How can one object have such power over one person? In the only season of the severely under watched One Dollar, we get a tale of how a one-dollar bill connects the people of a small town. The show would eventually reveal how a major crime affects the people of the town and digs up some undisputed truths about each character. The show revealed to viewers how even in the Eden-like of places, darkness is also present.

What these events usually show is the evil that men do is what usually hides in them when they are most desperate. I always wondered how it would be if these objects actually had a hold on that sort of person? What evil things can it unleash? In the second issue of The Dark Gun, we travel to a different time but with much of the same result.

We meet train robber Roark Ambrose who had just been killed by a Pinkerton agent, as his childhood friend, looks at his lifeless body, their lives literally flashes before his eyes. As we are taken to when they were orphans, where they bonded because of the conditions they grew up in, which lead them to head west when they were old enough to leave. As they head on their trip, their guide gets killed, and they also face certain death, with a Tomahawk tribesman chasing them. Until Roarke, pulls out the Dark Gun, and aims it at the tribeman , as if he suddenly became a man that day. That day would only embolden Roarke, as he we take our narrator with him on his first train robbery, one that would make him infamous. As he would go on to do  more train robberies, his legend only grew, and as the two old friends met years later, he would ask I why he did it, inferring that it would have been money but it really was the reactions he would get from the train passengers, it was the control he would have. By issue’s end, a surprising fact ties the story together.

Overall, the comic is a coming of age story which shows readers that this series will be more than your typical Western, one that transcends genres on the strength of these two storytellers. The story by Matt Durand is action packed and bittersweet. The art by Taylan Kurtulus is vivid and gorgeous. Altogether, an excellent tale of two friends whose kinship outlasts them both.

Story: Matt Durand Art: Taylan Kurtulus
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

The power people put over objects and their value has made materialism almost a way of life. The thoughts that usually come up when one considers such masterpieces as the Mona Lisa, the words “masterpiece” and “brilliant” tend to flood conversations. Just because we label such items with this “value,” do they truly deserve it? Does that value come from the rarity and creators behind such pieces?

Another such item with a long history is the Stradivarius violin. One requires a city permit from Cremona Italy, before it gets played by any musician and has been in existence since 1720.The movie Red Violin was based on the violin’s immense history but with a sinister twist. I always wondered how this would be applied to different objects, and how would it affect the world around it? In Matt Durand and Taylan Kurtulus’ The Dark Gun, we get a wild twist on objects with hidden histories, one that changes everyone around it.

We meet Jon Ambrose, as he writes a letter to his son, knowing he might not see tomorrow, he tells the truth of what happened when he was an Army cavalryman in 1876. For one morning, one of the men in charge of the artillery gives him brand new gun, one that he feels an uncanny connection to and one which feels as if its otherworldly. As heads off on patrol for the first time, he was warned of the tribes that still inhabit the land, mostly legends and some of it true, but all of it to scare new soldiers. As this becomes the first time, he brandishes the gun, his aim becomes perfect, killing whomever is front of him, as they take out a few natives and imprisoning the others. Unexpectedly, the gun calls to Jon once more, causing him to kill everyone in sight including his fellow cavalryman. By issue’s end, Jon meets his ultimate fate but not without his telling the true power of the weapon.

Overall, a powerful story about choice, legacy, and those forces beyond our control. The story by Durand is enigmatic, action packed and ultimately, grim. The art by Kurtulus is gorgeous and well drawn. Altogether, a story that shows how paramount selection is and how it affects your world.

Story: Matt Durand Art: Taylan Kurtulus
Story: 9.7 Art: 9.5 Overall: 9.6 Recommendation: Buy