Finding peace in a violent world: Geof Darrow on Shaolin Cowboy’s eternal journey and cycle of violence

Geof Darrow has had, to say the least, a fascinating and varied career that stretches beyond the realm of comics. His genre-transforming work on The Matrix aside, he’s spent the better part of 15 years working as a writer/artist, primarily working on his opus, Shaolin Cowboy; a multi-volume series about the eponymous monk/cowboy who roams the lands while suffering the consequences of every wrong he’s righted.

Darrow is back with a new volume of Shaolin Cowboy — Cruel to Be Kin — which showcases his relationship with a young Komodo dragon as told by an older version of that same dragon many years later. It’s Mandalorian-esque, coming full circle as Darrow is now seemingly inspired by the more modern incarnations of the characters that inspired his creation in the first place, like Yojimbo and Lone Wolf and Cub.

For those familiar with Shaolin Cowboy, Cruel to Be Kin is more of what you would expect from the series at this point: it’s grimy, it’s violent, and it’s gorgeous. We spoke with Darrow about what inspired him to create this story, as well as his influences and his thoughts on the mysterious Shaolin Cowboy himself.