Django/Zorro #5
Dynamite/Vertigo
Written by: Quentin Tarantino & Matt Wagner
Art by: Esteve Polls
Colors by: Brennan Wagner
I always look forward to this comic each month. As someone who really enjoyed Django Unchained as well as all The Mask of Zorro movies and Zorro tv shows, this comic has been a real fun treat. Each comic seems to give you a little bit of each character, but for this issue you really get a ton of Django. As a pleasant surprise we even get a small flashback segment of the story with everyone’s favorite Django character Dr. King Schultz! I was so excited to see Dr. Schultz in the story even if it was for a small flashback, and I couldn’t help but read his lines as Christoph Waltz would have. Up until this comic, the story in this comic had really been echoing the story of The Mask of Zorro with a slight twist in the con the Archduke has pulled, and the element of Django and racism being in the story adds a bit of realistic flavor to the time and part of the world they’re in. Finally in this book, it’s starting to heat up and we’re getting more of a Django Unchained feel to the story.
Like I said, these stories really feel like a Zorro story with a nice blend of Django in there, so Matt Wagner and Quentin Tarantino are really doing their jobs well. I really feel like this comic could be a canon sequel to the Taratino film, and even more so after this issue because we finally find out why Hildy isn’t around anymore and even got some “deleted scenes” from the movie as a flashback. The art by Esteve Polls has been consistently good. Django looks very close to Jamie Foxx’s likeness as did Dr. Schultz in this issue. The scenery and setting is drawn very well and give you the impression of a bleak desert wasteland. The backgrounds are still just as yellow and red as they were back when I reviewed issue #2, but that’s totally okay because those colors by Brennan Wagner represent the heat of Arizona very well. The colors in the book really give it some life even if the colors themselves are more muted tones.
To really make the experience of reading this comic complete you should check out the Spotify list that Dynamite Comics makes and tweets for each release. It really gives the comic the Tarantino movie feel that really lends itself well to the story. My personal favorite song on this month’s playlist is “Eat Steak” by Reverend Horton Heat, which is best played right after the last panel of the flashback with Dr. Schultz. Just sit back and close your eyes and imagine the book in movie format while listening and you end up really wishing Taratino would make a Django 2 with Zorro in it! Dynamite also does this soundtrack thing with their Shaft series as well… It’s a fun idea!
This book is one of the indie books that I must have each month. I grew up on Zorro and loved Django as a character, and if you feel the same this comic’s title will pull you in anyways. This issue really ramps up the action (finally!) and gives us a lot of Django back story and catch up. Django and De La Vega really start to realize this issue how very much alike they are. Highly recommended!