James Tynion IV resurrects the 1931 movie in blood splattered color for the Universal Monsters: Dracula #! It has a stunning Martin Simmonds, also painted interior art, of Dracula embracing the innocent Mina! Tynion IV is the author of the horror series, Something is Killing the Children from Boom! Studios. Simmonds is the artist on The Department of Truth also written by Tynion IV.
It is also published by Image Comics with the Skybound Comics imprint. There was a previous Universal Monsters: Dracula graphic novel in 1993 by Dark Horse Comics. There is nine grid panels of a closeup of a fly and we hear Renfield talking about his promised lives. There is a kaleidoscope of black blots of flies around the panels. We see the pale face of Renfield peering over a table as he reaches for the fly. He tries to explain that he grows strong for their lives.
Dr. Seward asks if he can be shown how to get stronger. Herbert Bunston in Dracula (1931) had glasses and no beard. Renfield peers at the fly and then shoves it into his mouth in a closeup. He says his master has shown him th power of blood. Seward asks him calmly if he could get more power from his blood.
Renfield’s face is a mask of white with only his dark eyes and mouth showing. He says Dr. Seward’s blood belongs to the master. The doctor asks who is his master. Then, we get a two page spread of bats swarming around a demon behind the form of Dracula! At Dr. Seward’s Sanitarium, John Harker says he would be interested in seeing Renfield. Simmonds paints the scenes with brown and grey colors. He brings up Renfield as the only survivor of the Vesta, I still don’t understand the name change from the Demeter.
John says he can’t believe that Renfield killed the fourteen sailors, it is eight in the novel. Dr. Seward tells him that he will give nightmares to his daughter, Mina. He is trying to treat Renfield thinking it is some kind of blood disease. Dr. Seward says he should think of Mina and not of Renfield and the deaths. Then, we get a large panel of Mina talking with Lucy, the wall behind them is blood-red with talk of the captain’s death.
Also the shadow of the captain tied to the wheel! Mina has blond hair and Lucy dark hair, but not similar to the likenesses of Helen Chandler and Frances Dade. They are also interested in the deaths of the Vesta. Mina has taken her father’s notes on the case and mentions the captain’s throat ripped out by teeth! We see more of the dead sailors behind Mina reading about the sailors. She had seen Renfield when he was brought in.
Lucy notes that John is spending time with her father and then stares out the window at someone next door at Carfax Abbey. She holds up her hands and the rest of her dress looks stained with blood! We get a splash page with the eyes of Dracula, a pale form of him behind Lucy with splatters of red like blood or roses. There is a swirl of red around a globe of a wolf and a dark wolf underneath it! Stunning images with stark colors. At the sanitarium, Renfield calls to his master from behind the barred window and howls! A black wolf is called to the sanitarium as Renfield howls. He is held by the guard while he says it is Walpurgis night.
He warns him that his master will feed on the city! In the dark streets of the city, a red-haired woman sees the wolf surrounded in red like a corona of fire. Then, we see a closeup of the wolf eyes bleeding red! There is a beautiful, two page spread of Dracula’s red eyes, the count with the likeness of Bela Lugosi approaches the woman and bites her neck! There is some thoughts by Tynion IV on a page and some sketchbook pages by Simmonds. Universal Monsters: Dracula #1 has some fantastic visuals by Martin Simmonds and interesting perspectives on the film by James Tynion IV!
Five Blood Samples out of Five!
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