The Lone Ranger #1
Written by Ande Parks
Art by Esteve Polls
Colors by Marvelo Pinto
Letters by Simon Bowland
Covers by Alex Ross, Francesco Francavilla
Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: January 4, 2012
Cover Price: $3.99

Dynamite Entertainment brings back the reason we all played Cowboys and Indians when we were kids. I’m happy to report The Lone Ranger #1 is an instant classic! And now inker Ande Parks has become known as WRITER Ande Parks.

Writer Ande Parks totally amazed me with this issue. Yes, I’ve been a fan of his run on The Green Hornet and Kato titles, but I feel here that he’s hit his stride. He writes The Lone Ranger like it’s a creator-owned property and not like a licensed property, and therein lies the difference. Parks would do well teaching this skill to some other writers out there.

Getting back to this issue in particular, it’s got everything you wanted in a Lone Ranger comic. I enjoyed the previous series from Dynamite, but it was a bit too dark sometimes for my tastes. Here, Parks turns out a fantastic tale of an old west hero. Good is good, bad is bad. There’s no in between and no sympathy for villains who were mistreated as a child. Bad guys are bad because they’re bad and the good guys are good because they’re good… if that makes any sense. It’s nice to see The Lone Ranger and Tonto back in action, protecting the people of the old west and keeping it safe. Here’s to a long, long run for this book!

Yesterday, if artist Esteve Polls walked up to me and started drawing on my face, I wouldn’t know who he was. Now, I’m a HUGE fan. I’m not familiar with his work at all, but here he has a fantastic John Severin vibe that’s very prevalent without straight-up aping his work. He creates a great mood for this book with his art that I hope sticks around for the foreseeable future. Also of note, the colors by Marcelo Pinto are amazing!!!

Final word: This book is an absolute must-have! I’ll be interested in how this plays out, as the first issue is definitely a “done in one” story, but it’s part of a six-issue arc. The Lone Ranger is one of my favorite characters, so while I was bound to like this, I felt myself being a little more skeptical than normal going in. Thankfully, I will no longer have that feeling. The property is in good hands and every issue will make you want to, as the saying goes… “Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear … The Lone Ranger rides again!”