Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Scalped #59
Vertigo (DC Comics)
Aaron & Guera
The penultimate issue of Scalped is a violent one. I was hoping this book would have a lot of death and carnage and that in the final issue we would find out who lives and what happens as a postmortem. However, this issue kills off a lot of nobodies and just sets the stage for the grand finale. In that regard I was a little disappointed. I've never read a bad issue of Scalped, but this is what I would classify as a good but not great issue of the series. That still makes it one of the better books I've read all month.
Catcher drags Dash into Red Crow's casino at the same time a gang of thugs invade the casino looking for Red Crow and his money. Red Crow is all alone but he packs a wallop. Catcher just drops Dash off, with his hands tied, as Catcher and his gaggle of dogs begin attacking.
The bloodshed is so gruesome and wide-spread it's amazing that the three central characters survive the issue. However, Aaron isn't done making this a monstrous finale as Nitz also shows up. The book is very good and contains a lot of interesting scenarios for the final issue as we are left with a scene out of the film, "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" for an ending.
The artwork is both the book's greatest asset and the only real complaint. The fighting is so brutal that the visuals outshine the story. Hands are cut off, jaws are broken, dogs are slaughtered and on and on. However, the story is so dark visually, it's very difficult to discern character placement and, at times, the action. I understand there is a level of surprise to the fight scenes, but I couldn't tell what character appeared to run out of the casino on fire or what exactly was happening with Dash (was he on his knees, were his legs tied, etc). I also understand that the limited light is what allows Red Crow to survive the waves of people coming after him, but it hurt my reading of it a touch too much.
This issue also leaves a little to be desired in the details. I'm not sure how Dash freed his hands, for example. It's also not clear exactly what the FBI are doing when Nitz figures out to go to the casino. These are tiny elements but the bar has been set so high for this series that they become valid complaints.
Ultimately, this is a violent showdown of an issue that stops short of killing off anyone of interest. I'm still not sure which, if any, will survive, but Dash is the only character with two firearms so he seems to have a chance. This series is drawing to a close and it's a shame because it is one of the very best series to come out in the last six or seven years.
3.5 out of 5 Geek Goggles
