With the movie on the way to the projector room of our closest cinemas, it would be a shame for The House Of El to not play tribute to this soon-to-be underdog star.
Jonah Hex is live is one that is probably not envied by any of the other heroes and anti-heroes of the DC Universe. Jonah has battled alcoholism, and as an adult faced his mother's turn to prostitution. If you didn't already know, Hex is your typical Western-gruff bounty hunter whose face is horribly scarred on the right side. Despite his poor reputation and personality, Hex is bound by a personal code of honor to protect and avenge the innocent.
He's an expert marksman whom rarely misses and is always up to a good fight.
Though he has traveled extensively throughout the American West, he has also ended up trudging through South America and China. At one point he had quit bounty hunting, married and had a son, and took up farming - though unruly circumstances saw to it that his marriage and his family lifestyle did not last.
Hex's facial injuries - his most noticeable features - can be traced back to being sold into slavery by his father to some Apache for safe passage. Jonah eventually saved the chief from being killed by a mountain lion and was made an honorary member of the tribe. He was soon betrayed by the envious son of the chief while on a raid.
Jonah returned years later to challenge him in a sacred tomahawk battle, but the chief's son sabotaged Jonah's tomahawk. Jonah used his knife instead self-defense when the tomahawk broke. The tribe saw this as a violation of the rules of the sacred battle and sentenced Jonah to wear the mark of the demon - by pressing a searing hot tomahawk to his face. It was said that his honorary relationship to the chief was the only thing that saved him from death.
In a limited story series called the Hex series, Jonah was transported to 2050. The exact date when this occurred has been in debate, although several sources point to 1875. It is also unknown how long Jonah stayed in the future or what date he returned.
In 1904, Jonah was shot during a card game. His corpse was stolen, stuffed, mounted, and dressed in a ridiculous singing cowboy costume, then put on display in a traveling circus. The circus owner was eventually murdered and Jonah's body was stolen yet again. It would pass through various hands before finally being acquired by the restaurant Planet Krypton, owned by Booster Gold. A very twisted turn of events indeed.
In 2010, Jonah's presence was renewed when he was found by a Black Lantern ring and was revived as a member of the Black Lantern Corps, in the Blackest Night storyline.
Jonah Hex is probably one of the most well-known and well recalled DC Universe characters born of the golden age of comics - alongside such creations as the Challengers of the Unknown and DC's military era writings.
Being a non-superhero, Jonah did not have a "Rogues gallery" comparable to costumed comic-book heroes, though he had a few adversaries who returned from time to time. The most notable of these to date was Quentin Turnbull, known at first as simply the man with the eagle-topped cane.
Turnbull was the father of Hex's best friend, Jeb Turnbull. During the American Civil War, Jonah actually surrendered himself to the Union forces after the passage of the Emancipation Proclamation, but he refused to betray where his fellow soldiers were camped. A Union soldier was able to determine the location of that camp by examining the dirt in the hooves of Jonah's horse. The Union soldiers captured all of Jonah's fellow soldiers and then later massacred most of them, framing Jonah as a turncoat. Turnbull's son was one of those slaughtered, and Turnbull vowed his vengeance upon Jonah.
Turnbull will be featured as the antagonist in the 2010 movie, played by John Malkovich.
Jonah Hex undoubtedly a curious character on printed paper and an even curiouser hero to portray in the movies. There's little knowledge as to why we see a revival of Jonah in 2010 but we (meaning I) have faith that DC will be leading all on the right path.
Jonah Hex is live is one that is probably not envied by any of the other heroes and anti-heroes of the DC Universe. Jonah has battled alcoholism, and as an adult faced his mother's turn to prostitution. If you didn't already know, Hex is your typical Western-gruff bounty hunter whose face is horribly scarred on the right side. Despite his poor reputation and personality, Hex is bound by a personal code of honor to protect and avenge the innocent.
He's an expert marksman whom rarely misses and is always up to a good fight.
Though he has traveled extensively throughout the American West, he has also ended up trudging through South America and China. At one point he had quit bounty hunting, married and had a son, and took up farming - though unruly circumstances saw to it that his marriage and his family lifestyle did not last.
Hex's facial injuries - his most noticeable features - can be traced back to being sold into slavery by his father to some Apache for safe passage. Jonah eventually saved the chief from being killed by a mountain lion and was made an honorary member of the tribe. He was soon betrayed by the envious son of the chief while on a raid.
Jonah returned years later to challenge him in a sacred tomahawk battle, but the chief's son sabotaged Jonah's tomahawk. Jonah used his knife instead self-defense when the tomahawk broke. The tribe saw this as a violation of the rules of the sacred battle and sentenced Jonah to wear the mark of the demon - by pressing a searing hot tomahawk to his face. It was said that his honorary relationship to the chief was the only thing that saved him from death.
In a limited story series called the Hex series, Jonah was transported to 2050. The exact date when this occurred has been in debate, although several sources point to 1875. It is also unknown how long Jonah stayed in the future or what date he returned.
In 1904, Jonah was shot during a card game. His corpse was stolen, stuffed, mounted, and dressed in a ridiculous singing cowboy costume, then put on display in a traveling circus. The circus owner was eventually murdered and Jonah's body was stolen yet again. It would pass through various hands before finally being acquired by the restaurant Planet Krypton, owned by Booster Gold. A very twisted turn of events indeed.
Jonah Hex is probably one of the most well-known and well recalled DC Universe characters born of the golden age of comics - alongside such creations as the Challengers of the Unknown and DC's military era writings.
Being a non-superhero, Jonah did not have a "Rogues gallery" comparable to costumed comic-book heroes, though he had a few adversaries who returned from time to time. The most notable of these to date was Quentin Turnbull, known at first as simply the man with the eagle-topped cane.
Turnbull was the father of Hex's best friend, Jeb Turnbull. During the American Civil War, Jonah actually surrendered himself to the Union forces after the passage of the Emancipation Proclamation, but he refused to betray where his fellow soldiers were camped. A Union soldier was able to determine the location of that camp by examining the dirt in the hooves of Jonah's horse. The Union soldiers captured all of Jonah's fellow soldiers and then later massacred most of them, framing Jonah as a turncoat. Turnbull's son was one of those slaughtered, and Turnbull vowed his vengeance upon Jonah.
Turnbull will be featured as the antagonist in the 2010 movie, played by John Malkovich.
Jonah Hex undoubtedly a curious character on printed paper and an even curiouser hero to portray in the movies. There's little knowledge as to why we see a revival of Jonah in 2010 but we (meaning I) have faith that DC will be leading all on the right path.
No comments:
Post a Comment