RISE OF DRACULA #6, from Source Point Press on May 25th, 2022, ends the arc with the end of civilization and the dawn of new power – the Reign of Dracula.
The Details
- Written by: Rich Davis
- Art by: Puis Calzada
- Colors by: Alex Zief
- Letters by: Dave Lentz
- Cover art by: Keyla Valerio (cover A)
- Cover price: $3.99
- Release date: May 25, 2022
Is It Good?
RISE OF DRACULA #6 concludes the current arc, and whenever we come to the end of a journey, we take a look at the issue and the arc as a whole to assess the story’s strength. Issue #6, much like the overall arc, is a hodgepodge of messages, ideas, and concepts. Some of those ideas gel, others do not, so at the very least, you could say this is a creative issue. However, creativity is tempered by too many ideas that muddy the waters on almost every page.
Davis sets up and delivers what was promised at the end of the first arc (Cult of Dracula) – a new era for humanity that ushers at the end of the world. This arc pivoted strongly away from the tragic malaise of Cult into an era where vampires, led by Dracula, Mina, and everyone in between, have taken over America and quietly coral citizens into blood farms while they engage in every decadent depravity imaginable. Davis takes multiple jabs at everything from social media to public indoctrination to fake news and spin doctoring to everything in between in a way that draws parallels to the current political zeitgeist, making the vampire takeover seem almost plausible.
We’ve said in multiple reviews that there’s no problem with having socio-political themes in a comic as long as those themes are part of and further the story, so on that point, Davis gets it completely right. In this case, the vampires use the flaws in our society as a tool for exploitation, and it works beautifully. It works so well it almost breaks your heart to see how easily it could be done.
The ending, however, is where the ride gets a little bumpy. It’s unclear if you Davis ran out of issues or page space, but the quick-cut progression of Lady Ruthven’s arrival, the monster in the box, and the crowd turning violent happen much too fast to appreciate. When the end scenes play out for Draculina/Lucy, the imagery is practically mythological but too vague to make sense of. The symbols and visual metaphors again transmit ideas Davis tries to get out, but those ideas are too ill-formed to materialize.
The art by Calzada is terrifying for its mix of quiet peace hiding malignant horror underneath. There’s a scene in the beginning that seems completely benign but will haunt you when you see its clinically horrific conclusion. In fairness, the last battle looks like a chaotic blob in a few spots. It’s unclear if the blobbishness is a result of too little space and time or if it was intentional. Either way, the full visual impact of the final battle looked a little sloppy.
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What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
Check out our RISE OF DRACULA #5 review to find out how the takeover started to go wrong.
We begin with a young boy, Roone, waiting in a storeroom for his opportunity to be helpful. Delthea, the kitchen maid, sadly greets Roone to tell him he is loved and is about to be so helpful that his mama will be proud. Roone is soon led away by two chefs preparing a banquet for the gathering of vampire Lords and Ladies.
Meanwhile, Lady Ruthven arrives in Washington DC for the banquet. A growing crowd of human protestors becomes increasingly hostile as living conditions under vampire rule deteriorate. The vampires regard human dissatisfaction with all the consideration of French royalty on the eve of the French Revolution. Suddenly, the crowd’s animosity boils over into an all-out riot. The holy rebels and their Frankenstein monster join the fight to retake Washington.
Meanwhile, Lucy walks down the halls of her office building where she’s confronted by Lilith and her demons. Lilith is disappointed by Lucy’s betrayal, but Lucy chooses to fight back. We conclude the issue with the memory of legion, death, and a higher plane for one ushering in a dark age for the world.
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Final Thoughts
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Rise of Dracula #6 like the series, is a world-ending, heart-wrenching end to the story and humanity. There are more weighty ideas and concepts in this last issue than most any title on the market. However, the sheer volume of ideas is also this issue’s biggest hindrance due to lack of clarity and mismatched pacing.
Related Information
Who turned Dracula into a vampire?
In the original novel by Bram Stoker, Dracula’s conversion into a vampire is never explained. However, are multiple adaptations of Stoker’s novel that explain Dracula’s conversion, ranging from a curse from God to a deal with a Master Vampire to destroy Dracula’s enemies to a side effect of a deal with the Devil. In short, there is no definitive explanation.
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