Heroes are not born … but villains are created.
Creative Staff:
Writer: Ralph Tedesco
Artwork: Allan Otero
Colors: Leonardo Paciarotti
Letters: Taylor Esposito
What They Say:
Robyn and Liesel learn that they’re each separately on the trail of a seedy crime boss who’s experimenting on humans while developing an extremely dangerous designer drug. But neither Robyn nor Liesel is prepared for what they’ll uncover as the two long-time friends find themselves face to face in an epic battle to the death!
Content (please note that portions of the review may contain spoilers):
It was a typical night for our favorite hunter Liesel, her long black hair whipping in the breeze as she put down more of her hated prey. However, the evening quickly turned into something unusual when one of these bloodsuckers approached in atypical fashion, asking for Van Helsing to stop him. Stunned by this beast’s bizarre approach, she does not know how to answer something which she would not hesitate to kill on sight. Essentially this vampire wanted to be put out of his misery, much to the Brit’s surprise. Leaving her with little choice after the creature rushes forward toward an loaded crossbow, the poor woman was left with nothing to do than release him from the pain. With his final breaths, the monster now returning to man made one last plea – to find someone named Von. Now confused and bewildered as to this latest encounter, Liesel leaves the alleyway filled with death and peace to piece together these impressionable words.
After a morning of frustration within a smoke-filled apartment of burnt baked goods, Robyn was anything but calm as she tried to relax with a day of cooking. Amidst the cruel aroma of charred cupcakes, the angry archer was more frustrated than placated, her day begins like any other within her hurried life. It was only the persistent chirp of a text message which kept her from doing anything more violent than throwing away the ruined muffins – a new client needed help. Now only accepting jobs via referrals due to past experience, Locksley met her prospective employer at a local diner, an elderly lady by the name of Claire. Her son Jared has been missing for over a month and no one was willing to help, not even the police since he is an adult and fell in with the wrong crowd. While he may have strayed from an acceptable path, he also never failed to contact his mother for this length of time. Worried something might have happened, all she wants is for Robyn to find him, with the only clues being his boss runs product from a rave club in Brooklyn and is named Van or Von. It shouldn’t be that hard to find her child, but who knows what kind of problems the vigilante will encounter along the way … better be prepared for anything or anyone.
In Summary:
Now, this is the way to start the New Year … with a story which turns everything you thought you knew on its head! While it is always welcomed to have a new series with two of our favorite vigilantes, the aspect of having one becoming the quarry is an interesting twist on the original premise. Writer Ralph Tedesco has created a narrative which has the promise of becoming a fight to remember, but the start is a bit shaky … especially the creation of a villain. You would think within such a medical facility, even one which is as makeshift as a drug experimentation den, thugs would have a wider array of weapons; the option of using a needle instead of the intravenous stand is questionable, considering the odds of hitting anything vital with such a small weapon versus the chances of knocking someone out with the hard metal pole is much greater. Even if we overlook such an impossibility, the other impracticality is the accelerated rate of infection to subjects who appear to be strapped down for an extended time, but then again we have contaminated blood – which is a whole other factor. So if we skip all the logic and decide to look upon this with a wider chance of a successful story, this option reveals an epic opportunity of something which gives readers a tale which normally could never take place … hero versus hero. The moral imperative of Liesel having to fight her best friend as Robyn slowly turns into what she hates the most – vampires. Van Helsing has faced this choice before when Dracula turned her father, but now with more experience and a chance to save her companion, which choice will she make? This temptation of wanting to see how far Tedesco can take this story is almost as satisfying as watching the two suffer against their own disgust of becoming what they hate the most – dear friend turned maligned foe.
While the story itself may present the reader with an interesting basis, it would not be worthy of this graphic medium without the artistry of the illustrator and this time we are graced by the wondrous skill of Allan Otero. In the past, I have been amazed by his attention to detail in progressing the story by way of building tension, but now his technique has yielded to a faster pace to keep up with the procession of the narrative. While I do admit missing his earlier drawings, this new approach allows for a quicker execution of the frenetic action, giving the audience an exposure to the world of Liesel and Robyn which would not be possible with the slower and more structured pacing of his previous work. And as such, this new flow requires a more controlled palette to restrain what could easily overcome the viewer with this onslaught, and thus we have the controlled hand of Leonardo Paciarotti. However the first thing you notice is a lighter tone for this issue, instead of what would normally be a darker feel for a tale concerning vampires; perhaps it is the full moon on the opening page, but after we are exposed to those brighter colors, everything else looks a bit overexposed. Although this may fit in with setting up the mood for the opening as being more optimistic, Paciarotti decisively shifts the tone at the halfway point, signaling something foul is coming. The transition to more shadows works for the darker underbelly of the drug den, but at the same time it is spoiled by allowing for more lighting upon our heroines’ faces, in essence ruining what should be a tense time by accenting the reunion. Even if Otero tries to move us forward with this sinister tale, the lack of moving colors lessens the impact, giving us something akin melodrama instead of what we would expect – a tragedy waiting to happen.
While we may have seen the premise before, the chance to see an epic battle between two of our favorite heroines is too tempting to pass up. Van Helsing vs. Robyn Hood has all of the characteristics of being an exceptional story, but with an origin suspended in reality and artwork at times too bright to view, it is uncertain as to how it will proceed. However with a cliffhanger splash page promising a story which can only get better, this is one title which I look forward to, but at time same time, I am cheering for both sides to win.
Grade: A
Rating: T (Teen)
Released By: Zenescope
Release Date: January 10, 2018
MSRP: $3.99
