Southern Bastards vol. 2: Gridiron

Hey, so it turns out that I was mistaken and Earl Tubb, protagonist of the previous volume, really was beaten to death in the street by Coach Euless Boss.  That does make him seem more threatening, but Jason Aaron wants you to feel something different for this particular bastard here:  sympathy.  “Gridiron” is all about Euless’ formative years in high school as he wants nothing more than to play football.  Problem is that the deck is stacked against him in just about every conceivable way possible.  He lacks the physique, has a terrible father, bad guys shoot him in the foot, the coach has it in for him — it seems like there is no way that Euless’ dream is going to come true with all this working against the boy.  However, he has two things working in his favor:  The knowledge from old, blind, African-American ballboy Big, and a blistering determination to never give in no matter the cost.

It’s that last part which is the most relevant to the story as the things we see Euless do as a young man really inform the adult he winds up as in the present day.  While his intentions are pure at first, the corruption that sets in doesn’t just seem inevitable but natural as well.  I also liked seeing how his treatment growing up inspired nothing but contempt for the town he runs like his football team.  In his twisted mind, Craw County is responsible for making him the man he is today and he’s not going to let them forget it.  Specifically, the moment where he beat a man to death in its streets and nobody raised a finger to stop him or bring the man to justice.  It’s compelling work from Aaron, and artist Jason Latour who brings these scenes to life on the page in all their gritty glory.  There are also a couple of last-minute surprises in the volume’s final pages which let us know about the latest challenges Coach Boss is going to have to face down.  One involves the last words of an old friend, and the other is someone I’m very much hoping to see bust down some conventions in this kind of story.  These first two volumes of “Southern Bastards” have been good, but I’m expecting the next one will finally make the series great.