That Texas Blood #1 Review

Writer: Chris Condon / Artist: Jacob Philips / Publisher As part of my efforts to try and expand my comic book horizons, I’ve been making it a point to explore genres. One that I haven’t necessarily gravitated towards as much is: the Western. That particular genre in any medium never really quite gripped me in the same way as the more speculative fiction worlds did, although I do enjoy several of the tropes involved. After reading the first issue of this series, my immediate thought was, “This reminds me a lot of No Country for Old Men…” Sure enough, the series’ description does not shy away from that parallel. That Texas Blood is very much a prototypical, modern Western, featuring an older, Lawful Good protagonist who has managed to survive into an entirely different era and now has to grapple with the new world order. Sheriff Joseph Robert Coates is 75 as of the very start of the issue, and Condon’s writing of the opening narration draws me in. It’s oozing with a sense of fatigue. The recurring refrain of “Thought it’d feel different” is simple and effective. As is tradition with a first issue, we get snippets of Sheriff Joe’s past and present reality, what haunts him, along with a general sense of the small town troubles. Philips’ art matches the tone perfectly and manages to accentuate the subtleties of a lot of the moments both quiet and loud. The landscapes are picturesque. Joe’s exhaustion is palpable. The few horrific moments that are scattered throughout, hit with…