I’ve said it before and I’m sure I will say again, Redneck is the only piece of vampire fiction being published today that’s worth your time. I’d go so far as to say it’s the best vampire fiction in almost a decade. However, no matter how good something is, I never enjoy weddings in comics. This issue, however, made me eat my words.
One can argue that nothing new has been introduced in vampire lore in a long time. I would agree, but this issue carves down that idea by showing you how a vampire wedding goes down and it’s an original take on what could be an exceedingly boring event. While one would expect a vampire wedding to take place during the night and involve a sacrifice or something trite like that, writer Donny Cates shows us something completely unique and touching. Almost the entire issue focuses on the marriage of Bartlett and July, but it still manages to keep you interested the whole time. There’s a bit at the end that isn’t nuptial based that will catch your eye as well, but I’d rather not spoil anything.
Art and coloring on the issue are done well, with both light and dark scenes come across fine, but the biggest standout for me was the last page, which involved quite a transformation for one of the more interesting characters. Lisandro Estherren and Dee Cuniffe work very well together and one of their biggest strengths, facial expressions, are prominent during the wedding scenes. The general happiness of the guests is easy to see.
The Verdict
If you are a vampire fan, or just looking for something unique this book is for you. Donny Cates has easily established himself as one of the marque writers of the current age (and the guy works a lot) and shows no sign of slowing down. There’s one more issue in the current story arc, so while this issue might not be a great jumping on point, I’ll tell anyone who will listen to catch up so they can enjoy this book every month like I do.