Review: Kiss Vampirella Trade Paperback

Synopsis:

This story opens with a prologue that sees two record producers planning their future based on the success of their brand new, recently signed artist. But they wind up driving off a cliff just as the lyrics are singing Sunbeams always make me feel alive!Â I’ve always been a huge Kiss fan and a fan of the old Warren horror magazines so I was ecstatic when I saw that Dynamite was merging these two franchises. The Kings of the Night Time World along with Vampirella and her all girl rock band have to thwart an evil supernatural plot to take over the world with music manipulation.

The Creative Team:

Chris Sebela shows off his knowledge of the L.A. music scene during the early to mid ’70’s. I almost expected to see Kim Fowley walking the streets. After the prologue we see Vampi defend a girl from harassment by a thug and she invites the girl to one of her shows with the band Witchkraft. Kiss is in L.A. working on their second album: Hotter than Hell. The individual personalities that shine forth lend a sense of realism to the entire project, Gene’s slightly condescending sarcastic wit. Paul’s apologizing for Gene’s brash statements, plus his habit of philosophizing. Ace’s slightly out of the loop weirdness. Peter’s general aloofness. All represented here. The plot builds slowly and we realize that certain bands in the L.A. music scene are mellowing out. Going from Black Sabbath to Barry Manilow in their individual creative niches. When our heroes confront these musicians they notice that they are glossy eyed and quick to agree with everything. They’re not themselves! Great stuff includes Gene hitting on Vampirella in true Gene Simmons style. Plus the ultimate team up on stage of the bands. I know we can’t actually hear them in this medium but I like to imagine it sounds a bit like the Runaways (Joan Jett’s first band for all you under 40 out there) mashing with Kiss on stage. Thanks to the magic of YouTube you can hear what it might sound like. The Donnas cover Kiss. All in all this comic captures the L.A. music scene of the 70’s as good as a comic book could. I loved it!

Annapaola Martello art is kind of rough and cartoony at the same time. It evokes Kiss Two Marvel Super Special appearances from the ”˜70“s rather than the detailed look of Vampirella“s Warren magazine art. This is definitely a plus for the issue as Martello takes us on a tour of ”˜70“s L.A. where the fashion of that era evoked a kind of animated flare. Also, the band obviously looked like cartoon characters in their make-up days as well. The smoke-filled bars of ”˜70“s era L.A. are well construed. Highlights include a demon invasion of downtown L. A. and Kisses fight with a street gang.

In Conclusion:

Kiss and Vampirella fans will both be pleased with this TP. Even if you’re not a fan of ’70’s classic rock and that era, you will probably enjoy the supernatural thriller/mystery type of story that this volume presents. The meshing of the two franchises provides some tense moments as well as humorous ones. It should be in the collection of everyone who reads comics from both. If you’re a curiosity seeker that has never read either I think you’ll be satisfied with this volume as each side is presented with conviction and this story gets both sides right. It’s a great read and I highly recommend it. ***1/2 (7.8 rating)

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Writer – Chris Sebela
Art – Annapaola Martello
Colors – Valentina Pinto
Letters – Troy Peteri
Publisher – Dynamite Entertainment

Author Profile

Kevin Given

Kevin Given has studied with â€œ Longridge Writers Group â€ and â€œ Writerâ€™s Boot Camp â€ a speech/communications major from the University of Maine Presque-Isle/Orono sites. He has created the â€œ Karl Vincent Vampire Hunter â€ franchise which includes novels and comic books. They can be found on amazon, Indyplanet and Kindle. For a limited time you can get digital copies of â€œ Karl Vincent: Vampire hunter â€ # 1 and â€œ Files of Karl Vincent â€ # 1 for free on Indyplanet. Kevin is producing the third novel in the series â€œ Dracula Rising â€ (working title) and developing â€œ Foul Blood â€ into comic book form. Don't forget to check out the YouTube show " Comics: Let's Talk " hosted by Kevin Given