Scalped Volume 9: Knuckle Up

Something is rotten on the Prairie Rose Reservation. In Jason Aaron and R.M. Guera’s story of a population up in arms, a debate rages over the construction of a casino that would be owned and operated by the local crime boss, Lincoln Red Crow. As the altercations become more heated, the return of Dashiell Bad Horse, an angry young man looking for trouble, only makes things worse. With a need for a few good enforcers on his team, Red Crow recruits Bad Horse as security, neglecting to say that Bad Horse’s mother is leading the protests against the casino. Meanwhile, the FBI is investigating Red Crow, hoping to finally find the proof they need to put him away, and they may have just found an ally in Dashiell Bad Horse.

— Jennifer McGinnis

From the Comics Buyer’s Guide:

Jason Aaron’s follow-up to his outstanding Vertigo mini-series, The Other Side, Scalped’s protagonist is a Native American who works undercover for the FBI as a sheriff on a reservation, as appointed by a corrupt tribal leader. Fighting crime as a sheriff, primarily to benefit the crime lords, he has to worry about getting hurt or killed in the line of duty. But he also must worry about his “boss” finding out about his true loyalties and ordering his death. This book is unique in that it is one of the few comics about modern-day Native Americans (other than silly Native American super-heroes).

Because the main character is acting as a sheriff, the book explores issues such as poverty, quality of life, alcoholism, corruption, and gambling. It is a crime story however, in the tradition of Vertigo books such as 100 Bullets. It seems too early in the series to tell how it is going to turn out, but it has a promising beginning.

— Colin Walton
Collects Scalped #50–55; ca. 2012

Uitgeverij: Vertigo
Schrijver: Jason Aaron
Tekenaar: R.M. Guera

ISBN: 9781401235055