I, Zombie #1
Written by Chris Roberson
Illustrated by Michael Allred
Colored by Laura Allred
Lettered by Todd Klein
Variant cover by Darwyn Cooke
I would describe this book as eccentric. Which should really come as no surprise if you’ve read previous Mike Allred comics. The offbeat sense of humor works for it, and of course, it looks great. However, it’s difficult to find a focus in this first issue, as our protagonist Gwen is clearly being prepped for some adventure and conflict. I can’t quite recommend I, Zombie at this point, but keep it in the corner of your eye. It might have something.
American Vampire #2-3
Written by Scott Snyder & Stephen King
Illustrated by Rafael Albuquerque
Colored by Dave McCaigLettered by Steve Wands
Variant cover by Bernie Wrightson (#2) & Andy Kubert (#3)
The debut issue held some promise, but precious little of it has been unearthed so far. The biggest issue is that Skinner, the enigmatic protagonist, simply isn’t very interesting. Dark, mysterious, absurdly self-assured – not much new there, y’know? Pearl, the would-be movie starlet whose life was shattered, and has been resurrected by Skinner as part of the new breed of American vampires (no problems with sunlight, but apparently very lethargic on moonless nights), makes for more compelling reading, as her motivations are direct and instantly appreciable.
Albuqueque’s still tearing it up on the art side, and each issue’s second story, Stephen King’s potboiler origin of Skinner, isn’t anything new, but it’s a solid Old West horror riff. I’m interested to see how Snyder develops Pearl’s story, as it’s the most compelling aspect of the book thus far.
iZombie #2
Written by Chris Roberson
Illustrated by Michael Allred
Colored by Laura Allred
Lettered by Todd Klein
Man, Mike Allred – this guy is a really superb comics illustrator. He employs great layouts like the two-page spread of Nemia giving her vampire cabal a dressing down, and he’s one of the best in the business at capturing how clothing lays and folds on the human form. You can read the character acting clear as day without melodramatic overacting, and his characters, every single one of them, are cute as buttons. Even the mindless shambling zombies. Granted, Allred’s been doing excellent work since the earliest days of the Kitchen Sink Madman series, but he just keeps getting better and better.
Roberson’s script moves a little slowly, but he’s establishing an interesting and diverse cast of well-meaning monsters, monster hunters and computer IT specialists. Add to the mix Gwen, a zombie who must eat a recently deceased brain once a month or become shambling, sans-intelligence monster, but who also inherits the knowledge and memories of her latest meal – and she thinks this latest one might’ve been killed. So there’s a lot of groundwork being laid. It could move a little more quickly and hopefully Roberson can pay off some of this establishing material, but it’s beautifully drawn and colored, laid out and lettered perfectly, and chock full in interesting, quirky cast members.
June 10th, 2010 at 7:09 am
I really liked the first issue of American Vampire, even though I thought King was showing yet again that even great novelists are not great comic book writers. Since then, though, I am also not sure it’s worth the money. I will add that King has found his pacing even as Snyder shows his limitations.
Odds are I will stay till the end of the King arc, and if the Snyder part doesn’t pick up, I am gone. Been looking for another Vertigo title to get monthly for ages, and I wonder if I will ever find it.
February 14th, 2011 at 9:26 am
Quality post! Ive bookmark this site to return later. cheers!