In VAMPIRELLA (VOL. 5) #19, available from Dynamite Comics on May 5th, 2021, Vampirella races to free her mother from a Drakulonian prison when she learns the Senate has figured out how to open a portal to Earth.
The Details
- Written By: Christopher Priest
- Art By: Ergün Gündüz
- Letters By: Willie Schubert
- Cover Art By: Lucio Parrillo (cover A)
- Cover Price: $3.99
- Release Date: May 5, 2021
Was It Good?
It’s not bad. The current run under Christopher Priest has had its ups and downs with tone and clarity. This is the most straightforward issue so far, and it leans heavily into the sci-fi elements of Vampirella’s history. It almost felt like a pulp sci-fi adventure with a hint of camp ala Barbarella.
The art is consistently Gündüz. It’s a very specific, niche style with a heavy digital component. Some would say photoshop. Others would say digitally stylistic. If you like Gündüz’s art, there’s plenty to like in this issue.
Decide for yourself in our VAMPIRELLA (VOL. 5) #19 preview, which also contains a hefty array of variant covers.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD]
Vampirella continues her “therapy session” and explains what happened during her trip to Drakulon to rescue her mother, Lilith, when she makes a shocking discovery(Read our VAMPIRELLA (VOL. 5) #18 review to see how it all went down.)
Years ago, Lilith was the Black Queen of Drakulon. She escaped a citizen’s revolt by reverse-engineering an ancient portal to Earth using a magic spell and a mathematical code. The Drakulonian Senate has since learned to reproduce the process and are now abducting Earthlings to feed their blood-starved population.
Lilith is now back on Drakulon and imprisoned by the Senate for high crimes during her reign as Black Queen. Vampirella is searching the catacombs beneath the Senate to find and free Lilith with Kauldryn’s help.
Vampirella finds her way to Lilith’s holding “cell,” a giant creature that looks like a tardigrade. One of the senators who’s a Lilith supporter is there to help, but something seems off. It seems as if Vampirella was lured there, almost invited to rescue Lilith. That’s when she receives the shocking twist news.
The mathematical code necessary to run the portals is Vampirella’s DNA. Lilith planned to get captured and have Vampirella follow her to Drakulon so she could retake the throne and use Vampirella to control the portals.
Vampirella is unwittingly the instrument to conquer Earth and enslave its population as blood cattle.
Realizing her Uncle Hilal was trying to warn her, to help her, Vampirella takes off to find him before he’s killed for helping her. Despite her best speed, she’s too late. Uncle Hilal is dead. we conclude the issue with the killer revealing himself and a new revelation about Drakulon’s history.
If it feels like a quick review, that’s because this is a very quick read. The pace doesn’t let up for a second.
How Does It End?
The killer is not a Vampiri. Lilith isn’t the only one who knows how to conjure a quick, local portal. “Let’s Get Started!”
Final Thoughts
VAMPIRELLA (VOL. 5) #19, available from Dynamite Comics on May 5th, 2021, plays Vampirella for a fool by revealing she was part of her mother’s evil plan all along. The art is consistent for this series, and the writing has settled into a fast-paced groove.
Score: 7.5/10
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