The Enfield Gang Massacre

That Texas Blood

by Chris Condon, Jacob Phillips (Illustrator)

A Western that is as haunting as it is thrilling, THE ENFIELD GANG MASSACRE tells the dark origin of THAT TEXAS BLOOD's Ambrose County as only Jacob Phillips and Chris Condon can!

Montgomery Enfield and his gang of outlaws find themselves in the crosshairs of an aging Texas Ranger and a newborn county that’s hungry for law - by any means necessary.

Collects THE ENFIELD GANG MASSACRE #1-6

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Westerns, Crime, Graphic Novels Comics, Historical, Historical Fiction

200 pages, Paperback

First published May 10, 2024

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

Uh, gee, this was on multiple lists of best graphic novels of the year, so I figured, why not? ... and ... it was OK, but ... and maybe I missed something, but I gotta admit, I'm not sure why so many people loved this.

Cool concept, and I found the art perfectly appropriate to the subject matter, and I really enjoyed the textual story (or narrative or prose) that was interspersed throughout the more conventional graphic novel, but ... but ... but ... alas ... I don't know what I was expecting or hoping for ... or what I missed ... but, ultimately, it just didn't resonate with me. Interesting? Sure. But ... but ...

One of the great things about reading is that not everything has to be for everybody. So I'm just going to assume I wasn't the target audience for this one and move on to something else.

[Frédéric · Rating 4 out of 5]

We all need a good Old West story.

Chris Condon must think so too, as he regales us with an excellent story set in Ambrose County in 1875. Not that the plot itself is particularly surprising: the unfolding of the action and its twists are very easy to guess - greatly helped by the very good prose at the end of each issue, which adds a real patina to the graphics. On the other hand, the characterisation of the protagonists is excellent, very much in the spirit of the post-modern Westerns of recent decades. The dialogue is also very good. 4*

I'm disappointed with the graphics though. While some of the panels and scenes are admirable, they fall short of what we have a right to expect from Jacob Phillips. The narration is too often lazy, with lots of close-ups and quick, pointless splash pages. Many scenes are sketchy and feel rushed and I notice an almost constant absence of scenery and settings. On a personal note, I didn't really like the colour palette. Half-hearted 3*.

Despite this disappointment I recommend this book to all lovers of good Westerns.

[Jake Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid continuation of the That Texas Blood universe. I found myself on the edge of my seat, waiting to see which of the Enfield gang would get away as the action started to get faster- only to have to slow down between issues to read the supplemental material. Presented as an ongoing newspaper article, every chapter ends with two pages that provide extra context or hints at the upcoming issues and the historical significance these characters have on Ambrose County, Texas. Did those work for me? Not really, like I said they interrupt the flow of the comic book story.

Did I like the extra story packed into those pages? Yeah absolutely.

Not sure when we will see another volume of Texas Blood but this one was another satisfying outing.

[Valéria. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a big fan of westerns, but this one was done right. And that ending, woah. Wished for it to end as it was shown few panels before the actual end, but even though it did not, it was really great closure that hits the feelings. I'd say Chris Condon and Jacob Phillips are the new, younger Brubaker/Phillips duo. At least they're slowly getting there.

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Enfield Gang Massacre by Condon and Phillips is dark, fucked up, and grimy as all hell. Just how I like my westerns.

Shit hits the fan when a bank teller winds up dead, and the law decides to lose its damn mind. Suddenly, it’s open season on every outlaw in sight. What follows is a full-blown bloodbath, people getting shot, ripped apart, stomped out, or strung up. No one’s safe, and the book doesn't flinch.

I wish I had more time with some of the characters before they got wrecked, it would’ve made a few deaths hit even harder, but the ones that do land, especially the last two? Brutal. No happy endings here, just chaos, death, and the dusty aftermath.

The art sets the mood, the story hits you hard, this is a 4 out of 5.

[Justin Partridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

“To this day, I believe that Ambrose County suffers the curse of John Mowbray, a curse that runs deep down into the soil of this land and has poisoned it ever since. The purpose of this article, I suppose, is to provide an exorcism. I aim, in my small way, to save the soul of Ambrose County. To do this, we have to talk about a hard, simple truth: John Mowbray may not have pulled the trigger, but he certainly is the man responsible for the murder of Bill Barley and the countless deaths that followed over the next five days in 1875. and I intend to prove it.

/////

“THIS ISNT ENOUGH?! NONE OF THIS WAS ENOUGH?!”


I expected this to be good. Hell, it was righteously sold out basically the whole of its original print run so I figured people were digging it beyond the That Texas Blood fanbase.

Holy shit, I did not expect this to be THIS good.

Firstly, I think it really succeeds at being its own thing. While also simultaneously, miraculously, also serving well that aforementioned TTB fanbase. It’s one of the rare prequels that is very much locked into its own vibe and execution, but also fits VERY well the timbre and tone of the thing it’s prequelizing.

I think that’s really due to that part being incidental to the story. Like, it’s there for people if they want it, but it’s not at all dependent on being able to enjoy this…truly bleak and beautiful Western saga.

And I do mean beeeeeaaaauuuuuutiful. Philips the younger just keeps leveling up as a solo penciler/colorist and this is a big fat, constantly sumptuous example of that level up. I also think his character emoting is getting a ton better than even his pa’s is and it just makes this thing hit all the more devastatingly.

That Texas Blood forever, obviously, but if THIS is what else this team can get up to in the meantime, I’m very okay with the wait time between arcs.

[Machiavelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Enfield Gang Massacre hooked me right away — part Western, part small-town horror, all atmosphere. Condon and Phillips build this sense of dread that feels both human and inevitable. The tension never really breaks; it just hums underneath everything.

The art is phenomenal — dusty and cinematic, with that quiet sadness that runs through every great Western. The pacing is lean, the writing restrained, and the tone hits that perfect blend of tragedy and tension.

Really impressed by how much weight this packed into so few issues.

[Rick Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

A loose prequel of sorts to Chris Condon's and Jacob Phillips' neo-Western/neo-noir series, That Texas Blood, the story here follows the early bloodletting that shaped the local culture of Ambrose County, Texas. You don't have to have read That Texas Blood to enjoy this series though, as we follow a group of characters disconnected to those of the main series.

The Enfield Gang Massacre is a chronicle of the downfall of a gang of outlaws who were wrongly accused of a series of murders that took place in 1875 deep in the Texas frontier . Told partially through the perspective of a newspaper article from 1996 where an investigative journalist attempts to uncover the conspiracy behind the shakedown of the gang by the local sheriff's office, the state troopers and the garrison of Union soldiers, the story largely follows Montgomery Enfield and his gang who are rapidly cornered by the corrupt officials of Ambrose County. It's a riveting story set in the Wild West, but uses the complex morally gray setup of the contemporary noir tone of That Texas Blood to upend the more black-and-white morality of classic Westerns.

Jacob Phillips is in his strongest form yet, taking his vibrant designs from crime noir works like That Texas Blood and Newburn to a more historical setting seamlessly. The single issues and trade for The Enfield Gang Massacre were all published in newsprint instead of the more common glossy/coated paper of modern comics, but it works well for the vintage style of narrative this is. The colors don't quite pop to the same extent as a result, but the classic design works really well for the story. Worth checking out for fans of Condon's and Phillips' main series, but also for those who just like bloody, gripping, high-octane Westerns.

[Jiro Dreams of Suchy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the supernatural flair in the second collection of That Texas Blood. This is a very well written and drawn cowboy story, reminds me of Red Dead Redemption- it’s bloody and feels sweaty and tired like a real cowboy. I like the idea that evil can permeate the soil and kind of lead to violence across time but I didn’t feel like this collection really did that, I felt like this was just a good cowboy story with some real violent people. Maybe that’s all it ever was.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the way this is written, after each chapter there is an excerpt from an article written years later about the massacre that sheds a bit more light on what initially appears to be a fairly simple good guy lawmen vs bad guy outlaws.

It reminds me of Elmore Leonard's westerns where what seems black and white turns into more of a grey mush by the end.

The pace is solid, and as usual I really enjoy Jacob Phillips' art.

[Matthew Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this one can be a bit hard to follow at first with all of the characters, the story is not lost at all. Chris Condon is a phenomenal storyteller and Jacob Phillips is a masterful artist. These two creators make an incredible team and I’d love to see more from the two of them in the future!

[GNmanganerd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Do yourself a favor and read this one..though it starts as a slow burn but picks up the pace after the initial 7-8 pages. The action panels are a treat to the eyes. Jacob has beautifully taken over the same art style of Sean. A very action packed emotional ride.

[Brendan T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty rad western set in the world of That Texas Blood. Don’t think I like it as much as Vol. 2 or 3 of the main series but doing a western is a really solid left turn to take with the series. Chris Condon and Jake Phillips rule, hope they continue to work together outside of this world. Really love that even the trade of this is still printed on that thick newsprint. The colours look amazing on it, especially given it’s Phillips/Martin continuing that more expressionistic feel with a gorgeously hazy colour palette for this one.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very smart Western story..expertly delivered .
There's much more to this than a story about a Western criminal gang
There's historical insight from written pages at the end of the chapters..and a bunch of questionable characters ..

[Bertazzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Western, such a brilliant way to sew the stories of That Texas Blood. I will die recommending this series that mixes Coen Brothers, cults, slasher, and more. Pure gold.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This tells the story of Ambrose County in a prequel to That Texas Blood, which is a comic I haven't read as of yet. After this collection, though, I think I need to move it up in the queue. Great art by Jacob Phillips and a story that delivers on its title. The use of the text pages was unexpected and at first made me scratch my head, but I grew to realize their purpose.

[Rahul Nadella · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for a good Western and there isn't a lot in comics. That much is a testament to how well Condon and Phillips draw readers in with this particular Western, which puts character over story first. Chris Condon ends the tale with an ending thats gut-wrenching, poetic, and thoughtful. Phillips's artwork captures every look of fear, hope, and grief in vivid detail. It's so well written that the plot is almost secondary because Condon breathes such authenticity into the characterizations, I could almost listen to the dialogue endlessly. This is a gold standard for telling deep, affective westerns in comics and it ended like a western movie or game.

[Bat Man]

My favorite professor in college used to say that the only ethical way to live in or outside America is to become a terrorist. He was right

[Jake Nap · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chris Condon and Jacob Phillips’ most cinematic work. I love the mostly widescreen panels throughout, gives it a real quick pace. The newsprint like paper stock the book is printed on also adds a lot to the aesthetic. Jacob Phillips drew the shit out of this book. He’s a true cartoonist, controlling every visual you see from the pencils to the inks to the colors to the letters.

The Newspaper articles at the end of each issue didn’t work for me, I found it interrupted the pace of the book. Without it, I think this would be one of the stronger showings of the That Texas Blood canon.

[Andres Pasten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buena dupla, han mantenido un alto nivel en todas las historias que han entregado

[Cadillac Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Condon writes a good comic, and Jacob Phillips just keeps getting better and better! His work was already strong, and this is his best yet.

[Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

The connecting covers on the single issues and newsprint paper are thoughtful touches to this deftly crafted, action-packed western based on true events. Excellent.

[The Dude · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly Texan story recounting dishonest frontier justice and the madness that the Texan independent spirit can sometimes breed.
With the uncovering of the true story in the newspaper fragments it paints a picture of how West Texas life and more particularly Ambrose county comes to bear with its demons and dirty past.
Enfeild's death and the story his corpse had after is a good metaphor for the cowboy myth in general and how hard it was to keep a dying breed alive and asks if what replaced it is any better.
But I think all cowboys should be able to find somewhere nice to lay their heads in the end

[Lucas · Rating 3 out of 5]

A spinoff prequel to their neo-western comic That Texas Blood, this books tells the true story of the titular Enfield Gang Massacre. It's nothing too deep, but if you enjoy a good western, this is sure to be for you. This is my first time reading a book by Jacob Phillips, aside from when he colored his father's art, and I can definitely say it runs in the family

[Neil Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perhaps more a good Western than a great, but thrilling gunfights and a very striking finale

[Niko Dasilva · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Braulio Valenzuela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mejor de lo que me esperaba.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better stuff has come out of the that Texas blood franchise, But this was still entertaining. Part commentary on justice being mislead, and motivation being ill placed to get the end one wants.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Violent and grim, with few redeeming characters, a tale of what happens with greedy selfish men in a place too far for justice to reach

[LQ 🖖 🇨🇦 (to the max!) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Feels like Jonah Hex met Tarantino.
This was an awesome miniseries.