In order to capture the fastest fingers in the West, you got to be the faster drawer on Earth. That honor belongs to BOICHI, the man responsible for the gorgeous and expressive worlds and people of Dr. STONE. At a Q&A event at Anime NYC 2019, BOICHI wowed the crowd by drawing two fully detailed pictures of the Dr. STONE cast in under ten minutes. It’s a sort of artistic magic that would make any comic drawer envious, and a skill that no doubt would continue to evolve as the years go on.

Now, hitting it solo, BOICHI has given us his latest work: The Marshal King. And needless to say, this is one country western that would make The Man with No Name grin from ear to ear.

Taking place in an era where Desperados rule the land, The Marshal King places the tin star on Jimmu Godspeed, the son of the outlaw M. Godspeed. With no desire for a life of crime, Jimmu kills his father, placing a target on his head as he drags his body through the desert to nab his reward. But it’s not riches he desires; it’s a ticket into the most prestigious Marshal Training Institute in the United States. However, within the grounds of the school is the legendary Excalibur, a gun so powerful that only one man could use it: the original Marshal King.

Just as he did with Dr. STONE, BOICHI does a damn good job with dragging his readers into the world of the story. The desert sands, the rough-and-tough buildings, and even how the hot weather is portrayed is shown with such amazing care in every frame of this manga. But it’s the character designs where BOICHI’s skills are blazing like saddles in the hot sun. When serious, everyone from Jimmu and his outlaw father to heartthrob Mira Abigail Black and the adorable Agera Dutch Sheaffer have more detail placed into them than your average Fist of the North Star panel.

However, BOICHI hasn’t lost the knack for comedic expressions, with Jimmu and Agera both showcasing some truly hilarious reactions to certain situations. Both styles mesh perfectly when an action scene takes place, especially during a firefight in the first and sixth chapters in this series. When you read a BOICHI-drawn series, you’ll always have the desire to see it be animated. Right out of the gate, the shootouts have the framing and style of a classic Western, mixed with the attitude of an Ilya Naishuller flick.

As for the story, it at first seems like The Marshal King goes through the motions a bit too quickly. Jimmu gets into the academy, and then nabs Excalibur before the first volume can even finish. However, Agera reveals a bit of a drawback to using the legendary gun, a fact that Jimmu would’ve known had he not slept through class. It brings an interesting twist to our Marshal-to-be, as the usage of the most legendary gun could lead to certain consequences down the line. 

The Marshal King is a hoedown of a Shonen Jump series. Its visuals are electrifying, and the action it displays feels like storyboards for the next big Hollywood cowboy epic. And while the story may seem to be going a little too quickly, the added twist reveal towards the end tells the readers that this story is only just getting started. Put on some spurs, play some Orville Peck, and get fitted with the best ten-gallon hat you can find, because The Marshal King has arrived to drag us into one wild stampede of a manga series!

Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.