Jonah Hex: Two Gun Mojo (DC Comics Vertigo (Paperback)) [Paperback]

Joe R. Lansdale (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

East Texan Joe Lansdale didn't start out as a writer of comics, but he had always admired two DC characters, Jonah Hex and Batman, for their quality of being "dark knights." Jonah Hex is no sleek crusader, though: He's ugly, bizarre, and "just damn ornery." This bound mini-series of five comic books is about a man of the old South in a splatter-western world--a world of weird horror and macabre humor. With wicked full-color art by Timothy Truman and Sam Glanzman.

About the Author

Where does Mojo storytelling come from? How does a fella learn tospin over-the-top yarns of any sort: horror, suspense, humor, science fiction, Western, what have you? First you got to see the world, like champion Mojo storyteller Joe R. Lansdale, who has lived everywhere from Gladewater, Texas to Mount Enterprise, Texas to Nacogdoches, Texas! "Texas is so wrapped up in myth and legend, it's hard to know what the state and its people are really about," says Lansdale. "Real Texans, raised on these myths and legends, sometimes become legends themselves. The bottom line is, Texas and its people are pretty much what most people mean when they use the broader term 'America.' No state better represents the independent spirit, the can-do attitude of America, better than Texas." The second ingredient to good Mojo storytelling is learning how to take a punch. Or a kick. Or a poke in the eye. And then learning how to avoid them. Lansdale is a student of the martial arts for more than thirty years. He's a two-time inductee into the International Martial Arts Hall of Fame, one such honor bestowed upon him for his founding of Shen Chuan, Martial Science. He holds belts in Daito Ryu Aikijujutsu, Combat Hapkido, American Combat Kempo, and Aikido, amongst others; in fact, his standard day is six hours at the typewriter, three hours at Lansdale's Self Defense Systems, the martial-arts studio which he owns and at which he teaches. With more than twenty books to his credit-and 200 short stories-Joe R. Lansdale is the champion Mojo storyteller. He's been called "the Stephen King of Texas" by Texas Monthly; "an immense talent" by Booklist; "a born storyteller" by Robert Bloch; and The New York Times Book Review declares he has "a folklorist's eye for telling detail and a front-porch raconteur's sense of pace." He's won umpty-ump awards, including five Bram Stoker horror awards, a British Fantasy Award, the American Mystery Award, the Horror Critics Award, the "Shot in the Dark". International Crime Writer's award, the Booklist Editor's Award, the Critic's Choice Award, and a New York Times Notable Book award. He's got the most decorated mantle in all of Nacogdoches! Lansdale lives in Nacogdoches, Texas, with his wife, Karen-an occasional writer and editor-and their son and daughter, Keith and Kasey.

Product Details

• Paperback: 1 pages
• Publisher: Dc Comics (October 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156389162X
• ISBN-13: 978-1563891625
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,101,056 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joe R. Lansdale is the author of over thirty novels and numerous short stories. His work has appeared in national anthologies, magazines, and collections, as well as numerous foreign publications. He has written for comics, television, film, newspapers, and Internet sites. His work has been collected in eighteen short-story collections, and he has edited or co-edited over a dozen anthologies. He has received the Edgar Award, eight Bram Stoker Awards, the Horror Writers Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the British Fantasy Award, the Grinzani Cavour Prize for Literature, the Herodotus Historical Fiction Award, the Inkpot Award for Contributions to Science Fiction and Fantasy, and many others. His novella Bubba Hotep was adapted to film by Don Coscarelli, starring Bruce Campbell and Ossie Davis. His story "Incident On and Off a Mountain Road" was adapted to film for Showtime's "Masters of Horror." He is currently co-producing several films, among them The Bottoms, based on his Edgar Award-winning novel, with Bill Paxton and Brad Wyman, and The Drive-In, with Greg Nicotero. He is Writer In Residence at Stephen F. Austin State University, and is the founder of the martial arts system Shen Chuan: Martial Science and its affiliate, Shen Chuan Family System. He is a member of both the United States and International Martial Arts Halls of Fame. He lives in Nacogdoches, Texas with his wife, dog, and two cats.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hex holds you in its spell, April 20, 1998

By 

R. Daniel Paddock ([e-mail]) (Philadelphia, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jonah Hex: Two Gun Mojo (DC Comics Vertigo (Paperback)) (Paperback)

This book is probably one of the best comics in recent history. Lansdale and Truman's styles mesh into a cohesive package of grit and laughs, breathing new life into the once-thought-dead genre of the western comic. I knew that I had to buy it after the first page. Lansdale's strong narrative voice grabs the reader by the neck and and holds him there until the final panel. Be sure to pick up the 5 issue miniseries that follows, Riders of the Worm and Such, as well...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jonah Hex: Two Gun Mojo, January 11, 2007

By 

sleeping sheepsnake "Seth" (Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jonah Hex: Two Gun Mojo (DC Comics Vertigo (Paperback)) (Paperback)

Just terrific. Two Gun Mojo featuring Wild West comix icon Jonah Hex is a rousing Western hybrid. Sure, the horror elements--zombies brought to life by a spike-toothed snake-oil salesman skilled in the ways of voodoo--don't bring Gary Cooper in black and white to mind, but I'm all for Hex and horror colliding in a one-horse town. And if Wild Bill Hickok himself is back as one of the undead to challenge the speed of Jonah's gunhand, then so much the better.

The supporting characters help keep us rooted in the West: Slow Go, aged bounty-hunter, terrible shot, and perfect foil for Hex, at least until the zombies corner him in a stable in the night of dead; the Indian woman whom Hex defends in a bar full of bigots and who later repays the favour by attending Hex's public hanging (sign says "Noon Or Thereabouts") in disruptive style; the Apaches and Cavalrymen who go to war with Hex caught right in the middle when all he wanted was a little revenge, out in the desert, against Doc Williams, snake-oil peddler, and all-around snake.

This is a brutal tale of murder, revenge and most types of lawlessness you could imagine on the wild frontier. The art by Truman and Glanzman is superb--a dusty nightmarish treat--but some of the images are quite gory. Jonah himself is a study in quiet charisma and determination, and author Joe Lansdale puts all the right words in his mutilated mouth while the bullets keep flying out of his gun. This was a wonderful finale to my recent look at the Wild Wild West in Comics, before turning my focus to Space Soldiers.

5.0 out of 5 stars The First (and best) of the Weird Westerns, March 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Jonah Hex: Two Gun Mojo (DC Comics Vertigo (Paperback)) (Paperback)

This is a prime example of why comics should be getting more respect. Landsdale and Truman recreate the badass character of Jonah Hex and pit him against a supernatural (?) menace. The art is gritty and real, the dialogue is crisp and clear as a desert sunrise. My favorite line? " That's Jonah Hex his own damn self. He's killed more men than hell has souls. " The fact that this series hasn't been optioned as a film is a crime. I have heard that Hex was recently on an episode of Batman: The Animated Series. If anyone could do this series justice, it'd be them. If you like westerns with an edge, this is for you. If you're a horror fan wanting a creepy story, this is for you. Check it out. It won't dissapoint.