Rating: 
Summary: There ain't worse than me in all of Hell- Go see!
Review: Personally, I thought that the four issue mini-series "Saint of Killers" deserved it's own separate trade paperback. Lumping the other material in here doesn't really fit or make sense. The story arc works perfectly by itself- hell, it's a masterpiece of graphic story telling. Moreover, you don't need to know anything about the rest of the Preacher series to appreciate it- either before or after. I remember when I first found this miniseries- my reaction was Wow, this is really GOOD! I reread it three times and then sent a fan letter to Ennis (which he probably never got.)
What we have here is an interesting union of real world, western myth, and cosmic myth. We never learn the name of the "Saint", he is always "that man"- or Sir! We do learn his story though- from Gettysburg to the Llano Estacada- from Confederate cavalryman to bounty hunter. He was a hard man, but a fair one. While he hunted down bad men for bounty (red and white) he never saw himself as any sort of hero. He treated good folk with respect and decency- but primarily he just wanted to be left alone. Then he rescued a good woman from the hands of a Kiowa raiding party- and for eight years he enjoyed a peaceful, full family life that he suspected that he had no true right to. That all came to an end in the Great Blizzard of '86. While he was riding to get medicine for his sick wife and child he was delayed by a gang of murderous scum. He made it back to them too late. Only one thing remained for him- vengeance against those who had kept him from his mission. He tracked them down and got his vengeance- but he knowingly and deliberately killed an innocent soul that got in the way while he was doing so. Before that, his soul had been balancing on a knife's edge- neither a good man nor a strictly bad man- just a hard man. And so he died before killing the leader of the outlaws- and his soul went straight to Hell.
Yet, that wasn't the end. So cold was his heart, so perfect was his hatred, that Hell itself literally froze over in his presence. Even the Devil himself couldn't whip the hatred from him. The doors of Hell were frozen shut and the Devil himself was frightened. It was then that the Angel of Death offered to trade places with the newcomer. He would walk the earth harvesting souls and doing God's bidding- when death and Divine Wrath were called for. To this end the Angel's sword was melted down to make two Walker Colts....
Rating:
Summary: A great example of incredible writing in comics.
Review: Probably the biggest problem with most comics is the lack of a good back story to support the main characters. Ennis and Dillon looked to change that, and succeded with flying colors. Not only does this book provide a good backing to many of the characters in the actual comics, but it also is a great standalone, a monument in an industry overburdened by flashy art and flamboyant characters. I reccomend this book to anyone who likes Preacher, and also anyone who likes a good (allbeit dark) story.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth getting if you want to be complete
Review: The extingencies of deadlines often force comic publishers to farm out a couple issues to backup artists in order to give the main crew a break and time to catchup on the main storyline. This represents such a collection of stories. A different set of artists is used for each story. (In one story about the Saint of Killers - the backup artist couldn't meet the deadline and a backup-backup artist had to be called in to finish the story!). The stories vary in quality - particularly in the drawing and coloring. The plots concern background information about the Saint of Killers and Arse-face. Whereas the main Preacher storyline is brilliant, this particular collection is just average. I recommend buying it if, like me, you have to own every Preacher graphic novel. If you are not so obsessive, then rest assured that you can continue to enjoy the Preacher series without reading this collection.
Rating:
Summary: The best Preacher yet...
Review: This has got to be my favorite Preacher book yet. I tore through it in about half the time it took me to read any of the first three books. Once I picked it up, I just couldn't put it down. "Ancient History" doesn't follow the main story of Jesse, Tulip, and Cassidy, but rather makes some entertaining detours to pick up the back stories of three of the side characters who up until this point have only reared their various ugly heads in perplexing cameoes. This time out, we get treated to the inner workings of the Saint of Killers, the mysterious craggy-faced gunslinger who for reasons unknown has been persuing Jesse Custer. We also learn just what makes Arseface tick, and how Jody and T.C., Jesse's down-home good-ole'-boy relations, set their ducks in a row. The illustrations for these side-stories were done by a series of hired guns (Steve Pugh, Carlos Ezquerra, and Richard Case) while Steve Dillon was working on the main storyline, but the stories are all classic Garth Ennis. In fact, I think the tales here include some of his best writing. I especially enjoyed the prologue by Ennis himself in which he details some of the origins of the Preacher story, and what first interested him in the legends of the West. This is a great comic. Definitely don't skip this one!
Rating: 
Summary: Mediocre, but good for a laugh
Review: This is just a collection of background stories for Preacher's supporting cast. With this compilation of Preacher special editions, we probe the past of The Saint of Killers, Arseface and the good old boys, the evil Jody and TC. The Saint's story is the only one that actually moves the story along. His story is interesting, but it would have been better (and earned the volume another star) if Dillon had done the artwork. The Arse's story is the most down to Earth read in all the Preacher comics. It is a much edgier after school school special. As you might have already guessed by my screenname, I am a fan of Kurt Cobain's music, and I don't appreciate seeing him put down. But as much as I want to believe that he was murdered, who the hell am I kidding? of course he killed himself, he is a horrible role model. And it was this role model that Arseface was emulating when he tried to kill himself, leaving his face vicously scarred. The final story is that of two major villian from earlier on. Jody and TC, two of the sinister Gran'ma L'angelle's enforcers have their own little mini action movie. It does nothing for the story, nor even provide any insight into the theme of the comic, it is just a show of the series' trademark dark humor. The good old boys battle an international terrorist who's english is so bad that he doesn't know how to swear. It is meant to be stupid and laughable, as it is lampooning the action movie genre, casting two VILLIANS from Jesse Custer's past as the action heroes. If you are reading the Preacher series from beginning to end, this can be skipped over, because it is just a filler.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrible ART, Terrible writing, Just plain TERRIBLE
Review: This is one book not to get. why? WEll, first of all, the art is lacking. The writing is predictable and boring. And the importance of this work is nonexistant. Why bother telling the story of Arse-face, Saint, and such without telling something WE don't know? Why bother writing a special with no real significance? It's boring. It's ugly. It's silly. Preacher is one great series. This is one that readers could do without. Trust me, you ain't missing much.
Rating:
Summary: Better than what I expected
Review: When I first laid eyes on Ancient History, the fourth book in the Preacher series, I was leary about it considering it does not follow the ongoing storyline of Jesse, Tulip, and Cassidy. But like the old saying goes, I shouldn't have judged this book by its' cover. Garth Ennis' fantasticly written stories on the pasts of supporting characters (including the Saint of Killers, Arseface, and Jody and T.C.) combined with great art by Steve Pugh, Carlos Ezquerra, and Richard Case (no Steve Dillon for this volume) make Ancient History one of the best in the series. The first story (and arguably the best) deals with the past of the Saint of Killers, a man whose burning, never ending hatred condemned him straight to Hell where he shot the devil and became the new Angel of Death. This story is extremely violent and the scenes of Satan and the Angel of Death playing cards in hell is laugh out loud hilarious. The second story explains just why Arseface shot himself in the face and deals with his abusive past. The final story, which is extremely funny, is a semi-spoof of older action films starring Jody and T.C. being the "good 'ol boys" that they were. All in all, this is an essential read for Preacher fans.
Rating:
Summary: Better than what I expected
Review: When I first laid eyes on Ancient History, the fourth book in the Preacher series, I was leary about it considering it does not follow the ongoing storyline of Jesse, Tulip, and Cassidy. But like the old saying goes, I shouldn't have judged this book by its' cover. Garth Ennis' fantasticly written stories on the pasts of supporting characters (including the Saint of Killers, Arseface, and Jody and T.C.) combined with great art by Steve Pugh, Carlos Ezquerra, and Richard Case (no Steve Dillon for this volume) make Ancient History one of the best in the series. The first story (and arguably the best) deals with the past of the Saint of Killers, a man whose burning, never ending hatred condemned him straight to Hell where he shot the devil and became the new Angel of Death. This story is extremely violent and the scenes of Satan and the Angel of Death playing cards in hell is laugh out loud hilarious. The second story explains just why Arseface shot himself in the face and deals with his abusive past. The final story, which is extremely funny, is a semi-spoof of older action films starring Jody and T.C. being the "good 'ol boys" that they were. All in all, this is an essential read for Preacher fans.
Rating:
Summary: About three-fifths of a good thing
Review: While I would never suggest that a fan of the series *not* read this volume, I can say with confidence the only reason to read it is for the Saint of Killers origin story. Ennis and Dillon have created a cast of characters and a chain of events in "Preacher" that all feed one another in their own wonderfully twisted psychotic eco-system. In this series, every thing happens for a reason (even if it's a sick one) and no story is told simply for the hell of it. Except for two stories in this volume. All the stories in this volume existed outside the regular run of the monthly "Preacher" series. While the Saint miniseries revealed the origin of our favorite modern-day Angel of Death with all the gunpowder and brimstone you'd hoped for, the Arseface and Jody & T.C. oneshots reprinted here must've been some kind of bizarre contract-fulfillment that Ennis clearly had no interest in writing. I swear on a stack of Bibles that there is no reason to waste your time reading either the Arseface origin story and the Jody & T.C...whatever it is. In short, an essential volume in the series with some non-essential hangers-on.
Rating:
Summary: Not important but a nice read nonetheless
Review: While this volume of the Preacher Graphic Novels has nothing to do with the continuity of the title itself, it's still a pretty nice easy-reading book. Nothing special (certainly when you compare it with the rest of the Preacher books) but not a waste of time either. In here are the first three Preacher Specials, two oneshots ("The Story of you-know-who" and "Good Old Boys") and a miniseries ("Saint of Killers"). In "The story of you-know-who" we get to see how a normal boy, who is living in less than normal circumstances, winds up becoming a disfigured boy named Arseface. This story is to me personally the best one in the book (with very nice art by Richard Case). Tragic, yet not too much, so that it doesn't get sentimental but stays bizar. "Saint of Killers" is the one with the most relevance to the Preacher series itself. Here it's shown how the character we now know as 'Saint of Killers' was once a mortal man and how he was pushed over the edge so that eventually he became the replacement of the current Angel of Death. While this one has the most to do with the Preacher series itself, it's a shame to know it has the least good art in the book (Steve Pugh). Not horrible, but compared to the other art it's a little bleak. Note here that people who love graphic violence will have a ball with it since it's probably THE most brutal Preacher story out there. The third part is "Good Old Boys", a story about Jody and T.C. taking place between Jesse's escape and them recapturing him (see "Untill the end of the World". This one is the least relevant to the Preacher series and in al honesty is just a filler. A story where the overall brutality of T.C. and Jody is displayed. Not a bad read, but not a great one either. In conclussion, the volume doesn't add a thing to the series. True, we learn some 'origins' but nothing that matters happens. Apart from that it's a nice book which many people should be able to enjoy. Another good thing about this book is that everybody should be able to pick it up, no matter if you did or didn't read the other Preacher TPB's, and just enjoy the story. No knowledge of what has gone before required. Pick it up if you wanna read some more about Preacher, or if you wanna read some Preacher but don't feel like getting into the whole big story. But if you're in it for the main story of Preacher you can ignore this book without missing out on anything.
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