Rafael Albuquerque

I started this series after getting recommendations from reading Lock & Key. I have not read many comics/graphic novels, especially not recently, so I am kind of comparing this to L&K. I found that this took longer to get into (midway through the first volume instead of right away). American Vampire has a more expansive story, so it started to pick up after the initial story and characters were introduced over the first few issues.

I still don't know a whole lot. The story alternates between an earlier time starting in the 1800s and following law enforcement and a Pinkerton detective who caught an outlaw. A 1925 LA timeline follows Pearl Jones, an aspiring actress. Of course vampires are involved, and there are different strains (think Old World vs. New World vibe, with implications of something more). I have the next volume and look forward to seeing where it goes.… (meer)

I’m coming into this with very little knowledge of any recent Batman plot points, characters, and story arcs so perhaps my view is naive - but I thought this was excellent!

I was somewhat familiar with the whole Court of Owls premise from the TV show Gotham, but I think it’s all done much better here. It’s unsettling to see how badly Batman is roughed up (physically and mentally) by them in their underground layer, and the fact that it’s only going to get worse is blowing my mind. What a great cliffhanger ending for this first volume!

The art is also detailed and brutal, and does some fun things with layouts and panel formats. I tore through these first few issues in a single sitting, and I’m already reserving the next few from the library. Great stuff!… (meer)