Comic Vine Review

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All-Star Western #30 - Home Again; The Other Side, Part One

4

Jonah is back in the past and he really needs a drink.

The Good

Although seeing Gina Green bit the bullet in the last issue was a bit of a bummer, since it's pretty much just hitting the reset button for Jonah, once he got back to the past, it starts to pay off here. It's hard to progress this character and his stories with someone from the future, who isn't trained in guns or fighting, following him around. For those who want Jonah to have that companionship, luckily, writer Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray bring back Tallulah Black.

Staz Johnson, with Michael Atiyeh on colors, continues to put out some excellent work on this book. Between Staz and Moritat, ALL STAR WESTERN has a great, distinctive style that truly represents the old west in a gritty way that is reminiscent of western comics from years past. Johnson completely nails it in some very cinematic shots that are very much like spaghetti western films proving that the wild west genre still works well in comic book format.

The back up story "Madame.44" with Palmiotti, Gray, and Atiyeh returning with Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez follows Jeanie Walker AKA Madame .44 on her journey with her father which ends up leading to something very familiar to Batman fans. This is really the first time, in a long time, where the back-up story was strong and just as exciting as the main story. There are moments of heavily dialogue, but it moves smoothly and fits the scenes well.

The Bad

The Jonah Hex story ends so quickly. It really starts to pick up pace and then hits a brick wall. For so long, this book has been just a Jonah Hex book, and there's been no back-ups to speak of, so getting a back-up here is a bit of a shocker. How quickly we forget the title of this book is ALL STAR WESTERN and not JONAH HEX.

The Verdict

ALL STAR WESTERN #30 is the return to the classic western comic that made this book awesome. Sure, the past few issues were a ton of fun, but #30 gets back to what many fans were missing. What was really surprising was how fun the back-up story was. Both pieces were incredibly strong and leave the reader wanting more. The only real downside is that it has been a while since we've seen back-ups, so it was a bit of a shock to have the Jonah story end so abruptly. Overall, this was a ton of fun and I highly recommend it.