DC vs. Vampires #9 [of 12]
Scheduled to arrive in stores: September 27, 2022
Cover date: November 2022
“DC vs. Vampires”
Writer: James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg
Artist: Otto Schmidt
Cover: Guillem March
Variant Covers: Nathan Szerdy and Dave Baldean
Reviewed by: Craig Boehmer
The story starts with Ollie attacking the human farms in Kansas. His actions flush Hawkman out of hiding. On their way to Australia, Kara, John Irons, Black Manta, and Jayna are attacked by Arthur’s hosts of Atlantis. They fight valiantly for their lives until Arthur arrives, revealing that Black Manta is not who they seem. [Reviewer: I don’t want to spoil the identity here, because it is a great one.]
On the outskirts of Gotham City, Batgirl, Harley, Dinah, and Frankenstein are unable to enter Gotham. Damian, who is a vampire, arrives to help them enter the city.
Story – 5: This chapter of the story was fantastic. It was a very quick read, and not a lot of story progression occurred because so much of it was action. The fight on the boat was a great action piece. As well Ollie’s attack on the Kansas farms was a great use of his character. I have enjoyed this story so much more since they took the major characters off the board. There are still a lot of the Batfamily involved, but we are also getting major story arcs for characters like John Henry Irons, Kara, Ollie, Dinah, and others.
Art – 4: The art in this issue is kind of hit or miss, as I’ve noticed with Otto’s art previously. A lot of it looks great, with fantastic battle sequences, and creepy scenes perfect for vampires. But there are also faces that I feel look very poor.
Cover Art – 4: First of all, I like how linked this image is to the actual story in the comic. I like this image of Supergirl and the Wonder Twin facing off against a horde from Atlantis. The faded colors add a nice touch. Supergirl and the Wonder Twin are so ferocious in this image.
Variant Cover Art A – 3: This image is fine. The artist is trying to convey Huntress as a savage vampire killer. It feels somewhat flat though and static. I can’t quite figure out why it feels that way, but it feels like she is posing, rather than caught in the middle of action.
Variant Cover Art B – 3: This image feels very manga inspired, at least the face. I do like how prepared she is to fight the vampires, with all of the stakes along her belt.
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