It’s been a while since I can honestly say I loved an issue of this series. All Star Western has always been a solid, four star book but only once has it ever gotten a five star or Pick of the Week honors in my mind (issue #4). So when I opened this issue I was expecting some good, but not great reads as always. But finally, after four months, this book finally delivers a worthwhile issue that is worth reviewing.

Let it be known that this issue is one of the craziest issues I’ve read in a long time. Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray just take away the filters of this series and go all out on the crazy. We got Hex fighting in a ‘Fight Club’ situation, one insane blonde assassin, sexy bath times, weird prison inmates, and Dr. Arkham smoking Opium….for some reason. That all happens pretty much in the first half of the issue and it really made the issue stand out. Why is Dr. Arkham smoking opium? I have no idea but it made for some good laughs when he got busted. I also love the cartoony ending with Hex and Arkham is peril and of course it’s all Arkham’s fault in Hex’s mind. The back up isn’t as crazy except that it has a Samurai in the middle of the desert. But it has a nice origin for this Cinnamon character and silly name aside I like how tough she is. She’s no Tallulah Black but she plays a nice foil to Nighthawk’s care free attitude.

Ever since Moritat let Gabriel Bautista be the colorist of this series his pencils have gotten stronger in each issue. There is a lot of detail in each of these panels that it’s hard to fathom Moritat can do this monthly. The Architecture along, both in skylines and interiors, are impressive to look at. But I love how he draws the characters in each issue. The men all have some sort of gruff, sketchy pencils to them (especially Hex) while the women all look “smooth” and beautiful. He wants to make sure this Z.C. chick is gorgeous so he makes a lot of detail into her hair and figure to show us that. It’s not cheesecake though which is the impressive thing. Guillem March would’ve just made her bust line enormous and showcase her butt like no tomorrow. But here Moritat does the women in these books tastefully which I admire. The back up art by Patrick Scherberger is very different and more mainstream then what we see in Moritat’s. But I like his style in that it is very Gary Frank-lite with the designs. Mike Atiyeh’s colors also make the book stand out with his bright colors. It’s nice to see a western book by Palmiotti and Gray be nice to look at instead of being brownish. (I mean no offense to all of the artists on Jonah Hex but it’s nice to see a different take on the landscape for a change)

If you have been on the fence with this series then this issue should definitely ease your worries. This book is crazy fun with a lot of funny images but some great action as well. The art in both stories is pretty damn good too even though Moritat and Scherberger’s styles are vastly different. Overall this issue makes me happy that I stuck with the series because these guys definitely know what they’re doing with Hex even if the format of the series has changed since the relaunch.