When it comes to crossovers there’s some that make sense and then there are some like this. Is Vampirella even in the same universe? With so many crossovers going on at Dynamite I’m starting to wonder if any of this is in canon or if she’s just doing as many What If? type stories until something sticks. I check out this new series to ponder the question, is it good?
Aliens / Vampirella #1 (Dynamite Entertainment)
This issue opens on an action sequence with two cloaked figures running away from an Alien. This is the black iconic acid spitting alien we’ve all grown to love. It quickly takes out one of the figures, but when the last remaining person whips off his hood to reveal he’s a vampire things get interesting. Vampire teeth might dig into an Alien, but if you ever wanted to see what acid would do to a vampire I suggest picking this comic book up.
Corinna Bechko writes this script and I couldn’t be more excited to see what she does with the series. She did a phenomenal job on Star Wars: Legacy and her Invisible Republic series is great too. She just gets science fiction, which is undoubtedly going to help this series be more than just a fight sequence. After this opening action sequence ends we’re quickly whisked off to Vampirella who is making her way to Mars. Most of this issue is exposition and setting up the mystery found deep under the Martian soil. Vampirella has been brought in to investigate as the scientists have found ancient vampires practically glued to the walls. Ultimately Bechko is developing a very interesting mystery which involves a vampire culture on Mars thousands of years old and of course the Aliens as well.
Ouch.
Though the pace is slowed through most of the issue I didn’t find myself bored or uninterested. My only gripe would be Vampirella’s place in this world. Apparently she’s a good guy and everyone is aware she’s a vampire, but what are human/vampire relations like? Are they friends across the board or is Vampirella a unique case? Is she the only known vampire around and that is why she was brought to Mars? There are a lot of questions to be answered, but clearly this series isn’t interested in answering those. They probably aren’t that important, but it would have given the book a bit more context in the grand scheme of things.
The art by Javier García-Miranda is good with most panels working well to tell the story. There’s a panel here or there that look a little less polished and detailed and some faces get less than ideal attention, but it’s not distracting enough to ruin the experience. Generally Garcia-Miranda’s work reminds me of Todd McFarlane due to the way faces look and the heavy use of inks. Since much of this issue is exposition and talking heads scenes, García-Miranda doesn’t get to show off action a lot, but when he does it looks great.
Ew!
Is It Good?
Save for lacking context as far as Vampirella’s place among humans — this is a good read. Come for the compelling science fiction vampires on Mars backstory and the Aliens violence!
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