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Scalped #5
Scalped: High Lonesome
Fifteen years ago, Dashiell "Dash" Bad Horse ran away from a life of abject poverty and utter hopelessness on the Prairie Rose Indian Reservation searching for something better. Now he's come back home armed with nothing but a set of nunchuks, a hell-bent-for-leather attitude and one dark secret, to find nothing much has changed on "the Rez"--short of a glimmering new casino, and a once-proud people overcome by drugs and organized crime. Is he here to set things right or just get a piece of the action?
In this volume, we see the landscape of the Prairie Rose reservation through the eyes of a newcomer--a card shark and con man--whose presence could spell doom for one of our main characters.
Collects: Scalped #25-29.
In this volume, we see the landscape of the Prairie Rose reservation through the eyes of a newcomer--a card shark and con man--whose presence could spell doom for one of our main characters.
Collects: Scalped #25-29.
128 pages, Paperback
First published October 27, 2009
8 people are currently reading
407 people want to read
About the author
Jason Aaron
2,367 books1,685 followersJason Aaron grew up in a small town in Alabama. His cousin, Gustav Hasford, who wrote the semi-autobiographical novel The Short-Timers, on which the feature film Full Metal Jacket was based, was a large influence on Aaron. Aaron decided he wanted to write comics as a child, and though his father was skeptical when Aaron informed him of this aspiration, his mother took Aaron to drug stores, where he would purchase books from spinner racks, some of which he still owns today.
Aaron's career in comics began in 2001 when he won a Marvel Comics talent search contest with an eight-page Wolverine back-up story script. The story, which was published in Wolverine #175 (June 2002), gave him the opportunity to pitch subsequent ideas to editors.
In 2006, Aaron made a blind submission to DC/Vertigo, who published his first major work, the Vietnam War story The Other Side which was nominated for an Eisner Award for Best Miniseries, and which Aaron regards as the "second time" he broke into the industry.
Following this, Vertigo asked him to pitch other ideas, which led to the series Scalped, a creator-owned series set on the fictional Prairie Rose Indian Reservation and published by DC/Vertigo.
In 2007, Aaron wrote Ripclaw: Pilot Season for Top Cow Productions. Later that year, Marvel editor Axel Alonso, who was impressed by The Other Side and Scalped, hired Aaron to write issues of Wolverine, Black Panther and eventually, an extended run on Ghost Rider that began in April 2008. His continued work on Black Panther also included a tie-in to the company-wide crossover storyline along with a "Secret Invasion" with David Lapham in 2009.
In January 2008, he signed an exclusive contract with Marvel, though it would not affect his work on Scalped. Later that July, he wrote the Penguin issue of The Joker's Asylum.
After a 4-issue stint on Wolverine in 2007, Aaron returned to the character with the ongoing series Wolverine: Weapon X, launched to coincide with the feature film X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Aaron commented, "With Wolverine: Weapon X we'll be trying to mix things up like that from arc to arc, so the first arc is a typical sort of black ops story but the second arc will jump right into the middle of a completely different genre," In 2010, the series was relaunched once again as simply Wolverine. He followed this with his current run on Thor: God of Thunder.
Aaron's career in comics began in 2001 when he won a Marvel Comics talent search contest with an eight-page Wolverine back-up story script. The story, which was published in Wolverine #175 (June 2002), gave him the opportunity to pitch subsequent ideas to editors.
In 2006, Aaron made a blind submission to DC/Vertigo, who published his first major work, the Vietnam War story The Other Side which was nominated for an Eisner Award for Best Miniseries, and which Aaron regards as the "second time" he broke into the industry.
Following this, Vertigo asked him to pitch other ideas, which led to the series Scalped, a creator-owned series set on the fictional Prairie Rose Indian Reservation and published by DC/Vertigo.
In 2007, Aaron wrote Ripclaw: Pilot Season for Top Cow Productions. Later that year, Marvel editor Axel Alonso, who was impressed by The Other Side and Scalped, hired Aaron to write issues of Wolverine, Black Panther and eventually, an extended run on Ghost Rider that began in April 2008. His continued work on Black Panther also included a tie-in to the company-wide crossover storyline along with a "Secret Invasion" with David Lapham in 2009.
In January 2008, he signed an exclusive contract with Marvel, though it would not affect his work on Scalped. Later that July, he wrote the Penguin issue of The Joker's Asylum.
After a 4-issue stint on Wolverine in 2007, Aaron returned to the character with the ongoing series Wolverine: Weapon X, launched to coincide with the feature film X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Aaron commented, "With Wolverine: Weapon X we'll be trying to mix things up like that from arc to arc, so the first arc is a typical sort of black ops story but the second arc will jump right into the middle of a completely different genre," In 2010, the series was relaunched once again as simply Wolverine. He followed this with his current run on Thor: God of Thunder.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
February 16, 2026
(A-) 83% | Very Good
Notes: On living lies, relief denied, persisting in affliction, rough snap decisions, tunnel vision, and all manner of addictions.
*Progress updates: Preamble ◦ Issue #25 ◦ Issues #26-27 ◦ Issues #28-29
Notes: On living lies, relief denied, persisting in affliction, rough snap decisions, tunnel vision, and all manner of addictions.
*Progress updates: Preamble ◦ Issue #25 ◦ Issues #26-27 ◦ Issues #28-29
September 13, 2018
Scalped, Volume 5: High Lonesome is the best volume thus far in this high operatic noir crime series set on a South Dakota Prairie Rose Indian Reservation. I’m late to this party so I won’t tell much of the story, but I love how it is historically framed by the nineteenth century Indian Wars, Wounded Knee, Little Bighorn. It takes a lot of blood to take destroy a native people, and yet, as Aaron reminds us: They are still here.
It’s all tragedy all the time in this volume, where a con man comes in to the rez, meets and remembers Dash and tries to blackmail him into helping rob the casino. And Bad Horse has hit bottom, on smack, thanks to Lincoln Red Crow’s daughter. FBI Agent Nitz, trying to frame the brutally crooked Red Crow, is even more despicable than Red Crow, though we see his motivation based in decades past, revenge. We learn about the murdering Indian wannabe Diesel and how he came to be, but we aren’t sympathetic. We find out who killed Gina Red Crow, but this removes one of the few guys we still hoped were good!
Okay, there’s ONE good guy in all this rez noir tragedy (so far, so far, we have five volumes to go!): Officer Falls Down, the regular guy, good cop!
It’s all tragedy all the time in this volume, where a con man comes in to the rez, meets and remembers Dash and tries to blackmail him into helping rob the casino. And Bad Horse has hit bottom, on smack, thanks to Lincoln Red Crow’s daughter. FBI Agent Nitz, trying to frame the brutally crooked Red Crow, is even more despicable than Red Crow, though we see his motivation based in decades past, revenge. We learn about the murdering Indian wannabe Diesel and how he came to be, but we aren’t sympathetic. We find out who killed Gina Red Crow, but this removes one of the few guys we still hoped were good!
Okay, there’s ONE good guy in all this rez noir tragedy (so far, so far, we have five volumes to go!): Officer Falls Down, the regular guy, good cop!
October 29, 2011
In this fifth book in the series, we are introduced to a con-man who hustles blackjack, we learn more about FBI Agent Nitz, there's background on Diesel's troubled childhood, and Bad Horse's heroin addiction gets worse as he's roped into a heist to save Red Crow discovering that he's an undercover FBI Agent. And the killer of Gina Bad Horse is revealed.
There's a lot going on in "High Lonesome" and it's definitely the best in the series so far with revelations and action coming thick and fast. The con-man story is told really well and the character was really great and creepy. Diesel is as maniacal as you would expect and Nitz is a troubled guy with a difficult past - it was good to see more on him as so far he's seemed a very one-note kind of character.
Also I didn't guess who killed Gina at all but I wasn't surprised as the killer turns out to be someone who's been in all of the books but is kind of a nutter, so it seems fitting almost. For a series that focuses on two characters, Dash Bad Horse and Lincoln Red Crow, neither character were very present in this book but the background players did more than enough to make up for this absence. It shows the strength of a writer like Jason Aaron who can build stories from the least characters and still make a brilliant comic book out of it.
A great continuation of this increasingly more interesting series, "High Lonesome" is crime comics at it's best.
There's a lot going on in "High Lonesome" and it's definitely the best in the series so far with revelations and action coming thick and fast. The con-man story is told really well and the character was really great and creepy. Diesel is as maniacal as you would expect and Nitz is a troubled guy with a difficult past - it was good to see more on him as so far he's seemed a very one-note kind of character.
Also I didn't guess who killed Gina at all but I wasn't surprised as the killer turns out to be someone who's been in all of the books but is kind of a nutter, so it seems fitting almost. For a series that focuses on two characters, Dash Bad Horse and Lincoln Red Crow, neither character were very present in this book but the background players did more than enough to make up for this absence. It shows the strength of a writer like Jason Aaron who can build stories from the least characters and still make a brilliant comic book out of it.
A great continuation of this increasingly more interesting series, "High Lonesome" is crime comics at it's best.
June 24, 2020
A superbly crafted and very much a human interest tale with its no holds barred look at the dark side of the modern Native American communities that have been set-aside by the 'Americans'. In this volume we get to see the 'res' through the eyes of a con-man, who might seriously bad news to at least one member of the regular cast. The intense drama continues. 8 out of 12.
March 29, 2018
Reading Scalped Vol: 5 is like getting fucked with a steak knife.
Going all the way back to the Indian Wars of the mid to late 1800's to the dismal present, Jason Aaron has managed to write a story truly varnished with blood, guts, and more blood. From Wounded Knee and Little Bighorn, the roots of the sins of the past have given full flower to a ferocious growth, thorny with oppression and butchery. Grimy lines display the internecine flow from the past to the very tangible now.
What starts as a simplistic view of (the latest wave) of colonialism, readily gives way to a more complex view with all the nuances that would entail. From the very beginning, the wretchedness of the past is illustrated with an equally gnarled view of the Grand Canyon as it rises from the buttes and plateaus in the background. The very paradox of the beauty of the otherwise lifeless land-forms is powerfully juxtaposed with a collateral character's observations, the very thing that oppresses the Native Americans, the Reservations, is simultaneously the very thing that protects their peoples' culture - how twisted. This ferocious realization well colors the rest of this stunning follow up to the previous four dipped in gold sequels.
In contradistinction to the roughness of this offering, is the fresh addition of a new character to this ongoing serial. In a highly similar vein to Peter Miligan's beloved Human Target, this clearly Christopher Chance influenced fraudster/card shark (with make-up to boot) makes for a powerful entrance and ultimately a crucial affect upon the story. His actions recall first and well replicate second the incredibly rich tapestry of fictionalized meta-narratives within. Just as Scalped liberally samples (as it were) from Pulp Fiction, so to do internalized references reference themselves again and again to dramatic effect.
The brutality of the first section (which could well be featured on a Cannibal Corpse album cover) is continuated within the next part which exposits the grisly story of our re-introduced character, Diesel. A wild backstory truly deserving of his character, first rambles then shatters across the sand ridden landscapes of the American South-West. Although I totally found fault with the secondary illustrator in the previous collection, I was highly impressed by the stupendous art applied here to describe this awful backstory. By the end of his tale replete with neglect, murder, and mutilation, his veneer starts to resemble that of Sabretooth (from X-men) with all the atavism that entails. No mutation here folks, just unvarnished human nature - the primordial is within, not (as the doe-eyed Rousseauists would lead us to believe) without.
As impressed as I with with the secondary illustrator's improvements with Diesel's backstory, I was equally delighted with the tertiary's illustrator's visualizations concerning the tale of Nitz, our crooked F.B.I. agent. Virulent racism is crassly envined with the dark side of the 1950's Leave it to Beaver White Culture era. Alcoholism, extra-marital affairs, and more alcoholism saturate this tale of oppression, revenge, and (arguably) toxic masculinity. I've never felt such an emotional resonance to a bastard's plight before and it is to the credit of the illustrator, and the writer who were able to create such a humanly depicted bad guy before. *Clap.
The second to last cut of this five volume collection features yet another back story, that of the jailbird connection who is meant to resemble Leonard Peltier (who weirdly enough reminds me of Ron Jeremy). Highly emotive Sin-City tinged moments are artistically flaired with a tinge of light blue bespeckling rivers of cadmium red blood. Firmly turgid art brings yet two more bands of backstory enfleshing all those vague questions from the beginning to the forefront. The old man Catcher, in particular, is not the Ob-Wan(eqsue) character we expected him to be...
Finally, issue #29 brings it all back to the here and now. Now strung out on Heroin (and I think Oxy's) Bad Horse is now sucked even further into this crushing maw of human evil. When he grasps his head in despair (just like the cover to the second Napalm Death album) we really feel his suffocating anguish at all he experienced over the entirety of his awful life. Although he has fallen so far into the abyss, there is still farther space to fall into this one...
I can't wait to see just how far that black hole goes...
Going all the way back to the Indian Wars of the mid to late 1800's to the dismal present, Jason Aaron has managed to write a story truly varnished with blood, guts, and more blood. From Wounded Knee and Little Bighorn, the roots of the sins of the past have given full flower to a ferocious growth, thorny with oppression and butchery. Grimy lines display the internecine flow from the past to the very tangible now.
What starts as a simplistic view of (the latest wave) of colonialism, readily gives way to a more complex view with all the nuances that would entail. From the very beginning, the wretchedness of the past is illustrated with an equally gnarled view of the Grand Canyon as it rises from the buttes and plateaus in the background. The very paradox of the beauty of the otherwise lifeless land-forms is powerfully juxtaposed with a collateral character's observations, the very thing that oppresses the Native Americans, the Reservations, is simultaneously the very thing that protects their peoples' culture - how twisted. This ferocious realization well colors the rest of this stunning follow up to the previous four dipped in gold sequels.
In contradistinction to the roughness of this offering, is the fresh addition of a new character to this ongoing serial. In a highly similar vein to Peter Miligan's beloved Human Target, this clearly Christopher Chance influenced fraudster/card shark (with make-up to boot) makes for a powerful entrance and ultimately a crucial affect upon the story. His actions recall first and well replicate second the incredibly rich tapestry of fictionalized meta-narratives within. Just as Scalped liberally samples (as it were) from Pulp Fiction, so to do internalized references reference themselves again and again to dramatic effect.
The brutality of the first section (which could well be featured on a Cannibal Corpse album cover) is continuated within the next part which exposits the grisly story of our re-introduced character, Diesel. A wild backstory truly deserving of his character, first rambles then shatters across the sand ridden landscapes of the American South-West. Although I totally found fault with the secondary illustrator in the previous collection, I was highly impressed by the stupendous art applied here to describe this awful backstory. By the end of his tale replete with neglect, murder, and mutilation, his veneer starts to resemble that of Sabretooth (from X-men) with all the atavism that entails. No mutation here folks, just unvarnished human nature - the primordial is within, not (as the doe-eyed Rousseauists would lead us to believe) without.
As impressed as I with with the secondary illustrator's improvements with Diesel's backstory, I was equally delighted with the tertiary's illustrator's visualizations concerning the tale of Nitz, our crooked F.B.I. agent. Virulent racism is crassly envined with the dark side of the 1950's Leave it to Beaver White Culture era. Alcoholism, extra-marital affairs, and more alcoholism saturate this tale of oppression, revenge, and (arguably) toxic masculinity. I've never felt such an emotional resonance to a bastard's plight before and it is to the credit of the illustrator, and the writer who were able to create such a humanly depicted bad guy before. *Clap.
The second to last cut of this five volume collection features yet another back story, that of the jailbird connection who is meant to resemble Leonard Peltier (who weirdly enough reminds me of Ron Jeremy). Highly emotive Sin-City tinged moments are artistically flaired with a tinge of light blue bespeckling rivers of cadmium red blood. Firmly turgid art brings yet two more bands of backstory enfleshing all those vague questions from the beginning to the forefront. The old man Catcher, in particular, is not the Ob-Wan(eqsue) character we expected him to be...
Finally, issue #29 brings it all back to the here and now. Now strung out on Heroin (and I think Oxy's) Bad Horse is now sucked even further into this crushing maw of human evil. When he grasps his head in despair (just like the cover to the second Napalm Death album) we really feel his suffocating anguish at all he experienced over the entirety of his awful life. Although he has fallen so far into the abyss, there is still farther space to fall into this one...
I can't wait to see just how far that black hole goes...
March 2, 2025
Outstanding!
January 21, 2025
The series was already very good and this Volume just highlights everything that's good about it...plus revealing more plot turns.
Lots of characters...but all defined and easy to relate to...even if some are dregs of humanity.
A setting that rings true...again no sugar coating life in a modern day reservation.
I think one of the most underrated Vertigo reads but a great Crime story..very multilayered.
Lots of characters...but all defined and easy to relate to...even if some are dregs of humanity.
A setting that rings true...again no sugar coating life in a modern day reservation.
I think one of the most underrated Vertigo reads but a great Crime story..very multilayered.
April 28, 2018
Right when I thought I had this series figured out and thought it was growing stale, it punched me in the dick with two enormous plot twists. This is a series about so much more than cowboys, Indians, guns and casinos. This is a series about bounds that run deeper than an entire generation of people.
SCALPED continues to entertain me more than anything I've been reading.
SCALPED continues to entertain me more than anything I've been reading.
August 17, 2024
When i was a kid, i looked forward to the color comics in the Sunday newspaper, especially on rainy fall mornings like this. As a high-school freshman paperboy (still a kid), i dreaded delivering the Sunday editions on mornings like this, but at least i'd alway have a few envelopes with the customers' weekly payment to spend on a half-dozen donuts that i'd scarf down while watching World Wrestling Federation "bouts," followed by reading the sports section of the paper and the color comics.
Today as an almost 50-year-old, it was really nice to lounge in bed reading volume 5 of this color comic. My only regret is that my member berries don't 'member how simple the colors were in them old comics, eg,
Looking forward to the next 5 vols arriving at my local lieberry in a few days.
Today as an almost 50-year-old, it was really nice to lounge in bed reading volume 5 of this color comic. My only regret is that my member berries don't 'member how simple the colors were in them old comics, eg,
Looking forward to the next 5 vols arriving at my local lieberry in a few days.
June 14, 2014
Much of the best crime fiction of the last decade or so has appeared in graphic novel form rather than simply in prose. Scalped is at the very top of that particular phenomenon.
This volume is made up of five vignettes each focusing on a different character from the series (four regular characters and one new one). Many big mysteries are solved, almost casually. Two of the most opaque characters are given some depth. And a heist attempt on the casino gives some narrative umph that isn't driven entirely by the longer storylines.
Amazing stuff.
This volume is made up of five vignettes each focusing on a different character from the series (four regular characters and one new one). Many big mysteries are solved, almost casually. Two of the most opaque characters are given some depth. And a heist attempt on the casino gives some narrative umph that isn't driven entirely by the longer storylines.
Amazing stuff.
July 13, 2019
Söyleyecek çok şey yok bu hikaye hayal kırıklığı yaratacak aşamayı geçeli çok oldu.
October 22, 2012
That was some of the most compelling storytelling I've read in *long* while. Why can't all graphic novels be that good? Wow, at this rate Aaron's going to ruin me for 90% of the decent authors out there.
Aaron comes up with character flaws and the perspective to explain (even glorify) them so good that I actually want to meet these disgusting excuses for humanity. The secondary characters featured in this book are amazing - makes me wonder how many personality disorders Aaron is carrying around to be able to inhabit these mofos so well.
My plot spoiler notes:
Aaron comes up with character flaws and the perspective to explain (even glorify) them so good that I actually want to meet these disgusting excuses for humanity. The secondary characters featured in this book are amazing - makes me wonder how many personality disorders Aaron is carrying around to be able to inhabit these mofos so well.
My plot spoiler notes:
March 15, 2015
Wow. Jason Aaron has already made it to my top 5 comic writer list, and with this kind of work, he could make the jump to favourite of ALL genres. This is crime noir that sits comfortably alongside Elmore Leonard, Raymond Chandler, and in his own medium, Ed Brubaker. The best noir ironically requires shades of grey; many...not quite 50...but a lot. Aaron has a cast in this series we have been getting to know, but here in this volume, we delve into the back stories of some of the more important members we haven't yet...FBI Special Agent Nitz; Diesel, the 1/16 Kickapoo Indian wannabe; Catcher, the crazy old timer who's fried and spooky, and a career criminal with many names who may destroy everything for Dash.
This is just epically great. Characters I should hate are seen in the contextual light of their experiences, which changes my opinion to a bit greyer...
Revelations are made that add even more layers of depth and lies to get through, and we are left with the setup for a big swing in momentum.
I could gush more, but if you're not already on this train, get on now!! At the very least, read more Jason Aaron...in a just world, he'll be screenwriting and directing any time now...
This is just epically great. Characters I should hate are seen in the contextual light of their experiences, which changes my opinion to a bit greyer...
Revelations are made that add even more layers of depth and lies to get through, and we are left with the setup for a big swing in momentum.
I could gush more, but if you're not already on this train, get on now!! At the very least, read more Jason Aaron...in a just world, he'll be screenwriting and directing any time now...
November 7, 2018
From the introduction to this volume by Jason Starr: It's everything great crime fiction should be - raw, honest, ironic, in-your-face, and dark as hell. And why shouldn't it be dark? Crime be definition is dark, and Aaron refuses to give it to us any other way.
Not much I can add to that. As in each installment, we constantly move back and forth in time and between various perspectives. It is rather astounding how well Aaron keeps all those threads and plot lines so tightly woven together. It's hard to not find an ounce of compassion when you understand more of a person's history and where they are broken, and in this installment I felt that for two of my least favorite characters in this story. I don't love them now, mind you, I just softened my hard, unforgiving gaze. I know this is not going to end well, but I want to know how we get there.
My review of the complete series can be found here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Not much I can add to that. As in each installment, we constantly move back and forth in time and between various perspectives. It is rather astounding how well Aaron keeps all those threads and plot lines so tightly woven together. It's hard to not find an ounce of compassion when you understand more of a person's history and where they are broken, and in this installment I felt that for two of my least favorite characters in this story. I don't love them now, mind you, I just softened my hard, unforgiving gaze. I know this is not going to end well, but I want to know how we get there.
My review of the complete series can be found here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
October 4, 2015
High Lonesome isn't that action-packed as the 4th volume. But hell, this is surprisingly good as things turn out to be evil I cannot even root for even one character (except you Officer Falls Down, you are one helluva good cop). Dash and his drug addiction, Nitz and his vendetta, Diesel the 1/16 Kickapoo sociopath.
Volume 5 is no midseasom finale. It is a necessary motivation for the worse events to come.
Volume 5 is no midseasom finale. It is a necessary motivation for the worse events to come.
September 26, 2018
Scalped serisi açıldıkça açılıyor. İlk ciltlerde de yazdığım gibi zorlayıcı, alışılmadık gelen yapısı derinliği olan olaylar ve karakterlerle her seferinde daha da güzelleşiyor. Okudukça bir diğer cilt için heyecanlanıyorum. "Münzevi" ise bu seri içinkilometre taşlarından. Çok şey açıklığa kavuşurken ileriye dönük yeni, sorular oluşuyor. Bir günde okudum. Diğer cilt için sabırsızım. Seride ve bu kitap özelinde emeği geçen herkese teşekkürler.
March 14, 2014
Oh my gods!!! This may be one of the best noir adventures I have ever read!!! Just when you think you have reached the nadir, the author takes you to a darker hole! Yet, i still hold hope for Dash's redemption. Onward and downward fellow travelers!
November 2, 2022
Five volumes in, and SCALPED just keeps getting better and better. I'm going to run out of accolades to express my admiration for this work.
Confused and conflicted primary character Dash Bad Horse allows his new live-in lover (Carol, estranged daughter of Chief Red Crow) to transport him down a sex-fueled drug spiral, eventually persuading him to use heroin and crack. It nearly gets him killed (in more ways than one) if not for a fortuitous development when his life is on the line.
This five issue collection is book-ended by that story. In between are one-issue character reveals that Aaron does so well.
A new character with multiple names and disguises a la Human Target/Chameleon comes to the new Prairie Rose Casino to work his card shark moves and card-counting schemes to take in a big haul, when he spies an even bigger opportunity in the form of Dash, whom he can blackmail into assisting with a casino robbery. Aaron has a knack of making me sympathize with some pretty dark characters, but not this one. He's worthy of being despised, and I believe that was the intention. The final story in this volume deals with the casino robbery, and it's grim, gritty, bloody, brutal and dark as hell, befitting the mood Aaron has created for his saga. R.M. Guera illustrates both of those tales in his inimitable noir style.
Davide Furno illustrates the spotlight tale and backstory of Britt "Diesel" Fillenworth, the one-sixteenth Kickapoo and mostly white criminal. Furno's work has significantly improved from the last issue. He's no Guera, but there are some very well done panels in this story detailing the years of abuse that Diesel suffered and explains how he became the sociopathic thug he is today (as well as a backup FBI undercover agent). I hate what he does but I feel bad for him.
"The Ballad of Baylis Earl Nitz", illustrated by Francesco Francavilla goes over his backstory in detail, resulting in my understanding his motivations better (but not agreeing with his methods).
Nitz is an FBI supervisor of Dash and Diesel and also on a bloody quest for revenge against Red Crow that is highly personal.
R.M Guera is back on art for "I'll Never Get Outta Of This World Alive" which gets into specific details regarding the night in 1975 when two FBI agents were gunned down, and for the first time finally reveals who the murderer is as well as the killer of Gina Bad Horse, Dash's mother. This was foreshadowed in Volume Two but comes to a head here as this may play an important part in the story to come.
Kind of a pivot volume with a few new wrinkles and lots of additional adornments that are just delightful.
Confused and conflicted primary character Dash Bad Horse allows his new live-in lover (Carol, estranged daughter of Chief Red Crow) to transport him down a sex-fueled drug spiral, eventually persuading him to use heroin and crack. It nearly gets him killed (in more ways than one) if not for a fortuitous development when his life is on the line.
This five issue collection is book-ended by that story. In between are one-issue character reveals that Aaron does so well.
A new character with multiple names and disguises a la Human Target/Chameleon comes to the new Prairie Rose Casino to work his card shark moves and card-counting schemes to take in a big haul, when he spies an even bigger opportunity in the form of Dash, whom he can blackmail into assisting with a casino robbery. Aaron has a knack of making me sympathize with some pretty dark characters, but not this one. He's worthy of being despised, and I believe that was the intention. The final story in this volume deals with the casino robbery, and it's grim, gritty, bloody, brutal and dark as hell, befitting the mood Aaron has created for his saga. R.M. Guera illustrates both of those tales in his inimitable noir style.
Davide Furno illustrates the spotlight tale and backstory of Britt "Diesel" Fillenworth, the one-sixteenth Kickapoo and mostly white criminal. Furno's work has significantly improved from the last issue. He's no Guera, but there are some very well done panels in this story detailing the years of abuse that Diesel suffered and explains how he became the sociopathic thug he is today (as well as a backup FBI undercover agent). I hate what he does but I feel bad for him.
"The Ballad of Baylis Earl Nitz", illustrated by Francesco Francavilla goes over his backstory in detail, resulting in my understanding his motivations better (but not agreeing with his methods).
Nitz is an FBI supervisor of Dash and Diesel and also on a bloody quest for revenge against Red Crow that is highly personal.
R.M Guera is back on art for "I'll Never Get Outta Of This World Alive" which gets into specific details regarding the night in 1975 when two FBI agents were gunned down, and for the first time finally reveals who the murderer is as well as the killer of Gina Bad Horse, Dash's mother. This was foreshadowed in Volume Two but comes to a head here as this may play an important part in the story to come.
Kind of a pivot volume with a few new wrinkles and lots of additional adornments that are just delightful.
June 1, 2010
Jason Aaron continues to blow me away with this book. It is one of the most enjoyable stories I have ever read, populated by characters that I hate or pity or fear. It is the proverbial train wreck that I can’t stop watching. Everyone here is wretched, addicted, disgusting, evil. We are watching them destroy themselves and each other. We are compelled by this story, drawn into this world of horrible crimes. And there is no stylish or romanticized violence. It’s brutal. There’s nothing cool about being a cop or a criminal in this book. Eventually they all become monsters.
But these people seem so real. And at some point we must accept that the awful world that they live in is real. Maybe what makes Scalped so good, is that it shows us how monstrous we can be. It fascinates us with our own dark insides.
Technically the book seems perfect. Pacing, structure, tone. All fantastic.
Guera’s storytelling is tight and always interesting. His figures have weight and personality. And Brusco’s colors are dark, moody and just muddy enough.
But these people seem so real. And at some point we must accept that the awful world that they live in is real. Maybe what makes Scalped so good, is that it shows us how monstrous we can be. It fascinates us with our own dark insides.
Technically the book seems perfect. Pacing, structure, tone. All fantastic.
Guera’s storytelling is tight and always interesting. His figures have weight and personality. And Brusco’s colors are dark, moody and just muddy enough.
August 3, 2017
Díl, který to má těžké. Díky epizodickému soustředění se na dosud opomíjené (ovšem zásadní) postavy jim sice dodává tolik potřebnou hloubku (čímž se zvyšuje kvalita série), ale zároveň úvodní uvozovací číslo nasadí tak vysokou laťku a posadí sázky tak vysoko, že finální vyústění je... No, neuspokojivé. Osobně bych navíc zdejší "originy" raději viděl rozprostřené mezi více knih než takto pohromadě. Speciálně motivace "svině s FBI odznakem" Nitze měla s ohledem na jeho dosavadní chování přijít podstatně dříve než až v polovině série, to mi nikdo nevymluví.
January 2, 2025
Jesus Christ. Just when I think things can't get more fucked up. we add in a con man, his whole chapter reeks of ickiness as he's a two faced asshole who get to see in the mind of. He's just horrible. But this leads to him eventually meeting Bad Horse. Then we get a lot of background filled out on characters, and explosive final issue that's brutal and bloody and a cliffhanger of a ending. I need volume 2 of the Omnibus RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!
May 3, 2018
This entire series is awesome but this particular trade can be read first or by itself and you'll get drawn into the entire sick and fascinating world of SCALPED.
October 2, 2022
(Zero spoiler review for the deluxe edition collecting this arc) 3.75/5
I started reading Scalped about a year ago. I picked up Volume's one and two and inhaled them, falling for Aaron's gritty, urban slang and the depraved, chaotic yet ultimately realistic world he was creating. This was some of the darkest, most hard hitting noir I'd been lucky enough to read. Add in some amazing artwork from R.M Guerra and you had yourself a recipe for one of the finest comics available today. As the paperback run was discontinued, I went about the frustrating task of tracking down the deluxe editions which is the ultimate way to read any comic and my preferred method of collecting. I won't be any paperbacks anymore.
So after a year or so of waiting, and on the back of one of the greatest graphic novels I'd yet read, how did volume three fair. Well, not all that well to be honest. Pretty much everything that made volume one and two great has undergone a very noticeable reduction in quality here. I'd heard a tonne of Aaron's subsequent Marvel runs coming in for considerable flack, although this being the only thing I had to judge Aaron's work on, I always wondered... How could a man with this level of talent have it all go so pear shaped. Admittedly a superhero story is an altogether different beast, but the guy was so on point. Well, I can kinda see it now.
Everything here is worse. The dialogue is no longer dripping with malicious wit or humorous urban jargon. The characters are all less than they previously were. Going from deep and darkly flawed to pale imitations of what they once were. Plotting has gone from gloriously convoluted to unsatisfying and simplistic, with contrivances and plot armour frequently rearing their ugly head. The pacing is off, with Aaron hastily rushing through what could have been a more drawn out, rewarding saga. Hell, even Guerra's artwork seems to have lost a little of its lustre. Going from decadent and brutally messy to a cleaner, more sanitised look.
I don't know, maybe it's just me, but this went from glorious to simply good really, really quickly. A spoiler review would unearth and contrast the noticeable drop in quality with far greater clarity, but we don't do spoilers here. Here's hoping this was a mid-run slump, and shit gets going again for the final two volumes, of which I now have to wait for volume four to arrive in the mail before continuing. Still pretty good though, all things considered. 3.75/5
OmniBen.
I started reading Scalped about a year ago. I picked up Volume's one and two and inhaled them, falling for Aaron's gritty, urban slang and the depraved, chaotic yet ultimately realistic world he was creating. This was some of the darkest, most hard hitting noir I'd been lucky enough to read. Add in some amazing artwork from R.M Guerra and you had yourself a recipe for one of the finest comics available today. As the paperback run was discontinued, I went about the frustrating task of tracking down the deluxe editions which is the ultimate way to read any comic and my preferred method of collecting. I won't be any paperbacks anymore.
So after a year or so of waiting, and on the back of one of the greatest graphic novels I'd yet read, how did volume three fair. Well, not all that well to be honest. Pretty much everything that made volume one and two great has undergone a very noticeable reduction in quality here. I'd heard a tonne of Aaron's subsequent Marvel runs coming in for considerable flack, although this being the only thing I had to judge Aaron's work on, I always wondered... How could a man with this level of talent have it all go so pear shaped. Admittedly a superhero story is an altogether different beast, but the guy was so on point. Well, I can kinda see it now.
Everything here is worse. The dialogue is no longer dripping with malicious wit or humorous urban jargon. The characters are all less than they previously were. Going from deep and darkly flawed to pale imitations of what they once were. Plotting has gone from gloriously convoluted to unsatisfying and simplistic, with contrivances and plot armour frequently rearing their ugly head. The pacing is off, with Aaron hastily rushing through what could have been a more drawn out, rewarding saga. Hell, even Guerra's artwork seems to have lost a little of its lustre. Going from decadent and brutally messy to a cleaner, more sanitised look.
I don't know, maybe it's just me, but this went from glorious to simply good really, really quickly. A spoiler review would unearth and contrast the noticeable drop in quality with far greater clarity, but we don't do spoilers here. Here's hoping this was a mid-run slump, and shit gets going again for the final two volumes, of which I now have to wait for volume four to arrive in the mail before continuing. Still pretty good though, all things considered. 3.75/5
OmniBen.
December 25, 2022
I loved the backstory issues that covered Diesel’s twisted backstory.
Also the minor character of Wesley Willeford was really great. I loved the plot twist where he died of rat poisoning from that needle that was meant for Dash. I had to re-read earlier pages to catch how that happened, it was so subtle.
RE: the cliffhanger where Dash blows his cover to Carol- I’m assuming he’s going to try to make her his ally? Interesting.
Also the minor character of Wesley Willeford was really great. I loved the plot twist where he died of rat poisoning from that needle that was meant for Dash. I had to re-read earlier pages to catch how that happened, it was so subtle.
RE: the cliffhanger where Dash blows his cover to Carol- I’m assuming he’s going to try to make her his ally? Interesting.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 18, 2017
3.5 stars. This is a bit of an up and down volume. The chapter featuring Falls Down, Belcourt and Catcher is exceptionally good, and reveals important back story information. Diesel and Nitz's chapters are both interesting, and help to flesh out both characters. The arc featuring Dash and the "mystery" guests feels underdeveloped, and the ending stretches the limits of realism and "believability". Not a bad volume by any stretch, but not the series' strongest.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 19, 2012
My grandaddy was full blooded Cherokee that come outta the Smokey Mountains in eastern Tennessee and ended up setting himself down outside of Memphis in a town called Ripley right around 1940. He'd already had one family on a reservation out east and just up and left them to fend for themselves before he took up with my granma and started a whole new family out there in the cotton picking fields of western Tennessee. He never talked about like on the reservation, never made a mention of his previous wife and kids except when he was feeling particularly mean and wanted to make himself and everyone else a sight more miserable than they alreay were. He died a few years after I was born, his hands so knotted up from pushing a plow that for the last eight years of his life he couldn't even roll a cigarette and had his youngest son do it, who was all of 8 years old at the time. So i don't know much of anything about life on a rez outside of a few stories about some wicked old nuns and some rough and rowdy late nights. I don't know anything outside of what I read anymore because there's no one else left alive to tell grandad's stories. So I can't judge much of anything in these books even though I am Cherokee and my people come off a rez a lot of years ago. But I do know when something feels right. When it feels like the truth. You can feel when something is genuine. And Scalped has surely been that.
This is, however, by far the weakest installment of Scalped to date, this book is basically one long flashback. Although it tries to clear up a few plot points from previous issues, it fails to keep the reader interested in those points. I personally lay the blame mainly on the artists Davide Furno and Francesco Francavilla for deviating so far from RM Guera's amazing inks that it made it hard to focus. Their art lacked strength of tone or contrast and captured none of the violence or heartache that it was supposed to. It failed on all levels along with weak monologues and a lack of dialogue. A severely disappointing book in every way, but still head and shoulders above all other graphic novels currently on the market.
This is, however, by far the weakest installment of Scalped to date, this book is basically one long flashback. Although it tries to clear up a few plot points from previous issues, it fails to keep the reader interested in those points. I personally lay the blame mainly on the artists Davide Furno and Francesco Francavilla for deviating so far from RM Guera's amazing inks that it made it hard to focus. Their art lacked strength of tone or contrast and captured none of the violence or heartache that it was supposed to. It failed on all levels along with weak monologues and a lack of dialogue. A severely disappointing book in every way, but still head and shoulders above all other graphic novels currently on the market.
October 26, 2016
Good grief this is a great series! This volume like the four previous was almost impossible for me to put down. Dash isn't the only great character, every character in the series brings something entertaining & twisty to the table. I'm just glad this isn't a brand new series because I'd hate to have to wait to see how this is gonna end. Gonna start Vol. 6 immediately. Highly recommend.
August 17, 2016
Catcher says, "Hookah Hey Motherfuckers".
I had to see meaning of this which meant "A good day to die".
I really love this series.
I had to see meaning of this which meant "A good day to die".
I really love this series.
October 12, 2023
As Jason Aaron's Scalped reaches its halfway point, "High Lonesome" presents the series' most compelling arc yet. "High Lonesome" is a series of interweaving stories focused on different characters all leading to a bloody heist in Red Crow's newly opened casino. Returning plot points involving Diesel's incarceration, Rain Falls' investigation into the murder of Gina Bad Horse, Agent Nitz' dark motivations for the Red Crow case, and Dash's ongoing struggles with drug abuse are all major pieces to the puzzle here, but everything is framed around the introduction of a sadistic con man who comes into town. Introduced in the first issue of this volume, the con man interacts with various individuals around the rez as we learn more about this historical framing that sets the stage for this series. Depictions of major events like Wounded Knee and Little Bighorn serve to demonstrate the tremendous wrongs enacted upon the Native population, and yet the story serves to remind us that the iron will of the people have allowed to survive the bloody conquests and the slow genocide that followed.
The first issue in this volume (Scalped #25) is a masterclass in storytelling, and stands out as one of the best in the entire series. The con man (whose real name is obscured by the myriad of fake names he provides) is clearly learned in the history of the region, but has a callous dismissal of the people who live there. His sociopathic tendencies are highlighted by his frenetic thought process between his various interactions with people in the rez. Initially hoping to clean out the casino by counting cards, he recognizes Dash from a previous encounter as a federal agent. Putting two and two together, he suspects that Dash is working undercover to bring down Red Crow, and he leverages this information into getting assistance into robbing the casino. Unbeknownst to the con man, Dash's lucidity is in question due to his progression into doing hard drugs with his romantic partner, Carol.
The story contains a ton of grim stuff, but it only serves to ground Aaron's Scalped even more. R.M. Guéra continues to deliver on the art duties, though Davide Furnò's issue here didn't quite work for me as well as his work on some of the previous issues. Francesco Francavilla joins on to do the art duties for the issue centered on Agent Nitz and it's overall solid, with the differentiated art style working the change in scenery and style of story. It isn't the more vibrant style more associated with Francavilla's current output, but still quite elegant nonetheless.
The first issue in this volume (Scalped #25) is a masterclass in storytelling, and stands out as one of the best in the entire series. The con man (whose real name is obscured by the myriad of fake names he provides) is clearly learned in the history of the region, but has a callous dismissal of the people who live there. His sociopathic tendencies are highlighted by his frenetic thought process between his various interactions with people in the rez. Initially hoping to clean out the casino by counting cards, he recognizes Dash from a previous encounter as a federal agent. Putting two and two together, he suspects that Dash is working undercover to bring down Red Crow, and he leverages this information into getting assistance into robbing the casino. Unbeknownst to the con man, Dash's lucidity is in question due to his progression into doing hard drugs with his romantic partner, Carol.
The story contains a ton of grim stuff, but it only serves to ground Aaron's Scalped even more. R.M. Guéra continues to deliver on the art duties, though Davide Furnò's issue here didn't quite work for me as well as his work on some of the previous issues. Francesco Francavilla joins on to do the art duties for the issue centered on Agent Nitz and it's overall solid, with the differentiated art style working the change in scenery and style of story. It isn't the more vibrant style more associated with Francavilla's current output, but still quite elegant nonetheless.
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