Comics Korner: Southern Bastards #8

Coach Boss wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for two people, Big and his Daddy. It’s not what it sounds like.

Last week saw the end to the second arc of the Southern Bastards series with the release of Southern Bastards #8 by Jason Aaron and Jason Latour. We finally learn what ol’ Coach Boss meant when he said he’d never be where he was if not for two people, Big and his Daddy.

The Skinny
What starts off as a potential heart warming moment, ends up turning Euless into the title of the series. Turns out this is his part of a blood soaked bargain, the reward being the head coach position. The transformation from angry kid with no guidance to the loud mouthed tyrant of the gridiron is complete, but it may not be worth the blood.

The Good
Holy crap did this issue catch me with some twists. Not sure what the hell I was expecting, but I did not see the two death scenes coming at all. Looking back, it totally makes sense, but for some reason they caught me off guard. Latour continues to provide fantastic illustrations to carry this story, helping every twist and gut punch to leave its mark. Finally, I was elated to see Roberta “Bert” Tubb at the end of the issue, getting ready to head home. By the looks of it, she’s just as mean as her old man and maybe even tougher. I wonder if she’s trained in fighting with a tree branch?

The Not-So Good
I complained about Euless taking the job as a ball boy in the last issue, saying it was out of character for him. In this issue, we learn he holds the position for an entire year before making his move for the throne. Boss never struck me as a long con type of guy, but I enjoyed seeing how he got himself out of it. The other thing that made me curious is that I thought Tubb was far from the first guy Boss put down, so I wonder why this one in particular hit Big so hard. I’m sure we’ll find out more in the next arc.

The Decision
Southern Bastards #8 is a damn good ending to the second arc. There’s some intense moments, some backstabbing, and some blood that all combine to make for a great conclusion. Now that we’ve made it through Boss’s Anakin to Vader story (done better than Star Wars mind you) it’s going to be very interesting watching Bert head back to the toughest place on earth…home.