American Vampire #3 & Deadpool #23 Reviewed by Variant Girl

Title: American Vampire #3
Writers: Scott Snyder (Main Story) and Stephen King (Back-up)
Artist: Rafael Alburquerque
Colours: Dave McCaig
Price: $3.99

I believe the very first issue of American Vampire drew quite a bit of interest because of the fact that Stephen King’s name was attached to the story line as a co-author. As far as marketing another vampire book in this already flooded market of blood thirsty tales it was a smart business move to attach a noted name to the title as it made American Vampire stand out from the crowd. Once I had read the first issue I was extremely impressed by the writing and art, more so with Scott Synder’s story line than Stephen King’s to be honest. After saying all of that this series is certainly shaping up to become something great.

The creative team has added interesting twists to the Vampire mythology that hooked me big time. The two main characters, Pearl and Skinner Sweet both have strong personalities and are quite likable, which gave the story a nice flow. I, as a reader, instantly became invested in both of them, and I imagined that if Kid Rock was a vampire he would be Skinner, Skinner Sweet is the ultimate American Badass…pun intended folks.

Issues 1 & 2 set up the story line and did the introductions and issue number 3 ramps up the action. Pearl is trying to deal with the idea that she has become a vampire. She is also out for vengeance against those who made her. I really don’t like spoilers so I am going to try and not give too much of the plot away. Pearl also meets up with old friends and gets scrappy with a couple old foes. We are left right on the edge of a cliff-hanger and wanting more, which for any writer, is a good thing.

The second story focusing on Skinner Sweet takes us back to the reading of the non-fictional novel “Bad Blood” in which the events and stories surrounding the out-law vampire have been allegedly documented. Sweet has returned from the grave and is also looking for a tall glass of revenge. But Sweet is not the only one who is out for blood, so are the stodgy old European Aristocratic vampires and its Sweet’s blood they are craving. Will Skinner meet his demise at the hands of the European vampires? Can an alliance be made? One thing is for sure, there is more blood in store.

The art in this series is done by Rafael Albuquerque and is well suited for this tale. What I like the most is how he illustrates the transition of the vampires in their more human form to full fledged predator. There is a lot of blood in this comic but it is justified and fitting. This issue is filled with action from beginning to end and has a real pulp fiction type feel to it. The writing as well as the art fit like hand in glove. If you haven’t been reading American Vampire than I would say you’re missing out. This comic is well worth the Canadian cover price, and that’s saying something. So give this one a chance, happy reading y’all!

Title: Deadpool #23
Writer: Daniel Way
Pencils: Carlo Barberi
Inks: Juan Vlasco
Colours: Marte Gracia
Price: $2.99

Deadpool comics are like drinking beer. The experience can be a lot of fun and you find yourself craving it, but too much of a good thing can get you sick. And that was my issue for the longest time when it came to Deadpool. I had a mild addiction to purchasing this comic, but then it got to a point of silly that wasn’t acceptable even for a Deadpool comic

I have ALWAYS had a love affair with Mr. Wilson which is why I feel so passionately about all of this. But ever since the release of the Marvel movie Wolverine: Origins which came out last year… or the year before… (I can’t remember, that’s how much of an epic fail it was to me) I have felt that the comic book shelves have been over run with too much Deadpool and it has swelled to viral proportions. At one point in time you couldn’t buy anything Marvel that didn’t have DP in it. Not to mention the sheer amount of various Deadpool titles that came out. Marvel took one of my favourite characters and turned him into a joke… literally. So I decided that Wade and I needed a trail separation, things were rocky between us for so many months so I just needed some time for myself, you know to see what other fish were in the comic book sea.

After saying all that, Wade and I did manage to finally reconcile our differences and find each other again with the release of Deadpool #23 which hit our LCS yesterday. This issue was reminiscent of the Joe Kelly Deadpool, which made me fall in love with DP in the first place.

In this issue we find our hero channel surfing just chilling, and all of a sudden he comes across a live news feed from a Las Vegas night club and casino. In this news report Deadpool gets “dissed” on public television and then gets pissed. You know Deadpool isn’t having any of that guff, so it’s viva Las Vegas for Wade as he heads down there to clear his good name and maybe disrupt things just a little. After all he is the “Merc with the Mouth.”

I absolutely loved everything about this issue; it was “laugh out loud” stuff. I don’t really want to give away any spoilers so am not going to recant the entire plot. However, I will say that Daniel Way made good use of some past characters that may be considered either friend or a foe, you be the judge. The villain Grizzly was hilarious; it’s a dude in a bear suite, c’mon. There is a really cute Elton John reference written in the book as well so look out for that. Barberi’s art is very slick and I think it suites the comic well. A lot of nice panels, action packed and executed nicely. The colourist Garcia did a super job with this issue and it certainly added to Barberi’s illustrations. To sum up, like the song says, Reunited and it feels so good. I am on board for next months issue. I say pick it up.

-Cami Berardi (Variant Girl)