Vampirella Vol. 3 #1 (2016) –
Dynamite Entertainment
Written by Kate Leth
Art by Eman Casallos
Colors by Valentina Pinto
Letters by Erica Schultz
Cover by Chrissie Zullo
It’s a new chapter, and in a way, a re-awakening for Dynamite’s favorite Vampire. What better setting to do that than in Hollywood? Changes have come to the Vampirella comics in the beginning of this first volume. Some subtle, some not so much, but I definitely wouldn’t call it a reboot. Still, it’s enough that some long standing Vampirella fans may raise an eyebrow or two.
We actually start off by getting a look at our villain, named Slade. Picture Emma Frost meets Kim Basinger, but all we really know about her is that she’s dangerous. We then see Vampirella, who is accompanied by Tristan and Coleridge, to her new Hollywood home. Let’s just say she doesn’t get the warmest welcome to the neighborhood and it leaves her looking for answers. Problem is, now she’s dealing with another enemy she’s not used to…social media. So she finds herself not just trying to track down Slade, but dealing with a world she’s not quite used to. She’s literally and figuratively in unfamiliar territory. We also get another reveal towards the end that will complicate things even further.
Before I even get into my rating, and break things down a bit, let’s talk about the new suit for a minute. We do see the classic Vampirella look in this issue, but it appears we’re going to get a much more conservative look from now on (as seen above.) I’ll be honest, it was time to update the suit. Not because it was too revealing, but because you can’t modernize this character and not do the same with her look. Personally, I like it. As far as the story goes, I think the identity was a bit back and forth. One minute it seems like they’re trying to cater to younger viewers, but then we see a couple of brief sex scenes in the book as well. I’m no prude, it was just surprising given the overall vibe of the story. I think they got the attitude of Vampirella down just fine, and the action scenes were fine. I just think there was a bit of force humor that didn’t really hit the mark. I like the social media angle, and I’m just interested in the villain enough to stay interested. The art by Casallos is good, but I found myself wanting to see more from Zullo after seeing the cover. Overall, not a bad start, but will definitely have to find it’s identity in the next couple of issues.
RATING: PICK UP