Euro Previews: Classic Supernatural Westerns Done Euro Style In ‘Lonesome’

More now from Cinebook, with a Euro take on the classic American genre of the Western… and of course they do it better…

.It’s a strange thing that the quintessentially American genre of the Western has, throughout its time, been adapted so well by non-Americans. Just look at Sergio Leone‘s spaghetti Westerns for a filmic example. And in comics the same runs true. Whilst US Western comics were huge back in the 1940s, they pretty much died out in the ’50s. Sure, there are some examples every now and again, but never too many.

Contrast this with Euro comics, where Westerns have prevailed and flourished with so many examples of every type of Western to be enjoyed. It might be the classic comedy adventures of Morris‘ Lucky Luke, it could be Herge‘s Tintin in America, or the classic adventures of Kit Carson by Italian Rino Albertarelli that all came about through the 30s and 40s. And then there’s the genius of Blueberry, by Jean (Moebius) Giraud and Jean-Michel Charlier, or Comanche by Greg and Hermann. I could go on and on, let’s just say that the Western lived on in comics, it’s just that the majority of American readers couldn’t read them.

All of which brings me on to Lonesome, another epic Western series freshly translated by Cinebook, albeit it one that I’ve managed to miss the first three volumes of. But no need to worry, it’s a very simple concept… we have a ‘relentless lone rider with strange powers’ travelling the West and battling the forces of evil back in the mid-19th Century.

In fact, there’s no better introduction to the series that the very first page of this volume…

So, this particular lonesome rider has definitely been busy in the first three volumes – killing the preacher that murdered his mother, only to eventually discover that the man who ordered the murder, Senator Dawson, was his own father. That same Senator has his hands in all manner of nasty pies, not least plotting with Euro financial moguls to seize control of the America’s economy. The Pinkerton detective, Miss Lyle, investigating the Senator for that plot just happens to have the same pentacle tattoo on her right shoulder as Lonesome does… the Senator has been busy.

The lone rider’s powers allow him to read the past and future of anyone he touches. As for where those powers come from… well, as with so many things in Lonesome, daddy’s to blame it would appear.

Volume 4 finds Elijah, the lonesome rider, and his newfound sister Miss Lyle, the Pinkerton agent, both tracking down Senator daddy, albeit separately. Despite burning the evidence of his involvement in all that’s gone before, there’s still scraps out there, scraps that Elijah and Miss Lyle are using to track him down.  He’s now found sanctuary with Cromley, cultist leader – or rather, occultist leader – and a man closely connected to the Dawson plot.

So, mysterious man comes into town, a town dominated by one man, where the locals and the law keep well away from anything to do with the Cromley estate. It’s all got that amazingly familiar feel of your classic Western tale, doesn’t it? And it plays out perfectly, hitting all those familiar beats along the way. I mean, just look at the first few pages below in the preview – mystery man rocks up into town, riles up the big boss’s minions, gets into a fight, it’s all just got that classic Western feel to it, hasn’t it?

As for where it goes, well, there’s plenty of occult mystery with a madman running the show, plenty of familial reunions that don’t necessarily go too well, not to mention the Pinkerton agency with their own particular agenda. All of it really well done and all with that tight Euro art style from writer/artist Swolfs.

Lonesome Volume 4 – The Sorcerer’s Domain – by Yves Swolfs, colours by Jackie De Gennaro, translation by Jerome Saincantin.
Published by Cinebook

Now, a little preview of the adventures and the gunsmoke to be found inside…