Loveless (comics)

Loveless is an American Western comic book series for mature readers published by DC Comics as a part of that company's Vertigo imprint. It is written by Brian Azzarello and drawn by Marcelo Frusin, Danijel Zezelj and Werther Dell'Edera.[1] There are 24 issues total.

Not to be confused with Loveless (manga).
Loveless
Cover to issue #1 of Loveless (Dec 2005), art by Marcelo Frusin.
Publication information
PublisherVertigo Comics (DC)
ScheduleMonthly
FormatOngoing series
Publication dateDecember 2005 – May 2008
No. of issues24
Creative team
Created byBrian Azzarello
Marcelo Frusin
Written byBrian Azzarello
Artist(s)Marcelo Frusin, Danijel Zezelj, Werther Dell'Edera
Colorist(s)Patricia Mulvihill
Collected editions
A Kin of HomecomingISBN 1-84576-337-8

Plot

Loveless was originally about a man, Wes Cutter, who fought for the South in the Civil War and was captured. After spending time in a prison camp he comes back to his previous home of Blackwater after the North won to find the town under Union control and his house occupied. Soon after, Cutter is offered a position of sheriff in the town.[2]

The comic's early issues explore the dynamic relationship between Cutter and the people of the town (most of whom hate him), the fate of Cutter's wife Ruth, and the lingering feelings of animosity between North and South after the end of the war.

Since the conclusion to its earlier issues, Loveless has become a comic of greater chronological and thematic narrative. The stories within Loveless, since its inception and especially in its later years center around racism and the grittier realities of American history.

The book had been stated to last about four years by Brian Azzarello in a Broken Frontier interview. In the interview Azzarello also hinted to end the story in the 1940s or so,[3] but the series was cancelled with issue #24.

Characters
  • Wes (Wesley) Cutter
    • Protagonist
  • Ruth Cutter (Stokes)
    • Takes the name of James Wright
  • Jonny Cutter
    • Brother of Wes Cutter
    • Smuggled weapons from Canada
  • Boyd Johnson
    • Fought along with Wes under Bill Anderson's command
  • 'Bloody' Bill Anderson
  • Abram Rivers
  • Silas Redd
    • Colonel
    • Crippled by Boyd Johnson and lost his leg
  • James Foley
    • Catholic, unlike most other soldiers
    • Promoted to sergeant
    • Irish
  • Jeremiah Trotter
  • George
    • Sergeant
    • Killed by Ruth
  • Atticus Man
    • Black bounty hunter
  • Lord
    • Referred as Captain, but probably holds higher position, since he dismisses colonel Redd of his duties
  • Punch
    • Assassin, hired by Abram to kill Seth, who's been spying for Lawson Company, and later Wes Cutter
  • Martha
    • Abram's Wife
  • Jasper
    • Later became a horse racer
  • Murphy
    • Sergeant
  • Helen
    • Convinced Ruth to help Jonny conceal smuggled weapons in her house
    • Found dead in her bed, her neck broken
  • Frank
    • Has a pig farm

Artists

The title was penciled and inked by three artists on a rotating schedule: Marcelo Frusin (#1-5, 9-10, covers), Danijel Zezelj (#6-8, 13-15, 22-24), Werther Dell'Edera (#11-12, 16-21).[2] Frusin previously worked with writer Brian Azzarello for three years on Hellblazer. Zezelj also had a previous project with Azzarello: El Diablo, a western mini series, that in Azzarello's words "planted the seeds for Loveless".[3] All three artists have clearly distinct, recognizable styles, colorist Patricia Mulviill ensured a graphic continuity throughout the series.

Collected editions

They are being collected together into trade paperbacks as the run continues:

#TitleISBNRelease dateCollected material
1 A Kin of Homecoming ISBN 1-84576-337-8 2006 Loveless #1-5
2 Thicker than Blackwater ISBN 1-84576-453-6 2007 Loveless #6–12
3 Blackwater Falls ISBN 1-4012-1495-9 September 17, 2008 Loveless #13-24

See also

Notes
  1. Irvine, Alex (2008), "Loveless", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The Vertigo Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, pp. 116–117, ISBN 978-0-7566-4122-1, OCLC 213309015
  2. Irvine, Alex (2008), "100 Bullets", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The Vertigo Encyclopedia, London: Dorling Kindersley, pp. 11–17, ISBN 978-0-7566-4122-1
  3. Sam Moyerman: Bad Azz Mojo, part 1, posted October 11 2006 Archived November 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
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