Sad that there aren’t too many cool Westerns out there? Can you not afford the 3:10 To Yuma Criterion release? Does the Lone Ranger get you down?
Well then buck up, chap. There’s good news for you.
Available now from the fine folks at Monkeybrain, “Skybreaker” has hit its monumental third issue. Brought to you Mssrs Michael Moreci, Drew Zucker and Ryan Ferrier, the latest and perhaps greatest issue of the series finds the unlikely pairing of heroes entering into an even more tense landscape than previously beheld as stakes are raised and Hell’s a-comin’.
Created by Moreci and Zucker, this is a book by Western fans for Western fans. That’s perhaps the strongest tribute the book can hold, and it certainly doesn’t hurt that it is a well-crafted comic to boot. Featuring blurred lines of morality from Moreci delivered by Zucker’s impeccable line work, these are two comic newcomers who are putting together a rather strong creator-owned debut (or, well, half-debut as Moreci also has “Hoax Hunters” at Image).
What “Skybreaker” ultimately does well, though, is it channels a specific mood and style. A good deal of this is Zucker’s evocative art, which is on one hand both respectful of the tumultuous time this story is birthed from and on the other hand rather visceral in its exploration of brutality. The story here is bigger than that of your average western as well, drawing from some of the basic tropes and expanding on them with a modern slant of a revenge story to create quite the compelling narrative.
Add to that the smooth lettering styles of one Mr. Ferrier with some sweet Tim Daniel designs to boot and you’ve got yourself a handsome package of a comic.
And for $0.99? Come on. What else are you going to spend that money on, another Superman comic that’ll just break your heart? Treat yourself. Get a good ol’ Western for a penny less than a dollar. It’ll reward you with much more.
Here’s a preview:
“Skybreaker” #3 is available now on Comixology.
