[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writer: Tim Seeley
Artist: Scott Godlewski
Reviewed By: Derek McNeil
Summary
The issue opens with Michael Emerson tied up and captive to the vampires of Santa Carla, including his supposed girlfriend, Star. Also captive are the Frog brothers, Alan and Edgar.
Meanwhile, Sam Emerson and Niko, the Believer are discussing the situation. Niko seems a bit full of himself, declaring that he is “God’s greatest chosen warrior, full of love and beauty.” Niko sets off after the vampires, but Sam insists on coming with him.
Returning to the vampires, their leader Billy revives the vampire David to serve the Mothers. The Frog brothers attempt to mock him, but David claims that it is worth being a slave to live forever.
As Sam and Niko traverse the vampires’ caves, they encounter some children that have been turned into vampires. Niko sanctifies the water, allowing them to escape into the water without the children following.
The newly revived David needs to make a kill before he will be a full vampire once again, and only one of the Frog brothers is needed for the ritual to awaken the Mothers. Niko arrives just in time to stop David from killing one of the Frogs.
While Niko fights David, Sam faces the Vampire Belle, Andrea. He manages to defeat her, but doesn’t find Billy so easy to defeat. However, Star betrays Billy and saves Sam.
Niko manages to defeat David at the cost of his own life, impaling both David and himself on a stalagmite. Unfortunately, Niko was himself a virgin, fulfilling the requirements of the sacrifice, which awakens the Mothers.
Positives
It’s interesting that Sam, despite the scorn of the Frog brothers, seems to have the makings of a decent vampire hunter. In this issue, he seems to show more competence than the Frog brothers have so far during this series.
I also like that the plot doesn’t necessarily follow an easily predictable path. Often, with licensed properties, it’s fairly obvious that the major characters can’t be killed, but that assurance is not present in this series. Major characters might meet their end at any time.
Negatives
Unfortunately, it appears that with Niko’s death, he doesn’t appear to be sticking around in the long-term. But given the presence of vampires and other supernatural elements, that isn’t necessarily a sure thing. Perhaps this isn’t the end of his story.
Verdict
You don’t have to be a fan of the original movie to enjoy this series, you can just read a quick online recap of the plot and dive right in. Either way, this is a fun and entertaining story.
