Writer: Sara Frazetta and Bob Freeman
Art:  Alberto Locatelli
Colors: The Brewing Factory
Letters:  Tom Napolitano
Publisher:  Dynamite Entertainment
Price: $3.99
Release Date: November 1st, 2023

Vampirella: Dead Flowers #2 continues the gothic storyline, with Vampirella having to fend off the werewolf Randall LaFleur, even as dark magic forces (including the aspiring witch Frances Moore) conspire against her from the shadows.

If you’re interested in this comic, series, related trades, or any of the others mentioned, then simply click on the title/link to snag a copy through Amazon as you read the Vampirella: Dead Flowers #2 Review.

The Story

Vampirella: Dead Flowers #2, much like last issue, is the closest you’ll get these days to a Dark Shadows episode. And no, I’m not talking about the heinous Johnny Depp Dark Shadows film from 2012.  I’m talking about the gothic soap opera that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971 and brought vampires, werewolves, witches and ghosts to afternoon TV. It was a marvelous show.  Sure, the dialogue was cheesy, the actors flubbed their lines hilariously at times because the show, like most other soap operas, had a brutal shooting schedule of 4 or 5 episodes a week.  But man, it delivered midnight-style creepiness and chills on bright sunny afternoons.

And this miniseries gives the same chills, tinged with a bit of warm nostalgia.  Even the opening pages of this issue, with its litany of words summarizing the events of last issue, harkens back to the opening of most of the Dark Shadows episodes, where Victoria Winters gave a wistful narration of the previous episode’s events while giving cryptic clues of what’s to come. Frances Moore, the main nemesis of the series, is a good character but a bit too one-dimensional.  She has made a Faustian deal with a higher power in order to get magic abilities which she’s apparently wielding to win Randall LaFleur’s heart, but Vampirella is interfering with her plans because come on, who can resist Vampirella?   Frances is even so determined to overcome Vampirella, in one saucy scene she offers her body to a demon to enhance her power.

Randall LaFleur is drawn to our favorite vampire lady, but unfortunately he’s also a werewolf, and he and Vampirella have a knock-down drag-out fight that I enjoyed as much as those old Marvel Tomb of Dracula issues where they threw old fang-face against Frankenstein, the Wolfman or even Spider-Man.   I’m a sucker for these monster-on-monster slugfests and this is a great one.  LaFleur is very much like Larry Talbot, the Wolfman from the classic Universal Horror Films, a tragic figure cursed with lycanthropy. I’m enjoying this story so far, which is steeped heavily in mysticism and classic horror, and I’m intrigued to see where the story goes next issue.

The Art

There’s a subtle and simple beauty to Alberto Locatelli’s art on Vampirella: Dark Shadows #2, especially in his rendering of Vampirella, who looks dainty and beautiful in the quieter scenes but fierce in combat. Randall LaFleur’s Wolfman looks suitably ferocious and humongous and the battle between he and Vampirella is furious, flowing from page to page in thrilling fashion.

Final Thoughts

Vampirella: Dark Shadows #2 is a great second part to the story.  Even though Frances Moore is a bit of a cliché character, Rookhaven Manor is a wonderful setting, with every corner filled with menace, and the battle of wills between Frances and Vampirella promises to explode next issue.

8/10