By: Ricardo A. Serrano Denis
This is a story about slavery, black magic, dead cowboys brought back from the grave, and Western violence. Logan Hook is a black slave-owner who used to ‘loan’ special slaves to high-profile plantation owners. The reason behind this lies in his slaves’ abilities: they are all shamans, black magic priests from obscure tribes. In comes Jerret Skinner, a mysterious figure who is planning a hostile takeover of Hook’s business, with a mind to expand. Expansion, in this story, is a language spoken with guns, and Skinner knows how to speak it well. Hook and Skinner reach a predictable point of disagreement that results in a bullet finding itself into Hook’s head, leaving our protagonist in an unmarked grave in the middle of the desert. Ten years go by when he is visited by a dead Native American with a large Mohawk, named Maquinna (which means Unknown [Nootka origin]), who revives Hook (who is mostly just bones) and tells him it’s time to take up a new perspective on life, one with more violence in it. Hook is given somewhat of a life back and the means to go looking for his son and the slaves he’s lost to Skinner. But the world he wakes up to is stranger than the one he left behind, much stranger. And so the story begins.
Page 1
Panel 1: Top-down shot of Logan Hook crawling through the rocky desert. We see trail of blood, his blood, behind him. It is a bright and hot day in the American West. Logan is a big black cowboy dressed in a long blue overcoat with a white shirt and black pants underneath. He has a beard sans the mustache and looks quite angry. He’s in a different kind of slave business so he has to look the part. Jerret Skinner is close behind him, off-panel. We’ll see him soon enough.
Skinner (off-panel): There’s nothing but miles and miles of sand out there.
Panel 2: Front-shot of Logan getting up on his knees while holding on to his stomach wound. We see an older-looking white man walking up behind him, revolver in hand. He’s dressed in a proper gray suit, looking very much like a man of means. He has medium-length, greying hair and is clean-shaven. His hair is combed back. His name is Jerret Skinner and he is about to kill our main character. In the background we see an abandoned train station. It looks quite decrepit. There are four horsemen in background, close to the station. They have white sacks over their heads, their eyes and mouths cut out. We won’t be able to see them in much detail, so just keep these details in mind for when we meet them again.
Skinner: You crawling a little further isn’t going to change that. Especially not with a bullet lodged in your gut.
Panel 3: Close-up/side-shot of Logan looking down, making his peace with what’s coming. We see Skinner’s gun pressed to the back of Logan’s head. Remember, Logan is on his knees. Skinner’s gun is polished silver with a white handle.
Logan: My son…tell him---
Panel 4: Same situation but from the front. We see everything except Skinner’s face (off-panel).
Skinner: Let me stop you right there. I hope you’re not planning on asking for a favor here. Not that you aren’t entitled to a dying wish. But, if I may offer a word of advice, aim low…
Page 2
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| Once Upon A Time In The West (1968). Dir. Sergio Leone. |
Skinner: I’d hate to say no to a dead man.
Panel 2: Close-up of Skinner’s finger pulling the trigger.
Panel 3: This is a wide-shot of Skinner shooting Logan. We see Logan already falling (but not yet hitting the ground). We see blood spray. Skinner is standing sideways, his stance a bit stylish.
Panel 4: Close-up of Logan’s face on the ground, blood coming out a small hole above his right eye. There’s a small pool of blood in front of him. His eyes are wide-open.
Skinner (off-panel): I’ll go see about someone burying you real quick. Your grave, it won’t be marked. Your son…
Page 3
Panel 1: Small panel of Skinner walking away, towards the station. We only see him from behind.
Skinner: …it’s better he doesn’t know what earned you that bullet.
Panel 2: Big panel, top-down shot of Logan on the ground, a large pool of blood close to his head. This isn’t a hero’s death. It looks messy and unbecoming. We insert title and credits here. The credits can be written in Logan’s blood, as if it were slithering in the sand.
Skinner VO: I hope you come to appreciate the gesture.
Panel 3: This is still a top-down shot. We zoom out to see Logan’s body and one of the horsemen getting closer to the body. He’s brought a shovel with him.
Page 4
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| The Sixth Gun. By Cullen Bunn (w) and Brian Hurtt (a). |
Panel 1: Shot of Logan’s grave. Night has fallen. All we see is a mound, the abandoned train station in the background.
Panel 2: Front-shot of the abandoned station adorned with the bodies of at least 8 dead men. We see several propped up against the wall, which is blood spattered. One of the men is hanging from an old sign post that reads Sweetwater Station. We see the path towards Logan’s burial side to the side. We will meet the character speaking here in the next panel.
Maquinna (off-panel): There’s a lesson in this.
Panel 3: Front-shot of a Skeleton man mounted on a red horse, looking forward, towards the gruesome death scene. The Skeleton man’s name is Maquinna and he is a Native American. Maquinna has a big fragmented Mohawk (three sections) and is wearing a brown leather pants and a matching long-sleeved shirt. He has a small pouch with him and black repeater rifle. Maquinna’s jaw is painted dark red. The rest is white. There’s a presence to him. He somehow looks strong, bulky (but not overtly so). Maquinna’s horse is standing in the middle of train tracks (remember, where in front of an old station).
Maquinna: Never surround yourself with armed men. All they ever amount to is blood and body parts. And it’s usually someone else who has to clean it all up.
Panel 4: Shot of Maquinna taking the path up to Logan’s burial site.
Maquinna: Luckily for me, these men are destined to rot in their places untouched.
Panel 5: Shot of Maquinna pulling up next to Logan’s grave.
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