The backstory for General Hume’s men continues as we take a look at the second gun and its one time owner Will Arcene. Even though this is considered a mini-series, in a lot of ways it reminds me of a micro-series in which each issue actually stands alone. If memory serves me correctly they’re six issues in this series and the last two are definitely going to be the most interesting. In the meantime though, there is some really messed up shit in this issue to enjoy.

Hume’s four horsemen have just discovered the General’s betrayal and now Bill wants to seek revenge, but Will is wrestling with his own demons about the gun he holds in his possession. It’s interesting that none of the men have straight out accepted the gun that’s been given to them and Will is no different. Bill is ready to roll out and get some justice and he asks Will to join him, they ride down to a soldier’s encampment that they feel played a role in betraying the General and gun down all of them. From there Will decides to take care of some family business before joining back up with the men.

The next time we see Will he’s wondering the swamps and he’s nothing but skin and bones; as he comes across some marmots he grabs one and begins eating it alive. He arrives at a shack sitting in the swamp and goes inside calling for his mother. We find a two toothed old woman lying in bed. Will’s concerned for her health and asks if his father has come calling recently. His mother looks terrified but tells him not to worry about it and to fetch something from outback for her to cook. As he walks into the meat cellar he’s drawn to a rotting carcass. He’s quickly taken out of it though as he hears his mother ringing the diner bell. He asks her what the hell she’s doing and she informs him that she’s calling his brothers and sisters for a family dinner. Will looks confused because as he quickly says, “I ain’t got no brothers… no sisters…” but it looks like Will’s mama has been busy since he left and what emerges from the swamp can only be described as terrifying.

There is one scene in particular that was fucking awesome. It would spoil it to talk about it so I’ll just say that it involves Will and another character after he’s “met” his “family.” It was so interesting that I really wanted the story to explore the new character more. The writing of course is good and as sharp as ever. Bunn and Hurtt know these characters so well that every bit of dialog they say is interesting and benefits the story in some way.

I don’t know if Hurtt and Churilla come from the same art school, but their styles are not that different; so in a lot of ways the book looks like Hurtt is still drawing it. Even with the action sequences and panel layouts it all looks very familiar. It makes Churilla the perfect fill in artist for the series and maybe we’ll see him on the regular series so that Hurtt can work ahead on the series or what not. Eventually though the comic is going to pick up more steam as the TV show draws near and it’s cool that have perfect back up.

I’ve really enjoyed revisiting these characters as they were short lived in the ongoing series. It’s also served as giving insight into the guns themselves and that’s definitely going to be useful as new readers jump onto the series. This is a very ambitious mini-series and I’m impressed that it continues to come out monthly side by side with the ongoing. If you missed the first two issues fear not you can actually just pick this issue up to see if it’s for you and then back track from there.

Score: 4/5

Writers: Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt

Artist: Brian Churilla

Publisher: Oni Press

Price: $3.99

Release Date: 4/17/13