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Is It Good? American Vampire: Second Cycle #2 Review

Comic Books

Is It Good? American Vampire: Second Cycle #2 Review

Let’s get back to the vampire action with American Vampire: Second Cycle. If you remember how last issue ended, you are definitely curious about what going to happen next. Let’s find out together. Is it good?


American Vampire: Second Cycle #2 (Vertigo Comics)


american-vampire-second-cycle-2-cover

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Pearl meets up with an old friend of hers, Calvin, who she asks for a helping hand. However, he has his request of his own. Meanwhile, true pure evil moves towards Pearl’s new home…

american-vampire-second-cycle-2-rifle
…and it certainly dresses to kill in that getup.

I’m going to call it right now and it may be a bit controversial, but I’m saying it: this is hands down the scariest and freakiest issue of American Vampire without a single doubt. Not only does it have a fantastically eerie and foreboding tone and feel, even during the scenes with no danger in them (like Pearl talking with Calvin), but the imagery and dialogue back these sentiments up. I won’t say what these moments are, since you need to experience them for yourself, but they sent shivers down my spine and were downright horrifying. This is pure grade horror if I have ever seen it. Bravo to Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque for their work here.

Now, regardless of tone, what about the story? Like with the first issue, it feels like setup and more buildup towards something bad on the horizon initially with the meeting between Pearl and Calvin. This part is not bad at all, it has really good character and emotional moments to it with the two talking with each other, while also providing interesting backstory about where the VMS is currently at during this period of time. However, about a third of the way through, when the horror kicks in, that’s when the story really gets going and writing strengthens, easily being able to suck you in even more with what happens.

american-vampire-second-cycle-2-music
My house is good and there’s no country music at all, unlike where we are.

Snyder’s writing here is strong through and through. As I mentioned, the characterization is well done, with great interaction between everyone. The atmosphere and tone are great, even ignoring the horror side of it. The dialogue is solid, the pacing is strong, and same with the rest of the writing and story mechanics. The ending is especially good here, with a great cliffhanger that’ll definitely leave you wanted more. Just a strong issue overall here.

The artwork is great as usual: the characters, layouts, use of colors and shadows, and everything else just thrill. However, the real star here is what the artwork can do with the horror part of the story. The atmosphere it captures with the colors and dark inks, alongside the horrific and disgusting imagery from the more physical threats in the story are quite impressive. The big reveal in the middle literally caught me off guard and I couldn’t look away from it as the story progressed, really just nailing the creepy and terrifying vibe it gave off. I’m honestly not doing this issue justice and you should definitely see it for yourself.

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Look, you can’t distract me by pointing out man’s gaudy looking outfit. Tell me what you know.

Is It Good?

American Vampire: Second Cycle #2 is a fantastic and amazing issue of the series, really cementing it as a comic that you must read. This issue is easily one of the most terrifying and horror filled ones yet; the story and characters are as strong as ever, and the artwork delivers a true nightmare for our eyes to feast upon. Horror fans or non-horror fan; you owe it to yourself to check out American Vampire: Second Cycle.

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