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Outlaw Nation
The complete saga complete in one volume Story Johnson, a hundred-year-old semi-deranged amnesiac pulp fiction-writer returns home from 25 years MIA in Vietnam. All Story wants is to recover his missing time and catch up with some legendary, larger-than-life Johnson Family members. Trouble is, a lot of cousins have "disappeared," and those that are left have put the blame on him.
456 pages, Paperback
First published November 29, 2006
2 people are currently reading
82 people want to read
About the author
Jamie Delano
463 books353 followersJamie Delano aka A. William James began writing comics professionally in the early 1980s. Latterly he has been writing prose fiction with "BOOK THIRTEEN" published by his own LEPUS BOOKS imprint (http://www.lepusbooks.co.uk) in 2012, "Leepus | DIZZY" in April 2014, and "Leepus | THE RIVER" in 2017.
Jamie lives in semi-rural Northamptonshire with his partner, Sue. They have three adult children and a considerable distraction of grandchildren.
Jamie lives in semi-rural Northamptonshire with his partner, Sue. They have three adult children and a considerable distraction of grandchildren.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 8, 2017
This one was unusual. It was a good read and held my interest, flowed well, and I liked the artwork. The characters were intriguing and there was plenty of action. However, I always felt like I was one step behind and slightly lost. The story was based around this weird clan of near immortals that had been talked about in United States lore for centuries, but the whole idea just seemed outlandish. Then again, I think the author was going for outlandish, so that may have been on purpose.
Overall this one was hard to rate. I enjoyed it and don't regret reading it, but it's really not something I'd recommend to other readers. If you like really weird comics from DC's Vertigo line, this would probably be up your alley. Otherwise, maybe not so much.
Overall this one was hard to rate. I enjoyed it and don't regret reading it, but it's really not something I'd recommend to other readers. If you like really weird comics from DC's Vertigo line, this would probably be up your alley. Otherwise, maybe not so much.
September 5, 2012
I originally came across Outlaw Nation back in 1999 when it was first run at DC/Vertigo Comics and in color. I came for Delano's writing, which as always, is superb.
Outlaw Nation was killed off by Vertigo for the simple fact that it wasn't straight-forward enough for an audience to stick with it (as detailed in the introduction in this collected edition by Delano himself). One thing that I can't stand, being a writer myself, is when the powers-that-be think so little of their audience. Read Outlaw Nation and tell me that an audience couldn't have been sustained, let alone increased tenfold.
Outlaw Nation was killed off by Vertigo for the simple fact that it wasn't straight-forward enough for an audience to stick with it (as detailed in the introduction in this collected edition by Delano himself). One thing that I can't stand, being a writer myself, is when the powers-that-be think so little of their audience. Read Outlaw Nation and tell me that an audience couldn't have been sustained, let alone increased tenfold.
August 30, 2022
This was better than I expected. It certainly did have the rushed ending of which everyone complains, and you had to take a lot of the story on faith - why is there a seemingly magic train that can appear anywhere, get anywhere quickly, and contains everything you could possibly need, including a medical ward? There just is, go with it - but the writing was strong. It read like Preacher, if Garth Ennis was less obsessed with male on male rape and making fun of people with disabilities.
I had read a fair few of these issues in the original Vertigo floppies so I was able to compare the new black-and-white art with the intended colour issues. I have to say, the black and white on the new glossy paper certainly looks a lot fresher and more modern than the muddy colours on newsprint, and at times even shows off the inking to a superior degree. That said, I like the old Vertigo colouring, and the old paper stock, and there were a couple of instances where the art was clearly originally intended to make a visual point of the colour, and these moments were lost. Also, one of the characters is albino, and I absolutely did not realise this until someone explicitly said it about halfway through the book, and that's purely a colouring issue. The art itself is really nice and doesn't look dated at all.
Overall, I liked Outlaw Nation. I would have preferred colour over black and white, and it would certainly have been better if it had been able to run another few issues. Perhaps then it could have been published as two separate volumes, as it definitely does feel weighted towards the first two-thirds of the book. Despite those complaints, I'm still very glad that Image and Lepus have collected this often-overlooked series.
I had read a fair few of these issues in the original Vertigo floppies so I was able to compare the new black-and-white art with the intended colour issues. I have to say, the black and white on the new glossy paper certainly looks a lot fresher and more modern than the muddy colours on newsprint, and at times even shows off the inking to a superior degree. That said, I like the old Vertigo colouring, and the old paper stock, and there were a couple of instances where the art was clearly originally intended to make a visual point of the colour, and these moments were lost. Also, one of the characters is albino, and I absolutely did not realise this until someone explicitly said it about halfway through the book, and that's purely a colouring issue. The art itself is really nice and doesn't look dated at all.
Overall, I liked Outlaw Nation. I would have preferred colour over black and white, and it would certainly have been better if it had been able to run another few issues. Perhaps then it could have been published as two separate volumes, as it definitely does feel weighted towards the first two-thirds of the book. Despite those complaints, I'm still very glad that Image and Lepus have collected this often-overlooked series.
June 4, 2020
One of those Vertigo series that didn't get the life it deserved. It was a nice blend of Preacher and Transmetropolitan.
Writer Jamie Delano explains, "OUTLAW NATION was my shot at a big, sprawling 'American Adventure Story' played on that classic widescreen theater of extremes, the territory of the imagination represented to me, a non-native outsider, by the North American continent and its culture."
"It is a fast-paced, hard-boiled, black-comic, stoned political thriller; a weird Western; an epic family saga touring the underground mythology of America: it is a 'road-movie' of personal discovery for Story Johnson as he returns home to see if the 'American Spirit' of his bizarre family has maintained in its resistance to the oppression of the 'American Dream.'"
Writer Jamie Delano explains, "OUTLAW NATION was my shot at a big, sprawling 'American Adventure Story' played on that classic widescreen theater of extremes, the territory of the imagination represented to me, a non-native outsider, by the North American continent and its culture."
"It is a fast-paced, hard-boiled, black-comic, stoned political thriller; a weird Western; an epic family saga touring the underground mythology of America: it is a 'road-movie' of personal discovery for Story Johnson as he returns home to see if the 'American Spirit' of his bizarre family has maintained in its resistance to the oppression of the 'American Dream.'"
August 1, 2018
I loved this series when it first came out. The characters were quirky and the story was engaging. It would have gotten 4 stars if not for the ending, which is terribly rushed. I guess Delano had to finish his story quickly, because the series got cancelled. Shame, because the rest of the story is quite good.
November 16, 2020
A great yarn in classic Vertigo style, now available collected in a glorious gigantic Leepus book volume. A story of immortal Gunslingers, Monsters and psychedelics. Story's story narrated in the superb style of Delano and the gorgeous art of Goran Sudzuka and Goran Parlov.
May 9, 2011
I couldn't stay interested in this book long enough to finish it. I have tried to read it twice.
June 25, 2012
Very strong beginning and excellent art but falls through in the end with a very unsatisfying conclusion.
September 27, 2015
I'm not sure what I thought. Interesting, seeing the story of a novelist -- fundamentally, anyway -- in a graphic format.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews