It’s a trifecta week for DC writer Scott Snyder. Not only does his Batman Zero Year premiere along with his take on the Man of Steel via Superman Unchained, but a one-shot of Snyder’s American Vampire has also arrived on shelves. Take heed, Snyder fans: while this one-shot, titled The Long Road To Hell, has a story by both Snyder and longtime artist Rafael Albuquerque, the script is penned by the latter. This also has nothing to do with Skinner Sweet, though the rockabilly vampire hunter we met a few months ago is back in action. Press from Vertigo says this will set up the story arc when AV returns.
Nebraska, 1959. A sock hop. Two kids, one a pickpocket small-time thief, the other his dutiful girlfriend, are bopping the night away, and searching for marks. Outside the club, while his lady goes to freshen up, vampires attack the young man. Returning from the powder room, his girlfriend suffers the same fate. When the two awaken, they are fully fleshed out creatures of the night, and they’re being forced to work for a vampire cartel. Rebellious to the last, our fifties pickpocket opts to fight instead of bow. Things look grim, until a gaggle of rival vampires bust in screaming about a cure in Las Vegas. The two lovebirds make quick tracks, hoping the city in the desert will answer their prayers.
Jump to an orphanage, where a strange, lonely boy with certain psychic powers is tortured by the other kids and the establishment. Escaping into the night, the boy crosses paths with vampire couple, creating a bizarre family trekking towards Vegas. As the journey continues, they confront the vampire cartel, unknowingly aided by our favorite rockabilly vampire killer. From there, The Long Road To Hell turns tragic, and surprisingly touching. Albuquerque does not have the storytelling chops that Snyder does, but he’s no slouch with the pen. He has a knack for dialogue and for pacing. Whatever the next arc in American Vampire is going to be, this set up does a great job of whetting our appetite for it.
Albuquerque also handles art duties. His work is glorious as always. Stylized, eccentric, and always beautiful. What makes his work so perfect for American Vampire is how romantic it is. Though dealing with violence and horror, there is a underlying humanity, romance and love to the stories. Albuquerque brings that out in his pencils. His human characters all have great emotion in their faces and eyes. It’s rare when you can’t see any other artist being part of a series. With American Vampire, it’s definitely true.
(3 Story, 5 Art)
