American Vampire

Scott Snyder continues to explore and expand the vampire mythology established in the first volume of this series with two tales of greed and bloodlust.

The first story, Devil In The Sand, is set in Las Vegas of 1936. The investors of Boulder Dam (a comic book stand-in for the Hoover Dam) are being murdered one by one. It’s not too hard to figure out who, or what, the culprit may be for us readers, as the book is titled American Vampire, but for the story’s protagonist, police chief Cash McCogan, the existence of these blood-suckers will prove to be quite the revelation. He’ll be learning a thing or two about his own family and upbringing along the way. While this story features characters and elements from the Volume One, it’s not necessary to have read that arc to enjoy it. Everything you need to know is here.

The second story, The Way Out, is a different matter. This one continues the story of Pearl and Henry. We’re brought up to speed on what they’ve been doing since leaving Hollywood. They’re trying to put the past to rest, but it just won’t stay dead. Without having read the first volume you may not have enough background to care about the characters in this one. The solution? Go buy Volume One. It’s worth it.

The art, heavy on the inks for a darker tone, is perfect for a story dealing with vampires. The action scenes are superbly paced by Rafael Albuquerque’s layouts. I do, however, find the lines Albuquerque uses to define shading on noses a bit distracting. I looked at every nose in every panel, and this certainly disrupted the flow of the story for me. Mateus Santolouco’s art in the second story reminds me of the early work of Mark Texiera. He knows how to convey emotion on a characters face and his vampires truly look menacing.

While this volume doesn’t match its predecessor in terms of suspense, there’s still enough here to keep you turning the pages.

American Vampire Vol. 2 is published by DC Comics, written by Scott Snyder, with art by Rafael Albuquerque and Mateus Santoluco

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