Tuesday 11 January 2011

Comics Greatest Moments #11

Preacher #12


March 1996

"Until the End of the World"

By Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon

For many Preacher fans it was this moment, alongside the apparent murder of a key character a few issues prior, that solidified this arc as the greatest part of the epic Preacher series. As Jesse Custer finally stands up against his sadistically violent maternal family, there is no moment more anticipated than his revenge on his psychotic uncle, Jody. All the torment and years of abuse, as well as the suspected murder of someone close to him, leads Jesse into a fit of violent rage as he completely destroys his tormentor in a brutal showdown.


And to top it all off, the moment's brilliance is cemented when Jody smiles up at Jesse and says, with his last breath: "I'm proud of you, boy." In a way it's Jody's own sense of perverted victory, and also an example of just how violent Jesse could have become, that even though he is a brutal individual, he is still not the worst human being.

Truly, Ennis and Dillon hit a stride early on with this book, and as the second collection, this story shows emotional flair and originality rare among comics of the day, and even of the present. This is truly one of the greatest moments ever presented in a comic book, for sheer poetic violence and brutality alone.

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