Neil
Vokes, a professional comic artist with decades of experience, was wise to team
up with Robert Tinnell, moviemaker and comic scripter. Their THE BLACK FOREST (both parts) was
a spectacular re-thinking of the classic horror film mythos from the 1930s and
1940s. Rendered in deep monochrome
strokes, THE BLACK FOREST was the ultimate Monster Rally as envisioned by the
world of Universal Pictures. So,
reteaming once again, their newly inaugurated series FLESH AND BLOOD BOOK ONE,
now in glossy Technicolor, recreates the ultimate Monster Rally as envisioned by
the Hammer mythos of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.
FLESH
AND BLOOD contains Gothic horror period detail and the characters are drawn
with the Hammer horror look (wonderful caricatures of iconic characters,
well-defined set decoration and lush period costuming). The scope of the story, with its
over-flowing cast of characters, would be much too opulent for the typical
movie produced by the small independent production company in its heyday. It was as though Tinnell and Vokes
envisioned a mainstream, budget-be-damned ultimate Hammer production that would
rip the walls off the sets and allow the Hammer vision to be expanded. And that vision and dream is a worthy
one. However, it must be noted
that Hammer horror is synonymous with claustrophobic set design, a limited cast
of actors and an emphasis on character and performance. In the unbridled Hammer world created
here, Hammer seems to be the victim of its own success, existing in a parallel
universe where the overblown replaces quiet subtlety. But this is a graphic novel and visual excess is expected
for the genre. And wishing for a
more mainstream, expensive Hammer production is and was a dream that many fans
possess.
Book One is divided into multiple
chapters, and the initial one, Primoris
Cruor, gets the ball rolling with a 1970s vision of Hammer at its most
sexual, with two young ladies rolling around in bed, only one of them a vampire
attempting to seduce another innocent victim. The intended victim’s father Ward-Baker restrains his
daughter while vampire hunter The General tracks the evil Carmilla to her lair
and there beheads her, putting an end to this predatory horror that reaches
beyond death. Claiming to be a
Styrian, The General vows to exterminate the memory of Carmilla’s family,
children, descendants, even the family home. In many ways he appears to be even more evil than the
vampires he seeks to destroy (to avenge his daughter’s death). Cut to an asylum and a cell where a
young medical student plays chess with Dr. Frankenstein. The enterprising
General kidnaps both of them and promises Dr. Frankenstein a fresh start in life
if he agrees to assist him. In the meanwhile, a Draculian vampire vows that Dr.
Frankenstein, the General and all the vampire ravishers will be
eliminated. A very striking and
dramatic beginning, I must say.
Chapter Two, Vindex Contrado, and the plot thickens. Lawrence Ward-Baker writes a letter to
his brother-in-law Horst to apologize for not believing his warning about the
threat of the supernatural, the threat of Styria, which lead to the death of Horst’s
sister and Ward-Baker’s wife. He
writes that this same evil almost cost the life of his daughter Laura. Ward-Barker writes of his guilt over
his behavior and asks for forgiveness.
Horst, since his sister’s death, has become an iconic monster-slayer and
panel after panel of comic art attests to this scenario. Into this mix comes another lesbian
vampire seduction sequence, this time between two lovelies Katya and Greta. But one of the vampires is captured by
the General and transported back to his laboratory, headed by Dr. Frankenstein. Their goal is to create a disease to
eradicate vampirism. Of course the
young medical student Abraham and Laura become soul mates and the love interest
of our tale. In the meanwhile, the vampires have gotten word of the experiments
conducted by Frankenstein and the undead prepare to strike back.
By the
time of Chapter Three, Refero, young
Laura and Abraham confess their intentions to ask Laura’s father to allow them
to wed, but local rowdies descend and threaten the lives of the young
lovers. However Laura’s uncle
Horst, moved by Ward-Baker’s letter to him, appears on the scene to rescue
Laura and violently dispatch the tormentors. In the meanwhile Frankenstein is injecting his vampire
subject with human blood tainted with garlic and other ingredients to study the
manner in which the vampire’s body works, with the idea of developing a plague
as the end result. During these
experiments Horst and Ward-Baker are reunited. In the chapter’s end a naked Laura seduces Abraham, but her
manners and words suggest that she may have been contaminated by vampire blood,
confessing an inability to feel the love she has for Abraham.
In the
final Chapter Four, Praelium De Sanguis,
there is precious little dialogue and plenty of graphic action as the human’s
worthy adversary king vampire is revealed to be Vlad (Count Dracula) who gushes
to deliver lines such as “Frankenstein must be destroyed” and “bring me the
head of Frankenstein.” As
suggested, Laura has been infected with the disease of vampirism and turns
against her human lover and family.
Ward-Baker sadly dies in the human-vampire war, but worthy Abraham
reveals that his last name is Van Helsing and the surviving humans vow to
continue the battle … in Book Two!
I was
impressed by Neil Voke’s always-transcendent artwork, sometimes gushing in
vivid Technicolor hues, and at other times draped in duo-tone subdued hues of
blues and brown. Of course Voke’s
depiction of Dr. Frankenstein resembles a gaunt Peter Cushing, although his
Dracula is a typical comic book exaggerated vampire with fangs, demonic eyes
and full mane of hair. The art is
visually spectacular and seems to be his most fully realized in his collaboration
with Robert Tinnell. Tinnell’s
script, always action-packed but heavy with characterization and emotion,
sometimes tries to plow ahead too dramatically, one sequence immediately butted
onto the end of a dramatic one that followed before. It’s as though the goal of Tinnell and Vokes was to make
every panel visually explosive and to keep the plot moving rapidly ahead (akin
to the editing of today’s movies where one whirlwind sequence follows another
and the audience hardly has time to collect its breath). In the classic Hammer films,
scriptwriters such as Jimmy Sangster and Anthony Hinds allowed action to
develop from character and these Gothic masterpieces are allowed some breathing
space and quiet moments. Not that
Tinnell’s script does not allow for such quiet moments, but sometimes the comic
seems to be patterned after today’s UNDERWORLD, BLADE and VAN HELSING-style
cinema, where sensory overkill and hyperkinetic pacing undo the more leisurely
pacing of the great Hammer classics.
Perhaps the duo compromised to the demands of what works in graphic
novels today. But for an obvious tribute to classic Hammer films, FLESH AND
BLOOD sometimes comes off as too modern and fast-paced for its own good. I would have liked the tribute to play
homage more to the Hammer classics of the 1950s and 1960s than to the more
sexually explicit and violent Hammer films of the 1970s. But then again in today’s market
perhaps nudity and sex is de rigor by
the demands of the marketplace.
But I have to admit that the lesbian vampire shenanigans are deftly
handled and beautifully rendered.
But my Hammer reference points are geared more toward HORROR OF DRACULA
and REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN than THE VAMPIRE LOVERS and LUST FOR A VAMPIRE. But that’s just me.
Bottom
line, FLESH AND BLOOD BOOK ONE is a smashing success, not simply because of its
outrageous and deliciously designed art, not simply because of its loving
tribute to Hammer in the plot, but because of its subtleties—lines of dialogue
that wink at its audience, graphic tributes to Hammer film icons, moments of
quiet emotional intensity, etc. I
eagerly look ahead to the remaining “books” in the FLESH AND BLOOD series and
recommend this graphic novel series to anyone who loves great horror comics and
classic horror (especially Hammer) in general. I thoroughly enjoyed this nostalgic trip and hope to return
to this world again and again. Robert
Tinnell and Neil Vokes are revitalizing classic horror comics, and their work
stands alongside the best the genre has ever produced. Keep it coming, guys!
