Being in the mind of Coach Boss is terrifying. Being party to his brand of chaotic weakness is a hard feeling to shake. Aaron's dialogue and narration strikes directly to the core and Latour's work really drives home the anguish and despair. There is some really intriguing foreshadowing as far as new players to the series and the flashbacks are perfectly timed and brilliantly depicted. The first trade is out now so don't make any excuses. This is a book that sticks with you long after you finish it. Read Full Review

For two of the busiest guys in comics, writing all kinds of big books between the two of them, thank christ Jason Aaron and Jason Latour are making the time to make Southern Bastards. It's not quite the same as going down south, getting a plate of ribs and a bottomless glass of Sa-weet Tea, but it's pretty goddamn close. Keep it coming, gentlemen. Read Full Review

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Southern Bastards is a masterpiece. You’ll be hard pressed to find a comic as grounded, heartbreaking and profound as this one. The character are compelling and complex and they live in a town with its own personality. This comic is an experience of creators working in perfect tandem to achieve the height of comic book storytelling Read Full Review

Craw County is a terrible place and yet I never want to leave. Read Full Review

Southern Bastards #5 is a brilliant bridge between the first arc and the next, acting as a nice eulogy to Earl Tubbs. It also gives a great look into why Coach Boss is such a hard ass, as well as showing the scope of this small county. Highly recommended. Read Full Review

Southern Bastards is mean, ugly, and raw. It is, simply, a book about some of the worst men in the world. It just so happens to be told through arguably the best comic on the stands today Read Full Review

Southern Bastards #5 is as good a follow-up as we could have hoped for. In a way this young series reminds me of what reading Saga was like a few years ago; while each issue seemed to impossibly raise the stakes and be better than the one before it, despite our reservations that the team could outdo past efforts. The bastards who make this comic are at the height of their story-telling powers. If this issue doesnt make you want to read the next issue as soon as you hit the last page, I dont know what will. This is a masterpiece in the making, and like Madison Bumgarner in Game 7 of The World Series on short rest, it defies categorization, explanation, or trepidation. Read Full Review

The RWG reviews crew has been in love with this Southern Bastards for some time now. If you still are on the fence about whether to pick this series up it's time to pick a side. Southern Bastards is a series that is filled to the brim with great art, seedy characters, and a plot that feels like something completely fresh in comic book storytelling. You don't need to be a football fan to enjoy Southern Bastards. You just need to know how to root for the underdog. Read Full Review

This is my first review of Southern Bastards, so my praise for the creators is overdue. Jason Latour's (Loose Ends) illustrations are rough, dark, and just transfixing, and it is evident on the faces of the characters he draws, panel after panel. Jason Aaron (Thor: God of Thunder) has impressed with these first five issues. He has an incredible story-telling gift and I look forward to his continued story building. Both Aaron and Latour have a love hate relationship with the south, providing us with a perfect collaboration and story that only they should tell. Read Full Review

Aaron and Latour have picked Southern Bastards back up in a surprising but fitting way. They dove back into the story with a sinister antihero instead of the hero we were used to. The story has folded in on itself and reemerged as something fresh but recognizable. This shows a command of their themes and story structure that suggests great things to come. Read Full Review

Right on J squared, y'all done subvertified my expectations. Southern Bastards #5 is mean. It forces you to look into the motivations of a man who just four issues before, we were led to despise. But it makes you wonder, is Couch Boss the problem? Or is the town which allows him to reign over them the real issue at hand? The art is great as ever, very red as a lot of the issue is in flashback. Only hang up is the action slows down. You get a few bits of intensity in the flashback, but otherwise Bastards is back to its character study roots. I ain't got no problem with that, but mayhap some of y'all might not like the shift in pacin'. Either way, this Southern Bastard is intense. Read Full Review

Southern Bastards is just hands down a dark and insanely entertaining series. Aaron's twists make this book a serious page-turner. Read Full Review

In truth, the issue's only fault comes with the introduction of the rest of Craw County's bastards. While Aaron clearly wanted to introduce readers to the rest of the cast, and the problems that Craw County faces, the intro didn't feel organic to the story. It was a classic comic book style introduction, but it didn't work as well as intended in a book that so often goes against comic book creative conventions. Read Full Review

There's no development on the tag from last issue but keeping Earl's daughter off the table for now helps the story. She remains a looming spectre in the mind of the reader, the comeuppance that the County needs and the vindication of Earl's life that he deserves. Allowing for the development of the side of the devils will only add to that build and make her arrival that much stronger. Month in and month out, "Southern Bastards" is a top-of-the-pile must read comic book that, much like Coach Boss, demands your attention. Grab the first collection, released this month, and catch up now. Read Full Review

Aaron's writing is bleak and merciless, and Latour takes every cruel world and spins the series into bloody gold. The people, the buildings, the hazy heat are all characters in their own way, drawncarrying the weight of the world they've built. There's no hope for them, just comfort, and Latour captures that as best he can. Read Full Review

In Southern Bastards #5 and the society it reflects, blood isnt just on the field. Read Full Review

The biggest problem with "Southern Bastards" #5 is that is indeed part one of something bigger. The ending does feel a little (just a little) abrupt. One nitpick aside this is a stellar book that deserves all the hype it gets month in and month out. Read Full Review

Killing off a major character isnt exactly unusual in comic books (Wolverine being the latest example) and both Aaron and Latour are writing books at Marvel. Still, what they have done in Southern Bastards feels different. The end of issue #4 felt dramatic and risky, and it could have been a poor decision if Southern Bastards #5 fell flat. The Jasons must have known they had the story to sustain after Earl, and they were right. In Southern Bastards #5, theyve reset the deck and established a really compelling different direction to take. Read Full Review

At the same time the kind of angry and bitter way Southern Bastards approaches its now central act of violent murder borders on the transgressive and Coach Boss's attitude towards his own crimes neatly mirrors the attitude of the book towards the south itself. It doesn't want people to just turn away and forget the horrors so prevalent in America's own 3rd world out of shame and embarrassment, so it's going to rub our faces in the awful truth of existence there till we can't ignore it anymore. That's a bold way to go with this story and it's bound to turn some people off with just how raw and forceful the storytelling can be but it comes with a passion and earnestness that's impossible to fake and severely endearing. Overall a great new chapter in a great comic, definitely check it out. Read Full Review

There is no doubt that I was not alone in the excitement for the return of Southern Bastards. This book creeps on the reader and grounds its southern roots into the eyes and minds of its audience. This is another great installment in the powerful series. Read Full Review

Now that we know a little bit more about Coach Boss, and the table has been set, Im really excited for what will hopefully be a big next issue. Bring the pain, Berta! Read Full Review

Southern Bastards #5 continues an enjoyable story, but nothing that ought leap to the top of one's pull list. Read Full Review

This has been a great story from the beginning.Jason Aron has been on his game with every issue. The art is very good with awesome colors and inks.I would recommend this one to all readers who love a good cliff hanger with great anticipation for the next issue.I am a Jason Aron fan for life.

Slowly paced, yet the change of point of view was amazing. This book is so great, I can't even imagine what will happen next.

Loving this series. Not sure exactly what's drawing me in but it plays out so smoothly...warts and all. If you ever want an example of great character development then this is your book. Can't wait to see what shocking thing happens next.

Southern Bastards review,

Another INCREDIBLE AWESOME generic step in a good 'ole boy story about a hicksville jerk-off and run-down sh!t town that is reminiscent of how ass-backwards the south still is. If you want to read about a racist prick murderer and his loser crew, ridiculous football hazing rituals, and dictatorship levels of oppression, this is the book for you.

NINE OUT OF TEN if you like this kind of drivel.

Otherwise, 0.5/5 for unimaginative rehashed story that we've read about the south way too much...
3 for some decent art.