A plot is sort of kind of coming together.
Creative Staff:
Story: Christopher Priest
Art: Ergun Gundu
Letterer: Willie Schubert
What They Say:
Seduction of The Innocent Continues: Following her mother, Lilith’s advice, Vampirella chooses to end her loneliness by engaging in community, connecting with friends, building a new career, and creating roots within her adopted world– which invites inevitable consequences as her enemies continue to gather for a mysterious purpose, and her mother receives a visit from a man from Vampirella’s past.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
With several Vampirella books coming out at once I’ll admit that one not working for me that well doesn’t bother me as much. I can get my Vampi fix elsewhere. I do keep coming back to this one as I really like how Ergun Gundu presents things and Dynamite has made it clear that this is the main ongoing book at the moment and where things are being set for the character. Gundu’s artwork is just fantastic once again as we get more characters to deal with and I find myself really enjoying his design work. Christopher Priests’ story, however, is another story. This is like a book of vignettes that don’t quite come together by the end but still play to the familiar.
The main story that works for me is the arrival of Nyx as she’s brought back to like by the odd-couple as part of their bigger plan. Nyx, half-human and half-demon, isn’t thrilled to be put back together and we see how that lashing out has her taking on a suburban mom approach once she can get away from these deranged killers. While I dislike the trail of bodies that pile up behind her, I do like seeing how Nyx reimmerses herself in being human and all that it means, something she didn’t realize she missed as much as she has. So there’s some great savoring here, whether it’s bowling, taking a bath, or eating some food. All of it works to humanize her while putting in the reminders that she’s anything but human. And those that brought her here and put her back together have a bigger plan for her in the offing.
The thing is, this and all the other stories that are unfolding are all taking place in the past as Vampirella brings her therapist up to speed. Things like Nyx are things she learned later so it’s filling in backstory there. But so much of what we get is with Vampi being close to someone but keeping her at a distance. She’ headed off for a meeting with Benny but ends up coming face to face with Drake first in his human form. There are all of these smaller moments that have a feeling of connection to the story that’s unfolding but it’s completely unclear since we’re in the present and can’t even be sure anyone by Vampi is even alive at this point. Which, again, is fine. But with a crappy therapist on hand and a series of what feel like disconnected shorter story vignettes playing out, it doesn’t’ do much to give you a reason to read it.
In Summary:
While I continue to wait to see if this twelve-issue storyline makes sense anytime soon and prove itself to be interesting, I’ll admit to coming back for more because of the artwork. Gundu’s work is pretty great here and I love his designs across the board. We get a good bit of time with Nyx as well and he’s got a great look for her that has me wanting a whole lot more. I want to be enthusiastic about this series but Priest’s story just hasn’t found the target yet when it comes to me.
Grade: C
Age Rating: 15+
Released By: Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: November 13th, 2019
MSRP: $3.99