversation that seemed to start out about religion shifted from ideology into a deeper spiritual sense. It was a nice touch showing how both the Europeans and the natives just had to establish a framework to work within something bigger than all of them - but Hawk was willing to accept that as a necessary limitation without compromising his core beliefs.

I was a little surprised at the lack of action but I guess I should stop expecting the expected from you, Susan. Your strengths lie in characters rather than flying lead. And that was a wonderful last sentence. I never would have thought of using a tree blooming to represent theme of rebirth and the lives of Hawkman/Hawkgirl. Masterfully done.



“Dying Ain’t Much of a Living”
I'll be honest, I had the same problem with this story as I did with The Man Without a Name comic series from Dynamite. Even though Josey Wales is the iconic drifter character, the wandering character only really works when he gets drawn into something beyond his control and, usually, something he didn't want to deal with to begin with. This is true even if you want to go back to classics such as Shane. And this is the heart of the problem here. Nothing much really happens. Jonah shows up, the two talk over some possible past grievance and then depart. I'd expect two such legendary bad-asses to do more than share coffee.

Although I will agree with Pat that the dialogue was well-written. I think the crux of the issue lies with the lack of any real conflict. Now, if you had the sheriff be crooked and try to double-cross Hex and Wales or if an enemy from either of the two men's pasts showed up at the same time, you could have added in some more tension, as you'd already made hints that Hex and Wales didn't completely trust each other, if the two had to work together.



"The Three Thunders"
Well, I'm biased here as one of the first comics that I ever got from my dad was a issue of Arak, Son of Thunder. I distinctly remember that a satyr was in it and lured Valda away from Arak. However, I never was able to find more issues so I'm largely ignorant of the character. With that said, Don gave me enough information to work with so that I wasn't lost reading it.

I think the overall theme here of sacrifice is a good one given the events of the Johnny Thunder storyline that just wrapped in WWQ. Each of these men had to give up something precious to them, even if it was something as simple as alcohol as a crutch, and that they are still men. Extraordinary men but men with their own failings and desires that had to be subservient to the Thunder for the greater good of its plan (whatever it may be).

The real question here is how much does this tie into the events that follow WWQ #18? Was the loss of magic a part of this plan or was it just another step along the planned road for Johnny Thunder? Either way, I'm sure it won't be a easy road and I'll look forward to see where Don runs with this.



"Ode to Hex"
I'm going to cop out and pass on this. I'm not the best person to comment on poetry as I really don't have much of a background with it.



First Born
Aw, crap. Susan just did with Jonah what Charlie did with Hal in last year's Christmas Special. What is it with you guys and infants that bring out the best of your writing? And you have to have a good amount of pity for poor Jonah and the women that keep coming into his life that are sure to send his attempt at happiness into a train wreck of epic proportions. Not that I'd be complainin' any if Tallulah shows up.

There was just a whole lot to like here. I never thought I'd see the day with Jonah holding a infant in a rocking chair but you totally sold it to me.



"On a Warm Summer's Evening"
Terra Man before he was Terra Man and the death of the original Gambler. I'm a little curious how Tobias was able to jack a alien spaceship and not have them come after him. I'm also going to assume that the ray gun doesn't work against inorganic material (hence the original Gambler's clothes being left behind) because otherwise he could have just blasted Bat through the mattress.

I did like how you worked Bat into this thing and the "death" of Jonas was a bit of shocker and one that is going to make the current descendant of the Queen family a little uncomfortable.... because, if anyone has a "little bit of sin" in them, it's Ollie.

And don't think that I missed the analogy between Carolyn and Dinah. Good writing here, Brian, and I'm looking forward to seeing how this is going to play out.



"Unknown"
Those damned things are going to dig their way out aren't they? I did like to see Jonah run into Nighthawk and the banter between them and I certainly liked your reference to the JLA/WWQ crossover in Desolation. I'm a little curious how Manhunters got to earth in the first place because there would have been no Lanterns on earth unless this was some pre-made plan to make sure none ever came from earth to begin with (thus changing the timeline).

I'd really comment more but it was a well-written and pretty straightforward action piece with a possible tasty hint of what is to come in Green Lantern. I enjoyed it and would like to put in a request for more Nighthawk (and some Cinnamon too) please.



"The Long Shot"
And the collection wouldn't be complete without a appearance of Vigilante and we get Windrunner tossed in too, which is a nice end-piece of the issue considering how he kicked it off. I liked the idea of Greg trying to get word to his friends via the "time capsule" and even more his acceptance of the life he had to build back in the Old West (via the criminally underappreciated WWQ #6) when the unearthing in 1977 didn't happen like planned. A good solid piece to end the issue.

Now, lets hope that the Jonah Hex film is half as good as this although I expect that I'm spoiled by Susan's Hex and the comic

Before I (finally!) get around to replying here, I just wanted to take a sec to let folks know that the Jonah Hex movie isn't as bad as all these critics are saying. I think you might have to be a fan of the character to like it, though. Anyways, if you want a fuller opinion from myself, go here:

jonahhex.blogspot.com/2010/06/susan-speaks-out-on-jonah-hex.html

And thanks to Dwayne for making room on his Matching Dragoons blog for me...of his own volition, mind you, no guns were held to heads here. ;D

Anyways, James first: The Hawk/Tomahawk story spun out of a discussion years back with David, when he mentioned in a story that one of Hawkman's past lives was Tom Hawkins. I was trying to work out how the whole curse thing would work if they were alwys fated to die, but Tomahawk somehow managed to not only live to be an old man but father a son who became a Western hero. So I cooked up a general outline for this story (minus the Hawk/Windrunner bumpers) and sent it to David, who agreed wholeheartedly, saying that he was glad I gave Khufu and Chay-Ara a happy ending for once. The bugger came in the actual writing, though, as I went through two drafts before hitting the right tone.

The Josey Wales thing was sprung on me by Henry, and I liked the idea too much to turn it down. I find the quietness of the story part of its charm...you might want to watch Hex and Wales shoot it out, but these guys don't really have much to prove to each other, so they don't waste time or bullets on it.

When Don told me about "The Three Thunders", I didn't know what I would be getting, and wasn't sure where he was going until about halfway through it. It revealed things about James Thunderbourne that I wasn't aware of at all (and I'm not sure how this plays into the Jt stuff either, but I'm sure we'll learn!) As for Arak, I've got a couple of his books in a longbox somewhere -- one of which was illustrated by Jonah's "daddy" Tony DeZuniga -- and it was a nice nostalgia trip to see him here.

"Ode to Hex" is just us folks on the DCMB goofing around. No serious poetic analysis necessary. For the record, the majority of it (including the ending verses) was composed by Darth Davis, who has promised me a REAL Hex poem in the future. You've been warned!

The idea for "First Born" has been in my head for five years (including the image of Jonah sitting in the rocker), and I think I called Charlie a very nasty name after I saw his GL piece because he got his idea out there before me. I just wanted to show something you never got to see in the books: Jonah and his son having a quiet moment together. There wasn't much else to the idea, though, until Jonah Hex (vol. 2)#50 came out, and that was when all the pieces fell into place -- I really should give half-credit to Jimmy & Justin on this story because of that. There's debate as to whether Jonah and Tallulah had their love affair before or after Mei Ling, but for my purposes, it had to go before, if only so Jonah already had a sense of what it was like to be a father, albeit briefly. It makes him fight harder to be the good man...and it's gonna make WWQ#19&20 that much more painful to read, kids, so watch out.

I dunno if Brian wants this out there or not, but I'm the editor, so I'm saying it: He thinks his Terra-Man story is the worst thing he's ever written. Matter of fact, he thought he shamed the entire Western genre by doing it. But don't worry, I smacked him with a chair and said it was perfect, especially the way Bat Lash came out. Doesn't that just make you sick? His idea of "bad" is better than some folks' attempts at "good"? Go polish your awards, Brian, and don't ever sell yourself short again.

I would tell you what Charlie's got planned for those Manhunters, but those plans are just as "Unknown" as the story title. I thought he did a great job between Hex and 'Hawk too...sucker's been promising me a Hex story for five years, and I KNEW it would be good when it finally got here!

Not sure where I got the idea for the Vigilante story. I knew I wanted him in here, and I wanted something that reflected the "modern" Western guys as well, it just took a bit for it all to come together. Once I had it, I made sure to include Windrunner in the first story so that it made links between the two, especially since (when I started writing them) I had no clue what was coming from the other writers. I figured, "Okay, if nothing else, we've got a beginning and end of sorts." Glad you noticed.

Now, I didn't forget you, ImpulseAllen! I'm glad you liked the book overall, though I'm sorry the Wales thing didn't work for you -- Henry does have another Hex story he's working on, so hopefully that will be more to your liking. And if you liked "First Born", please go dig up the actual issues of Jonah Hex that Tallulah Black has appeared in, or at least #50, it'll make you cry your eyes out. Don't worry about your lack of familiarity with the character, either: I've heard from soooo many people over the last five years that they only know Jonah from the 'toons or Crisis, but they've all gotten bit by the Hex-bug since then, so give it a shot.

On a Warm Summer’s Evening - I think I might have liked a little more about that spaceship early on XD It was a really interesting start, and then I just sort of started to skim through the card playing waiting for aliens. Probably could have just had a little more of that. It was a great, lighthearted tale though, and placed well after Susan's. Lots of fun.

Unknown - The exchange about the dynamite made me laugh The intrusion of the machines is definitely fun, gives a different feel to this tale than the others, even if we've had it hinted at before. I enjoyed.

The Long Shot - A perfect ending to a really wonderful special. I loved the scene in the past, and it was cool to bring it back around full-circle to the present and back to the heroes we all know and love. That's really the best part about titles like Weird Western and Danger Trail - they aren't just period pieces, but the histories of this world and the heroes in it. They're always relevant to the rest of the DC2 and a completely worthy read.

Great job everyone!