If there’s one thing we’ve learned from our years on the Internet, it’s that there’s no aspect of comics that can’t be broken down and quantified in a single definitive list, preferably in amounts of five or ten. And since there’s no more definitive authority than ComicsAlliance, we’re taking it upon ourselves to compile Top Five lists of everything you could ever want to know about comics.

This week, we're counting down the rootin'-tootin'est, bronco bustin'est, cattle punchin'est, rough and tumble cowboy heroes in comics. The Western genre has experienced a number of periods of popularity in comics, first from the late '40s through the '60s, and then a resurgence in popularity in the '70s (though some Western heroes have been consistently popular in Europe since the 1940s). This has resulted in a surprisingly large number of characters with "Kid" in their name. We've (tumble)weeded out the bad ones in order to bring you the five best!

Show notes:

  • Just in case you're thinking it: look, I love Terra-Man as much as anyone, but he's a Western themed villain, and thus does not fall under the purview of this list.
  • Some of the heroes from the honorable mention list can be found here and here.
  • Number five's solo adventures are out of print, but you can see one of his more memorable supporting roles here.
  • Number four has many, many adventures in print, but one of the most famous ones is here.
  • Number three's classic adventures are out of print, but a more modern take can be found here.
  • Number two's stories do not seem to be in print or available digitally in English for some reason, which ought to be a crime. If you want to pay the price for used copies, you can do so here.
  • Number one's classic adventures here, '90s revival here, more recent revival here.

 

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