[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writer: Tim Seeley
Artist: Scott Godlewski
Reviewed By: Derek McNeil
The vampire David, having just been impaled on a stalagmite but still isn’t quite dead yet. He tells Michael Emerson that the Mothers are coming for all of them. He also claims that Star will desert Michael, which she denies.
A tremor rocks the cave, burying David and the body of Niko, the Believer. Then a Mother attacks Edgar Frog, but Michael knocks her out by hitting her with Niko’s saxophone. However, the proximity of the Mother starts to awaken the dormant vampirism in Michael’s blood.
Seeing more Mothers coming for them, the group flees, heading out through the tunnels that Sam and the Believer entered through. Michael uses the extra power the Mothers’ presence has given him, to knock away the stalagmite that the group had just climbed up, preventing the Mothers from following.
Meanwhile, the Mother Queen has awoken, and Billy presents herself to the Queen, but the Queen is not pleased that her children have not enslaved humanity and kills Billy.
The group emerges in the grotto where the Belles had set up a nursery of children vampires, who carry Sam off to face the Belle Andi. Sam pretends to flee, luring Andi close enough to slay with a wooden stake, much to the amazement of the Frog Brothers, who proclaim him a “stone-cold badass.
With their sire Andi dead, the vampire children are now all returned to normal. The group continues up the tunnels, taking the children with them.
The Queen Mother and her followers try to follow, but are trapped in the collapsing caves. Just as the group escapes to the surface, the whole section of the caves that they were in falls into the sea, taking the Mothers with it.
They discover that Billy isn’t actually dead, but has taken a sample of the blood of the Mothers, which she claims is the cure for every disease or pain, and even for aging. Billy asks Star to take this to Billy’s sire, then allows herself to be killed by the burning light of the morning sun.
Before dying, Billy reveals that her sire is Agnes Underwood at the Hughes retirement home, and that she is holding Michael and Sam’s mother and Laddie hostage.
Positives
This book is certainly full of surprises. Niko was built up to be a major vampire-killer and gets killed off quickly. The Mothers are shown to be a major threat, but are taken out by an earthquake. It appears that the major vampire that they will have to face turns out to be one of the senior citizens Michael was helping in the retirement home.
Also ironic is that Sam Emerson, who was looked down on by the Frog Brothers, has become a more effective vampire slayer than either of them.
Negatives
Although it was an effective surprise for the Mothers to be taken out so quickly, it does seem somewhat anticlimactic. I was expecting more of a major battle with them. It seems more like the heroes are surviving by dumb luck than anything else.
Verdict
This is still a fun and exciting ride, and I can’t wait to see the conclusion next issue.
