DC Vs. Vampires #5 – James Tynion IV/Matthew Rosenberg, Writers; Otto Schmidt, Simone Di Meo, Artists
Ray – 8/10
Ray: It’s never a great sign when a maxiseries starts making creative team changes midway through. Even if everyone involved is highly talented, it never bodes well for consistency. Otto Schmidt is joined this issue by Simone Di Meo, and while both artists are excellent, their style doesn’t quite mesh. Di Meo’s segment brings in some major new players in the form of the Suicide Squad, as Amanda Waller deputizes her team to track down the Vampire invasion. Harley is at the top of her crazy game as always, but the rest of the team doesn’t make much of an impact until one of them reveals their true allegiance in bloody fashion. This series has been surprisingly intimate so far, focusing almost entirely on the intrigue within the Justice League, so broadening its focus makes sense. Di Meo’s glossy art does a good job with the action sequences, but the shift from page to page can be jarring.
However, the Otto Schmidt segments are flat-out fantastic as always. As Batman and Oliver Queen battle to survive against the onslaught, this issue’s big fight scene takes some crazy turns. The tension of this scene is jacked up massively by the fact that we know Wonder Woman and Green Lantern have been turned—but we’re not sure about anyone else. Many of them have just been convinced that Batman is guilty, but Batman can’t take that chance. So he’s forced to take one brutal, risky move after another to incapacitate them and betray them—knowing he may be destroying his few remaining bonds as he battles to survive. Wonder Woman in particular makes a terrifying villain, and one who easily rivals any other rogue we’ve seen in the DC horror books recently. The final page indicates that the fight might be about to take a very bad DCeased-esque turn, and I for one am excited.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
