The Best
I absolutely love Tallulah Black, and it's obvious that both Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray do as well. I love that Tallulah is this hard, no-nonsense chick who isn't afraid to stand up for herself, and she's portrayed really well here. I absolutely love the fact that without Tallulah, Hex might not have made it out of the mess we see in this issue in one piece. The creative team makes her seem really capable and confident, and some of the best scenes of this issue have her at the center of the conflict.
I really enjoy getting a backstory for Alan Wayne, Bruce's Great-great-grandfather and the first Wayne to make Gotham City his home. I think he's portrayed really well and it's neat to see traces of Bruce in his character. The alluding to his "detective work," and his loyalty to Gotham City are two things that really worked well in this issue. I'm also interested in seeing whether Mayor Cobblepot (clearly the great-great-grandfather of the Penguin) will continue to play with the good guys, or if there's more corruption that the creative team plans to uncover.
There's a great moment where Jonah Hex insists on leaving and going out on his own, but you can tell that he isn't serious. The moments he and Tallulah share on panel are really laugh-out-loud funny, and they are two characters that work really well together. Their banter is part of what makes this title one of my favorites each month.
The Bad
Nothing bad here.
The Verdict
This book is one of the most consistent titles published by DC. I love the interactions between the characters, I think the art (Moritat) is perfect and very complimentary to the story, and I feel like this is a creative team that knows and understands who Jonah Hex and his supporting cast really, truly are. The back-ups in each issue are highly entertaining, and it's great to see some of these old DC characters get a little bit of the spotlight once again. Great story, awesome pacing and brilliant dialogue. You will laugh at every innuendo, I promise.