Blood will be bled.

There are limited numbers of ways to shoot somebody. Although the means are finite, Gray and Palmiotti are still writing riveting stories about shootouts that are not about the means or the ends but the things in between.

We know the end. Hex is going to kill those who cross him. We know the means. He is going to kill them with a shot, a stab or a strike.

The stuff in between is where this comics elevates itself from more than just a revenge book to something more rewarding.

Tonally, this book was a perfect mix of rich Western dialogue and shadowy imagery. Each chapter—each panel building the tension that eventually climaxes in that familiar end. Artist Brian Stelfreeze and colorist Dave Stewart set that setting and mood that Hex thrives in. One silent panel has a shocked bounty running through rain disturbed puddles away from Hex and a saloon that beautifully echoes panels from Alan Moore’s Watchmen.

Jonah Hex is as morally convoluted as the murky imagery yet he has a definite code that is hard to figure. He brings trouble down on himself and those around him intentionally and unintentionally. This issue sees that familiar theme work in his favor when his fleeing bounty thins out Hex’s group of antagonists a bit.

If you like Westerns at all or just want wonderfully executed single issue stories that don’t rely on super heroics, try this book out.

Blood will be bled every issue. That’s Hex’s way.