Esteban Maroto — Lovely and Deadly

Lady Rawhide #5, June 1997

Lady Rawhide was introduced in the pages of Zorro as a “good girl/ bad girl” supporting character. After all, we had to keep with Vampirella, Dawn, Shi, Lady Death, et al, no?

She ended up with two of her own min-series, this second one with art by the legendary Esteban Maroto.

Unfortunately, as the series launched, it was becoming apparent that Topps’ passion to stick around in the comic book business was waning. The comic book sales implosion that followed the early 90s explosion was brutal.

I had left the company prior to the series solicitation, and EIC Jim Salicrup left prior to its conclusion. And, seeing the handwriting on the wall, Topps management published the final two issues of this series without coloring them to save money.

But, as always, we digress.

Topps comics may have concluded its run, but Lady Rawhide lived on at Dynamite Entertainment — at least for a while. (And they added a Lady Zorro for good measure.)