Kid Colt Outlaw #88
The Man-Hunter!
Kid Colt quickly takes cover when he spots a bounty hunter asking the bartender about him in the local saloon. Just as the bartender points him out, Kid Colt leaps out the nearby window and disappears from sight. This is because he managed to climb up onto the overhang and hide behind the saloon sign where he hides until the bounty hunter is out of sight. As he climbs down, Kid Colt is approached by the local sheriff who can’t stop the bounty hunter but also doesn’t have to help him either. He wants to help Kid Colt get out of town before someone gets hurt.
When the bounty hunter spots the Kid he starts shooting until the sheriff orders him to stop, allowing the Kid to slip back inside the saloon. When nobody will tell the bounty hunter where Kid Colt went he starts roughing up the patrons. Unwilling to let someone to get hurt on his account, Kid Colt lets the bounty hunter know he’s upstairs and that he surrenders. When the bounty hunter comes up to get him he’s gloating about the huge reward he’s going to get. In fact, that’s all the bounty hunter cares about, Kid Colt decides to fight. When he tries to get away, the bounty hunter breaks a chair over his back, sending the Kid falling down the stairs. Recovering quickly, the Kid rolls over and shoots rope suspending a chandelier, sending it falling on the bounty hunter allowing Kid Colt to escape while his pursuer tries to free himself.
Getting outside, the bounty hunter is furious Kid Colt got away but is quickly arrested by the sheriff for disturbing the peace. Watching Kid Colt ride away, the sheriff doesn’t know what he did to become an outlaw but doesn’t care because as far as he’s concerned, Kid Colt it a man.[1]
Recurring Characters
Kid Colt, Steel
Continuity Notes
Kid Colt’s reason for being an outlaw is unclear as there are many conflicting origin stories, as seen in Kid Colt: Hero of the West #1, Kid Colt Outlaw #11, 39, 79 and Kid Colt #4. The common denominator in all of these stories is that Kid Colt becomes an outlaw for killing the man responsible for murdering a family member/family members.
The Outlaw and the Lady!
As he enters the town of Rawhide, Texas, Kid Colt gets the attention of some local trouble makers who want to see how well he can dance. When they shoot at the Kid’s feet he doesn’t even flinch. He then draws his guns and starts shooting back sending the cowards running out of town. Kid Colt is then approached by a woman named Nancy Blade who is happy to see someone stand-up to the trouble makers in town, saying the sheriff won’t do anything until they break the law. When she asks for his name, the tells her he is Kid Smith and she hopes they become good friends. As she leaves, Kid Colt can’t help but find himself smitten by her.
Over the next few days, Kid Colt spends a lot of time with Nancy Blade. Just when he is about to tell the truth about himself, she introduces her to his father it turns out he’s the local sheriff. Worse, he recognizes Kid Colt right away, crushing whatever dreams Kid might have had of pursuing a romance with Nancy Blade. Kid Colt makes a hasty retreat and when the locals ask the sheriff if they should form a posse, the sheriff decides against it only caring that Kid Colt stay out of town and away from his daughter. This deeply upsets Nancy who pleads with her father to get to know the Kid and his side of the story and admits that she has fallen in love with him.
Later that evening, Sheriff Blade returns home to discover that Nancy is gone. She has left town to look for Kid Colt and is quickly captured by a band of Apaches. Kid Colt sees this and follows the Apaches to the camp. When he hears they plan on killing Nancy, Kid Colt challenges the chief from the bushes nearby. The Apache chief agrees to battle Kid Colt and Colt wins the fight. The Apache leader agrees to let Nancy go and keep Kid Colt’s involvement a secret. When Nancy finds him later on, Kid Colt lies to her saying that her father was right about him so she’ll go back home and forget all about him. As he rides away Kid Colt starts to cry, trying to convince himself that this was the right thing to do even though he truly loved Nancy Blade.
Recurring Characters
Kid Colt, Steel
Duel in the Desert!
Kid Colt is riding through the desert when someone tries to shoot at him. The shot spooks Steel who throws Kid Colt to the ground. As he recovers he discovers that the shooter is Shotgun Scragg and his partner Mike Brown. They ask the Kid to join up with them and he refuses. This leads to a fight but the Kid is struck from behind. Scragg and Brown then decide to steal the Kid’s horse and leave him to die in the desert.
Even though he is left without a horse and no water, Kid Colt is determined to catch the men who stole his horse. The trek across the desert is long and hard and at one point he almost gives up to the blistering heat and thurst. However, he happens upon a cactus and risks cutting up his hands to break it open and get at the water inside. Soon the heat gives way to the coolness of night and after a rest, Kid Colt manages to make it to town four hours later.
He enters the local saloon where he confronts Shotgun Scragg and Mike Brown. When they draw their guns, Kid Colt is faster at the draw and shoots their guns out of their hands. That’s when the sheriff arrives and having heard about how Scragg and his buddy left the Kid to die in the desert puts them under arrest. Exhausted from his ordeal, Kid Colt falls asleep in the first chair he sits in.
Recurring Characters
Kid Colt, Steel
