"Chapel of Death"
Gerry Conway, story - Dick Ayers & Romeo Tanghal, art - Luis Dominguez, cover
October, 1862 New York. Roberto Palermo, an elderly man, is being mugged in an alleyway when the mugger is suddenly hoisted aloft by his scarf courtesy of Ke-Woh-No-Tey, who is leaning out of a second story window. The Kiowa brave pulls the man close and demands to know where Maggie Maldrone. The mugger, realizing what he is up against, spills that Luigi is also looking for her and even murdered her father in an attempt to learn her whereabouts.
But the mugger, being a mugger, decides he can get the drop on Scalphunter and swings his knife upwards and back, trying to stab him. Scalphunter, with the reflexes that have saved him multiple times in the past, quickly jerks the man upward, crashing his skull through the window, and then hurls him across the alley, crushing aforementioned skull against the brick building. Scalphunter jumps from the windowand Roberto asks if he is a friend of Maggie's.
Scalphunter acknowledges that he is and Roberto says that Luigi says that Maggie was kidnapped by an Indian. Scalphunter asks where Luigi Maldron is and the man tells him that Maldrone sometimes meets with his men in a church. Scalphunter heads off through town. There is a two page recap of the prior issue as he walks the streets and Scalphunter realizes that to find Maggie he will need the help of her father. As he approaches the saloon he finds it engulfed in flames with a young man standing nearby saying that Maldrone did it. He was the one that killed the old man as well. And the boy faints.
Scalphunter picks him up and is confronted by the men that altar boy spoke with last issue. They blame Scalphunter for the fire. Just then a man walks up and says that he say Scalphunter fight Maldrone in the bar yesterday. The crowd of men settle down and acknowledge that Maggie's father is dead. The leader of the group, Michael Corbin, asks Scalphunter's name.
Ke-Woh-No-Tay tells them he was originally was Brian Savage but he is now Ke-Woh-No-Tay. A doctor arrives to attend to the boy. The doctor says he will be fine by morning, just some smoke inhalation. Corbin asks if the boy said anything because he was supposed to be watching the bar because Maldrone's men had been hanging around. The boy was supposed to follow them to find where they hang out. The doctor said he won't be a party to killing but Corbin threatens him and the doctor spills the beans that the boy mentioned St. Sebastian's Church.
Corbin decides to tuck the doctor away to someplace 'safe' so he can't rat them out. Corbin then asks if Scalphunter will join them. Scalphunter's face says it all.
Outside the church a man is pulling Maggie down the street towards the church. They go through the front door and they meet Maldrone inside. The church is in an advanced state of disrepair and Maldrone thanks the man for finding her. The man says it is weird because Maggie approached HIM to find Maldrone. She agrees that she wanted to see Luigi and he asks if she is going away. Maggie reaches into her dress and states that Luigi will be one leaving as she produces a large knife and buries it in his shoulder.
Luigi's men rush towards her and pulls her off of their boss. Maggie keeps screaming that she will kill Luigi no matter what. Maldrone appears to be actually frightened as he stumbles backward, clutching his bleeding shoulder. He shrugs off aid as he instructs his men to tie and gag her into a pew. Just then the front door slams open and Scalphunter, Corbin, and his men stand in the entry of the church. Armed with clubs and knives, the crowd ruches into the church and a massive gang rumble erupts in the abandoned sanctuary.
Men are shot, stabbed, Scalphunter slams men's heads together and into the floor. Eventually Luigi pulls a pistol and opens fire on Scalphunter. Scalphunter dodges a bullet but breaks through the railing of the balcony and falls to the floor, his leg breaking through the rotting floor. Luigi advances slowly, laughing like a maniac. Scalphunter reaches for his tomahawk but Luigi shoots the weapon out of Scalphunter's reach. This was a poor choice as on his part as when it comes time to kill Scalphunter, Luigi is out of bullets. He panics and throws the useless pistol at Scalphunter and turns and runs up the nearby stairs.
Scalphunter pulls his leg from the hole and gives chase. Finally Luigi can go no higher as he is now in the bell tower. With no place to go Luigi clambers up onto the bell. Scalphunter kicks the bell causing Luigi to slide off the far side, lose his grip on the edge and eventually fall to his death several floors below.
Scalphunter goes to Maggie and holds her close, looking at the corpse of her abuser.
Statistics for this issue
Men Killed by Scalphunter - 2
Running Total - 114
Compared to Jonah Hex - 23rd appearance and Scalphunter has 114 vs Jonah's 92 (in WWT #33)
Scalps Taken - 0
Running Total - 20
Injuries - None.
Timeline - This issue takes place during one full day.
This was a pretty good issue with Scalphunter taking part in a gang rumble in a church. It was somewhat tropeish with Luigi clambering over the bell in the tower and falling to his death. Maggie losing all control trying to kill Luigi was pretty intense and even showed Luigi as being not as tough as one would think a mafia leader would normally be.
Ads were nothing awesome:
Green Lantern vs the Triclyops Three-Eyed Keeper of the Cave and gets saved by kids with Twinkies
A Daisy rifle ad on the back cover
Several unimpressive in-house ads
Next Issue: Scalphunter sits for a portrait?!?!?
No comments:
Post a Comment