Christopher Priest’s Vampirella saga continues this holiday season with the now married Daughter of Drakulon traveling to Dracula’s castle to cheat fate in a new event limited series, Vampirella/Dracula: Unholy. But can love conquer evil?
Fans who check out Vampirella #25 will get to witness the biggest comic book wedding of the year. The story is directly picked up in the pages of this new series, but the backstory behind these monumental events goes back much longer. At the same time, the new series will be perfectly approachable for readers who haven’t read a page of Vampirella in their lives.
Legendary writer Christopher Priest (Black Panther, Deathstroke) is joined in this series by bloodthirsty up and coming artist Donny Hadiwidjaja (Barbarella), colorist Mohan, and letterer Willie Schubert.
“We’ve kept Dracula off the board, from day one, because I’d planned to do this,” Priest laughed. “One of my first requests to Dynamite – ‘No Drac for the first year, please.’ When we bring Dracula into our series, we need that to be an event. I realize how over-used a claim it is but, trust me, you’re in for the trippiest love triangle/murder mystery in Dracula history, as well as an all-new vision for the classic character. It’s really tough to hype this book without blowing major plot twists. Donny and I are having a real blast with this.”
This is a Dracula story like no other. Defeated at the hands of a jealous lover, the genetic code of the Lord of Evil has been preserved within a deadly virus and passed on through generations to a young boy hunted by zealots seeking to worship him and religious fanatics trying to kill him. Saved from certain death by Vampirella, the creeping genetic time bomb was arrested, only to become active again twenty years later as the Dracula Virus begins feeding on its human host. Vampirella comes to his aid again, enacting an archaic blood rite which joins her in unholy matrimony to the man who would become Dracula.
The newlyweds must now travel to the ancestral lands of Transylvania to discover more about themselves, each other, and the twisted history that has lead them to this point. Plus, blood rituals. No event series has been this pivotal to Vampirella’s world since another 25th issue lead to her death 25 years ago! From the 50th anniversary Free Comic Book Day issue of Vampirella in the summer of 2019, everything has come to this!
To celebrate this momentous occasion, Dynamite has assembled a squad of top flight cover artists to depict the new couple. The superstars include Adam Hughes, Lucio Parrillo, Rose Besch, Shannon Maer, KyuYong Eom, and cosplayer Ani-Mia. Fans can even grab a limited edition incentive cover by master painter Greg Hildebrandt.
Ernest Gleckman is a good kid, coming up on his college graduation. The only asterisk is the rock band he leads each weekend. He may have a bit of a bad boy streak, but nothing like where life is about to take him! One night Ernest is mortally wounded, but barely scrapes by alive. Only now he must pay back his new “lease” on life as an avatar for a mysterious death cult. He must assume the role of… Evil Ernie!
“What happens when you take the most evil entity in all of creation….and bond him with the nicest guy in the world?,” Scott Lobdell wanted to know. “I saw this EVIL ERNIE series as a way to explore not only the effect of Ernie’s unadulterated evil on an innocent college student… but would Ernie react to having to reside in a vessel of pure innocence in order to achieve his goal. We’ve all come to accept that power corrupts and absolutely power corrupts absolutely. Is it possible absolute goodness can eradicate evil once and for all?”
“Also, I have to say, I am so excited about working with Ariel on EVIL ERNIE. I’ve gotten to work with a lot of superstars over the years… and I’m telling you he’s destined to become one!”
Ernest and Ernie are polar opposites, as the young man learns as his new alter ego leans into cruelty and sadism as he tortures and murders his targets. As he balances the already complicated life of college with the darkness now inside him, will Ernest be able to hold onto his tenuous grip on humanity? Or will The Evil One fully take over and enact his nihilistic goals of megadeath?
Originally appearing in a shocking self-titled first issue, Evil Ernie goes back to 1991. Created by upstart comic book visionaries Brian Pulido and Steven Hughes, the antihero became a sensation and birthed the wider Chaos! mythos alongside the likes of Purgatori – starring in her own series right now by writer Ray Fawkes.
Lobdell and Medel are joined by colorist Candice Han for this rollercoaster ride into insanity. Brett Booth, Lobdell’s frequent collaborator from projects like Teen Titans and Flash Forward, joins for an exhilarating lead cover. He’s paired with a cover by Arthur Suydam, capturing the undead psychotic killer in all his glory.
