Customer Reviews

Blaze Of Glory: The Last Ride of the Western Heroes

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For anyone thinking they will see the old Marvel Western heroes of yesteryear, think again. These "new" versions of the old standbys are quite different from the originals of the 50',60's and 70's. Kid Colt (my old favorite)has an anger management problem and shoots defenseless enemies.The other characters also have different slants. They are basically new characters with old names. Once you get past that, Ostrander's story can be viewed in a different light. This story is a recycled Magnificent 7 at best. The art on the other hand is outstanding.If only someone would bring back the old characters with a fresher more original story.

I have to admit, I'ma sucker for Westerns. These days, not a lot of good movies or books come out about them, other than cliched stuff we got a long time ago. Now I don't remember any of these character of the days gone by, but I do know that this collection is marvellous. I was recommended Apache Skies by a comic bookstore owner during my stay in Toronto, but I couldn't read a sequel without reading the original. Boy, what fun it was to read through this, I might say.

The story, I'm afraid to say, is cliched. But then all Westerns are. This one is different, however in terms of how these characters of the past were brought together by a common goal. To help people in need even when their life was at stake. The cast is eclectic and everyone seems to be called Kid this or this Kid. If kids could actually shoot like that in the old days, good thing we're in the 21st century. Ostrander provides a no hassle, origin free story of the characters and takes them off one by one by the end of this 96 page collection. He does so ith style and with respect to these legends.

Leonardo Manco was born to draw this. His grim style and shadowy outlines make this story come to life in ways, no artist could. He's really good when compared to his early days on Hellstorm. You don't want him to draw spandex. This guy is a method artist and he'll give you reality in its grimmest. With each project, his hand seems to get more and more at ease with making the reader used to his style at a first glance.

Great book with a nice and very sad ending. For a reader who has hardly known these characters, it's very hard to say goodbye in such a short notice. Then again, do people actually die in comics? Better check out the sequel to see where the story was heading when the sun was setting on our heroes at the end.

Many former western heros return to join forces for one last time to defend a small town in this western shoot 'em up.

Although the story is nothing new or innovative, this is still a good comic book. The dialogue is passable in this tale, but the artwork is where the book really shines. Manco's artwork conveys the action scenes and gunfights nicely and his gritty style fits the story well (keep in mind though that his work here is not the painted art style seen in the sequel "Apache Skies").

This book is recommended for fans of old time westerns with many gunfights and comic fans who like an action-oriented story with good artwork.

John Ostrander ( Grimjack, The Spectre) says goodbye to the Marvel Western lineup of the sixties and early seventies. In bringing a Spaghetti western sensibility to what were essentially Roy Rogers clones he puts a new spin and fitting ending to these forgotten heroes.