Jason Aaron (Author), Jason Latour (Illustrator), Image Comics (Publisher)

> Review by Jack Dumpert

Southern Bastards is a bastardized, violent version of the classic movie, Walking Tall, turned up to 11. In a small, southern town in Craw County, Alabama, Euless Boss rules with an iron fist. Boss, the local BBQ restaurateur and high school football coach, calls all the shots in this hick town, and his gang of ragtag Runnin’ Rebs football players keeps the peace through intimidation and the threat of violence. When Earl Tubb returns to Craw County, he runs into a lifer named Dusty who has a beef with Coach Boss. When Tubb decides to be a stand-up guy and help out his old friend with the problem, the story takes a new and violent turn. When Tubb tries to destroy his past by chopping down an old tree, he finds instead a new beginning that coincides with a supernatural message from beyond his father’s grave. The colors are dark, matching the grittiness of the story, but the color palette turns red when tempers rise and the violence begins. Tubb, the town’s latest rebel rouser, goes head to head with Coach Boss in a violent battle with the entire town watching. The final battle that ensues is very graphic and the story concludes with a bittersweet ending.