DC vs. Vampires #2
Written by: Matthew Rosenberg, James Tynion IV
Art by: Otto Schmidt
The war for the very survival of the human race has begun! A mysterious new vampire lord has already put a plan in motion to conquer the Earth, and the first step is-destroy the Justice League! But the World’s Greatest Detective might be Earth’s last hope, and it’s time for the Bat-Family to hunt!
It was new comic book day yesterday! What’d you all get? What’d you like? What’d you dislike? Sound off in the comments below! While you think about that, here’s some comic news and reviews from around the web.
Book Riot – 10 Informative & Delightful Queer Nonfiction – What would you add to the list?
Kotaku – Marvel’s ‘XCOM’ Game Has Already Been Delayed – Boo!!!
Kotaku – Gantz Creator Is Apparently In The Dark About Hollywood’s Live-Action Adaptation – This feels like a bad thing.
Kotaku – Report: Hackers Laundered $10 Million On Twitch – Well, ok then.
Reviews
Talking Comics – DC vs. Vampires #1
Atomic Junk Shop – Dio! Holy Diver
Collected Editions – Far Sector
Task Force Z #1
Written by: Matthew Rosenberg
Art by: Eddy Barrows
In life, they’ve terrorized the people of Gotham. Now, they are Gotham’s last hope.
Task Force X saw villains working their way to freedom. Task Force Z will see dead villains working for a new chance at life! On A-DAY, the attack on Arkham Asylum left hundreds of Gotham’s most cunning and deranged criminals dead…now, a mysterious benefactor has activated the government’s TASK FORCE clause to bring them back as the ultimate army of the night! To lead this team of the undead, only a person who knows exactly what it feels like to be brutally murdered and brought back to life can handle the job…enter: RED HOOD. But when Jason Todd unravels the mystery surrounding Task Force Z’s creation, will he try to destroy it…or embrace it? BANE. MAN-BAT. THE ARKHAM KNIGHT. SUNDOWNER. MR. BLOOM. RED HOOD. THEY ARE TASK FORCE Z, AND DEATH WAS JUST THE BEGINNING…!
DC vs. Vampires #1
Written by: Matthew Rosenberg, James Tynion IV
Art by: Otto Schmidt
The Justice League has long protected Earth from all manner of foreign and alien invaders over the years, always keeping a vigilant eye to the skies for the next threat. But what if the threat was already walking the Earth…hiding in plain sight…watching…waiting for their moment to strike…
In the tradition of DCeased comes a terrifying new series from the twisted minds of James Tynion IV (Nice House on the Lake; Something is Killing the Children), Matthew Rosenberg (The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox; 4 Kids Walk Into A Bank; Hawkeye), and Otto Schmidt that will tear the Justice League apart in their war with the undead!
Timed for the Halloween season, DC vs. Vampires #1 kicks off a new spin on the DC Universe where the heroes must take on a familiar genre. But, if you’re expecting something like DCeased, where the DC Universe fought zombies, you’ll be disappointed and surprised. The debut issue does a solid job of setting itself apart from the numerous apocalyptic battle alternative timeline miniseries that feel like they’ve become a regular thing with the big two.
Written by James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg, DC vs. Vampires #1 digs into a rather ignored side of DC’s history. The story focuses on Andrew Bennett, a well established character and vampire as he attempts to get a warning to the Justice League. The “truce” between the vampires and humans is over with whomever behind the shift planning for more than a simple war. Villains have fallen or been turned to the vampire side leaving a threat that’s hidden in the shadows.
Bennett was the main character in the far too short I, Vampire comic series that was part of the New 52 (though has roots before) and lasted 19 issues. That series, like this, focused on the vampire world of the DC Universe and after its wrap, Bennett has only popped up on occasions. Tynion and Rosenberg seem to play off of that in some ways with the absence of Bennett being almost a plot point to the story. The lack of a real focus on the vampire side of things adds to that aspect as well. It’s a solid use of what DC hasn’t focused on in years to help drive the plot and work it in naturally.
Tynion and Rosenberg also deliver a hectic pace about it all. You can feel Bennett’s fear and frenetic scrambling to get to safety and find allies. The mood the two set out to instill in the first issue is clear and comes across the page well. Bennett’s on the run focus and the fear and dread presented deliver a comic that’s a classic “man on the run story” with a slight Hitchcock like conspiracy mixed with modern twisted humor and action.
That’s helped by the art and color of Otto Schmidt. Schmidt’s style helps the paranoia and scramble. Bennett as depicted by Schmidt feels like a character that’s looking over his shoulder. And us readers need to as well. Small hints at art deliver what’s to come with some characters in the story. While those aspects aren’t answered in the first issue, they point to a lot of backstory we’ve yet to learn and explore. Tom Napolitano’s lettering is on point with a slightly different style for those turned giving them an uneasy feel. The lettering adds to the atmosphere of it all with the text giving the characters turned more of an evil persona.
DC vs. Vampires #1 is a solid debut with some twists and turns you’ll need to experience for yourself. While it takes the familiar formula of alternative timeline heroes fighting (fill in the blank genre) the way the story is presented and the details makes it stand out as more than fill in the threat. There’s a lot of potential here that’ll keep readers on their toes, especially after that final segment of the comic. This is perfect for the Halloween season and perfect to sit back, relax, and just enjoy.
Story: James Tynion IV, Matthew Rosenberg Art: Otto Schmidt
Color: Otto Schmidt Letterer: Tom Napolitano
Story: 8.15 Art: 8.25 Overall: 8.2 Recommendation: Buy
DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: comiXology – Amazon – Kindle – Zeus Comics – TFAW
Wednesdays (and now Tuesdays) are new comic book day! Each week hundreds of comics are released, and that can be pretty daunting to go over and choose what to buy. That’s where we come in
Each week our contributors choose what they can’t wait to read this week or just sounds interesting. In other words, this is what we’re looking forward to and think you should be taking a look at!
Find out what folks think below, and what comics you should be looking out for this week.
Amazing Spider-Man #77 (Marvel) – “Beyond” has been a solid new direction for the Spider-Man titles and Kelly Thompson steps in as writer and Sara Pichelli as artist of this issue. We’re excited to see what they do with the new focus.
Ant #1 (Image Comics) – After a week delay, we get to see Erik Larsen’s take on the classic character. Can’t wait to see what Larsen does with a brand-new ongoing series.
Comrade Kill (Adhouse Books) – “A Cold War super soldier accidentally wakes from a cryogenic freeze long after the war has ended to find out his existence is now meaningless. Being too dumb to reconcile this he goes out into the wild to satisfy a pointless mission objective that no one asked him to do.” That sounds too awesome to not check out.
Cross to Bear #1 (AfterShock) – Jack the Ripper ran to the Wild West and is being pursued by The Order, descendants of Crusaders sworn to eradicate the unnatural.
DC vs. Vampires #1 (DC Comics) – It’s the Justice League vs. Vampires!
The Harbinger #1 (Valiant) – Harbinger is back and we’re so excited for this new volume and direction. This is a series that is likely to be the center of the Valiant world going forward and we want to see where it all goes.
Hellboy: The Silver Lantern Club #1 (Dark Horse) – We’re always excited for a new Hellboy series which tend to do a solid job of balancing the big meta picture and being accessible for new readers.
House of Slaughter #1 (BOOM! Studios) – Something is Killing the Children is a hit and we want to see how this new spin-off series is handled.
Inferno #2 (Marvel) – The first issue was a lot of setup as the end game of Jonathan Hickman’s vision for the X-Men begins. Here’s hoping things really get rolling here.
Primordial #2 (Image Comics) – A brand-new series from Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino that puts a twist on the space race with an alternative take on history.
Search for Hu #2 (AfterShock) – The first issue was great with dips into generally not known history when it comes to Jewish migration mixed with action and family drama.
Swamp Dogs #1 (Scout Comics/Black Caravan) – Confederate soldiers are brought back to life by Voodoo and crave flesh!
Task Force Z #1 (DC Comics) – Task Force X saw villains working their way to freedom. Task Force Z will see dead villains working for a new chance at life! Well ok then.
Tiny Dancer (Atheneum Books for Young Readers) – Sien Cherson Siegel’s second graphic novel about her life in ballet.
The Winchester Mystery House #1 (Source Point Press) – The house is pretty famous and we’re intrigued into how you turn it into a comic series.
Task Force Z #1
Written by: Matthew Rosenberg
Art by: Eddy Barrows
In life, they’ve terrorized the people of Gotham. Now, they are Gotham’s last hope.
Task Force X saw villains working their way to freedom. Task Force Z will see dead villains working for a new chance at life! On A-DAY, the attack on Arkham Asylum left hundreds of Gotham’s most cunning and deranged criminals dead…now, a mysterious benefactor has activated the government’s TASK FORCE clause to bring them back as the ultimate army of the night! To lead this team of the undead, only a person who knows exactly what it feels like to be brutally murdered and brought back to life can handle the job…enter: RED HOOD. But when Jason Todd unravels the mystery surrounding Task Force Z’s creation, will he try to destroy it…or embrace it? BANE. MAN-BAT. THE ARKHAM KNIGHT. SUNDOWNER. MR. BLOOM. RED HOOD. THEY ARE TASK FORCE Z, AND DEATH WAS JUST THE BEGINNING…!
DC vs. Vampires #1
Written by: Matthew Rosenberg, James Tynion IV
Art by: Otto Schmidt
The Justice League has long protected Earth from all manner of foreign and alien invaders over the years, always keeping a vigilant eye to the skies for the next threat. But what if the threat was already walking the Earth…hiding in plain sight…watching…waiting for their moment to strike…
In the tradition of DCeased comes a terrifying new series from the twisted minds of James Tynion IV (Nice House on the Lake; Something is Killing the Children), Matthew Rosenberg (The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox; 4 Kids Walk Into A Bank; Hawkeye), and Otto Schmidt that will tear the Justice League apart in their war with the undead!
