Vault Comics has announced Barbaric, a wild, blood-thirsty fantasy series from writer Michael Moreci, artist Nathan Gooden, colorist Addison Duke, letterer Jim Campbell, and designer Tim Daniel.
Barbaric follows Owen the Barbarian who has been cursed to do good with what remains of his life. His bloodthirsty weapon, Axe, has become his moral compass with a drinking problem. Together they wander the realm, foredoomed to help any who seek assistance. But there is one thing Owen hates more than a life with rules: Witches. Welcome to the skull-cracking, blood-splattering, mayhem-loving comic brave enough to ask: How can a man sworn to do good do so much violence? Hah! F***ing with you. It’s just…BARBARIC.
Axe, co-star of Barbaric (Owen’s sentient, blood-drunk axe) slurred his way through a statement about his upcoming role in the book. “Look, maybe I am a bloodthirsty axe with a drinking problem, but I still know an epic, kick-ass story when I see one. Granted, I happen to be the star of this particular tale (never mind that barbarian oaf), but that doesn’t change the fact that Barbaric has got it all: action, a sweet f***ing axe, mystery, magic, an awesome AXE, and other non-axe related stuff. So come for the axe and stay for the axe. You don’t want to get me mad, do you?”
Barbaric #1 will hit store shelves in June 2021, and will debut with a special Vault Vintage cover from Nathan Gooden and Tim Daniel that pays homage to Barry Windsor-Smith’s epic cover to Conan The Barbarian #1 (1970).
The White Wolf/Onyx Path RPG Vampire: the Masqueradereturns to comics courtesy of Vault, and this issue is a wonderful entry point into a complex world of alliances, hierarchies, and yes, bloodthirst. Tim Seeley, Devmalya Pramanik, and Addison Duke handle the lead story of Vampire: the Masquerade #1 focusing on Cecily Bain, who is muscle for a vampire clan in Minneapolis. However, she also has a fiercely independent streak and the tiniest trace of a soft side beneath her murderous, take no shit attitude. On the flip side is Tini Howard, Blake Howard, and Nathan Gooden’s backup story about the anarch, Colleen, who isn’t beholden to the Twin Cities power struggle and just wants to make sure her and her vampire buddies survive to the next day. It was really nice to get two incredibly different perspectives on this rich world, especially as a newcomer to the franchise. (My only real exposure to Vampire the Masquerade was in the Baphomet/Morrigan-centric issue of WicDiv even though the lore has always fascinated, and I picked up some of the RPG sourcebooks via Humble Bundle.)
Seeley and Pramanik set up Cecily as an anti-hero with a heart of gold in Vampire: the Masquerade #1’s opening story. She proves her ruthlessness by killing the clan accountant’s girlfriend (He’s just valuable enough.) in the opening scene, but then she shows tenderness with her sister Karen, who has dementia, and a new vampire, Ali. Pramanik with the help of colorist Addison Duke uses intense shadows to create intimacy in their visuals and hint that Cecily is strongly considering turning Karen into a vampire so she doesn’t have to deal with the pain of completely losing her and also that her youth is restored.
This concern for the weak continues to Ali, who was sired by an anonymous vampire and is clan-less drifter in a highly hierarchical world except this may not be the case thanks to some suspenseful silent sequences from Seeley and Pramanik. Visually, Devmalya Pramanik and Addison Duke lean into an industrial, post-punk vibe that hints at past “glory days” for Cecily and Karen and also hinting that Cecily might have a sense of nostalgia between her tough, get the job done veneer. Her interest in alternative culture and music does dovetail nicely with her refusal to be more of a company woman and just do her job for the Prince instead of getting the vampire clan equivalent of a desk job and lose some of her precious freedom. (And, by extension, a lack of prying eyes on Karen.)
In both stories, Tim Seeley, Tini Howard, and Blake Howard lean on characterization and easy-to-connect-with personal relationships instead of the deep Vampire the Masquerade lore to drive the story. Without the vampirism, Colleen and her band of anarchs (Basically, vampire without a cause.) could be young people with wanderlust that favor the open road instead of stable jobs and lifestyles. The character sheet for Colleen (And Cecily too, while we’re here.) adds real depth to her character and the messed up relationship with her husband/sire Mitch and also acts as a rare peek at the bottom of the author’s theoretical iceberg. The backup is a free spirit to the rigid structures that Cecily encounters in the main story, and Addison Duke uses a lighter palette because as a thin blood, Colleen can actually go out during the day. The Howards and Gooden’s story adds depth and perspective via a momentum-filled On the Road with vampires plotline instead of relying on boring exposition to show what life as another kind of vampire is like.
With two memorable leads and a focus on showing readers what it’s like in the universe instead of exhaustively explaining its rules, Vampire: the Masquerade #1 is an enjoyable read even if you’re not familiar with the RPG. The dual nature of immortality shows up a lot in the comic, but Tim Seeley, Tini Howard, Blake Howard, Devmalya Pramanik, Nathan Gooden, and basically Gothic set-dresser Addison Duke dive into other implications of being a vampire in this world like navigating bureaucracies and complicated interpersonal relationship. Hey, it sounds like the real world, but with hotter outfits, blood, and fangs.
Story: Tim Seeley, Tini Howard, Blake Howard Art: Devmalya Pramanik, Nathan Gooden Colors: Addison Duke Letters: Andworld Story: 7.9 Art: 8.7 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy
Vault provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Vault has announced a set of new Vampire: The Masquerade #1 variant covers from legendary artist David Mack.
The gorgeous, painted piece by Mack will come in two different printed variants. The first, in a lush purple and blue, will be a standard, open order variant. The blood red version will be a special, deluxe variant, printed on thick card stock, with silver foiling and spot-gloss highlights, and will retail for $9.99.
Each issue of the Vampire: The Masquerade will include exclusive material for Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition of the tabletop RPG from Modiphius Entertainment. These materials enable readers to play alongside the unfolding comic events in their own in-game chronicles.
Sink your teeth into the hidden world of vampires, ghouls, and hunters who live in the shadows and scheme among us. In the comic series, Cecily Baine, an enforcer for the Twin Cities’ elite cabal of Kindred (vampires), takes a mysterious young vampire under her wing and is swept up in a conspiracy that can shake the foundations of vampire society.
Vampire: The Masquerade is co-written by Tim Seeley, Tini Howard, and Blake Howard, with art by Devmalya Pramanik and Nathan Gooden, with colors by Addison Duke, letters by AndWorld Design, design by Tim Daniel, and covers by Aaron Campbell, Nathan Gooden, and David Mack. The first issue will hit store shelves on August 5th, 2020.
When Cecily Brine, a courier for the Twin Cities Camarilla, takes a mysterious younger vampire under her wing, she’s dragged into an insidious conspiracy. Will she be able to escape with her unlife and protect her aging, Alzheimer’s afflicted sister, or will she be yet another pawn sacrificed to the Masquerade?
Meanwhile, an Anarch coterie investigates a mysterious killing.
Vault Comics has announced that they have partnered with Paradox Interactive to publish the official Vampire: The Masquerade comic book series. The first comic in the series will be available for purchase from comics retailers across the US in July 2020. The comic is co-written by Tim Seeley, Tini Howard, and Blake Howard, drawn by Devmalya Pramanik, Nathan Gooden, and colored by Addison Duke, with covers by Aaron Campbell.
From the internationally bestselling World of Darkness universe, Vault brings readers an official Vampire: The Masquerade comic series. Sink your teeth into the hidden world of vampires, ghouls, and hunters who live in the shadows and scheme among us. In the comic series, Cecily Baine, an enforcer for the Twin Cities’ elite cabal of Kindred (vampires), takes a mysterious young vampire under her wing and is swept up in a conspiracy that can shake the foundations of vampire society.
Each issue will include exclusive material for Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition of the tabletop RPG from Modiphius Entertainment. These materials enable readers to play alongside the unfolding comic events in their own chronicles.
The world is destroyed and the survivors now live in the mall. Mall #1 sets up the world delivering more interesting concepts than interesting narrative.
Written by Michael Moreci and Gary Dauberman, Mall #1is Snowpiercer meets The Warriors. The problem is there isn’t that interesting sense of motion with Snowpiercer. And the tribes of The Warriors are thin and not fleshed out.
Mall #1 isn’t a bad comic at all. It sets up what seems like it’ll be an interesting series. The issue is the set up throws you in the chaos of a man on the run. The world he’s running from is the interesting part and we get too little of a focus on that. Instead, the comic is the beginning of The Warriors followed by running. A gang leader is killed and the “framed” killer is pursued. The two franchises line up a bit too well the more it’s examined.
Mall #1 teases really great concepts. There’s so much to be said about consumerism in the series but there’s too much of a focus on the murder, a trial, and then the subsequent chaos. Not enough is explained. And, the interesting tribes are there for visuals as opposed to depth. You get intriguing costumes but none of the reason. Change the setting and outfits and you’d have the same story without much of an impact at all.
The art by Zak Hartong is interesting. With color by Addison Duke and lettering by Jim Campbell, the depth of the world is mainly through the art. That too has issues at times as some of that detail is lost with characters made mostly of outlines. The art has an unfinished quality at times taking the most engaging aspect and muting it.
In the end, the comic feels like a person running from people in costumes. The setting and those costumes could easily be replaced with little to no impact. Mall #1 sets up an interesting concept but spends too little time fleshing it out to benefit from what could be a truly intriguing world and comic.
Story: Michael Moreci, Gary Dauberman Art: Zak Hartong Color: Addison Duke Letterer: Jim Campbell Story: 7.0 Art: 7.0 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read
Vault Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
For the first time ever, the Angels meet the Bionic in the crazy 80’s in Charlie’s Angels/Bionic Woman, from Dynamite Entertainment. Bringingtogether Sony Pictures Entertainment’s Charlie’s Angels and Universal’sBionic Woman is a first in comics and a winning crossover event in print.
Charlie gives his Angels an assignment to steal back a patent for its mysterious inventor. The biggest hiccup on the mission is their toughest counterspy yet, literally – Jaime Sommers aka the Bionic Woman. Will the cyborg come out on top against a team of highly trained private investigators or will the tides turn toward a team-up against some greater threat?
Audiences sat at home glued to their TVs watching the thrilling adventures of these detectives, even on the same night for a period. This new series is set within the original series continuity for both shows and takes place after their finales, bringing everyone together in the 1980s.
Cameron DeOrdio brings his honed writing abilities and love for both franchises to the table, while artist Soo Lee draws these women in her one-of-a-kind style. Colorist Addison Duke and letterer Tom Napolitano round out the team inside the book.
On the outside, a compelling cadre of cover artists include the sensational Cat Staggs, indie darling Jim Mahfood and paperback cover and movie poster legend Ron Lesser.
