COMIC BOOK REVIEW: Bloodshot Salvation #9 (A Dog's Life)

The origin story of the Bloodhound. A dog’s tale dating back to the Great War.

Bloodshot Salvation # 9
Writer: Jeff Lemire and Ray Fawkes
Artist: Renato Guedes
Inker: not listed
Colorist: not listed
Letterer: Simon Bowland
Cover Artist: Kenneth Rocafort
Variant Covers: Renato Guedes, Giuseppe Camuncoli with Brian Reber, Juan Jose Ryp with Andrew Dalhouse, Shane Davis with Andrew Dalhouse and Ryan Bodenheim
Editors: Warren Simons Asst. Editor: Benjamin Peterson
Publisher: Valiant Comics

What You Need to Know:
Entering the Battlefield of World War One, in France in 1916, a scholarly looking old man is escorted through the trenches by two doughboy soldiers. He passes the atrocities of the battle and sees first hand the effects of Mustard Gas but remains unphased as he heads to the Commanding officer. He begins to introduce himself, as the sound of approaching Mortar fire shocks him.

He has come to test his creations and turn the tide of the war. His test subjects will be dogs ( five of them) that he has constructed to withstand any punishment that the enemy can dish out, and he is eager to prove himself. The Commander is not so easily impressed but he has a semi-impossible task for the Doctor. Take the ridge that they have not been able to hold.

What You’ll Find Out:

At Dawn the dogs are set loose. They take off towards the german troops and as expected they are shot yet they rise again towards the attack. They shred the enemy line and force a retreat. Wth the machine gun disabled, the Brittish troops easily finish off the retreating German troops, and the next ridge is taken by the Dogs. The Doctor has proven the effectiveness of his Dogs, and though they have been shot, or maimed they are none the worse for wear, except onr of the dogs has been caught in some Barbed Wire.

The Experiment is a success, and he Doctor consoles his remaining Unfortunately the Commanding officer says the success is short lived. They found out quickly that the order to withdraw, and they will not have the chance to retrieve the other dog. He moves quickly and says to the two dogs ” Assault and Retrieve” and the dogs went out again.

Thet this time reach their brother and release a belly full of Mustard gas. The Dogs are not as successful with theirrun as the German troops shoot one in the head. Three return, and the Germans realiate with Gas.

What Just Happened?
As he waits for the dogs return the Doctor is struck by the Gas Grenade and falls into the trench. He fumbles and his mask and it is destroyed. The dogs return to find his lifeless corpse. The Commander is neither surprised nor concerned for the dogs, and he says to get them out of his sight.

Ray lays down next to the Bloodhound as we see this has bee a dream or rather a memory, of the origin of the Hound. A look into the past from Bloodshot’s faithful friend.

Rating: 8/10
Final Thought: A tale from the past that gives us a glimpse into the origin of the mysterious Bloodhound. The Art is haunting, and the tale a sad and lonely one. An original take on a character that has been in circulation for a while without the spotlight. The artwork is great and gross, an at times bleak as the subject matter. We do not often see World War One in comics these days, and it’s always a jarring visage of a grizzly time in the world’s past. This comic captures all of that emotion.