A dark variation on a classic Victorian horror takes shape in the beginning of a new vampire-based miniseries!
Written by Christopher Golden and Tim LebbonCover by Peter Bergting
Illustrated by Peter Bergting
Colored by Chris O’Halloran
Lettered by Clem RobinsA vampire-flipped Dracula in which mortality means life… and life means death. Vampires Jonathan Harker, Lucy Westenra, and Mina Murray live in underground London, trying to keep the undead city safe from the rumored mortals above who seek to give them life, only to kill them. But when the authorities refuse to believe mortals, let alone the mysterious Count Dracula, are anything more than myth, they are on their own to keep their city eternally dead.
With “Mortal Terror” #1, readers are invited to the story of Dracula, the 1897 novel by Bram Stoker. Fans of that classic tale will welcome vampires such as Lucy “the Bloofer Lady” Westerna, as well as her compatriots, R.M. Renfield, Jonathan Harker, Quincey Morris, Doctor John Seward, Mina Murray… wait.
Okay, perhaps calling “Mortal Terror” #1 a straight adaptation is the furthest thing from the truth. Through the intriguing writing of Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon, the story of a vampiric society in an underground London is rather fun to watch. In a rather disturbing twist, it is the vampires who are the ones fearing for their (un)lives, with a focus on them being seen as villainous (not without reason) by the world above. In general, Golden and Lebbon’s writing on “Mortal Terror” #1 acts mostly as setup for the full “Mortal Terror” miniseries itself. People who are knowledgeable about the Dracula novel may get more out of knowing certain names (such as those listed above and one more besides) but overall the focus is more on setting the scene for this introduction.
In setting the scene, Golden and Lebbon concentrate more on interpersonal relationships than the world at large. From Harker, Westerna, and the rest of the apparent military to politicians, we see how most of the more direct instruments of changing society work together. Meanwhile, the calmer and more disturbing elements in Doctor John Seward’s clinic show a much darker side of their culture, if such a thing is even possible, coupled with the utter madness of the likes of one patient. Together with the notes of a “king” (possibly Count Dracula, if Queen Victoria still rules on the surface) and the apparent domestic bliss of Jonathan Harker and Mina Murray, the result almost feels like it could be a quasi-normal city… if one ignores the talk of the “mortals” and injections or otherwise consumption of “red” (or as general readership may know it, blood). There are bad people and… less overtly bad people, but despite being a society of shadow and blood, things feel relatively neutral from a moral standpoint (or close to it), not to mention almost relatable.
That said, there can be something said for being a bit too slow. Golden and Lebbon do give a nice approach that would not be too far removed from a Victorian novel or similar penny dreadfuls, but there is not much focus on why the vampires should be afraid of the borderline mythic mortals of the surface. Yes, the aims of the living are explained in the solicitation, but the writing duo do not have such facts actually addressed within the pages, likely left for a later issue. The closest they get to actually addressing the issue at hand is a conversation with an apparent ex-vampire, and even then it does not make said mortal seem any more formidable or dreaded than a common prisoner.
Peter Bergting’s illustrations really bring out the gritty, yet fantastical nature of the Victorian undercity. There are moments of uncomfortable brutality, but rather than focus on them, he instead focuses on reactions. Blood may flow, but the artwork concentrates on the characters, not on their actions or said actions’ results.
That said, the people themselves are far from devoid of disturbing imagery. Bergting showcases burn scars on Lucy Westerna, a manic expression on the disturbed Mr. Renfield, and the brutalized face of a mortal woman, all without the mercy of hiding anything. As a result, the monsters below do appear as… monstrous as they normally would, with even the allure of Miss Mina Murray being marred by a rather disturbing calm after a bloody, albeit passionate, bite on her fiancé’s neck.
Continued belowBergting’s framing of the scenes helps to set the tone. Views from a street level feel more or less business as usual, open and somewhat free. Meanwhile, Seward’s clinic comes across as stifling, almost claustrophobic, far more so with the deranged birds-eye view Renfield has on certain events. The time out in the sun is very hectic with the tilt of the scene, making Westerna’s charge on horseback feel all the more dire even in the very first pages.
Chris O’Halloran’s colors are what bring the whole piece together. The faint tint of desaturation in the daylight makes the mortal world feel very unnatural and blinding, and the flashes of red and orange of a fire stand out against the darkness of everyday (or should it be everynight?) (un)life of the vampires below London, making it feel all the more dangerous. The darkness works a bit on a scale, with slightly darker areas being colored in a traditional way akin to almost daylight, and truly foreboding ones, such as the introduction of Renfield, having a far heavier shadow.
Final Verdict: 8.0– Aside from not doing much to make the mortals feel too threatening just yet, this entry point is definitely worth sinking our teeth into.
