Scalped - Volume 01: Indian Country

One of my favorite comics series ever. Smart, tough, well written, well drawn, and not for the squeamish. ( )

I have been struggling to find words to describe my thoughts on Scalped: Indian Country. I remember asking my husband if he had any western oriented graphic novels that I might recommend to a friend, and this was the closest he could fine. Of course, I had to read it first. It's not your typical western. The story is set in the present on an Indian Reservation, where corruption and greed rule the day. A hardened man with a chip on his shoulder returns to the reservation he once had run away from, gets into a bar brawl and lands on the police force of the tribal leader/crime boss.

Our anti-hero, Dashiell "Dash" Bad Horse, doesn't waste time busting meth labs, getting into a gun fight, and going after his childhood girlfriend's lovers. In the background is the story of his mother and her own connection with the crime boss. Both had been activists during their younger years, and Dash's mother continues in that vein today. Everyone seems to have a secret, a couple of which we learn in the first volume of this series.

The author knows how to place the punchline to get the fullest effect, while at the same time using it to build more suspense. I wanted to like Scalped, but I did not much care for it. It was dark and gritty, both characteristics I generally like. Maybe I finally met my match. Scalped was a little too dark and gritty for me. It didn't help that I sometimes had trouble figuring out who was who. I doubt I will be following up with the next volume in the series. ( )

I’m ashamed to admit this book had been sitting on my shelf for five months before I finally opened it. More fool me as this is one of the best trades I’ve read this year. Thoroughly gripping in a brutal sort of way. It’s also an adult book both in terms of storyline and art, but it all fits together to be a compelling work of fiction. ( )

Go buy this now. For realz. ( )

http://jmgold.blogspot.com/2008/02/scalped.html ( )