Jonah Hex #8 Vol. 1 "The Mark of the Demon"

Jonah Hex #8 Vol. 1 Jan 1978
"The Mark of the Demon"
Michael Fleisher, story - Ernie Chan & Vincente Alcazar, art, Ernie Chan (Chua), cover

This story, continued from last issue, is stated as taking place "Spring, 1874". Ooookay, 1874 it is. (Mr. Fleisher, you're killing me here with your continuity). We are treated to a splash page stating that Jonah is tracking the Apaches that have kidnapped Adrian Vaden. Then we get a 1 page recap of the flashback and on page three we pick up when Jonah is captured by the Kiowas.

They tie him to a stake & get ready to burn him alive when suddenly the camp is attacked by white men who slaughter Indians for their scalps ($25 each at Fort Hastings). They kill everyone in the camp, including slitting the throats of two Kiowa children. When Jonah, whom they have just freed, protests, they gut shoot him & leave him for dead.

Several weeks later, Jonah awakens in the cabin of an old trapper. It is not revealed how the trapper found Jonah, but he nurses the boy back to health through the summer & fall & into winter. Jonah walks for three days to find the Apache camp, but it is deserted. Then we get a montage of Jonah as a "wanderer on the frontier", a buffalo hunter for the Army, a tracker, a scout, and then in the Civil War at Chancellorville (May 1863), Vicksburg (July 1863), Shiloh (April 1862), Antietam (Sept 1862). Therefore, the Fort Charlotte Massacre occured sometime after July of 1863.

After the war is over Jonah comes upon a wagon that has been destroyed. Looking through the ruins he finds Noh-Tante's medicine amulet. Within the week he finds the Apache village and meets White Fawn. She explains that she has wed Noh-Tante. Jonah confronts the chief and explains how he was betrayed by Noh-Tante "twelve years before" (so we are now in 1866). The chief declares that this arguement must be decided in a tomahawk fight.

During the battle Jonah accidentally hits a tree and the handle on his tomahawk breaks. Noh-Tante holds Jonah down and gloats that he had weakened the handle so that it would break. Jonah, about to die, grabs the knife he keeps in the collar of his coat & stabs Noh-Tante. Jonah has broken Apache law by using a weapon other than the tomahawk and he must pay a price. The chief explains that Jonah had saved his life once but then killed his son, so the world must know that Jonah is half good & half evil. They tie Jonah between two poles and press a heated tomahawk into the right side of his face. He is kicked out of the camp & told that he will be killed if he ever returns.

Back in present day (1874), Jonah locates the Apache village where Laura is being kept. An Indian attacks him from behind, knocking him unconscious. He awakens tied before the chief, his one-time 'father'. The chief explains that come dawn Jonah will be tortured and then burnt alive. Later that night, White Fawn stabs the brave guarding Jonah and then frees Hex. She is going to escape with Jonah but the chief kills her with an arrow in the back. Jonah shoots & kills the chief, grabs Laura and starts to escape.

As they ride away, they are ambushed by Count Henri D'Aubergnon & Pierre (remember them?). Now the Count knocks Jonah off his horse by bending a tree over, tying it down and cutting the rope, letting the tree spring back. looking at this tree I'm wondering that if the Count can bend a tree that big around, why didn't he just grab Jonah & break him in half and eat his organs? The count ties Jonah up and Pierre takes up collecting arrowheads. The Count frees Jonah and together they are able to fend off several waves of Apaches attacking. Jonah decides that one of them can save Laura if the other provides cover. The Count falsely states that he has enough ammo to last hours (he has two bullets). Jonah & he argue about who will stay & who will go. The Count suggests the toss of a coin. Heads, he will stay, tails, Jonah will stay. It comes up heads and Jonah rides off with Laura. The Count ends up fighting the Apache with just his saber.

As Laura & Jonah ride off, they have this exchange:
Laura:"Did you ever study French, Mr. Hex?"
Jonah:"Nope! Why?"
Laura:"Well, I was just thinking how funny it is that when we were leaving, the Count called out "adieu" to us. In French, that means 'farewell'.
Jonah: "So whut?"
Laura: "Well, when you're expecting to see someone again, you're supposed to say 'au revoir', which means 'until we meet again'."

And then we are treated to this visual:

reminds me of a Jack Davis EC book.

Statistics for the issue
Men killed by Jonah : Noh-Tante, the chief, and at least 4 other Indians (6 total)

Running Total - 140
Jonah's Injuries: Gut shot, Branded on his face with a hot tomahawk, knocked out, knocked off his horse by a tree
Timeline: Whew! 1874, 1866, 1862, 1863, 1854, all over the place.

Overall this was a great issue. The art by Ernie Chan/Chua was good but Alcazar's inks weren't refined enough to make this stellar. Major awards go to the last panel. The cover has Jonah wearing Union Blue instead of Reb Grey.

Finally, one for Ragnell & SallyP
Next Issue: More exposing of sweaty man-flesh, a vast Mexican treasure, and an awkward moment....Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Jonah Hex #7 Vol.1 "Son of the Apache"

Jonah Hex #7 Dec. 1977
"Son of the Apache"
Michael Fleisher, story- Ernie Chan & Noly Panaligan, art, Ernie Chan (Chua), cover

Since Jonah Hex #13 (vol2) is 'retelling' the origin of Jonah Hex, I thought I would present the first pre Superboy Prime Super Punch Retcon version (or as I like to call it "fpSPSPRv"). But first a little back story. In Jonah Hex #2, Jonah is framed for a murder and is then considered a wanted man. Other events between 2 and 6 indicate that this story takes place after WWT #30 and would place this either in 1875 or after (I will have to do more extensive research concerning time of year inidcators in those stories to see if it happens AFTER 1875).

The story opens in Hennessy, Texas with a cowboy starting to manhandle a saloon girl. At a nearby table, a gentleman in a fine suit stands and asks his table mate to excuse him. The other man refers to the gentleman as "your lordship." The gentleman interveens on behalf of the saloon girl, but teh cowboy turns and punches the man. As the man picks himself up, he tells the cowboy that he accepts the challenge to the duel. The friend of the gentleman produces a case with two sabers. When the cowboy starts to draw his pistol, the gentleman spins arouns and knocks the gun from the cowboy's hand. The cowboy takes the offered saber and the duel starts in the saloon.

The cowboy is quickly disarmed and the gentleman says that he will show compassion & not kill the cowboy. As the man turns to leave, the cowboy grabs at a gun on the bar. The gentleman sees him in a mirror and turns, throwing the sabre through the cowboy's heart.

The sheriff storms in, demanding to know what is going on. the gentleman introduces himself as Count Henri D'Aubergnon, recently from France, here in the States to hunt the most dangerous of game, man, and the most dangerous man, Jonah Hex, a wanted outlaw.

Meanwhile, on the far outskirts of town, Jonah is talking to an elderly man, Mr. Vanden, who has hired Jonah to rescue his daughter that was kidnapped by the Apaches. Vanden asks how well does Hex know the Apaches, but Jonah doesn't answer & rides off to find the young lady.

We are treatd to a flashback stating it starts "more than twenty years, to a fateful day in July, 1851. Jonah Hex was then thirteen years old." Jonah is loading a wagon with moonshine as his father sits under a tree drinking. His father, Woodson (we learn his name at another time), is an obvious alcoholic, slaps Jonah and beats him with a belt. Once the wagon is loaded and they are on their way, Woodson explains that he is gonna trade the moonshine for a few squaws and a grubstake for the California gold rush. (Ginny, Jonah's mom, left her husband just over three years prior in 1848).

At the Apache camp, the Indians give Woodson a stack of pelts in trade for the moonshine and another stack of pelts in exchange for Jonah. Jonah is flabbergasted and starts crying as his dad gets on the wagon to leave. Woodson tells Jonah that he would be better off with the Indians instead of a drunken lush like his old man. Jonah fights off two Indians holding him back and runs to his dad who slaps him down and tosses off a slim promise of coming back to get Jonah once a fortune has been made. Jonah turns to fight off the Indians but is subdued and spends the next two years as their slave.

Then one day (1853) as the chief is at a river, a large puma attacks the aging chief. A nearby brave is unable to shoot the puma for fear of hitting the chief when suddenly, Jonah leaps forward with a knife and kills the puma on the spot. The chief is so grateful that he declares that Jonah Hex is now considered a brother to the chief's son and is due all honor of a true Apache. Jonah learns to ride, hunt and fight better than anyone, even the chief's son, Noh-Tante. White Fawn, a lovely girl, even takes a liking to him. Noh-Tante cannot hide his hatred & jealousy.

Later, (A YEAR later, we learn in issue #8. 1854) when both boys turn 16, they are sent on a mission to steal the finest horses from some nearby Kiowas. That night, as Jonah & Noh-Tante sneak into the camp, Jonah kills a Kiowa guard/. Noh-Tante releases all of the ponies and then shouts a war cry to alert the Kiowas. He kicks Jonah into a rock, knocking him out & leaves him for the Kiowas. back at the Apache camp, Noh-Tante tells the chief that he saw Jonah killed by the Kiowa.

Back at the Kiowa camp, Jonah awakens to find himself surrounded by Kiowas. TO BE CONTINUED!!

Statistics for this issue:
Men killed by Jonah: 1 Kiowa and one puma

Running Total - 134
Jonah's injuries: Slapped & beaten by his dad, struck on the head twice and knocked out.
Timeline: The opener is post 1875 (or post death of Turnbull in WWT #30) and the flashback takes place in 1851, 1853, and ends in 1854. This was one of the few times that we got to see Jonah's dad and he really is a filthy drunken sob. There isn't a lot of characterization on Jonah's part, we just are privvy to see the terrible childhood he had and the hardships he had to face. The five-page opening with the Count seems like a waste of space, but it does tie in with the previous issues and provides a nice framework for the flashback (the best part coming in issue #8). The cover does cause one to wonder if Hex's scar was caused by the puma attack, but no, we find out what happened next issue.

Next Issue: A rigged tomahawk fight, the Mark of the Demon, and (believe it or not) a two-headed coin.