‘Vampirella #1’ (review)

Written by Christopher Priest
Illustrated by Ergun Gunduz
Cover by Frank Cho
Published by Dynamite Entertainment

Vampirella has always been a hit or miss character for me. Most of the stories I have read have been absolute misses. I think the last one that was decent as far as I remember was a Mark Millar run back in the day. The character just has never been my favorite, so it’s always been more about the creative team handling her. Luckily, Christopher Priest is writing this series. And it seems more of a hit this time out rather than a miss. And that’s a good thing.
Priest did something really great right at the start of the issue. He brings Vampirella into the real world.

The start of issue is a doozy. We see the aftermath of a huge plane crash. The destruction is everywhere. Gunduz doesn’t hold back in his graphic interpretation of the crash. That’s when we learn that the only person to survive this crash is Vampirella.

Right from the outset, Priest drew me in with his story. In fact, he probably drew me into this comic more than any Vampirella story ever. And that’s not an understatement.

By grounding the story, rather than it just being nuts like a Vampirella story usually is, Priest does wonders for the character.

We then get to see Vampirella talk to a psychiatrist. It’s a hell of thing to read in this book. We get to see a flashback to what actually happened on the plane. We get to see why Vampirella is the only survivor.

And it’s extremely brutal to read.

Priest also makes Vampirella an actual character here. He doesn’t make her feel detached. She’s actually very relatable and the reader can easily identify with her. Priest also gives her emotions that are real. He shows what it’s like to be her. He shows us her inherent loneliness. It’s a great choice and Priest makes the entire story effective and perfect because of it.

The art is beautiful here as well. Ergun Gunduz is not a name people are going to know going into this. But trust me, they are going to remember him after.  This guy is a star for sure. His artwork is worth buying the book all by itself. But it’s even better that’s there is a compelling story to match the strong artwork.

I have to admit, I wasn’t sure what Priest was going to do here when I first heard about it. Now I can’t wait to see what he does next. This is some excellent work by two amazing comic book creators. They bring Vampirella back to life and make her story an unforgettable one.

RATING: A