Review by Ian Keogh
Fans of creators who worked on comics before the 1960s have long been resigned to never seeing work on a series not considered collectible at the time, their rarity ensuring prices for individual issues are beyond most pockets. However, the 21st century has seen a considerable number of treasure troves compiled, many issued by Fantagraphics Books, and The John Severin Westerns fills a considerable gap in the available work of a major artist.
Severin worked for Prize Comics Western from 1948, regularly drawing the adventures of Black Bull, who wore a horned headmask, and some of whose adventures appear here, but this collection picks up in 1951 with the debut of American Eagle. He’s a Crow warrior who believes the native American population can co-exist with settlers, and in a succession of stories assumed to be primarily written by Colin Dawkins, American Eagle exposes treachery on the part of other tribes, unscrupulous rogues or in the US army. There’s no pretending these are classics. They’re of their time, and that time has passed.
However, they’re being reprinted for the art, and Severin certainly earned his fee back in the day by drawing a minimum of seven panels per page, and having most feature full or three quarter figures. He’s always a stickler for period detail, and packs the panels with people and horses, yet for all that, compare the pages Severin was producing for EC comics during the early 1950s, and it’s clear where he really put the effort in. However, toward the end of the run from 1954 the layouts become more sophisticated. American Eagle himself is always a handsome, upright specimen of unsmiling virtue, while he’s surrounded by assorted caricatured old timers whose dental treatment is negligent.
Anyone under the age of fifty is likely to struggle with the sheer amount of unnecessary verbiage as writers earned their word rate, and dialogue intended as acknowledgement of American Eagle’s heroism now transmits as patronising at the very best. Even what might have been more inventive plots back in the day are now doused in familiarity and generally dependent on deception. A story for the 100th issue of Prize Comics Western typifies that, as a villain afraid to go up against American Eagle’s pal Dolan in a fair fight attempts to ensure no fair fight can occur. However, he’s underestimated the strength of friendship and the concealed thugs are rounded up, ensuring a fair gunfight. While adventure is initially the sole priority, the better stories are toward the end of the run, with Dawkins not averse to some TV style eccentricity and sentimentality, such as a tale of two kids discovering a plot.
While American Eagle’s exploits are the vast bulk of this book, other features appear. There are brief educational strips offering tips, customs or biographies, eight strips starring Fargo Kid, and one of Apache warrior Nachi, these all published in 1958. While the scripts are generic, they feature fantastic cinematic art from Severin.
The John Severin Westerns is a labour of love for compiler Howard Davis, and a hardback presentation of this material is surely beyond the dreams of Severin’s fans. It’s all about the art, though, so keep expectations low if you’re doing more than looking.
