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• Price: $3.99
• Rating: 15+
• Pages: 32
• On Sale: March 14, 2018
• Writer: Greg Smallwood /  Megan Smallwood
• Artist: Greg Smallwood
• Letterer: Jack Morelli
• Publisher: Archie Comics

From the publisher – “Ambush” – NEW ONGOING SERIES! When Veronica is bitten by a centuries-old vampire, her thirst for blood threatens to turn Riverdale into a haven for the undead. Will she put an end to the vampire threat or give in to her blood lust?

Our We Talk Comics WeView – Archie comics and the brother and sister creative team of Greg & Megan Smallwood aren’t trying to fool anyone into thinking they’re reinventing the wheel with Vampironica #1. The premise of a human with enough Vampire attributes to be able to battle evil has been explored time and again. So the question here is, how well is it done, and in this case how much care has been taken with well loved characters in doing so?

Well I have good news on this front. The Archie characters shine, coming across completely believable and logical in these circumstances, acting as we would expect them to. When you take characters so well known and treat them with respect like this it becomes easier for the reader to trust the creative team and go along with the flow of the story.

Artistically this book is top notch. Greg Smallwood renders each character in a recognizable but uniquely realistic way. When you see Archie you understand why so many girls fall for him. He instantly comes off as handsome and charismatic while retaining the All-American quality he needs to have. And the star of the book looks great too. In fact I’m not sure Veronica Lodge has ever looked more stunning.

Smallwood’s panel placement also adds a lot to the book. He maneuvers the panels across the page inventively creating a sense of movement. As the book starts to get into more of the action, this becomes particularly noticeable.

Jack Morelli’s lettering finishes up the visuals of the book nicely as well. There’s a lot of sound effects on these pages and he adds to the impact an awful lot, especially given the amount of action in the second half of the book. One of the tricks of lettering is to find a way to have it blend in seamlessly, but also provide a distinct look that is recognizable to the series, and I think he has managed that balancing act here.

There are a few things that hold the issue back though, as it really is a set up issue for future events. We’re being given the dynamics and rules of this particular world, so that does limit what they can do with Vampironica #1. The good news is, with that out of the way the rest of the stories should be a wild ride. And the 2nd line of dialogue from Veronica in the comic was “We can do this the easy way, or we can do it the hard way”. Honestly, we’re still using that line in 2018? I truly think they can do better, but it’s possible it only annoyed me and no one else.

Aside from these minor quibbles I was impressed with this book. Considering it’s a concept that’s been done so many times and that they had to put so much in place, I think they did about as good a job as you can expect. So without reservation I can say I truly believe that as this series goes on it will become one of the highlights of my month.

Recommended for: Fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Blade, Hack / Slash, Vampire Hunter D, Abe Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Van Helsing.

Rating – Very Fine+ (VF+) or 8.5/10

Review by Mo

Love the review? Hate the review? Disagree with me? I’m happy to talk comics on twitter @Mo_WeTalk

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