Django Zorro #1

 
Writer: Quentin Tarantino & Matt Wagner
Artists: Esteve Polls & Brennan Wagner
Cover: Jae Lee & June Chung
Publisher: Dynamite & Vertigo  
The nice thing about series that already have established characters is the little fanfare involved in setting up the story and the writers can just go into telling the story they want immediately, and everything already falls into place.
 
The meet up between both our protagonists happens immediately and is incredibly civil, in typical Tarantino fashion, their conversation is friendly and wonderfully contrasted to the ruthless fighters we also know them to be. Neither show any ill will to one another so why should there be any reason to be rude to each other. A lot of team up storytelling styles begin some sort of fight between the two main characters before they decide that to achieve their best ends they’ll need to work together, but I love that this isn’t the case.
 
For the rest of the issue, the story is fairly simple in itself, putting the two together and establishing that there’s something big that they’re both about to partake in. Zorro has some business to take care of and likes Django’s shown skills quite a lot and pays him to tag along with the premise of needing a bodyguard though later on it becomes clear he doesn’t necessarily need one, which sets up how dangerous their adventure might be. Or perhaps Zorro just wants the company.
 
The contrast between to the characters is fascinating. Zorro is incredibly suave, well dressed, and enjoys showing off his riches, while his primary currency is gold. Django on the other hand is rough, rugged, and likes cold hard cash. So far they seem to get along incredibly well with one another, and while we haven’t yet seen them fight together, it’s bound to happen soon enough and it should be incredible, seeing as both of them also have very different methods of handling aggressors. Despite that they both seem to hold a mutual respect for one another’s styles, especially for Django who’s reminded of someone he knows.
 
While there’s nothing overly gripping about the story so far, it flows in a way that’s still interesting and knowing that both Tarantino and Wagner are at the helm of the story telling, we’re definitely going to be getting more as the series continues.  Plus there’s always the art to look at. Polls and Wagner have created the ambiance of the tale perfectly into visuals. It’s gritty with a warm colour palatte reminiscent of an old western. If anything it’s just a little surprising how pulpy the story isn’t, but that can easily change as the story movies forward.

This is a nice little series to pick up if you’re looking for something light to read. It’s fun and simple enough to read, but engaging enough to not be boring. It’s also great for Tarantino and Zorro fans looking for quick fix of action.