Gunfighter - in Popular Culture

In Popular Culture

Gunfighters have been featured in media even outside the Western genre, often combined with other elements and genres, mainly science-fiction Space Westerns, steampunk, and the contemporary setting. Abilities, clothing and attitude associated with gunfighters are seen in many other genres. An example of these is Han shot first, in which Han Solo, a gunfighter-like protagonist in Star Wars, kills an alien with subtle. under-the-table draw. He also wore his holster low on, and tied to, the thigh with a cutaway for the trigger. Cowboy Bebop is example of these in the Space Western sub-genre, bringing viewers into the adventures of a single ship of bounty hunters kicking around from one corrupted dust ball to another in a solar system that has been almost wholly colonized. As a Space Western, it mixes elements traditionally associated with the American Old West (such as bounty hunters, poker games and saloon women all too eager to roll drunks for their money) into a futuristic backdrop that is thoroughly sci-fi. Roland Deschain from the fantasy series The Dark Tower is gunfighter pitted against fantasy-themed monsters and enemies. Inspired by the "Man with No Name" and other spaghetti-western characters, he himself is a detached or unsympathetic, often reacting uncaring or angry at signs of cowardice or self-pity, yet he possess a strong sense of heroism, often attempting to help those in need, a morality much seen in Westerns.

Jonah Hex, from the DC Comics, is a ruthless bounty hunter bound by a personal code of honor to protect and avenge the innocent. IGN ranked Jonah Hex the 73rd greatest comic book hero of all time. Throughout the DC Universe, Hex has been, on many occasions, transported from the Old West to the contemporary settings and beyond. Even in an unfamiliar territory and time period, Hex managed to outgun his enemies with more advanced weaponry. Two-Gun Kid is another comic book gunfighter from Marvel Comics. Skilled with revolvers, he has aided many super-heroes in future timeline, most notably She-Hulk.

Many Japanese manga and anime has also adopted the western genre. Yasuhiro Nightow is known for creating the manga Trigun, which also was adopted into an anime. The story's protagonist, Vash the Stampede, is a wandering gunslinger carrying a silver revolver and a dark past. Unlike other violence-themed gunslingers, Vash carries a Shane-like pacifist attitude, and prevents himself heavily from killing men, even his own enemies. Behind him is the gun-totting priest named Nicholas D. Wolfwood, who carries with him a heavy machine gun and rocket launcher shaped like a cross. Nicholas is more violent than Vash, and the two would often argue in killing their opponents. Vash the Stampede was ranked #17 in IGN's Top 25 Anime Characters of All Time. The manga went on to be the top earning graphic novel of 2004. Other western genre themed manga and anime includes Cowboy Bebop and Kino's Journey, both who incorporate knight-errant adventure themes.

Contemporary western gunslingers have also caught attention, though not branded as gunslingers. They have skills, challenges, and attitude seen more in the Old West. Raylan Givens from the television series Justified shares the same ambiguous moral code of an Old West sheriff, even using a fast draw to dispatch his enemies. The hitman Anton Chigurh from No Country For Old Men shares many elements of a riding frontiersmen. But Chigurh is the complete opposite of Raylan Givens, and represents more of the ruthless outlaw on the hunt and against local authority. Additionally, the comic book character Vigilante is a self-proclaimed gunfighter born in the 1940s.

Gunfighters has also been featured in many video games, both in traditional Old West, and in contemporary and future settings. Colton White, the protagonist of 2005's best selling western video game Gun, is ranked #7 on Game Informer's "Top 10 Heroes of 2005" list. Another well-known video game Western protagonist is John Marston, who was nominated in Spike's Video Game Awards 2010. Network World stated: "John Marston is a complicated character, having been a bad person who is trying to make things right." The New York Times stated: "he and his creators conjure such a convincing, cohesive and enthralling re-imagination of the real world that it sets a new standard for sophistication and ambition in electronic gaming."