Thursday, June 13, 2013

American Vampire: The Long Road to Hell #1 Review

AMERICAN VAMPIRE: THE LONG ROAD TO HELL #1
by Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque

Elvis + Blade (the vampire hunter) = Travis Kidd.

American Vampire: The Long Road to Hell is a one-shot that sets the stage for the American Vampire relaunch later this year. And it does that, but most importantly, it delivers a tragic love story that brings back fan-favorite character Travis Kidd. It mainly focuses on three characters: Billy, Jo and Jasper. Billy and Jo are two small time thieves who spend their nights dancing in clubs and pickpocketing unsuspecting strangers.  And then they become vampires. They're set on a quest for Las Vegas to find a cure for their state, and they meet Jasper. Jasper is this little kid who's hiding more than one dark secret. Now, if you come into this issue expecting nothing but badass Travis Kidd doing his thing, you'll be sorely disappointed. But that's not a bad thing. Travis takes  a backseat to this story in order to flesh out the three protagonists. The tragic love story of Billy and Jo will be enough to bring a tear to some people's eyes, and Jasper is a menacing little demon child. Now, the script of this issue was written by Rafael Albuquerque, not Snyder (who only co-plotted this), but it's just as good as some of Snyder's best works. It hits all the emotional beats it aims for, and I'll admit, there was more than one scene that had my eyes on the verge of... *ahem*, sweating. And believe me, when Travis Kidd shows up in this issue, he steals the show. Now, if you're expecting a big Grant Morrison or Geoff Johns like tease at the end of this issue, don't. I'll admit, the ending doesn't do as good of a job as setting up the return of the series, but that's not the point. This is a tragedy, that just happens to have vampires, murder, and Travis Kidd. You could take out the American Vampire connection all together, and you'd still have a stellar tale.

Albuquerque proves himself as both, a good scriptwriter, and (as he has before) a great artist. He knows just what he wants from the script, and what can I say? He's defined the look of AV. 

The Long Road to Hell is one of the best books of the year so far. This is an absolute masterpiece. I can't recommend this enough. You don't have an excuse for NOT buying this. Don't have enough money? Drop Batman and Superman Unchained. Buy this instead. Not an American Vampire fan? BUY IT ANYWAY. I can't stress this anymore than I am now. BUY THE LONG ROAD TO HELL #1. You won't regret it.

STORY: 5/5
+ Works as a standalone story
+ Layered characters
+ Travis Kidd is just the icing on the cake, and he still kicks ass
+ You will get feels, guaranteed or your money back
+ Not focused on teasing readers 

ART: 5/5
+ The definitive American Vampire look
+ Great colors from McCraig
+ Looks well polished

VERDICT: 5/5

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