I get that the appeal of Bram Stoker’s Dracula is mostly the undead blood-drinking monster and the overt terror of it all. But when it comes to the ongoing adaptation from James Tynion IV and Martin Simmonds, the appeal of issue #1 was the pacing. (And also the sexy monster and endless horror and all that jazz.) It tackled that iconic story with new life and a deliberateness to draw out everything that made the novel so groundbreaking.
And the slow, sensuous tease continues with issue #2.
Courtesy of Skybound.
This time around, though, Dracula himself does make more of an appearance — the issue basically begins with his “debut.” And yet amid that heightened appearance, the Count retains that robust air of mystery, and he is continually treated like a proper legend even as he’s more “real” to our cast than ever. And that doesn’t just empower him but it fosters a lot of the drama and tension of this issue as it feels like a kind of “reaction” to his debut. As if Dracula has infected Seward, Harker, Mina, etc., and the slow, creeping presence of the King of Vampires takes over their lives. Yet the focus remains on things elsewhere, namely the ongoing treatment of Renfield (who once again has a really dazzling showing with a monologue that paints him as a proper threat and terror across this book).
That whole dynamic feels really novel and effective — Dracula is so much more than some dude you meet and engage with, and the creative team are doing everything they can to facilitate a tantric engagement with the Count, which feels like a way to counter the over vamp-i-fication of fiction and also make this story about the other, equally compelling characters. It sort of feels like the ’90s flick in some key ways, albeit with a bit more depth and sustained interest. Seward, especially, resonates in a way like I can’t imagine he has in other adaptations — he does a solid job of distilling and disseminating both the fears and thematic tentpoles of this issue (i.e., how the world is changing, and the encroaching darkness as representing some larger societal shift). I want a bigger world around Dracula, and the fact that he’s both an obsession and afterthought here is massively important to making a vital adaptation.
Courtesy of Skybound.
Of course, part of that overall vitality is the art from Simmonds. Issue #1 was a genuine achievement, and it focused more on overt terror. But in #2, as we opened up more channels with the characters, the book took on a distinctly sensual, borderline sexual vibe. And that infusion of energies and motivations was an interesting development for Simmonds’ truly horrific works.
It started with the meeting of London men attended by Harker and Seward (it’s also where we meet a very important professor…) It wasn’t meant to be obviously sensual, but the interplay of light and shadow did a lot to play up those energies in a fun, flirty way, and that imbues this moment with greater significance. From there, we get more “overt” sexuality with Dracula and Lucy — because of the way the Count is played here, it felt both wholly stirring and like a kind of secret, which I think uses sexuality as this really effective device for storytelling and not a blunt weapon. (The expert use of red, for instance, did a ton of work for blurring horror and romance, and the ending scene especially felt like a perfect distillation of these energies and how the visuals undercut the story with dynamic energies and sensations.)
Courtesy of Skybound.
Even Renfield felt a little erotic (even as he was hugely, deeply terrifying), and his slight turn as “undead rock ‘n’ roll wraith convulsing on his cell floor” felt like a way to further undercut the terror with sentiments to tease and confuse readers. Simmonds maintained a lot of darkness, but by playing with light, angles, and the appearance of blood, he made our experience all the more complicated, which only drew us deeper into the Count’s macabre machinations.
We’re only two issues in, and with so much more story still to unfold. And yet I feel like we’ve already had quite the full body experience. That speaks volumes about Tynion and Simmonds’ connection to this story and their painstaking efforts to deliver a version of it like few others before. It’ll terrify and titillate in equal measure, and if you can commit fully to this “process,” then you’re bound to get caught up in the dark magic of it all. Otherwise, you’re missing out on a faithful and forward-thinking take on vampire lore and what these stories really say about us all.
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