VAMPIRELLA HALLOWEEN HORROR #1 – New Comic Review

Vampirella Halloween Horror #1, by Dynamite Comics on 9/24/25, finds kids in peril, a vampiric antiheroine on the prowl, and a villainess whose idea of kindness leaves corpses piled up like jack-o’-lanterns on November 1st.

Credits:

• Writer: Liam Johnson
• Artist: Jordan Michael Johnson
• Colorist: Michael Woods
• Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual
• Cover Artist: Greg Land (cover A)
• Publisher: Dynamite Comics
• Release Date: September 24, 2025
• Comic Rating: Teen
• Cover Price: $5.99
• Page Count: 30
• Format: One Shot

Covers:

Analysis of VAMPIRELLA HALLOWEEN HORROR #1:

First Impressions:

The mood wants to be moody, but the script can’t resist clunky exposition, while the art does its best impersonation of a wax museum caught in a strobe light. Characters lurch through dialogue as if they’re reading from cue cards scavenged from last Halloween’s trash. Even for a one-shot, it’s the comic equivalent of fumbling for a light switch that never seems to work.

Plot Analysis:

The tale opens in Central Park, where Vampirella encounters a desperate, hungry teen named Noah. Instead of fangs, she offers mercy, but soon learns he’s just one of many lost kids vanishing in suspicious circumstances. At the local morgue, Vampirella meets Debra Atkins, a harried forensic examiner with a list of dead teens who’ve died of “old age,” each sporting strange traces of saliva on their skin.

Debra’s case files point to an unknown predator. As Vampirella stalks the neglected corners of the city, she discovers Aevum, an ethereal antagonist who claims to “take pain” from children and “gift them the lives they deserve.” Their confrontation is explosive, full of threat, accusation, and a punch-up that doubles as a clash between pain and immortality. Aevum’s tragic backstory is relayed through psychic struggle, with both supernaturals glimpsing each other’s haunted pasts.

Just as Vampirella tries to battle her opponent into submission, she’s overwhelmed by aging magic and agony—yet refuses to yield. Ultimately, through shared memories and the resilience of the surviving kids, the tide turns. The rescued teens giggle, patch up their wounds, and aspire to move on, as Aevum slinks away, burdened by her own curse and Vampirella’s condemnation.

But the quiet doesn’t last. The final page hints at more horror in the wings as Aevum visits a new victim; a scene so on-the-nose, it practically sniffs its own plot twist. Vampirella is left to ponder the meaning of pain, family, and whether patching up lost souls is worth the bitterness it usually brings.

Story

The writing aims for gravitas but lands somewhere between overripe and undercooked. Dialogue swings from stiff lectures to obvious info-dumps; every emotional beat spelled out, just in case readers missed the neon signs. Attempts at pathos get drowned in melodrama, while the plot’s supernatural flourishes come across as world-weary instead of wondrous.

Art

Let’s talk about the art: Stiff is an understatement. Characters pose like action figures glued to their bases, and expressions rarely register above “mild dismay.” Color choices try to conjure mood but mostly render scenes murky or oddly flat. Action sequences look like they’re paused mid-sneeze, and even the big supernatural moments fizzle without dynamism or flair.

Characters

Vampirella is depicted as a vampire with a conscience, haunted by her own trauma, but the script gives her little room to be interesting. Aevum, the main antagonist, has an intriguing premise (an immortal drawn to suffering) but is written too blandly to inspire fear or pity. Supporting mortals are generic, serving only to move the plot along before vanishing like ghosts at dawn.

Positives

The comic earns points for attempting to address real-world issues – runaway kids, marginalization, the scars of trauma – through the lens of supernatural horror. There’s a nice moment where Vampirella comforts traumatized children, bridging the gap between monster and savior, and the villain’s motivations, while muddled, offer an original twist on the old “vampire versus something worse” formula.

Negatives

Dialogue is leaden and the writing labors under the weight of its own earnestness. Pacing stutters as we get both frantic action and sluggish monologues, never in satisfying synch. Stiff character art keeps even the bloodiest moments from feeling urgent or alive, and the emotional core is constantly explained rather than shown.

Art Samples:

Final Thoughts:

(Click this link 👇 to order this comic)

If VAMPIRELLA HALLOWEEN HORROR #1 were a trick-or-treat bag, it’d be half-stale candy and half-mystery meat. For lovers of melodrama, misunderstood monsters, and dialogue thicker than bat’s blood, it’s a messy treat; for everyone else, it’s a reminder that even the Queen of Halloween can sometimes wear a cheap plastic mask.

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