Scalped Vol. 3: Dead Mothers

I've been working my way through this series in trades, and it's been nothing but the highest quality the whole way through. This collection is no exception. I really liked the last arc's approach of telling different sides of the same event, but it was nice to get back to a more linear form of storytelling and to see this compelling story progress. There are some real heroes and villains here, but all the while there is a certain blurred-lines morality throughout the whole book. I've heard this title compared to the Sopranos. When I think of the complexity of characters and their relationships, the emotional connections with the reader/viewer, and the compelling visuals, that comparison starts to feel pretty relevant. And the art is fabulously gritty, just like the dusty reservation where the story is set. Hop on board for one of the best ongoing stories in comics.

I can't praise Scalped enough. It pleases on every level and its details are rewarding if you slow down just a little and pay attention. The passionate and vibrant artwork of R. M. Guera and Giulia Brusco brings to life Jason Aaron's transgenerational modern American Indian noir. It has all the key elements that make noir an enduring genre, but it adds enough of its own flair to allow it to stand out from the rest. It just might function as a window into the destitution wrought upon Native American Indians to this day, a legacy that is dipped in blood and laid out on the pages of noir to dry in the merciless sun.

I wouldn't say this is the best Vertigo book out there, but it is worth reading. The plot is either good or great and most of the characters interesting. Really, the best thing about Scalped is its ability to take the reader to a place relatively unexplored -- the Native American reservation. After having visited there (a relative worked in a reservation hospital for a few years), I can say that the poverty depicted in this book is pretty accurate with what exists in the real world.

If you have money for only one trade paperback, this is it. Following the excellent second collection of Scalped, this volume had a lot to live up to. It doesn't disappoint. The art works beautifully with Jason Aaron's writing which manages to thrust you into the life of a modern day Indian reservation where murder, corruption and sex have become the norm. If you're like me and seek something more than flying superheroes this is the book to invest in. DISCLAIMER: You must read Volumes 1 and 2 to appreciate this. All three books are worth the price of admission.