Writer: Joshua Hale Fialkov
Artist: Nelson Blake II and Dave McCaig
Letterer: Troy Peteri
Editor: Bryan Rountree and Matt Hawkins
Publisher: Top Cow Productions and Image Comics
On Sale: April 17th, 2013
Price: $3.99
Format: Full Color
Genres: Supernatural
Series: Witchblade
Rated: T+/Teen Plus
SHOWDOWN WITH THE WITCHBLADE OF THE WILD WEST!
In the days of the Wild West, before Sara Pezzini claimed her destiny, Witchblade bearer Sheriff Enola protected the high plains from the Darkness that lurked beyond the horizon. Although her townspeople lived in peace, they were always mistrusting of their sheriff-witch. With her town seeking to banish her and the Darkness angling for a duel, will the Witchblade be enough to save Enola from becoming a footnote in the annals of the blade’s history?
A fun fast read that ends way to soon. As a fan of Witchblade there really was no question as to whether to pick up this one-shot or not. But to blow through the book, turn the page and realize the tale was over, that was a very sad moment. I quickly jumped on line in hopes that my memory was wrong and that this was not a one-shot but the beginning of at least a mini-series. Sadly, this was not the case, my memory had not failed me, this was a one-shot.
Joshua Hale Fialkov did an amazing job of blending the old west with Witchblade lore and keeping it from feeling like a joke. (Yes in my opinion quite often when creators attempt to blend the old west and the supernatural it comes off as a joke). From the first page to the last, everything felt just right including the bias of the citizens of the town and the interaction with the ‘villain’ (not going to tell you which one as there are several in this story). That’s not to mention the humor that is injected even in a serious moment in a manner that just ‘fits’. Would love to see him write a some more tales in the Witchblade series.
Enjoyed Nelson Blake II art in this Witchblade book much more than I did in the last book I saw him work on (not that I didn’t enjoy it there). It felt more in tune with the story and was quite beautiful. The colors, the style, everything felt tailor-made for the story that Fialkov was telling.
Top Cow, you should consider having this team do another Witchblade story told in the same time-period with the same iteration of the Witchblade. They did a great job capturing what to me is the essence of the character as well as the setting and deserve more than one-shot at doing so.
Final Score: 9/10
