Graphic Novel Review – East of West, Vol 4: Who Wants War? by Jonathan Hickman, Nick Dragotta (4/5 stars)
Reading Level: Teen+
Genre: Fantasy/Graphic Novel
Length: 152 pages
Publisher: Image Comics
Release Date: October 6, 2020
ISBN-13: 978-1632153814
Stand Alone or Series: 4th volume in East of West
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 4/5 stars
“ THE APOCALYPSE: YEAR TWO” begins! Following the dramatic conclusion of YEAR ONE, the Great Beast now roams the fractured United States of America. Deep into an all-consuming war between the splintered nations, the Four Horsemen move to further their individual agendas while resisting the inevitability of The Message.”
Series Info/Source: This is the fourth volume of the collected East of West series. I borrowed this from the library.
Story (4/5): In this volume Death’s Son starts his journey, and his reprogramming to become The Beast is initiated. Meanwhile, the Texas Republic has been decimated by The Hidden Nation but at a great cost. The Hidden Nation seeks alliance with the PRA and Death revisits his wife in PRA. This book includes an excellent map and in depth explanations of each of the seven nations that the United States has been broken into, this was really really helpful in understanding the overall story. The story is a bit choppy but it’s interesting enough to keep me engaged.
Characters (4/5): I loved getting to spend more time with Death’s son. I also really enjoyed the scenes between Death and his wife.
Setting (5/5): This volume went a long way in helping me understand this world better. There were detailed pages describing each nation and its history. We also get a detailed timeline of events leading up to this point. I continue to love this alternate history fantasy western setting.
Writing/Drawing Style (4/5): This is well drawn and written. As mentioned about the story remains a bit choppy, cutting between locations and characters without any notice. The characters are distinctly drawn so it’s easy to tell who is who. The color is well done and the illustrations are very detailed. It’s easy to follow what is happening from scene to scene (as long as you can tell with location you are in).
My Summary (4/5): Overall I continue to enjoy this. I love the intriguing world here and am enjoying some of the characters. The explanation of the history and the timeline included went a long way to making the story more cohesive for me. I am curious enough to know what happens and enjoy the world enough that I plan on continuing the series.
