"Images"
Gerry Conway, story - Dick Ayers & Romeo Tanghal, art - Luis Dominguez, cover
New York City, October, 1862.
This issue starts immediately after last issue. Four members of the Camorra are chasing Scalphunter across the rooftops of the city. He is jumping from roof to roof and they are hot on his trail. Finally he gets some distance between himself and them and when they get onto his rooftop, Scalphunter is GONE!?!?!?!
But he has scaled a chimney and is looming above them. They turn and see him just as he jumps on them like a panther. He swiftly kills three of them and the remaining man, armed with a club embedded with nails starts to panic.
He drops the club and runs but Scalphunter picks it up and kills him with his own weapon.
Much later Scalphunter is walking the streets of New York and finds himself in front of the Matthew Brady Gallery. A crowd has gathered to look at the photographs of the carnage of Civil War battles. Scalphunter walks inside and watches everyone fascinated with the pictures and he fondly remembers the picture he has of his sister Samantha. But the photographs that are display are on massacred men, twisted in death and even in black and white the horror of war comes through.
He overhears a couple talking about how horrific the pictures are. The husband says that "Dying nobly on the battlefield" is a myth and then goes to buy a full set of photos to show his son in an attempt to turn him away from volunteering. Another man walks up and strikes up a conversation with Scalphunter. The man, Rawson by name, is also a photographer that was one of Matthew Brady's assistants but left after Brady started taking credit for the work of others.
He has opened his own gallery but it is hard to compete with the Brady brand. He invites Scalphunter into his studio and offers to take a portrait of the man of two worlds.
Down the street in a seedy bar, three thugs are reading the newspaper article covering the opening of the Brady gallery. One of them, Digger, gets the bright idea of breaking in to the gallery and absconding with the plates and holding them for ransom.
Back at Rawson's studio, he sits Scalphunter in a chair and trains his camera on him. Igniting the flashpowder, he snaps the portrait. He then takes Scalphunter to the darkroom to develop the photo. Rawson is commenting on the fact that Scalphunter is obviously a white man but also an Indian. He is civilized and savage, a blend of both worlds. Rawson feels that folks will pay handsomely for such a portrait. In the darkroom, Rawson shows Scalphunter photos that he took of the 1st Battle of Bull Run, the only photos of that conflict. Rawson took the photos during the battle but Brady claimed that he had done so. Rawson left with the plates and plans to print up album cards to sell to the public.
He then shows Scalphunter his own portrait and the Indian cries out in terror that Rawson has stolen his soul. Rawson tries to explain to him that it is only a copy of what he looks like, but suddenly the door is kicked in and two of the three thugs come in demanding the plates. Rawson tries to resist and gets shot for his trouble. They start packing up the plates, holding Scalphunter at gunpoint. They quickly make their escape.
Rawson begs for Scalphunter to retrieve the plates and says that his clerk will fetch a surgeon for his wounds.
Rain has started pouring down but that does not deter the massive Indian. He clambers up a drainpipe and onto the roof and starts tracking the men like prey. He finds them in a warehouse where Digger is throwing a fit. Digger realizes that his men robbed the wrong gallery, none of this is Brady's work. In his anger Digger smashes a few of the plates but then stops when they hear a window break. They think they see someone atop the crates and open fire.
Suddenly a kerosene lantern that was hanging by a chain drops. Digger examines the chain and sees that it had been pried apart. One thug panics and starts firing wildly, breaking other lanterns. The warehouse is now on fire when Scalphunter drops from the rafters with the cry of a wild animal. The men bolt out the door but when Scalphunter turns to save the plates, the fire has thrown up a blazing wall, cutting him off. Scalphunter barely escapes with his life.
Back at the galleryRawson understands and decides to give up but Scalphunter tells him that he should continue, people need to see the war. Rawson hands him an envelope with the portrait and goes inside. Scalphunter walks off into the rain covered city darkness.
Statistics for this issue
Men Killed by Scalphunter - 4
Running Total - 118
Compared to Jonah Hex - 23rd appearance and Scalphunter has 118 vs Jonah's 93 (in WWT #34)
Scalps Taken - 0
Running Total - 20
Injuries - None.
Timeline - This issue takes place during one full day.
This was a pretty lackluster issue and pretty much a bridge between the last story and next issue. Not a whole lot to recommend this one.
The issue had a house ad for the Jonah Hex digest, Saturday morning cartoons (I wasted sooo much of my life in front of the TV), and the Flash used fruit pies to defeat The Stoney-Eyed Medusa!
Next Issue: An old friend returns, or is he a FOE?!?!?!
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