Judd Glenny doesn’t have the good looks or suave manners as those vampires from Bon Temps. And he sure as hell doesn’t sparkle. He’s a hard man, one who has seen more than any many living or dead should have seen. But he has a fierce loyalty to family, and he’ll do whatever it takes – – even kill – – to protect them.
(Please note that there are minor spoilers, and that this is an 18+ book with adult themes and strong violence throughout.)
Cover Art by Tone RodriguezWritten by Michael R. Martin
Illustrated by Tone Rodriguez
Colored by Raymund Lee
Lettered by Kel NuttalA free woman, Ruth Glenny is headed right for Boggy Depot for a long overdue meal of its townspeople. The only one who can stop her is Judd Glenny, her grandfather and the one who made her in the first place, a decision he’s regretted every day since. This second volume in the “Blood and Dust” series picks up right after the events of Volume 1, and also gives backstory on how the Glenny family came to be America’s first vampires. This is a story of a man keeping his family safe from the world and the world safe from his family.
Let’s get this out of the way first, if the solicit didn’t tip it off: if you want the full Judd Glenny experience, you’re going to want to pick up the first volume in this series, “The Life and Undead of Judd Glenny.” There’s certainly enough script here for a compelling story if you don’t read the first volume – – you can pick up on the two main plot threads without too much knowledge of the backstory. But like the garnish on a good meal, reading Volume 1 prior to this volume adds an extra level of complexity and flavor to this already complex man. This duality to Michael R. Martin’s script is a testament to his skill as a writer, an ability to create characters and story that can be consumed and enjoyed independent of each other and in tandem.
And what a story it is! Judd Glenny isn’t the type of vampire we’re used to seeing in media. He’s not an urbane or sophisticated man – – he’s a hardened man who has no scruples about his actions, long as they allow him and his family (granddaughter Ruth, and great-grandchildren Zeke, Hazel, and Samuel) to live in peace. And yet, he still has some manners about him: for example, don’t you dare curse in front of the children. To call him an antihero may be the wrong word, as I don’t think there is a word to describe him. The closest I can come is “complex” for he is a complex man, fighting that duality between family man and steeled killer. The two aspects duel it out in his psyche on a daily basis without a clear winner.
Throughout “Blood and Dust: Glenny Family Values” the reader finds out more how the Glenny family came to be, going back to just after the American Civil War. As Judd and fellow resident Eddie head into town in 1972 in the hopes of finding Ruth before she wreaks unspeakable damage on Boggy Depot, those gaps in the Glenny family tree start to fill in – – but not completely, which is right in line with Judd’s character. He doesn’t want to open up too much, out of fear of losing that unspoken protection that he so desperately needs. It’s also a smart move by Martin; it leaves room for further “Blood and Dust” volumes exploring the rest of this intricate and yet intriguing family story. What exactly did Judd do that caused him to lock up Ruth? What led him to murder of his family? While we know in several pages how he turned from mortal to immortal (without spoiling too much, let’s just say it wasn’t in the traditional vampire way), it’s not clear why he gave in to the darkness when he appears to have had the strength to fight and defeat it. There’s room for spinoff potential here on many levels, but readers aren’t left completely in the dark about this man and his motivations throughout this work.
Continued belowWorking in tandem with this script is the artwork of Tone Rodriguez, an artist who knows how to make the macabre seem both beautiful and terrifying on the turn of a dime. Channeling influences from every horror movie child from Rosemary’s Baby to Children of the Corn to the Grady twins of The Shining, Rodriguez makes the younger Glenny children fresh faced innocent cherubs in one panel and terrifying vampires in the next, but keeps hints of each of those aspects within the other. It’s certainly a trait the kids have picked up from their mother, as Ruth is both sexpot and scary beast all in one. While that is not present in the visage of Judd Glenny, Rodriguez gives us the effects of time and resignation to immortality all over Judd’s face; every thin, delicate line has a heaviness and backstory within it. There are times he has a look about him of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine in terms of body build and face, another character tortured by his inhuman abilities.
The best work is saved for action sequences, and since there aren’t a lot of these in this book, they really shine. In one two page spread, Ruth Glenny lets forth a stream of gratuitous violence with wild abandon, with firearms, fangs, and claws. Bodies are sliced in half and throats are gutted with precision that is ballet-like in its execution. (Hey, I did warn you above that this was going to be a violent book!) Coupled with creative panels that use a variety of shapes, including thin strips focusing on portions of townspeople’s faces in unadulterated terror at the carnage before them, you feel both the violence and the fear all at once, the glee of Ruth on her killing spree and the panic of those watching it. It’s that same duality present in Judd’s character: revulsion for what you see before you but a curiosity that makes you stay and stare.
Raymund Lee’s color palette goes beyond the standard and expected crimson bloodbath one expects in a vampire story, or dark indigos and blues for the cover of night. Flashback sequences in the Great Depression have a sepia to yellow tint about them, reflecting the era of the Dust Bowl beautifully while giving it an injection of life and vibrancy that you may not often see in photographs or other media of the era. Even the “present day” sequences in 1972 have a dullness to them; not a bit of the intense earth tones that make the decade so famous (or infamous, depending on your tastes). In a way, it keeps the focus on the script more, and there’s a certain timelessness feel to those sequences – – you only know it’s 1972 through text on the panel. However, I certainly wouldn’t have minded a bit more of the era’s style sensibilities thrown in, just for fun.
The sequences set in 19th century Arizona shows knowledge of the area with the warm toned hues of orange, yellow, beige and tan, but muted, weather-worn. (Michael Martin is from Arizona, so I imagine he sent source photographs to Lee to get the colors just right.) It’s within these pages that we see Judd’s transformation from man to vampire, and to contrast against the southwestern backdrop, we have a mint green ancient evil. As Judd becomes a beast, pages are bathed in electric, vibrant, but eerie light. Is this something you expect to see in a vampire story? Perhaps. There’s something about the tone of this color, though, that makes it otherworldly, different. Perhaps it is the contrast against the desert landscape that sets it apart, and if that is the intent – – to illustrate just how paranormal, how unreal, this phantasm is – – then it is quite well done.
Martin and company give a denouement to this particular story that closes its loop quite well, but leaves the door is very much open for more from this family; the “The End…?” in the final panel is clearly proof of that. With artwork and script that challenge convention to the vampire story and keen connections with actual events in American history, this tale of America’s first vampire is far from done. There’s life in old Judd Glenny just yet.
