Reznet

Get 'Scalped'

By Dalton Walker

Finally, something quenched my thirst.

Jason Aaron’s new creation hits the mark. His latest work might start an avalanche unlike Indian Country has ever seen.

Aaron, a non-Native, created Dashiell "Dash" Bad Horse and a cast of characters in “Scalped,” a comic book based on a fictional reservation in South Dakota.

Bad Horse is the main character and one man you wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley. He is America’s worst nightmare, a stoic hero and a brilliant villain. He is a gritty warrior with a “hellbent-for-leather attitude” that many Natives will relate to. He is your evil cousin. He is also your best friend.

The first issue hit stands early January. The second issue is out now and a new issue will be on sale each month. It was published through Vertigo, the adult imprint of DC Comics.

Yes, adult. This isn’t your friendly “Spider-Man” comic. And it wasn’t made for children’s eyes or ears.

The dialogue is rugged, to say the least, but it delivers. The art work is second to none. The visuals reveal the struggles that many reservations deal with daily.

The first issue’s cover has Bad Horse with a headdress and his signature nun chucks hanging from his neck. His shirt is sprinkled with blood. A casino sign is in the distance along with a mystery woman. “Scalped” is draped at the top of the cover.

The opening scene introduces Bad Horse to a group of armed henchmen. He tosses a few fighting words at the gang. Then out comes the nun chucks. He’s outnumbered 15-1 but he still bulldozes toward the crowd.

His unprovoked mentality is unleashed to the reader. He is here to kick ass and take names later.

The word selection and graphics will upset some readers, but I think that’s expected.

The overall message should bust through Indian Country. The comic gives a taste of reservation life to a mainstream audience. Though the setting of the comic is fictional, it is clearly inspired by the Pine Ridge Reservation--thus, the name, Prairie Rose Reservation.

Obviously the author did his homework. In one scene, he refers to White Clay, Neb., as White Haven, Neb., and slips in a few statistics; population, 28, average annual beer sales – 4 million cans.

In the bigger picture, if the comic succeeds it might open doors for more Native-related comic series’ or graphic novels or better yet, a talented Native author with even greater ideas.

I recommend a couple reads through before critiquing it. If “Scalped” doesn’t leave shivers down your back, read it again.

Dalton Walker, Red Lake Anishinabe, is a reporter at the Argus Leader newspaper in Sioux Falls, S.D. Walker is a graduate of the University of Nebraska in Lincoln and the American Indian Journalism Institute. A longtime reznet staff writer and a Chips Quinn Scholar, Walker had reporting internships at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis and The New York Times.

To send Dalton Walker a message please click here