That Texas Blood duo Chris Condon and Jacob Phillips have another hit on their hands with their new Western miniseries The Enfield Gang Massacre. The series’ debut issue has sold out completely at the distributor level and will be rushed back to print this week in order to keep up with escalating reorder activity. The reprint issue will also feature new cover art by Sean Phillips.
The Enfield Gang Massacre drops readers back in Ambrose County, Texas—but 150 years in the past! Gunslinging action meets dark frontier drama in this original Western thriller, as Montgomery Enfield and his gang of outlaws find themselves in the crosshairs of an aging Texas Ranger and a newborn county that’s hungry for law.
The Enfield Gang Massacre #1, second printing (Lunar Code 0923IM810) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, October 4.
The Enfield Gang Massacre #2 (Lunar Code 0723IM318) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, September 13.
The Enfield Gang Massacre #3 (Lunar Code 0823IM375) and The Enfield Gang Massacre #3 “The Walking Dead Team-Up” variant (Lunar Code 0823IM376) will also be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, October 4.
It’s a new week and we have a lot coming at you! There’s still some SDCC coverage and of course Otakon too! While we gear up for that and cons to come, here’s some comic news and reviews from around the web to start the week.
Westerns are bursting at the seams with infamous towns and counties whose histories are written in blood. The city of Tombstone in Arizona, the town of Deadwood in South Dakota, these are places that birthed stories and legends about how wild the West really was, and how violent the men in them were. Chris Condon and Jacob Phillips already had their very own dark Western town in their Neo-Western comic That Texas Blood, a place called Ambrose County. Now, fans of Texas Blood get a kind of origin story for it in a new spin-off series called The Enfield Gang Massacre, a story that goes back to the time of cowboys to unearth the violent happenings that gave birth to the land future criminals will take up residence in.
The story centers on the pursuit of Montgomery Enfield, an outlaw with a gang of his own, that’s believed to have authored the grisly murder of a bank worker back in 1875. The people of Ambrose County, a small Texas town at this point in time, demand justice at any cost. A mob of angry people have decided this man’s particular killing demands justice be repaid in kind, a comment on how thin the lines is between legal consequences and revenge. Just how fair the whole ordeal will turn out to be remains to be seen, but things are pointing to a very messy end, something that’s given credence by the comic’s title itself.
Condon brings the same attention to detail to character development and world building that’s present in That Texas Blood. Both the people of Ambrose and the members of the Enfield Gang feel storied, complete with their own stubborn prejudices and ideals. It’d be easy to equate the world and character work done here with that seen in the crime films of the Coen Brothers, and while there’s certainly some of it here, Condon’s approach is specific enough to warrant its own space in the genre.
The same carries over to Phillips’s art, another showcase of nuanced character design and geographic cohesiveness. Phillips’s attention to character is as focused as that afforded to Ambrose County. Personalities and attitudes jump out of every person displayed on a panel, while the location’s essence is felt throughout. Phillips harnesses the violence Condon extracts from his dialogues and makes sure everything follows suit.
The coloring, done by Phillips along with Pip Martin on assists, makes sure there’s an aesthetic link to Texas Blood. There’s an interest in capturing an overarching feel to the story that places Enfield Gang in the continuum of Texas Blood‘s history. Every single element is tuned to that particular frequency, and it allows for a personal type of worldbuilding that favors the minutia of shared experiences rather than large scale events to hold everything together.
Special mention has to be given to the faux newspaper article exploring the titular massacre found in the last pages of the book. It takes the form of a special investigative report on the myths behind the massacre and how important it is to remember that facts are always pulling in one direction while local legends push with equal strength in the other. It puts the story’s essence on a slab for readers to dissect, inviting discussions on the nature of verifiable truth vs. agreed upon truths. I look forward to more of them.
The Enfield Massacre #1 promises a whole new chapter in the world of Ambrose County, giving it a longer narrative reach while opening numerous doors for more stories spread throughout the location’s history. Condon and Phillips are producing career-defining work here, and we’re lucky to be witnessing it one comic at a time.
Story: Chris Condon, Art: Jacob Phillips Color Assists: Pip Martin Art: 10 Story: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Read and make sure you’re also following That Texas Blood.
Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Wednesdays (and Tuesdays) are new comic book day! Each week hundreds of comics are released, and that can be pretty daunting to go over and choose what to buy. That’s where we come in
Each week our contributors choose what they can’t wait to read this week or just sounds interesting. In other words, this is what we’re looking forward to and think you should be taking a look at!
Find out what folks think below, and what comics you should be looking out for this week.
Battle Action #1 (Rebellion/2000AD) – Garth Ennis doing more war comics, nuff said.
Children of the Vault #1 (Marvel) – The Children of the Vault want to be humanity’s salvation but what’s their motivation? The Fall of X continues!
Comic Books Kill #1 (Scout Comics) – Comics creator Jack Levi places his life and career on the line when he begins an affair with the femme fatale lover of his mafia boss publisher. An intriguing concept and idea.
Con & On #2 (AHOY Comics) – The first issue had you guessing what real life event/person everything was based on and we’re excited for more of that in the second issue!
Dwellings #1 (Oni Press) – Jay Stephens has a hit with this as it’s already allocated and getting multiple printings.
The Enfield Gang Massacre #1 (Image Comics) – Montgomery Enfield and his gang of outlaws find themselves in the crosshairs of an aging Texas Ranger and a newborn county that’s hungry for law. Always cool to check out a new modern Western.
Knight Terrors #3 (DC Comics) – The event has been intriguing and we’re wondering where it’s all going.
The Madness #1 (AWA) – Government sponsored superheroes are sent to assassinate a thief but take out her family instead. Now, she’s out for revenge.
Mech Cadets #1 (BOOM! Studios) – A fresh debut of this awesome series! We loved the original release and excited for this!
Scarlett Couture: The Munich File #1 (Titan Comics) – We’re big fans of Des Taylor’s art style and excited for this series.
WildC.A.T.s #10 (DC Comics) – Wildstorm’s characters are brought into the DCU and it works! The series has been a hell of a lot of fun so far mixing up classic characters.
You’ve Been Cancelled #3 (Mad Cave Studios) – The series has been full of action and laughs. It’s just kinetic insanity and we’re here for it.
That Texas Blood duo—Chris Condon and Jacob Phillips—returns to Ambrose County, Texas with a five-issue miniseries set 150 years in the past and titled, The Enfield Gang Massacre. This all new, six issue tale is set to launch in August from Image Comics.
Gunslinging action meets dark frontier drama in this original Western thriller, as Montgomery Enfield and his gang of outlaws find themselves in the crosshairs of an aging Texas Ranger and a newborn county that’s hungry for law.
The Enfield Gang Massacre #1 (Diamond Code JUN230045) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, August 9.
