Blood Hunt‘s debut issue set some pretty high stakes for Marvel’s latest event: the Earth was covered in the Darkforce Dimension, leading to an invasion of bloodthirsty vampires and the Avengers being incapacitated. This week explores the aftermath, starting with the debut issue of Dracula: Blood Hunt. Dracula, hearing news of the invasion, travels to New York to find the one person who can help him turn the tides. That person is Brielle Brooks, aka Bloodline – the daughter of Blade!
Much like Blood Hunters and the current run of Avengers, this builds off the events of Blood Hunt #1 and the Free Comic Book Day one-shot. But it also spins out of the Bloodline: Daughter of Blade miniseries that introduced Brielle; writer Danny Lore also returns. Lore ensures this is a standalone tale, and their script will endear you to Brielle within a few pages. It nails her dynamic with her friends, the skills she’s picked up from her father, and her honest reaction to Dracula attempting to recruit her – she tries to stake him!
Joining Lore is artist Vincenzo Carratu, who draws the hell out of some vampire fights. His best work features Brielle leaping off walls with an acrobatic flair, staking vampire after vampire. Every page with Dracula exudes a palpable menace; Carratu tops this off by having the Prince of Darkness punch a rival vampire’s head off, sending a spray of blood everywhere (readers should be getting used to this as Blood Hunt goes on.)
What makes Carratu’s artwork sing is the color work from David Curiel. Curiel sets the mood with a different palette, depending on the scene. The Vampire Nation in Chernobyl is shrouded in darkness, with torches giving a sinister glow. Scenes in Georgia and New York shift from bright and sunny to pitch black once the “Sundeath” hits. The most prominent colors are red and black, particularly in Dracula’s ornate armor along with his blood red eyes and Brielle’s street clothes. Overall, it makes for a solid debut issue – and the addition of Daredevil only ups the ante for future issues.
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