The inevitable betrayal.
Creative Staff:
Story: Thomas Sniegoski
Art: Kewber Baal
Colors: Omi Remalante Jr.
Letterer: Troy Peteri
What They Say:
Abaddon learns that he is part of a much larger plan. Recovering from her recent illness, Nyx realizes that she isn’t as powerful as she used to be and must do something about it. The Armor Infernal has begun its march, and Vampirella, and her allies embark on their mission to Nyx’s tower—the final confrontation between the forces of order and Chaos is about to begin.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
As the series works toward its big confrontation, there is a ton to like with what’s going on with this run of the world of Vampirella. Thomas Sniegoski delivers another good issue here as we see some of the characters struggling with things, the reveal of an even larger plan through some events that have proceeded unnoticed for generations, and some wonderfully evil moments out of Nyx. At the same time, Kewber Baal has worked a really great look for the book with strong and consistent characters, lots of detail in the backgrounds, and layouts that moves everything very smoothly and cleanly so that it’s an easy read but one where you really pay attention to the details.
With all that they know, it’s too much of a risk to not go after Nyx and I like that we basically get the “team walking together” montage as the new Danse Macabre is put together. It’s a solid enough piece with a good plan, and plenty of violence to entice a couple of them to be thoroughly involved, as it sets the stage for the fight to come. Of course, that fight is not going to survive the first contact with the enemy because they haven’t realized that the enemy is within. With Nyx seeing through Adam, she’s known what’s coming for some time and is able to prepare for it easily and to deal with problem people like Desmond as well. His betrayal was well-earned considering what’s gone on with the Lord of Chaos but Nyx will suffer no actual betrayal of her, especially after the way the Lords of chaos have silenced themselves to her. It’s a great moment considering how long Desmond has been around as it delivers a connection that we needed to see more of from Nyx.
As Vampirella and her team initially move into place, we do get to cover a few other things. We see that Abbadon is being moved in a whole new direction that’s going to challenge his compliance to the Lords of Order and I’m intrigued by that. We also get a sequence with young Jeanine, still coping with the loss of her grandmother, that shows how there are tools that have been placed as part of the game that has been talked about here and there. It’s a nice touch and a long history that’s intriguing. But the most fun to be had here involves watching as Nyx cements more of her control of the situation by drawing in those that she needs to serve under her and making sure they’re willing to make real sacrifices. It’s all in service of putting her back into a fully powered position and watching how it unfolds is fantastically fun and devilishly evil.
In Summary:
This series is moving toward its major battle well and I’m excited to see more of the pieces fall into place with it. Each side has a lot of things going on and some of the players don’t even realize that they are involved in this and represent an actual side. Sniegoski’s script continues to flow well and covers a lot of ground, making it a good read with solid character material to it. And Baal’s artwork is just perfect for what I’m looking for with this series as it has the sexiness it needs but can also deliver a strong visual narrative that doesn’t rely just on the sexiness or being overly stylized and gets the job done while looking great.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 15+
Released By: Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: April 21st, 2021
MSRP: $3.99
