Accent UK’s Western: Better Than Spaghetti

Western
Written & Illustrated by a stampede of creative folks
Edited by Dave West & Colin Mathieson
Design & Production by Andy Bloor
Published by Accent UK
Reviewed by Richard Caldwell

Alright pilgrims, I admit my bias. I love a good anthology, and this here anthology is good. Darn good. Accent UK is doing it right, releasing their annual smartly packaged and themed anthologies, each one growing jumbo-sized like a bootless foot swelling from a rattlesnake’s bite. This time round the bend, we get a massive heap of a stew of cowboy tales. I’ll ease up on the lingo if you hear me out. And you really should, because Accent UK’s Western is outstanding.
Two-hundred pages of wonder, where to begin?
Exploring dozens of angles to the Old West genre, this is a motherload of a homage. Archetypal stories, characters and imagery are everywhere, but without crossing into stereotype territory. And with so many fantastic new spins thrown into the mix, readers are offered fun points aplenty in this book, no matter your personal tastes. The range of materials and styles truly is impressive, skirting from the historic to the comical to the hyper-realism of the modernist. The organized ebb and flow of the voices and scenery play out almost like a mixtape full of earnest and dedicated love. Other sizable anthologies could learn a strong thing or three about pacing from this.
To illustrate the variety, here is my take on a sampling of what I read as standouts:

Boots, written and drawn by Morgan Pielli. A wordless strip showing the varied paths tread by a single pair of cowboy boots, from one wearer to the next. Ever been curious of a boot’s perspective of a card game? An eventful few pages, and with a brushy linework that made me think of the great Carol Swain.

A Town Called Desolation, written and drawn by Graeme Neil Reid. A stone solid one pager, this offering has all of the charismatic personality of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; and is illustrated in a style that serves as proof that art can be both purdy and technically sound, all rolled into one.

The Last Train To Jubilation, written and drawn by Gary Crutchley. A group of gunfighters are brought together to deal with a town and a mineshaft, and the horror of a thing inflicting the whole mess. Not to give away too much, Jubilation is a blending of at least a couple of separate genres, and in a very well executed way. Though the graytones were a bit inconsistant, the story itself absolutely made up for it.

Sixteen Horseless Riders, written and drawn by Douglas Noble. A poem without verse, this is one of the more sobering pieces. A mystery without details, we are only given a taste. Brilliantly handled. Like a fragmented story, we are shown only fragmented faces. Noble needs to be big and famous.

Mrs. Henry, written by John Reppion and Leah Moore, drawn by David Hitchcock. This is an adult tale, and in a perfect world would be the origin setup for something much more than just a short story. The timelessness of love triangles, gore and all. Fully formed characters within so few pages just hurts though. And Hitchcock draws unbelievably well. Quite possibly one of the very best stories in the entire volume.

Tenderfoot, written and drawn by Steve Bissette. Laugh out loud funny with colloquial verbiage, Tenderfoot is an observation in how misconstrued events can play out after the fact. Stories can grow larger than life. And Bissette’s art is definitely caught up in the mood of his story, master storytelling and expressive faces make for a fun ride.

I could go on and on (like Dwight MacPherson’s Twilight Zone take on Custer’s Last Stand, or the story adapted from Native American folklore, or the one written by a fifteen year old superstar in the making, but I digress). If you like demons, steampowered robots, zombies, donkey-headed children, and other things not generally associated with cowboys and cowgirls, then this is indeed your cup of tea. Or rotgut.
Accent UK’s Western presentation is a thorough escape that would look not at all out of place on your coffeetable, bookshelf or nightstand. Especially in light of the current and ongoing fun where regards the wonderful world of distribution, Western’s journey has been a gunfight of its own. Support good small press.
If the naysaying readers of this review believe that the Old West is void of new story potential, then boy howdy are they in for a surprise with this pup. Give it a read and thank me later (after applauding the efforts of co-editors Mathieson and West). Accent UK’s Western is worth every damn penny, for quality and diversity alone.

www.accentukcomics.com

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Richard Caldwell

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