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Fatale
Fatale, Vol. 3: West of Hell
The third arc of the hit series hits stands the same day as the next one begins! From the dark days of the depression, to the middle ages and the old west, these tales of horror and myth and the mystery of the Femme Fatale reveal secrets even our heroine doesn't know about yet. Bold and experimental, this is pulp noir horror at it's finest.
Collecting: Fatale 11-14
Collecting: Fatale 11-14
128 pages, Paperback
First published June 5, 2013
11 people are currently reading
788 people want to read
About the author
Ed Brubaker
1,794 books3,020 followersEd Brubaker (born November 17, 1966) is an Eisner Award-winning American cartoonist and writer. He was born at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland.
Brubaker is best known for his work as a comic book writer on such titles as Batman, Daredevil, Captain America, Iron Fist, Catwoman, Gotham Central and Uncanny X-Men. In more recent years, he has focused solely on creator-owned titles for Image Comics, such as Fatale, Criminal, Velvet and Kill or Be Killed.
In 2016, Brubaker ventured into television, joining the writing staff of the HBO series Westworld.
Brubaker is best known for his work as a comic book writer on such titles as Batman, Daredevil, Captain America, Iron Fist, Catwoman, Gotham Central and Uncanny X-Men. In more recent years, he has focused solely on creator-owned titles for Image Comics, such as Fatale, Criminal, Velvet and Kill or Be Killed.
In 2016, Brubaker ventured into television, joining the writing staff of the HBO series Westworld.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 255 reviews
February 22, 2018
Guess what? Things are getting weird over here!
Let's just say nightclubbing in the 19th century was really bold!
I can explain this volume of Fatale in Brubaker's own words:
❝ Every time she thought she understood the nightmare, another layer fell away and a new horror was revealed.❞
Hell, yea! This volume features four short stories set in four different timelines and locations. Each one chronicles Josephine's destructive life and the men she ruined unwillingly. One of the stories even features a predecessor of Josephine, a girl named Mathilda, who used to live in France in the 11th century!
I loved this wild west issue as well as the 1936 Texas issue (This issue reminded me of Lovecraft). The art is beautiful as always, and the short stories balance fun, creepiness and world building at the same time effectively.
Overall, one of the best volumes I've read till now.
Let's just say nightclubbing in the 19th century was really bold!
I can explain this volume of Fatale in Brubaker's own words:
❝ Every time she thought she understood the nightmare, another layer fell away and a new horror was revealed.❞
Hell, yea! This volume features four short stories set in four different timelines and locations. Each one chronicles Josephine's destructive life and the men she ruined unwillingly. One of the stories even features a predecessor of Josephine, a girl named Mathilda, who used to live in France in the 11th century!
I loved this wild west issue as well as the 1936 Texas issue (This issue reminded me of Lovecraft). The art is beautiful as always, and the short stories balance fun, creepiness and world building at the same time effectively.
Overall, one of the best volumes I've read till now.
February 4, 2016
More fatales, more worship, more misery: set in different historical eras, the four one-shots collected in this volume make it quite obvious that Brubaker has no idea where to go with his mystery. But what the heck, as long as things are as stylish as this I ain't complaining...
September 3, 2019
So, who is Josephine?
More importantly, what the hell is Josephine?
Josephine doesn't know the answer to that question, either. But in these issues, you get a glimpse of her past life/lives and you kind of get a feel for a bit more of the scope of her story if nothing else.
Wacky stuff happens. <--it's a wacky concept, so what do you expect?
You do get some answers, but not really, because you get even more questions to go along with them.
I'm just on the edge of my seat and ready to go wherever Brubaker and Philips are taking me.
Recommended!
More importantly, what the hell is Josephine?
Josephine doesn't know the answer to that question, either. But in these issues, you get a glimpse of her past life/lives and you kind of get a feel for a bit more of the scope of her story if nothing else.
Wacky stuff happens. <--it's a wacky concept, so what do you expect?
You do get some answers, but not really, because you get even more questions to go along with them.
I'm just on the edge of my seat and ready to go wherever Brubaker and Philips are taking me.
Recommended!
January 17, 2015
I admit it, my background as a writer has influenced my enjoyment of this volume a great deal. I started as a short-story writer and themed anthology editor before turning to the novel form. I just felt like a more natural short-story writer. It came quite easily to me, maybe because I was raised in the MTV generation and have a short attention span. Or, perhaps it's because I am a slow reader and a slow writer. Or maybe I'm just lazy.
Whatever the case, I can appreciate a good short-story, well-told. I particularly enjoy a story told as an episodic series of short vignettes that challenges the reader to read between the lines, to tease the story out of their own subconscious through the use of subtle cues. I've used this trope several times, sometimes with great success, sometimes not.
The beauty of the short story is that it frees up the author to focus on style and immediacy and forces her or him to do away with the fluff that is so much a part of many a bad novel. This is a big turn-off to many novel readers. Don't believe me? Try to get a short-story collection published. I dare you. It can be done, but finding a willing publisher for a short-story collection is much, much more difficult than finding a willing publisher for a novel. So, yes, it's pretty difficult.
What Brubaker and Phillips have done here is create a series of stories about a type, almost a Jungian archetype: The Fatale.
Yes, you will see your beloved Josephine here (for those of you wise enough to read the previous two volumes in the series), but you will also meet Mathilda and Bonnie, who may or may not be the same person as Josephine - this is never made clear. And whether they are three separate persons or one-in-the-same doesn't really matter. What matters here is back-story and beauty, and there is plenty of each here. In West of Hell we learn that this world is not what you think it is. And you dare not know the truth. The truth will only kill you or, worse yet, let you know of its presence while allowing you the dubious privilege of life.
My only complaint here is that some of the information was leaked a bit earlier, in the first two volumes. But not all of it. Too much too early would spoil the surprise of it all, but would add something to the feeling of sheer menace that peeks around the corners in other volumes. Still, I can see how the choppy nature of this narrative adds to the flavor of the series as a whole. Not only do we get to peek around the corner at what lurks there, we have moments of stark revelation when we can get a good look at the face of horror in full, though it surreptitiously slides back into the shadows before we can fully figure out what it is doing, what it wants, and where it is going.
The artwork, as always, is beautiful. But this volume is particularly well-structured in a cinematic sense. Take, for example, the image of Jo approaching her vehicle, a 1930's coupe, on a desolate desert highway at night. She has just seen the face of evil, a physical manifestation of her nightmares. She gets in the car and drives off down the highway, past a railroad crossing, disappearing into the night. And standing on the railroad tracks, waiting, hoping to be hit by a train, stands Nelson, Jo's erstwhile lover, staring down the light of the train as it approaches him, promising release from his sorrow, the sorrow brought on by Jo's departure.
Hitchcock couldn't have done it better.
Whatever the case, I can appreciate a good short-story, well-told. I particularly enjoy a story told as an episodic series of short vignettes that challenges the reader to read between the lines, to tease the story out of their own subconscious through the use of subtle cues. I've used this trope several times, sometimes with great success, sometimes not.
The beauty of the short story is that it frees up the author to focus on style and immediacy and forces her or him to do away with the fluff that is so much a part of many a bad novel. This is a big turn-off to many novel readers. Don't believe me? Try to get a short-story collection published. I dare you. It can be done, but finding a willing publisher for a short-story collection is much, much more difficult than finding a willing publisher for a novel. So, yes, it's pretty difficult.
What Brubaker and Phillips have done here is create a series of stories about a type, almost a Jungian archetype: The Fatale.
Yes, you will see your beloved Josephine here (for those of you wise enough to read the previous two volumes in the series), but you will also meet Mathilda and Bonnie, who may or may not be the same person as Josephine - this is never made clear. And whether they are three separate persons or one-in-the-same doesn't really matter. What matters here is back-story and beauty, and there is plenty of each here. In West of Hell we learn that this world is not what you think it is. And you dare not know the truth. The truth will only kill you or, worse yet, let you know of its presence while allowing you the dubious privilege of life.
My only complaint here is that some of the information was leaked a bit earlier, in the first two volumes. But not all of it. Too much too early would spoil the surprise of it all, but would add something to the feeling of sheer menace that peeks around the corners in other volumes. Still, I can see how the choppy nature of this narrative adds to the flavor of the series as a whole. Not only do we get to peek around the corner at what lurks there, we have moments of stark revelation when we can get a good look at the face of horror in full, though it surreptitiously slides back into the shadows before we can fully figure out what it is doing, what it wants, and where it is going.
The artwork, as always, is beautiful. But this volume is particularly well-structured in a cinematic sense. Take, for example, the image of Jo approaching her vehicle, a 1930's coupe, on a desolate desert highway at night. She has just seen the face of evil, a physical manifestation of her nightmares. She gets in the car and drives off down the highway, past a railroad crossing, disappearing into the night. And standing on the railroad tracks, waiting, hoping to be hit by a train, stands Nelson, Jo's erstwhile lover, staring down the light of the train as it approaches him, promising release from his sorrow, the sorrow brought on by Jo's departure.
Hitchcock couldn't have done it better.
October 25, 2024
This is my revised review of Fatale, Volume 3, my original review lame, revealing I had read it too quickly and superficially. The series is a horror-noir mashup that revisits the origin and development of the femme fatale trope that was always meant to demonize (pun intended) women for their beauty and "seductive power."
This volume situates the whole series from a variety of perspectives in four short stories set across history. One involves Jo visiting a pulp fiction writer whose mother she meets. Said writer has written a comic that seems to be close to Jo's nightmares, and when she meets the mother, we see where the writer's coming from. Mom is a chthulu figure who Jo realizes may in fact inhabit her.
Another story takes us back to the middle ages, indicating we have always had these figures among us; another takes place in 1883 Europe, and another in the American West, all helping Jo (and we) to understand some of the roots of just what she is. Again, she does not want to be this monster, this demon. She wants comfort, she wants love but she does not want to destroy them or their lives and families.
Of course in the history of femme fatales there are a range; typically they are seen as the opposite of "the tender sex," and very much in control of the destruction they wreak. Eve (of The Garden fame) may be seen as a femme fatale, luring innocent Adam (and then the rest of civilization hereafter) to sin and Hellfire. But some are in part victims themselves, as is Jo here, where we have to account for the men's responsibility in this Devil's pact. One theory is that it is (also? instead of women?) men who are inhabited by these demons that completely control their lives. Another theory is that the (patriarchal) world fears women's sexuality, especially the sexual "prowess" of an "irresistibly" beautiful woman, such as Jo is described.
So this is great, very smart, thoughtful, drawing on complex research and not just creating a Bad Woman that destroy's men's lives. And it is amazing art, conceptualizing worlds across the ages. Deliciously dark but thought-provoking.
Four great noir femme fatales:
Brigid O'Shaughnessy (Mary Astor) in The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) in Sunset Boulevard (1950)
Alice Reed (Joan Bennett) in The Woman in the Window (1944)
Laura Hunt (Gene Tierney) in Laura (1944)
Some more femme fatales in film:
https://crfashionbook.com/best-femme-...
Dolly Parton's "Jolene" I think may be seen as one kind of femme fatale, Dolly blaming her, not her weak, victim husband:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFPlF...
This volume situates the whole series from a variety of perspectives in four short stories set across history. One involves Jo visiting a pulp fiction writer whose mother she meets. Said writer has written a comic that seems to be close to Jo's nightmares, and when she meets the mother, we see where the writer's coming from. Mom is a chthulu figure who Jo realizes may in fact inhabit her.
Another story takes us back to the middle ages, indicating we have always had these figures among us; another takes place in 1883 Europe, and another in the American West, all helping Jo (and we) to understand some of the roots of just what she is. Again, she does not want to be this monster, this demon. She wants comfort, she wants love but she does not want to destroy them or their lives and families.
Of course in the history of femme fatales there are a range; typically they are seen as the opposite of "the tender sex," and very much in control of the destruction they wreak. Eve (of The Garden fame) may be seen as a femme fatale, luring innocent Adam (and then the rest of civilization hereafter) to sin and Hellfire. But some are in part victims themselves, as is Jo here, where we have to account for the men's responsibility in this Devil's pact. One theory is that it is (also? instead of women?) men who are inhabited by these demons that completely control their lives. Another theory is that the (patriarchal) world fears women's sexuality, especially the sexual "prowess" of an "irresistibly" beautiful woman, such as Jo is described.
So this is great, very smart, thoughtful, drawing on complex research and not just creating a Bad Woman that destroy's men's lives. And it is amazing art, conceptualizing worlds across the ages. Deliciously dark but thought-provoking.
Four great noir femme fatales:
Brigid O'Shaughnessy (Mary Astor) in The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) in Sunset Boulevard (1950)
Alice Reed (Joan Bennett) in The Woman in the Window (1944)
Laura Hunt (Gene Tierney) in Laura (1944)
Some more femme fatales in film:
https://crfashionbook.com/best-femme-...
Dolly Parton's "Jolene" I think may be seen as one kind of femme fatale, Dolly blaming her, not her weak, victim husband:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFPlF...
September 18, 2013
Unlike previous volumes, this Fatale collection is more like a series of short stories, each set in a different time and place. Really, it serves as a form of exposition, explaining (somewhat, sort of) what Josephine is, who is pursuing her, and who has gone before her. Not everything is explained, which is good. A little mystery around the edges of the story keeps me interested. I liked meeting women like Josephine through history. They are all somewhat similar, but I can chalk that up to being shaped by very similar experiences. I also liked seeing a range of time periods. To my surprise, I ended up liking the Wild West vignette the best. I am not exactly a western sort of person, not usually. I was also surprised to discover how much going backwards in time advanced the overall story of Fatale. I'm still really enjoying this series, as much for the stylish art as for Brubaker's writing.
May 11, 2025
When I read Ed Brubaker/ Sean Phillips’s graphic novel series “Fatale”, I hear Electric Light Orchestra’s classic song “Evil Woman” playing in my head. Granted, it’s a bit unfair, since the anti-heroine of the series isn’t evil, per se, she’s merely a vessel of evil. Okay, that sounds bad. She’s merely a woman who unwittingly brings death and destruction down upon every man that she encounters. No, wait, that sounds horrible, too...
She’s the archetypal femme fatale: the woman in literature and film that uses her seductive and feminine wiles to get men to do her bidding, usually and inevitably towards a violent end. She’s temptation made flesh. She’s man’s ruin.
She’s also got a name. And a story. And it’s a tragic one.
Book three of the Fatale series, “West of Hell”, is comprised of four stories of the woman named Josephine in four very different time periods: The Great Depression, the Dark Ages, the Wild West, and World War II.
In each time period, Josephine discovers a little bit more about herself and her forgotten background but never enough to get a complete picture. She is, in many ways, just as much a victim of her otherworldly powers as she is a perpetrator of evil consequences. This is, perhaps, Brubaker/Phillips’s brilliance: creating a wickedly deadly anti-heroine that one can’t help but sympathize with.
Or maybe that’s just her evil seductive ways working its power on the readers? What if Brubaker/Phillips are just two nerdy comic book authors who have fallen under Josephine’s spell, forcing them to write and draw her story, enticing their readers toward that inevitable violent end?
Whatever. She’s got me under her spell...
She’s the archetypal femme fatale: the woman in literature and film that uses her seductive and feminine wiles to get men to do her bidding, usually and inevitably towards a violent end. She’s temptation made flesh. She’s man’s ruin.
She’s also got a name. And a story. And it’s a tragic one.
Book three of the Fatale series, “West of Hell”, is comprised of four stories of the woman named Josephine in four very different time periods: The Great Depression, the Dark Ages, the Wild West, and World War II.
In each time period, Josephine discovers a little bit more about herself and her forgotten background but never enough to get a complete picture. She is, in many ways, just as much a victim of her otherworldly powers as she is a perpetrator of evil consequences. This is, perhaps, Brubaker/Phillips’s brilliance: creating a wickedly deadly anti-heroine that one can’t help but sympathize with.
Or maybe that’s just her evil seductive ways working its power on the readers? What if Brubaker/Phillips are just two nerdy comic book authors who have fallen under Josephine’s spell, forcing them to write and draw her story, enticing their readers toward that inevitable violent end?
Whatever. She’s got me under her spell...
December 22, 2013
Well I still liked this Volume of the series, but where it was in Volume 1, it's not quite gone where I thought it was. I realize Fatale is the title, so that it follows the femmes makes sense, but when they keep introducing more femmes (even in standalone stories), you start to lose focus on who's from when and what they're doing.
Luckily, half the book covers Jo, our protagonist, in the 1930s Texas, and then in WWII when she first meets up with one of the men from the first volume, as he is drawn into her web for the first time, and they cross paths with the cult that seems to have been following Jo (and her similar looking fatales) for the whole series.
The male characters are much better fleshed out in the 2 standalone stories, perhaps because they find themselves immune to the influential charms of their respective femme fatales.
The storyline seems to come full circle and put us back where we were in some ways, but we don't yet go back to the modern day or the supporting male characters...
I will keep reading this, as it's interesting, well drawn, and has my attention, but I'm hoping that there's actually going to be some more reveals/forward movement soon.
If you're interested, start with Vol. 1, go from there. You could read this without the others but it will make far more sense this way.
Luckily, half the book covers Jo, our protagonist, in the 1930s Texas, and then in WWII when she first meets up with one of the men from the first volume, as he is drawn into her web for the first time, and they cross paths with the cult that seems to have been following Jo (and her similar looking fatales) for the whole series.
The male characters are much better fleshed out in the 2 standalone stories, perhaps because they find themselves immune to the influential charms of their respective femme fatales.
The storyline seems to come full circle and put us back where we were in some ways, but we don't yet go back to the modern day or the supporting male characters...
I will keep reading this, as it's interesting, well drawn, and has my attention, but I'm hoping that there's actually going to be some more reveals/forward movement soon.
If you're interested, start with Vol. 1, go from there. You could read this without the others but it will make far more sense this way.
February 8, 2015
Introduction:
After reading the first two volumes of Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips’ awesome horror series “Fatale,” I just have to pick up the third volume of this series “West of Hell” and I found this volume just as enjoyable as the previous two volumes!
What is this story about?
Let us take a break from the adventures of Nicolas Lash and explore the dark secrets that surround the mysterious beautiful woman Josephine in her past adventures before she met Nicolas Lash. There are a total of four stories in this volume which includes:
1. The Case of Alfred Ravenscroft
2. A Lovely Sort of Death
3. Down the Darkest Trail
4. Just a Glance Away
Each story details Josephine being in many different situations and is shown as a different person each time; such as being a young woman named Mathilda in 1286 A.D. France, who was accused of being a witch in “A Lovely Sort of Death” and being a young outlaw named Bonnie in 1883 Colorado who encounters a Native American man on her journey in “Down the Darkest Trail.” Each story also give out brief hints about Josephine’s past and why there are demons going after her after all these years.
What I loved about this story:
Ed Brubaker’s writing: Wow! Ed Brubaker’s writing just continues to amaze me throughout each volume of this fantastic series and I cannot believe that I waited so long to check this series out! Now, I usually have a love/hate relationship with volumes that only contain short stories that are not connected to each other in any way since I think that they usually slow down the main story line of any graphic novel. But in this case, I felt that the short stories in this volume really brought in a new creative twist to this series as each story seem to detail Josephine’s life before she met Nicolas Lash and how long she has been living, despite staying young all of those years. Now, I will admit that we still do not know exactly what Josephine is, but I think that this series is taking its time laying out the groundwork in revealing this secret as each volume goes by. I really loved the way that Ed Brubaker wove out the mystery surrounding Josephine as we still do not know about how she got the ability to mesmerize men and why the devil seems to be after her. It really makes the story much more interesting and intense to read as I cannot wait to see what kind of creature Josephine really is and whether or not Nicolas Lash will discover Josephine’s secret soon enough.
Sean Phillips’ artwork: Sean Phillips’ artwork is as usual gorgeous to look at as the characters look truly realistic and I really loved the way that Sean Phillips was able to incorporate the historical aspects of each story as we get to live through the time periods that Josephine appears in, such as seeing what the Old West looked like during the 1880s or what society looked like during the 1950s.
What made me feel uncomfortable about this story:
Anyone who does not like gory violence and strong language should be warned that there is some gory violence that involves people being shot and torn apart and some strong language where they use the “f” word a couple of times, although the language here is not as strong as the previous two volumes.
Final Thoughts:
Overall, “Fatale: West of Hell Book Three” is a fantastic treat that anyone who is a huge fan of Ed Brubaker’s “Fatale” series will love reading for many years!
Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog
October 30, 2021
This was a pretty interesting read and its mostly an anthology as we have multiple stories like when Jo went to meet Alfred Ravenscroft and listening to his childhood story and his powers freaks her out or of the woman named Mathilda in 12th century and who she was and what happened to her or 1883 of a woman named Black Bonnie (Jo) and her strange encounters or how she first met Walt and the promises in them.
Its a strange sequence of events but make for a great read and yeah the timeline of it all can be confusing but it is that which heightens the drama and all that plus does great character work and compels us to ask "what is Jo" and it has some characters who are irresistible to her nature or magic and secret hunting cult which compels you to read forward! And the art gets better and does each time period justice!
Its a strange sequence of events but make for a great read and yeah the timeline of it all can be confusing but it is that which heightens the drama and all that plus does great character work and compels us to ask "what is Jo" and it has some characters who are irresistible to her nature or magic and secret hunting cult which compels you to read forward! And the art gets better and does each time period justice!
November 5, 2022
So we reach the mid-point of the the Fatale series and I have to say I was shockingly surprised - instead of the usual mid-point book which tries so hard to keep the momentum of earlier books going but with out tipping the grand surprise too early and letting the final instalments lose their impact you have instead a totally different book.
What you have here are a series of short stories all filled with action and intrigue but are also part of a much larger story arc. What you have here is part of the back story but told in such a way (and yes I am keeping to my own rule of no spoilers) not giving anything away.
If anything this book (rather like the earlier instalments) end up driving more questions than answers but have tantalising hints as to what is going on. I now have to collect the final two volumes as I really have no idea and cannot wait to see not only where this is going but also to properly understand what they hell is going on.
What you have here are a series of short stories all filled with action and intrigue but are also part of a much larger story arc. What you have here is part of the back story but told in such a way (and yes I am keeping to my own rule of no spoilers) not giving anything away.
If anything this book (rather like the earlier instalments) end up driving more questions than answers but have tantalising hints as to what is going on. I now have to collect the final two volumes as I really have no idea and cannot wait to see not only where this is going but also to properly understand what they hell is going on.
May 12, 2021
Třetí book jen s povídkama je boží. Dostáváme trošku víc backgroundu k Fatale v historii a ty ženský jsou prostě skvělý. Vrací se Elizabeth Breitweiser❤ z čehož jsem byl nadšený neuvěřitelně. Ne, že by Stewart byl špatnej ale Elizabeth je tady jinde.
Samozřejmě protože #PovídkaVKomiksuFunguje tak celá takhle knížka je jedno obří mňam. Náckové stylizovaný do Lovecrafta?! To je neskutečný nářez :D
Samozřejmě protože #PovídkaVKomiksuFunguje tak celá takhle knížka je jedno obří mňam. Náckové stylizovaný do Lovecrafta?! To je neskutečný nářez :D
January 20, 2020
This was great, up until the last issue, which was okay.
Fatale takes a break from a long narrative to tell basically 4 individual stories all revolving around the centeral character. In doing so we get a lot of different time lines and locations. It doesn't reflect the modern story at all, which could be a plus since last volume it was the weakest part. But do we get any answers?
Each story is interesting and I'm eager to see if we do get a answer on who she is. I also love the art still, Sean Phillips knocks it out of the park. It's amazing how much he draws and it's still so damn good. The first 3 issues are all great but the last issue suffered from covering similar grounds and being slightly boring.
Overall a 3.5 out of 5.
Fatale takes a break from a long narrative to tell basically 4 individual stories all revolving around the centeral character. In doing so we get a lot of different time lines and locations. It doesn't reflect the modern story at all, which could be a plus since last volume it was the weakest part. But do we get any answers?
Each story is interesting and I'm eager to see if we do get a answer on who she is. I also love the art still, Sean Phillips knocks it out of the park. It's amazing how much he draws and it's still so damn good. The first 3 issues are all great but the last issue suffered from covering similar grounds and being slightly boring.
Overall a 3.5 out of 5.
August 6, 2015
Bullet Review:
Four short stories about the life of Josephine...or Mathilda...or Bonnie.
I think what really helped me enjoy this one was that we finally get some hints of answers. Some idea of who Josephine is, what's going on, and why she can live for so long.
Four short stories about the life of Josephine...or Mathilda...or Bonnie.
I think what really helped me enjoy this one was that we finally get some hints of answers. Some idea of who Josephine is, what's going on, and why she can live for so long.
November 21, 2017
I've read a number of novels lately with themes about reincarnation and different lives through time. It's therefore fitting that I found a graphic novel that echoes those same themes. In this third volume in the Fatale noir horror graphic novel series, we learn about a number of Josephine's past lives as we find her in the Middle Ages in France burned at the stake, out in the Wild West captured by Native Americans, in the roaring Twenties, and captured by the Nazis. She may not yet know what she is - although she knows some of her powers, but there are others out there that know or suspect. Great artwork. A different pace to the storytelling as well.
February 10, 2020
Four more short stories of the immortal femme fatale, Josephine, as she is chased by Lovecraftian horrors. This time there is American noir, European witch hunts, American wild west, and WWII. I would prefer a long-form story rather than these short snippets, but still quite good.
October 21, 2020
We finally get some good back story to Jo
November 25, 2015
Four linked stories featuring the same (sort of) character throughout history. Pretty good although the WWII story is rather cheesy.
May 16, 2024
The art is still great.
But the story, or rather stories since this volume consists of 4 short stories, aren't.
We're introduced to several new characters that are here to reveal some of the mystery about Jo and the book everyone is looking for. But the characters are uninteresting (or abandoned too soon), and their stories are just repetitions of earlier volumes.
Jo (or other women with the same powers throughout history) learn of their powers, kill some cultists, and find a book. Not cool that Jo and Walts story from volume 1 is retold here, but just shorter and boringer.
But the story, or rather stories since this volume consists of 4 short stories, aren't.
We're introduced to several new characters that are here to reveal some of the mystery about Jo and the book everyone is looking for. But the characters are uninteresting (or abandoned too soon), and their stories are just repetitions of earlier volumes.
Jo (or other women with the same powers throughout history) learn of their powers, kill some cultists, and find a book. Not cool that Jo and Walts story from volume 1 is retold here, but just shorter and boringer.
June 5, 2015
And back to amazing! The Lovecraftian influences really dominate this volume and I loved every second of it!
This volume makes a return to the more compelling horror aspects of the first volume and builds on the reader's understanding of both what has happened to make Josephine the way she is now and also exactly what this book she's stolen from the cult really is. It's split into four interlocking stories. The first and the last involve Jo and the book and the middle two stories involve other women who were trapped in the same pattern that has ensared Jo.
The Case of Alfred Ravenscroft - Texas, 1936
Jo meets with a pulp fiction author who has personal experience with the cult that made her what she is. He’s seen the book that the cult uses for their sermons and sacrifices, when he was a boy down in Mexico and tells Jo about his experiences. An unexpected encounter at his house leaves Jo terrified but with a better understanding of what's happening to her.
A Lovely Sort of Death - France, 1286 A.D.
A young woman named Mathilda living in medieval France wakes up with no memory of what's happened to her. Men in her village start to react in violent, horrifying ways and, of course, this leads the village to brand her as a witch. Somehow she survives being burned and finds refuge in a forest cabin as she tries to discover what her strange new abilities are and how to survive with strange men now hunting her.
Down the Darkest Trail - Colorado, 1883
“Black” Bonnie is a young, female outlaw with the ability to control the men in her gang. After being captured by a priest and a Native American man who seem to know a lot about her and her abilities, they make a bargain to get their hands on an occult book that will explain more.
Just a Glance Away - Romania, 1943
This story moves back to Jo, whose conversation with the Texan author opened her eyes to the hidden realities around her. She’s drawn to Romania to find out more from Hitler’s mystic priests who she learns are involved with the same occult magic that put her in her current situation. And we finally get the back story on the connection between her and Walt, the corrupt cop in San Francisco from the first volume.
Whereas the noir elements were the focus in the first volume and to some extent in the second, the Lovecraftian horror elements are the focus here. It's clear that Brubaker is setting up a pattern involving these women and the book that is so important to the tentacle monster cult (they have a name but I can't remember what it is). I loved the connections that this book is making between the previous two volumes as it slowly builds the horror of what was done to Josephine and why. I don't know how the hell she's going to beat this cult's intentions for her but I'm more compelled than ever to find out!
Overall this is an excellent third volume that more than makes up for the lacklaster second. I highly recommend it!
This volume makes a return to the more compelling horror aspects of the first volume and builds on the reader's understanding of both what has happened to make Josephine the way she is now and also exactly what this book she's stolen from the cult really is. It's split into four interlocking stories. The first and the last involve Jo and the book and the middle two stories involve other women who were trapped in the same pattern that has ensared Jo.
The Case of Alfred Ravenscroft - Texas, 1936
Jo meets with a pulp fiction author who has personal experience with the cult that made her what she is. He’s seen the book that the cult uses for their sermons and sacrifices, when he was a boy down in Mexico and tells Jo about his experiences. An unexpected encounter at his house leaves Jo terrified but with a better understanding of what's happening to her.
A Lovely Sort of Death - France, 1286 A.D.
A young woman named Mathilda living in medieval France wakes up with no memory of what's happened to her. Men in her village start to react in violent, horrifying ways and, of course, this leads the village to brand her as a witch. Somehow she survives being burned and finds refuge in a forest cabin as she tries to discover what her strange new abilities are and how to survive with strange men now hunting her.
Down the Darkest Trail - Colorado, 1883
“Black” Bonnie is a young, female outlaw with the ability to control the men in her gang. After being captured by a priest and a Native American man who seem to know a lot about her and her abilities, they make a bargain to get their hands on an occult book that will explain more.
Just a Glance Away - Romania, 1943
This story moves back to Jo, whose conversation with the Texan author opened her eyes to the hidden realities around her. She’s drawn to Romania to find out more from Hitler’s mystic priests who she learns are involved with the same occult magic that put her in her current situation. And we finally get the back story on the connection between her and Walt, the corrupt cop in San Francisco from the first volume.
Whereas the noir elements were the focus in the first volume and to some extent in the second, the Lovecraftian horror elements are the focus here. It's clear that Brubaker is setting up a pattern involving these women and the book that is so important to the tentacle monster cult (they have a name but I can't remember what it is). I loved the connections that this book is making between the previous two volumes as it slowly builds the horror of what was done to Josephine and why. I don't know how the hell she's going to beat this cult's intentions for her but I'm more compelled than ever to find out!
Overall this is an excellent third volume that more than makes up for the lacklaster second. I highly recommend it!
December 20, 2015
While this volume doesn't flow as well, Brubaker expands the world he's created exponentially by introducing us to possible previous incarnations of Jo throughout history in what amounts to a short story anthology that works even if you haven't read the previous volumes.
September 15, 2015
This was much better than previous volume. It opens up the story a bit, adds some more mythos and explores some interesting time periods.
March 29, 2018
I liked this volume better than the previous one, because we got more insight into Jo... and her predecessors. 'West of Hell' begins and ends with Josephine, but we also learn that there have been women with her gifts since the middle ages. It's even possible that Josephine is just a reincarnation of Mathilda and Bonnie, since their looks are very similar. Either way, we travel through four different time periods and that gives this volume a lot of variation. Not just in terms of story, but it also gives artist Sean Phillips and colourist Dave Stewart room to flex their muscles. 'A Lovely Sort of Death' in particular looks fantastic and has a vibrant use of colours that fits the setting very well. Then later in 'Just a Glance Away' we descend to hell, where red is once again a prominent color.
There's one thing I didn't really understand, which I'll put in spoilers to be sure.
There's one thing I didn't really understand, which I'll put in spoilers to be sure.
October 19, 2020
(4,3 of 5 for a little trip to the deeper history of Jo's curse)
Fatale is great comics - visually and by script/story. And this book is again a bit different than others which is great. We met Jo's predecessors, get new pieces to the story, bit more background. I really enjoyed that, even it feels a little bit weaker than the previous ones and by its nature, it doesn't move the story much forward. Still a great reading experience.
Fatale is great comics - visually and by script/story. And this book is again a bit different than others which is great. We met Jo's predecessors, get new pieces to the story, bit more background. I really enjoyed that, even it feels a little bit weaker than the previous ones and by its nature, it doesn't move the story much forward. Still a great reading experience.
October 14, 2021
Different from the first two volumes. With this third one, we are more in a short stories style with stories showing us part of Josephine's past. This help bring more depth to the character and the overall universe and plot that Brubaker is creating. I like it a lot, but now that my Hoopla account is busted for the month, I will have to wait until November to read some more!
August 14, 2025
Fatale Vol. 3: West of Hell takes Jo on a harrowing ride through multiple eras, each revealing more about her strange, dangerous nature — though the truth remains tantalizingly out of reach, for her and for us. Brubaker and Phillips mix Western grit, noir mood, and supernatural dread into a tense, pulpy thrill ride that’s as fun as it is unsettling.
December 22, 2019
The story is getting more and more intriguing. However, this volume is more an interlude in the storie with short background stories. Probably to show us more of the world and mythology around the Femme fatale.
October 21, 2015
I like anthologies, if they are done right, and here, it's done right.
The central mystery of Jo and her condition has been the main focus of this series since the first page of this wonderful series and finally we get some insight on her history and a whole load of world building, done as an anthology that time jumps per issue, this collection is an awesome wonderful read.
World: Phillips art is wonderful and the different eras that this anthology travels through is great as it shows his ability to portray different eras and styles. There is a huge chunk of world building this trade as we not only see Jo's journey but learn more about the cult and the world of this book. I won't ruin anything as this is the main reason to read this book, but yes, these single issue tales are great at widening the scope. Good stuff!
Story: Single issue tales that time jump around Jo and the relevant parts of the world. They are all paced well, full of character and story and mostly full of answers, and new questions. I really liked that Brubaker and Phillips took a couple of issues time away from the main Jo story to do this as it not only now makes her story much richer but the world so much more interesting.
Characters: Jo is here in this trade but she is not the front an centre characters, what we have instead is a collection of tales and therefore a collection of characters to meet and experience. They are deep as per Brubaker's style, flawed, and real. They each have an interesting story to tell that not only builds the story but leaves a tone and emotional impact on the reader for the plight of Jo and the people around her.
This is great, an anthology done well right smack dab in the middle of an insanely interesting story. Some may not like the shift, but it is good and offers a lot of background and insight on the story which will make the second half of the series that much better.
Onward to the next book!
The central mystery of Jo and her condition has been the main focus of this series since the first page of this wonderful series and finally we get some insight on her history and a whole load of world building, done as an anthology that time jumps per issue, this collection is an awesome wonderful read.
World: Phillips art is wonderful and the different eras that this anthology travels through is great as it shows his ability to portray different eras and styles. There is a huge chunk of world building this trade as we not only see Jo's journey but learn more about the cult and the world of this book. I won't ruin anything as this is the main reason to read this book, but yes, these single issue tales are great at widening the scope. Good stuff!
Story: Single issue tales that time jump around Jo and the relevant parts of the world. They are all paced well, full of character and story and mostly full of answers, and new questions. I really liked that Brubaker and Phillips took a couple of issues time away from the main Jo story to do this as it not only now makes her story much richer but the world so much more interesting.
Characters: Jo is here in this trade but she is not the front an centre characters, what we have instead is a collection of tales and therefore a collection of characters to meet and experience. They are deep as per Brubaker's style, flawed, and real. They each have an interesting story to tell that not only builds the story but leaves a tone and emotional impact on the reader for the plight of Jo and the people around her.
This is great, an anthology done well right smack dab in the middle of an insanely interesting story. Some may not like the shift, but it is good and offers a lot of background and insight on the story which will make the second half of the series that much better.
Onward to the next book!
February 25, 2017
If this series has a five act structure, Ed Brubaker takes this volume and expands on the mythology of the Fatale in a way that is both interesting and baffling. There are three tales that may or may not be different characters for Josephine, and in three radically different time periods. The earliest character is an origin story but also seems the least like Josephine in art style, but each letter story the character physically resembles Jo more and more. Matilda in 1282 has a clear origin “A Lovely Sort of Death” and being a young outlaw named Bonnie in 1883 Colorado in “Down the Darkest Trail.” If the characters are the same character as Josephine or if they are just perils, the relationship to the Demon cult becomes both clearer and mystified.
In short, different readers have read it differently: some having Josephine be all three women who are immoral and have power over men, and some reading it is as convergent lives. The ambiguity seems deliberate particularly as Philips has the character design move closer and closer to Josephine as we know her. We know Josephine goes by many names, and we know she is referred by squid faced demons as "the Consort" and Alfred Ravenbrock later says that Josephine isn't aware of what she is. Furthermore, there are some men immune to her but Brubeck never goes into why.
Brudeck's mythology here becomes harder to decide if it is merely confused or if it trying to keep mystery up for the readers interest. I suspect a little of both. I miss the Nicholas Lash framing story, but I also appreciate what Brubeck and Philips were attempting here.
In short, different readers have read it differently: some having Josephine be all three women who are immoral and have power over men, and some reading it is as convergent lives. The ambiguity seems deliberate particularly as Philips has the character design move closer and closer to Josephine as we know her. We know Josephine goes by many names, and we know she is referred by squid faced demons as "the Consort" and Alfred Ravenbrock later says that Josephine isn't aware of what she is. Furthermore, there are some men immune to her but Brubeck never goes into why.
Brudeck's mythology here becomes harder to decide if it is merely confused or if it trying to keep mystery up for the readers interest. I suspect a little of both. I miss the Nicholas Lash framing story, but I also appreciate what Brubeck and Philips were attempting here.
June 14, 2016
Another excellent installment; instead of moving the overarching narrative forward, this volume is focused on fleshing out the history of the series. It takes the form of four interconnected short stories, two of which focus on Josephine--in Depression-era Texas and with Walt during WWII--and two focus on her predecessors, one in the Middle Ages and one during the 1800s in the West. They're all gorgeous (as always) and quick, enthralling reads. A worthy addition to this top-notch series.
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