East of West vol. 4

Billed as the start of “The Apocalypse:  Year Two,” this latest volume of Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta’s thoroughly entertaining sci-fi western shows us that the son of Death and PRA leader Xiaolian is going to be a major factor in this next leg of the story.  He was raised with the name Babalon to portend the hope by his captors that he would eventually become the Beast of the Apocalypse in accordance with The Message.  We found out last volume that his A.I. companion Balloon has been manipulating his mind to show the boy that the world is a harsh, desolate wasteland that needs to be destroyed so it can be born again.  Now he has met up with Orion, the Prophet of Armistice, and his uh… thing that he rides on who are here to begin the next stage of his training and to make sure that Babalon’s destiny is not one that is forced upon the boy, but one that he chooses for himself.  It’s creepy, sad, stuff that the creators have presented to us here.  We’re talking about the complete brainwashing of a young kid who isn’t even aware of what’s being done to him.  The hope is that he’ll be able to break through it at some point, but everything we’ve seen in the series so far doesn’t really give me much hope for that at this point.

In the meantime, Death, the Three Horsemen, and the leaders of the other nations have their own issues to contend with.  The one-shot “The World” does a good job of establishing the current status quo for the major players in this saga before their situations start to change in the issues of the regular series collected here.  We see that the might of the Endless Nation is great indeed, but they are also enough of a paper tiger that they need to ally with the PRA to avoid being overwhelmed.  Meanwhile, Bel Solomon flees from Texas in the wake of its conquest with some help, the Union’s efforts to enlist the EN’s help are rebuffed, and the Confederacy’s own Archibald Chamberlain continues to scheme.  All of these threads are managed with the style and energy that is customary to this series, while the creators also make room for tender moments like Death and Xiaolian’s (last?) embrace and unbridled fun as Prince John Freeman shows just why he is unmatched by his brothers with a gun.  The full gamut of emotions are run with this volume, and yet nothing feels out of place.  It’s all part of Hickman and Dragotta’s plan and it remains as enjoyable as always.