DC VS. VAMPIRES #1/ Story by JAMES TYNION IV & MATTHEW ROSENBERG/ Art and Cover by OTTO SCMIDT/ Published by DC COMICS

It’s tempting to dismiss DC Vs. Vampires as a half-spirited take-off on DCeased. Replace zombies with vampires and hit the repeat button. Thankfully, that sort of hack-work is beneath James Tynion IV, Matthew Rosenberg and Otto Schmidt. While the base idea may be familiar, the execution is top notch.

This first issue sets up the story well enough, with Andrew Bennet, the star of I Vampire, seeking out the Justice League to warn them that the vampires, long content to stay to the shadows, have become embolden and now seek to conquer the world and openly enslave humanity. Naturally, it falls to the World’s Finest heroes to stop that from happening, but there are several complications I dare not reveal.

While this issue contains several surprises, it should surprise no one that James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg should put a novel spin on the vampire legend. The story draws off the surprisingly involved history of vampires in the DC Universe, but makes it accessible to newcomers. There’s also some frighteningly novel applications of classic superpowers in relation to how they might benefit or hinder a vampire.

Fans of Otto Schmidt’s artwork on Green Arrow will be pleased to know that he remains in fine form. Pencils. Inks. Colors. Everything is fantastic. Thankfully, those who rightly enjoy Schmidt’s work will be glad to know this is a 12-part mini-series, so they have a long Halloween ahead of them in regards to this series.

DC Vs. Vampires could have been a silly, stupid book with no purpose but cashing in on Halloween and the horror market. Thankfully, it proves to be so much more than that. This book is a must read for all fans of vampire fiction and DC Comics.