Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} All-Star Volume 2 The War of Lords and Owls by BookHound Reviews and Recommendations by Mel Odom, Professional Writer. ALL-STAR WESTERN: THE WAR OF LORDS AND OWLS by Justin Gray, , and Moritat. Couldn’t resist picking up the second volume of All-Star Western from DC’s New 52 lineup. The first volume was just too good to easily walk away from, and now I’m waiting on the release of the third volume. This series just continues to improve, adding layers and nuances of character, growing the characters and the conflicts within , and touching on more and more of the history that evidently led to the villains that parade around Gotham in the present day. The first arc continues the loose end left from Guns and Gotham , the first volume, and it dips a little more into the superhero genre. Nighthawk and , both masked vigilantes, are somewhat different than I remember them, especially with the magic necklaces that throws the element of the supernatural into ’s world. Then there’s the addition of Talon, one of the members of the Council of Owls group that’s currently plaguing . I haven’t read those books, so I’m not certain what that’s all about at the moment, but I’m definitely more curious. The New Orleans backdrop to the story is awesome. I went back and looked through the panels again. Moritat’s art is so detailed and so atmospheric I just wanted to see more of the city, but I’m also relishing his rendition of Gotham as well, so it’s a trade-off to me, and either way I’m a winner! The first arc has some nice twists in it, and Amadeus continues to bring an element of levity that was never in the original Jonah Hex series. I believed it would have been out of place until I saw how much Amadeus brings to the stories. The tales just wouldn’t be the same without him and his long-suffering partnership with Hex. The second arc takes place back in Gotham and brings in Tallulah Black, a character from Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti’s first run on Jonah Hex which I thought might have been lost with the shift to the New 52. She adds a whole new element and a new look to the series (and more embarrassment to Amadeus), and I’m looking forward to her hanging around. The backup features to the stories this time feature a – more or less – origin story for Nighthawk and Cinnamon, a solo tale that’s really good, and a so-so Terrence Thirteen two-parter. Dedicated fans will recognize the Terrence Thirteen name from the Phantom Stranger comics and this is a pretty nice send-up of the character’s backstory. Reminded me a lot of Professor Challenger from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories. “All Star Western Volume 2: War of Lords and Owls” Graphic Novel Review. Even Jonah Hex can’t escape the diabolical clutches of the Court of Owls. The bounty hunter finds himself facing the scourge of the Batman Family within the pages of “All Star Western Volume 2: War of Lords and Owls.” He can’t escape his fate and ends up confronting the crooked upper crust of whatever new town he rides into. Kidnapper Thurston Moody has fled to New Orleans and gun-for-hire Jonah Hex is hot on his trail. While there, he uncovers a sinister plot to eliminate the immigrant population. He joins forces with crime fighters Nighthawk and Cinnamon to take on the August Seven group who are behind the murderous plans. Hex then finds himself led back to Gotham City to help Dr. Amadeus Arkham and the good citizens go up against a secret society known as the Court of Owls. Writers Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray continue throwing their beloved bounty hunter into the middle of trouble and leaving him to get out. The way they incorporate Amadeus Arkham and the Court of Owls into the storyline is brilliant and no doubt pulls in new readers who would never give All-Star Western or Jonah Hex a chance without planting them firmly in the center of the Dark Knight’s hometown. Moritat continues his run as artist for the issues collected in “All Star Western Volume 2: War of Lords and Owls.” He doesn’t stray from his usual style and adequately lends visual splendor to Palmiotti and Gray’s script. His work definitely stands out from other artists of today. Three backup stories are included in this collection. Nighthawk and Cinnamon, Bat Lash, and Dr. Terrence Thirteen all get to see some action in short yarns spun by Palmiotti and Gray. Artwork is handled by Patrick Scherberger, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, and Scott Kolins, respectively. There are all sorts of extra mystery and action for readers to enjoy in these mini-tales. Six pages of character sketches and designs give us an inside look at Moritat’s concepts coming to life for “All Star Western Volume 2: War of Lords and Owls.” He shows his early work on Nighthawk, Cinnamon, Tallulah Black, the 1880’s Talon, Court of Owls, and August Seven anarchist group. There is also cover, train, and boat sketches included. “All Star Western Volume 2: War of Lords and Owls” is another fine example of old school Wild West action being blended into the DC Universe by the two writers who know Jonah Hex better than anyone else. The book closes just as it should with a hint as to what bizarre direction we can expect to be taken in Volume 3 of this excellent title. “All Star Western Volume 2: War of Lords and Owls” is available now in paperback and Kindle editions. For more articles by Eric Shirey, check out: “Batman: Arkham Unhinged” Graphic Novel Review “Batman: The Night of the Owls” Graphic Novel Review DVD Review: “Young Justice: Invasion Destiny Calling – Season Two Volume One” ALL-STAR WESTERN VOL. 2: THE WAR OF LORDS AND OWLS. • In this second New 52 collection, Jonah Hex tracks the kidnapper Thurston Moody to New Orleans, then must infiltrated the ranks of the anarchist group August 7, dedicated to eliminating the immigrant population of New Orleans. With Dr. Arkham in jail and his companions Hawkeye and Cinnamon nowhere to be found, things can only get worse for Hex when The Court of Owls reveals its plan to lay siege to Gotham City. • Plus: Don’t miss the backup features starring Nighthawk, Cinnamon and Bat Lash! • Collects ALL-STAR WESTERN #7-12. Community. See All. Arrowverse Pride Profile: John Constantine. Looking to learn more about the Arrowverse depiction of John Constantine? Find out more here! Join the DC Pride Club. All year long, the DC Pride Club is where you can go to chat with fellow LQBT+ fans and allies! All-Star Western Vol 3 12. "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Three": Amadeus Arkham and Jonah Hex are not faring well against the torture of the Religion of Crime's steam machine. Their only hope of escape lies in [[Tallulah Black (Prime Earth)|Tallulah Black. "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Three" Cover Textless. All-Star Western Vol 3 #12. October, 2012. Executive Editor. Cover Artists. The War of Lords and Owls, Part Three. Writers. Pencilers. Inkers. Colourists. Letterers. Editors. The Haunted Highwayman!, Part 2 of 2. Writers. Pencilers. Inkers. Colourists. Letterers. Editors. Previous Issue Next Issue All-Star Western Vol 3 # 11 All-Star Western Vol 3 # 0. All-Star Western (Volume 3) #12 is an issue of the series All-Star Western (Volume 3) with a cover date of October, 2012. It was published on August 22, 2012. Contents. Synopsis for "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Three" Amadeus Arkham and Jonah Hex are not faring well against the torture of the Religion of Crime's steam machine. Their only hope of escape lies in Tallulah Black, who managed to free herself. While Arkham is sure she could easily kill all of their captors, whether she does it in time to save her companions is questionable. With the help of some corrupt police officers, Lorna Kyle, the Lord of Thieves, and Stephan Kaoss, Lord of Terror, begin searching the house for Tallulah. The police are are confused as to why so many of them are needed, when she is only one woman, but she deftly brings death down on each one, picking them off one by one. Alerted by a crash, Kaoss rushes her with a gun, only to have his head detached from his body by Black's thrown hatchet. Lorna Kyle finds herself targeted for a barrage of bullets from Black's pistols, until the woman runs out of them. Ripping the skirt from around her legs, Kyle begins a deadly counter-attack with her daggers. Hanging in the torture apparatus, Hex taunts the remaining followers of Cain by telling them of how he contacted Alan Wayne a few days previously. When they fell under attack by the Religion of Crime's thugs, Wayne was convinced that he should use his pull and influence to cripple the Religion of Crime's holdings in land, given that the then Lord of Extortion was soon to die. Meanwhile, Lorna Kyle and Tallulah Black are impressed with each other's close combat skills. Tallulah tackles her opponent, shoving her thumbs into Kyle's eyes as the thief thrusts her knives into Black's shoulder joints. Ignoring the pain, Tallulah Black squeezes harder, until her thumbs pierce into the woman's brain - just in time for Alan Wayne to appear with some good police men, and look on in horror. The torture continues for Arkham and Hex, and the pain brings Arkham to such a point at which he can no longer contain his rage, screaming of his captors' depravity until they become fed up with him and plan to finally give the pair death. As the torturer reaches for the handle on the device, Tallulah Black arrives, and shoots off his fingers. The followers of Cain are arrested, and the two men are saved. Back at Arkham's mansion, he treats Black's wounds, warning her to avoid any rigorous activities for a week. She refuses, given that she intends to engage in some very rigorous activity with Hex, as soon as the wounds are treated. In the meantime, she suggests that she and Hex will be leaving soon, but Hex responds that he does not intend to go with her - given his lack of desire to have a woman yammering in his ear all the time. Angrily, Tallulah begins brawling with him, a rigorous activity which soon melts into the activity she had originally planned, much to Arkham's revulsion. The three of them attend the public hanging of the remaining followers of Cain, with Alan Wayne and Mayor Cobblepot at their sides. While Hex obviously intends to leave the city, Arkham will stay, and with Wayne's help, he will design a hospital for treating psychiatric patients of a criminal nature. They are interrupted by a young man named Reginald Forsythe, who asks to speak with Arkham and Hex in private. Despite the exclusiveness of his invitation, Tallulah Black forces her way into their meeting. Reginald works for a Scottish doctor of some renown named Jekyll. Appearing in "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Three" Featured Characters: Supporting Characters: Antagonists: Charlotte the Harlot, Lord of Prostitution Jackson Duggar, Lord of Assassins Lorna Kyle, Lord of Thieves (Dies) Stephan Kaoss, Lord of Terror (Dies) Evan Charles, Lord of Extortion. Other Characters: Synopsis for "The Haunted Highwayman!, Part 2 of 2" After the supposedly haunted highwayman sprays Doctor Thirteen with fire, the police accompanying the doctor prove their cowardice, and the horseman escapes. Angrily, Thirteen chastises them for their failure to trust in the laws of science. Fortunately all is not lost, as a phosphorescent substance which the highwayman had used to enhance his ghostly myth is not unknown to the doctor. Thirteen leads the police to the nearby university, where the headmaster invites them in out of the rain. Thirteen explains that he believes one of the employees there is posing as a ghost in order to commit crimes, and may be using chemical compounds which, when mixed, give off a phosphorescent effect. The headmaster realizes that after he had laid off a certain member of the faculty, those same compounds had gone missing. Helpfully, the headmaster informs them that the employee in question now lives in Slaughter Swamp. Doctor Thirteen and the police arrive outside the cabin of Professor Jonathan Rood, overhearing the man's argument with his wife, as she accuses him of being with another woman during his numerous absences of late. The Doctor and Detective Foster burst into the cabin, and when they discover his mask and flame-thrower, Rood desperately shoots the detective in the chest. Thirteen throws himself upon the killer and thief, trying to wrest the gun out of his hand. In their struggle, it goes off, and Rood's wife Helen is shot. She was already in a wheelchair. Rood explains that he had been fired because he had been trying to find a cure for her. He had needed money, and so he had become the Haunted Highwayman. Though Rood blames Thirteen for his wife's death, the doctor will accept no responsibility. That night, on the hangman's gallows, Rood offers a curse on Doctor Thirteen and all of his offspring until the end of time. The noose tightens, and Rood's neck snaps. Thirteen explains to the police how he had known the highway man had to have been a professor based on the advanced science that was involved in creating the flamethrower and the glow. Thirteen had no belief in the curse that was placed on him, and instead, blames the dead man himself for his wife's death. All-Star Western Vol 3 11. "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Two": After having just witnessed one of his own patients assassinated by the Talon of the Court of Owls, Amadeus Arkham worries about the inevitable clash that this no longer mythologica. "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Two" Cover Textless. All-Star Western Vol 3 #11. September, 2012. Executive Editor. Cover Artists. The War of Lords and Owls, Part Two. Writers. Pencilers. Inkers. Colourists. Letterers. Editors. The Haunted Highwayman!, Part 1 of 2. Writers. Pencilers. Inkers. Colourists. Letterers. Editors. Previous Issue Next Issue All-Star Western Vol 3 # 10 All-Star Western Vol 3 # 12. All-Star Western (Volume 3) #11 is an issue of the series All-Star Western (Volume 3) with a cover date of September, 2012. It was published on July 25, 2012. Contents. Synopsis for "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Two" After having just witnessed one of his own patients assassinated by the Talon of the Court of Owls, Amadeus Arkham worries about the inevitable clash that this no longer mythological organization will have with the followers of the Crime Bible, whom he and Jonah Hex have been at odds with since the bounty hunter arrived in Gotham City. Meanwhile, out on Cobblepot Pass, the Religion of Crime's Lord of Extortion Lucius Bennet is still concerned about the threat that Alan Wayne poses to his land acquisition plans. Wayne wants to turn the land in the north of the city into public gardens, but Bennet wants to create a residential development, so that he can squeeze money out of the people who will live there. Suddenly his carriage stops, as it appears he is being ambushed. Up the road, Jonah Hex and Tallulah Black wait with their guns at the ready, intending to get vengeance against Bennet for having sent men to kill Tallulah's family. Bennet sends his security man, Mr. Baroque, to fight on his behalf, but Hex makes note of the ring on his finger that indicates him as a follower of Cain. After taking a shot in the shoulder from Baroque, Hex tires of waiting for Tallulah to make her move, and shoots the bodyguard from his horse, allowing the woman to chase her prey unobstructed. Bennet's carriage topples in the middle of the suspended bridge into Gotham, and Tallulah Black manages to pin him beneath the muzzle of her gun. Suddenly, a throwing knife plants itself in Tallulah's thigh, distracting her long enough for the Talon to take her place. The Talon warns that Bennet has been marked for death by the Court of Owls. Bennet shouts back that the followers of Cain will drag the Court out into the streets and massacre them, but the Talon drops a smoke bomb and drags him away. Worried that the smoke will draw attention to them, Jonah and Tallulah ride back to Arkham's mansion. Meanwhile, the Talon leaps off the side of the bridge, holding on to both Bennet and a rope. Bennet thinks that she has saved him, but she wraps the end of the rope around his neck in a noose, and as she releases him to be strangled under his own weight, he cries out that his death will start a war. Elsewhere, the followers of the Crime Bible appoint Evan Charles to replace Lucius Bennet as their Lord of Extortion. As the first order of business, Charles warns that it is past time for Hex, Arkham, and Black to die. Lord of Assassins Jackson Duggar is prepared with a dozen men ready to strike, but Lord of Prostitution Charlotte the Harlot decides that they will personally deal with the trio, to show their collective strength to their followers. Charles warns that if they fail, each of their houses will be without leadership, which would be a grave mistake, given their already tenuous grasp on the city. However, plans are already in motion. The police barge into Arkham's home, demanding the arrest of the doctor, Tallulah Black, and Jonah Hex. They find the bounty hunters in bed, ordering them to get dressed, as they are under arrest for the murder of Lucius Bennet. Hex tries to argue, but a well-aimed kick drops him to his knees. The police order Tallulah to get dressed, expressing revulsion at the sight of the numerous scars covering her body. As she covers herself, she swears that she will get revenge for how they've treated her. The police take the three into Slaughter Swamp in an armoured carriage, each with bags over their heads. They've been on the road for so long that they are sure they are not going to the police station. In any case, they are being set up for the murder charge - presumably by the Religion of Crime, given that Bennet was a member. The carriage stops outside a mansion in the swamp. Jonah struggles, and a sinister doctor pours an opiate onto the bag over his head, knocking him out. The doctor is one of Jackson Duggar's men, and he has designed a steam-powered death machine for the purpose of extracting whatever information they have. Duggar explains that they will not be requiring information - they merely want revenge. Tallulah listens from her position, hanging by her hands from the rafters next to her male companions - unfortunately, the only one who is conscious. Steeling herself, and cursing male ignorance, she pulls herself up over the rafter she is tied to and rips through her bonds with her teeth. Before exacting their revenge, the Religion of Crime leaders hold another meeting, where Evan Charles reveals that Bennet's land deal has fallen through, and the city council has approved Alan Wayne's plan for a botanical garden. Charlotte declares that Wayne must die, but the man's power and influence is growing. It is a possibility, they think, that he is a member of their rivals, the Court of Owls - but the Wayne influence predates the Religion of Crime's arrival in the city. In any case, their organization requires a land acquisition, and Charlotte warns Charles that he will be out if he cannot deliver. In order to succeed, they will also need to kill Hex and Arkham, as they plan tonight, and to convince Mayor Cobblepot to join their cause. Unfortunately, he is fiercely independent, despite his numerous criminal connections, and he has refused them before. The Lords of Crime head down the stairs to get their revenge, only to find that Tallulah Black is missing. Now awake, Jonah Hex warns that they had better get out their Crime Bibles and start praying, because they will need all the help they can get if they plan to survive Tallulah Black's vengeance. Appearing in "The War of Lords and Owls, Part Two" Featured Characters: Supporting Characters: Antagonists: , Lord of Extortion (Dies) Charlotte the Harlot, Lord of Prostitution Stephan Kaoss, Lord of Terror Jackson Duggar, Lord of Assassins Lorna Kyle, Lord of Thieves Evan Charles, Lord of Extortion Baroque Ethan. Other Characters: (Mentioned only) Synopsis for "The Haunted Highwayman!, Part 1 of 2" The outskirts of Gotham City are plagued by a highwayman who appears to be a ghost. He chases down coaches, and when he catches up to them, he demands all of the passengers' money and jewels, else he will kill them. In their fear, Mr. and Mrs. Whimpley can only comply. Whimply and the police go to the only man they can think of: Terrence Thirteen, debunker of the occult and mystical myth. Though Whimply has been convinced that the highway man is some kind of ghost, Dr. Thirteen assures him that whomever this thief is, it is a man, and he is alive. His elaborate costume and advanced weaponry indicate an advanced intellect and sufficient means. He must be a man of science, and Thirteen suggests that Detective Foster begin his search at the college. Doctor Thirteen is less concerned about how the man commits his crimes than he is about why . Why would a man of such intelligence and means choose to resort to common thievery? He agrees to take the case, demanding some time in private with Dr. Arkham to confer. That night, a coach travels along a country road, and the highwayman appears. He is soon surrounded by Thirteen and his men, who warn that the coach is empty, and he is under arrest. The highwayman responds by unleashing a blast of flames from his weapon at the doctor.