DC vs. Vampires #1

DC vs. Vampires #1

DC Comics 2021

Written by James Tynion IV & Matthew Rosenberg

Illustrated by Otto Schmidt

Lettered by Tom Napolitano

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!

I’m surprised we haven’t seen something of this magnitude before. After all, when I, Vampire had his series-which I’d like to see make a return-it would have been the perfect time for something big like this. That this too looks to be contained to a twelve issue series excites me as well because it makes things so much nicer when I don't have to worry about tie-ins and all that jazz. Also whichever earth this ends up being I’m all for this visit and the two whom we see starring in this at this stage.

I have to say that I am rather enjoying the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does a magnificent job in bringing the personalities to the forefront. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages revealing the story, the characters and the state of the world the more we want to see, learn and know more about.

I like how we see this being structured and how the layers within the story begin to emerge, grow and evolve. The layers here peel back like an onion and reveal new avenues to be explored and while some are and others aren’t they all manage t5o add some great depth, dimension and complexity to the story. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is impeccably achieved.

Surprisingly the interior artwork has this really softer edge to it. The linework is fantastic and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create the detail within the work is sublime. Now I do wish we’d see more backgrounds being utilised like how we see the inside of the Legion of Doom as this enhances and expands the moments beautifully. They also work within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work are brilliantly rendered. These shades of red are phenomenal, simply phenomenal.

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I’m in for this one, it’s got the misdirection, cruelty and bloodlust that comes with vampires and while they’ve always existed in the DCU there’s been an uneasy alliance that have kept this tenuous balance and now that balance is gone and it’s going to be every man, woman and child for themselves. Can those heroes that haven’t been turned find a way to restore the balance or is it already too late? With some amazing writing and interesting characterisation alongside these duelling interiors, the red and the light, the DCU will never be the same.