It’s all-out galactic warfare between Dracula and the spider-like alien conquerors the Araneons in Conquest 2099 #3, written by Steve Orlando with art by Ibraim Roberson, Jose Luis, Oren Junior and Andrew Dalhouse. The Araneons have decimated Dracula’s home world, Domus Draconum. Dracula, hungry for vengeance and obsessed with annihilating the Araneons, rages across the galaxy aboard his monolithic space destroyer The Trinelance, killing every Araneon in sight on world after world.
Silver Surfer 2099, desperate to reason with Dracula and put an end to the conflict, confronts Dracula on the planet Urzon and Dracula listens to Surfer’s talks of peace for about .003 seconds before launching into him. The skirmish between the two is thrilling as they battle both in space and planet side. Silver Surfer 2099 is ferocious, having none of the calm and zen demeanor that the original Surfer, Norrin Radd, had. He’s not afraid to wield the Power Cosmic like a hammer, but Dracula gives as good as he gets. You may need to check your pulse as you read the book, because there’s a lot more that happens this issue!
I’m loving this miniseries so far. It’s gloriously unapologetic space opera reminiscent of Star Wars, with massive space destroyers warping across the galaxy, doing battle above and on exotic worlds. What makes the book even better is its deep dive into Marvel’s space lore, with Dracula having four War Captains under him representing some of Marvel’s most legendary alien races, including one Skrull, one Sakaarian, a female Shi’ar warrior and a Badoon super-soldier. All of them, much like Dracula, are outcasts from their worlds and have started a new life as blood-sucking vampires, converted personally by Dracula himself.
Several of the 2099 heroes, Spider-Man 2099, 2099 Cyclops and Phoenix, the new Spider-Woman and Logan (who’s now the last Nova!) team up and pursue Dracula across the galaxy. It’s a nice combination of heroes and personalities, with Logan being his usual grouchy pessimistic self and the 2099 version of Phoenix reminding me of a more hot-headed version of Moondragon, always ready to fight and not against using her fiery sword to deliver lethal blows. It’s hilarious seeing the 2099 Cyclops having to constantly keep her from killing everyone. Much like Scott Summers, the 2099 version of Cyclops is the consummate diplomat, keeping a cool head and trying to maintain peace in every situation.
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Ibraim Roberson and Jose Luis’s art reminds me of classic artists like Keith Pollard and Dan Jurgens. Their art is crisp, with the characters, spacecraft and interstellar backdrops all rendered in great detail. Andrew Dalhouse’s colors make the art pop on another level. It was a blast watching Spider-Man and the other heroes use portals to transport across worlds, surrounded by a reddish-purple glow as they warp from one location to another and making the book feel incredibly cinematic.
One splash page is especially grand, showing Dracula’s War Captains battling Araneon soldiers (and their allies) in space as Dracula’s mammoth spacecraft trades laser fire with the Araneon battleships. It all feels wonderfully epic.
The art, combined with Steve Orlando’s plot twists, some searing action and great character work, made the issue (and the entire miniseries so far) feel like a great MCU film. In fact, I’d love to see Disney/Marvel adapt this story into a film one day, though with all the blood and savage battles throughout, they’d have to go the Deadpool route and give the film a solid R rating.
I never thought Dracula would work within the trappings of science fiction, but he fits the setting perfectly and even becomes something of a sympathetic character, having nearly everything taken from him by the brutal Araneons and their warlord (the Hulk-like Spidercide). Dracula has always been a character of deep pathos, a man who continually experiences loss due to being cursed with eternal life. The death of his daughter Lilith last issue was especially heartbreaking and you can feel the weight of his sorrow as he tears through the Araneon armies.
I’m looking forward to the inevitable showdown between Dracula and Spidercide, which promises to be a battle for the ages. If you haven’t been following this miniseries, run out immediately and buy the last two issues then pick up this one. You don’t want to disappoint Dracula, do you?
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