Monday, March 22, 2010

COMIC REVIEW: FVZA #3 (Radical)



You can't go anywhere at all without encountering vampires. They have taken over every form of media, from literature to TV to movies to licensing, and good or bad, they are here to stay. I could go on about the finer points of what's good and horribly bad in the vampire invasion, but that's another post for another time. Radical Publishing's FVZA 3-part miniseries, thankfully, falls into the good column.





David Hine's story centers around the Federal Vampire and Zombie Agency, specifically its leader, Hugo Pecos, and his grandchildren Landra and Vidal. The FVZA has returned in response to a zombie outbreak, but soon begin dealing with a nest of vampires. The interesting part is that Hugo's wife is Yaelis, queen of the vampires. Issue 3 begins right after this revelation, leading to the showdown between Hugo and his former love.

The story is half Bram Stoker, half Tom Clancy. As Pecos sends his agents out to clear the vampires' nest, I was even reminded of the beginning of Hill Street Blues, when the captain says "Let's be careful out there." (But I think that's just my pop culture filled brain.) The vampires are plotting to release the zombie virus on Halloween of all days, so the FVZA is out to stop them. The action, skillfully drawn by Roy Allan Martinez and Wayne Nichols, is interesting to see. I'm not usually a fan of painting style comic art, but it suited this story.

I didn't really know what to expect from this book, but I enjoyed it. It was a traditional vampire story with a modern twist, and was a bright spot among all the vampire noise out there. It's definitely a buy if you are looking for a good horror comic.

Stacey Rader
Review Editor

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