The Lone Ranger: Snake of Iron #3 Review


The Snake of Iron mini-series enters its third outing. This series has been rather simple. It has two stories going on that interlock. There aren’t fancy splash pages or explosions, it’s just a tale with heart, and I admire that. This series is definitely something I’d recommend to a new fan, it has good writing and is just the complete opposite of the usual superhero comic. No powers, no beams, no maniacs, just a story happening in old time. If that doesn’t sound exciting, then you haven’t been reading Snake of Iron.

Here’s the official description from Dynamite:

Tonto stands between a stranded trainload of innocents and a Kiowa war party bent onmassacre. The Masked Man leads a cavalry unit through a blizzard to bring peaceto the Nations with the help of the legendary Spirit Horse. Scout is alone in a hostile land! Blazing western suspense from action masters Chuck Dixon and Esteve Polls.

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, Tonto is a fantastic character. Over the years he’s been pretty much just known as the ‘Ranger’s sidekick,’ it’s thanks to mini-series like this and the ongoing that’s making him such a compelling focus. This is how comics adapting classic properties work, you take a character and flesh him out but at the same time retaining everything from the past. Ironically it’s Tonto who is a more engaging focus than the Lone Ranger himself. That’s not to say the latter isn’t engaging, because he is. The story really heats up as more Comanche attack the train, some intense stuff there. However, big things do happen on the Lone Ranger’s side of things.

Art by Esteve Polls is really good. It’s not too bright, which is good for the serious tone of the story. The cover is pretty good, nice detail. The opening narration with Tonto and his horse Scout is the first indication of the heart and soul put into this issue, good stuff.

Overall, yet another great issue in the Snake of Iron series. It isn’t heavy on the action, but rather on its story. Writer Chuck Dixon has been doing a fantastic job, I’m sad to see it go next issue.

4.5/5

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