Collects issues one through seven
Writer: Garth Ennis
Artist: Steve Dillon
Publisher: DC/Vertigo
Mark Hamill. James Gandolfini. Adam West. Matthew Broderick. Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon. For better or worse, some people will be forever trapped in the memory of their greatest work. For me, anything Ennis writes always feels like Preacher and anything Dillon draws always looks like Preacher. It’s not that their other work is competing with Preacher, but everything they do has a familiarity to something out of Preacher, and nine times out of ten, Preacher did it better.
When people talk about Vertigo, they usually bring it up in one of two ways: “There’s Sandman, Swamp Thing, and Preacher” or “there’s Sandman, Preacher, and Swamp Thing.”
Basically, this review, and the review of each successive trade, exists to answer two questions. The first is asked by those who’ve already read Preacher, the whole series, maybe two or three times through: “Isn’t it awesome?” Let me save you some time by summing up all nine reviews in three words: Yes, most definitely. The second question is logically posed by those who haven’t read it: “Is it worth reading?” Well, yes and no. I’m here to sell you on the series, to identify whether or not it’s for you, and to let you know which parts are skippable.
And if by any chance you consider yourself a fan of the writer, artist, or Vertigo imprint in general, and you have yet to read Preacher, I hope a legion of Nazi flying squirrels break into your house and chew off your limbs as you read this.
Anyway . . .
Gone to Texas contains two stories. The first story sets the stage and introduces nearly the entire cast: Jesse, Tulip, Cassidy, the Saint of Killers, God (sort of), John Wayne (also sort of), and good old Arseface. It’s also a more fast-paced tale, compared to later chapters, that sets the tone, stakes, and objective of the series. The second story feels rather tangential, especially given that it’s the second story of the series, and while it allows Ennis to flex his humor muscle and get in solid character-building moments, it ultimately falls into the weaker half of the series.
Is this opening chapter indicative of what the rest of the series is like? Yes and no. Yes, there is and will continue to be excessive amounts of cursing, weird sex, and brutal violence – this IS a Garth Ennis book. But no, in that all this stuff will start to become window dressing for larger stories about trust, morals, responsibility, love, America, and the Wild West.
I personally was a little put off when I read Gone to Texas and wasn’t planning to pick up the second trade. “Is that all there is? Violence and sick humor?” No, that’s not all. While the first book is essential reading to find out how it all begins, the second book is where things really take off – it’s probably the second best trade in the series. So if the first book somewhat disappoints and doesn’t match its lofty hype, don’t give up just yet.
Now, to avoid the risk of repeating the same descriptions over and over, I’m going to cover a different aspect of the series in each review. Each volume, heck, each issue maintains a pretty stable continuation of solid quality and balanced story aspects, so it’s easier to discuss specific topics in a wide scope and how they extend throughout the whole series.
Religion.
This collection is probably the most religious of the series, and by that, I mean the one that most closely examines the pseudo-religious/sci-fi aspect of the story regarding Jesse’s mission and the origin of his powers. Jesse has been imbued with the Word of God, a supernatural power that compels the listener to obey his every command to the letter. Though this sounds very mystical and sci-fi-ish, it’s actually not central to the story: Jesse uses the Word more times in this first volume that he does for the rest of the series. Such an easy deus-ex-machina would rob all potential conflict of any tension, and so Ennis firmly establishes the “rules” and implications of this power from the get-go.
Preacher doesn’t really examine faith as much as it examines beliefs and morals, which could be covered by religion, but it boils down to whether or not people act truly and honestly based on their beliefs. The ideologically weak characters usually end up as the brunt of jokes, but strong ones like the Saint are further empowered by their faith; for the Saint, his actions uphold his beliefs, but his beliefs simply put him at odds with the protagonists.
But more to the point of religion, this series actually features God as a cast member, as well as a . . . distant ancestor of Christ himself. Does it mock and poke fun at religion? Sometimes . . . well, okay, a lot. It’s not so much sacrilegious as it presents extreme and absurd scenarios through which to examine real themes and issues from time to time. If the only times you visit church are Christmas and Easter, you likely won’t find anything in here that offensive to your faith. If you get offended every time a co-worker mutters “goddammit!” it’s possible that Preacher isn’t for you.
And it’s hard to forget that the main character is, though not quite strictly, a Preacher. While his “mission” is dictated by responsibility more than religious duty, religion revolves around what the faith declares morally acceptable, and Jesse follows his personal interpretation, through education and experience, on what he feels is right. While morals and responsibility is another topic I intend to discuss, the fact that Jesse acts on such beliefs is something of a religious devotion. Jesse is, at the end of the day, a devout Christian, just one that marches to the beat of his own drum.
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