The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage #2 // Review
The Man With No Face fights evil, despite the fact that he’s always outnumbered. That sounds like it could be the story of any version of The Question, but in The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage #2, it becomes the story of a new Wild West version of the character.
The issue follows Viktor Szasz, a blacksmith in Hub City in 1886, as he tries to escape the acts of evil and violence that he himself committed during his time in the Army. Szasz befriends an African-American man, which makes him some enemies, and when he saves that man from hanging, all hell breaks loose. It’s a pretty standard (if expertly told) Old West tale until Szasz finds himself back in a familiar mystical cave talking to skeletons.
Where the first issue of the series felt like a return to the Denny O’Neil incarnation of the character, this issue feels like it came directly from the brain of its writer, Jeff Lemire. The main character traveling through time and the questions of reincarnation feel like they could be from the pages of his horror series Gideon Falls.
Penciler Denys Cowan and inker Bill Sienkiewicz are masters at the top of their craft this issue. The world of Hub City in 1886 feels just as realized and moody as the modern-day version of the first issue but still has a distinct personality and identity. Their work is gritty and sketchy in all the right ways and looks terrific. It’s complemented well by the restrained coloring of Chris Sotomayor and the lettering of Willie Schubert.
The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage hasn’t gotten much fanfare from DC Comics, and that’s a real surprise. Perhaps it’s because it’s a Black Label book, or perhaps it’s because The Question isn’t one of their bestselling characters, but whatever the reason it likely means that many readers are missing out on a hidden gem from their catalog. Highly recommended.
