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American Vampire #6
American Vampire, Vol. 6
You are cordially invited to a party--to die for!
This volume of American Vampire collects eight amazing stories set in the world of American Vampire, with "lost tales," new characters and old favorites. Don't miss these stories brought to you by series creators Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque, as well as other awesome comics talent like Becky Cloonan (Batman), Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon (Daytripper), Jeff Lemire (i>Sweet Tooth), Greg Rucka (The Punisher, Batwoman), Gail Simone (Batgirl) and many more! Also collected here is the stand alone tale of Fan-favorite character Travis Kidd--the vampire hunter who likes to "bite them back".
Collecting: American Vampire Anthology, The Long Road to Hell
This volume of American Vampire collects eight amazing stories set in the world of American Vampire, with "lost tales," new characters and old favorites. Don't miss these stories brought to you by series creators Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque, as well as other awesome comics talent like Becky Cloonan (Batman), Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon (Daytripper), Jeff Lemire (i>Sweet Tooth), Greg Rucka (The Punisher, Batwoman), Gail Simone (Batgirl) and many more! Also collected here is the stand alone tale of Fan-favorite character Travis Kidd--the vampire hunter who likes to "bite them back".
Collecting: American Vampire Anthology, The Long Road to Hell
144 pages, Hardcover
First published March 30, 2014
63 people are currently reading
1276 people want to read
About the author
Scott Snyder
1,483 books5,145 followersScott Snyder is the Eisner and Harvey Award winning writer on DC Comics Batman, Swamp Thing, and his original series for Vertigo, American Vampire. He is also the author of the short story collection, Voodoo Heart, published by the Dial Press in 2006. The paperback version was published in the summer of 2007.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 239 reviews
September 1, 2022
Good, but not great.
There are a whole bunch of one-shots that were contributed by other authors and artists, and while they weren't bad, they felt like a lot of filler.
I did mostly like all the stories, but nothing much happened to further the main storyline.
There are a whole bunch of one-shots that were contributed by other authors and artists, and while they weren't bad, they felt like a lot of filler.
I did mostly like all the stories, but nothing much happened to further the main storyline.
August 8, 2014
Volume 6 of American Vampire is a collection of individual short narratives that add to the vampire mythos already established by Scott Snyder, many of which focus on Skinner Sweet, the first American vampire. There are several big names in comics here, both writers and artists, all taking a turn at playing in Snyder's sandbox. Overall, it's an uneven effort, both in terms of art and narrative.
The stories skip around in time and location, offering a sweeping history of vampires in North America, both before and after Skinner Sweet. Jason Aaron, Gail Simone, and Jeff Lemire offer the best stories here--especially Simone's take on Hattie Hargrove's revenge on the powerful Hollywood men who used the desire for fame and fortune against wannabe-starlets. The least successful story is penned by none other than Rafael Albuquerque, which feels underdeveloped and cliched. Despite the weakness of the story he contributes, there's no denying Albuquerque's artistic talents. He is one of the reasons American Vampire has been so successful as his artistic style perfectly captures the brutality and violence of Snyder's narratives, and is every bit as integral to the storytelling and world created here.
If nothing else, this collection solidifies the fact that the real success of American Vampire lies in the collaboration between Snyder and Albuquerque. While some of these stories are entertaining, one could certainly give them a pass as they do nothing to advance the main plot points forward.
The collection also includes the one-shot The Long Road to Hell, a longer and more successful story written by Snyder and illustrated by Albuquerque that reminds you why American Vampire kicks so much ass.
The stories skip around in time and location, offering a sweeping history of vampires in North America, both before and after Skinner Sweet. Jason Aaron, Gail Simone, and Jeff Lemire offer the best stories here--especially Simone's take on Hattie Hargrove's revenge on the powerful Hollywood men who used the desire for fame and fortune against wannabe-starlets. The least successful story is penned by none other than Rafael Albuquerque, which feels underdeveloped and cliched. Despite the weakness of the story he contributes, there's no denying Albuquerque's artistic talents. He is one of the reasons American Vampire has been so successful as his artistic style perfectly captures the brutality and violence of Snyder's narratives, and is every bit as integral to the storytelling and world created here.
If nothing else, this collection solidifies the fact that the real success of American Vampire lies in the collaboration between Snyder and Albuquerque. While some of these stories are entertaining, one could certainly give them a pass as they do nothing to advance the main plot points forward.
The collection also includes the one-shot The Long Road to Hell, a longer and more successful story written by Snyder and illustrated by Albuquerque that reminds you why American Vampire kicks so much ass.
November 11, 2022
Two one-shots that bridged the gap while American Vampire was on hiatus. Long Road to Hell is fantastic. It's about a couple in 1959 who are grifters who get turned while running from some vampires. They hear there's a cure in Las Vegas. Along the way they pick up a creepy kid and we see what Travis Kidd has been up to. Great stuff.
The second half in the American Vampire Anthology. It's full of short stories from vampiric history by some great creators. Gail Simone's story about Miss Hargrove stood out to me as one of the best in the collection. These two one-shots can be skipped as they don't add much to the overall story but I thought they were both good and a quick read.
The second half in the American Vampire Anthology. It's full of short stories from vampiric history by some great creators. Gail Simone's story about Miss Hargrove stood out to me as one of the best in the collection. These two one-shots can be skipped as they don't add much to the overall story but I thought they were both good and a quick read.
August 11, 2022
3.5/5 stars
July 19, 2020
Collects two "annuals", first the top drawer one-shot American Vampire: The Long Road To Hell, which follows the story of two turned lovers as they race to Las Vegas for a cure. One of the best stories so far! Secondly comes an American Vampire Anthology #1 with numerous creative teams, where alongside Snyder, none other than Jason Aaron and artist Declan Shalvey turn out the best story, although if your buying this series, this entire volume can be left out, as it adds nothing to the main stories! 7 out of 12 overall.
November 1, 2022
Although most of the shorter stories here didn't feel that important, they were fairly fun, and a few were great - especially the Snyder/Albuquerque ones. The others were enjoyable filler for the most part.
July 9, 2014
Think of this as a break in the regular storyline. It's a short story collection, really, with different characters and time periods in each. For the most part, they were quite good. But I do admit being let down when I realized that this volume wasn't going to advance the main story at all.
January 2, 2024
(Buddy read with Palexander)
Having made it more than halfway through this series with my trusty buddy reader, I can finally put my finger on the underlying problem of this comic. It sadly lacks the fundamental component of a good story: a cohesive plot. This comic picks up and drops its protagonist like a hot potato and floods the pages with unrelated short stories and unnecessary character additions that add next to nothing to the barely there overarching plot. The bad guys come and go but they are always the same archetype in different packaging. In that sense it is repetitive and painstakingly slow.
And this volume was no exception; it was like a game of Where’s Wally where I spent the entire time reading this trying to find anything that remotely tied into the actual plot. It becomes a tedious chore to read something where you can’t see any plotline and it’s all separate scenes strung together seemingly at random. And any time something slightly relevant appears, like a character cameo for a few pages, you’re required to give it more credit than it’s worth because you’re just so happy to see something that makes that one short story out of many others feel as though it has a purpose beyond filling the pages.
Having made it more than halfway through this series with my trusty buddy reader, I can finally put my finger on the underlying problem of this comic. It sadly lacks the fundamental component of a good story: a cohesive plot. This comic picks up and drops its protagonist like a hot potato and floods the pages with unrelated short stories and unnecessary character additions that add next to nothing to the barely there overarching plot. The bad guys come and go but they are always the same archetype in different packaging. In that sense it is repetitive and painstakingly slow.
And this volume was no exception; it was like a game of Where’s Wally where I spent the entire time reading this trying to find anything that remotely tied into the actual plot. It becomes a tedious chore to read something where you can’t see any plotline and it’s all separate scenes strung together seemingly at random. And any time something slightly relevant appears, like a character cameo for a few pages, you’re required to give it more credit than it’s worth because you’re just so happy to see something that makes that one short story out of many others feel as though it has a purpose beyond filling the pages.
May 3, 2015
A hodge podge of tales over the decades from the 1950s and before focusing on the American Vampire tales. Some are interesting and some not so much.
OVERALL GRADE: B minus.
OVERALL GRADE: B minus.
February 10, 2016
3,5 stars
The problem with anthologies is always the same: a few stories are good, some are ok, lots of them you are not going to like at all. The long road to hell is the longest and the best one (4/5 stars), the one about the lost colony is very good and a few more, then quality goes downfall.
The problem with anthologies is always the same: a few stories are good, some are ok, lots of them you are not going to like at all. The long road to hell is the longest and the best one (4/5 stars), the one about the lost colony is very good and a few more, then quality goes downfall.
November 16, 2015
This was an anthology of short stories that fleshed out some details in the American Vampire mythos. The first story, "The Long Road to Hell", was very good, but the volume went downhill fast after that.
Not something I'd really recommend, except for completists.
Not something I'd really recommend, except for completists.
January 29, 2019
Worst art of the series.
Snippets about Skinner Sweet and Travis Kidd that don’t expand on the characters.
Completely random vampire stories with weak art.
There was an interesting Hattie Hargrove backstory, but not enough to have paid money for this.
Thank you Library.
February 12, 2016
4.5 stars
It was awesome to see Travis Kidd back. Most of the stories were really good. Some were pretty good, but I found the art for two stories unappealing. Hattie Hargrove's backstory was absolutely amazing. That's one of my favorite moments from this series.
It was awesome to see Travis Kidd back. Most of the stories were really good. Some were pretty good, but I found the art for two stories unappealing. Hattie Hargrove's backstory was absolutely amazing. That's one of my favorite moments from this series.
March 2, 2020
This one kind of had the feel of a clip show with one longer story followed by a whole bunch of quickies. Not the best of the bunch, though I did like the first one with the greaser and the kid.
September 8, 2016
This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 2.0
Well...this just didn't work for me. In part, it's my own fault -- I didn't catch on that this was a collection of short works with a vampire theme, so of course when the story switched characters and drastically switched art, I was lost. That's when I stepped back and checked to see what I was reading. Even knowing this, it didn't work as a collection for me.
I've been reading and enjoying vampire literature before it was (recently) popular, and as I've gone through a number of good graphic novels lately, I was looking forward to some good, visually appealing vampire work.
The book starts in 1967 with a motorcycle-riding cowboy vampire being blown up in a diner. There isn't much by way of explanation except his boasting of being the first American Vampire. He (Skinner Sweet) talks about stories, stories about himself, and then we move to the year 1588, and it had been my impression that Skinner is still narrating, with the story of a village of vampires that decimate the Choanoke tribe of natives and how the natives learned to fight back. I was waiting for an explanation as to how Skinner Sweet, the First American Vampire, fit in to the story, but was never told. Then the story moves to 1856, Topeka, Kansas with a young couple looking to begin their lives together and make a homestead. The homestead is attacked by a vampire who looks not unlike Skinner (but it's hard to tell ... the art is very different in style) and there is a fight.
The story pretty clearly is done, and a new one starts, 1877 in Canada. A hunter/trapper encounters a lone child. They don't speak the same language but they both understand fear when vampires attack.
1924 Death Valley. Definitely another Skinner Sweet story, this one not narrated by him, but about him.
Hollywood, 1925. New York, 1940. Portland, Oregon, 1940. And then back to 1967 and we bookend the short pieces with Skinner Sweet once again talking about the stories told about him. Perhaps this is why I thought these were stories about a single vampire? The lack of consistency, both in story-telling, as well as in art, makes the first half to two-thirds of this book confusing.
That last portion of the book, fifty-some pages, is one story, "The Long Road to Hell," by Scott Snyder and Raphael Albuquerque. It's a story of teen-age love, in the midst of vampires, that survives to the bitter end. It is well told and illustrated, but it is a bit flat. There is nothing to hold us to the story. None of the characters are compelling.
The artwork in this collection, being from a variety of artists, ranges from strong and powerful, gripping dark art, to soft, almost romatic sketchy art that doesn't feel appropriate for vampire stories.
I like the idea of a graphic novel with short vampire stories, but this particular collection was less than satisfying. I'd be willing to try another volume -- there's promise here -- but they'll have to do a bit better than this to keep me interested.
Looking for a good book? This graphic novel features stories of vampires in the Americas, but it rambles and is very inconsistent. Let's try a different volume.
Well...this just didn't work for me. In part, it's my own fault -- I didn't catch on that this was a collection of short works with a vampire theme, so of course when the story switched characters and drastically switched art, I was lost. That's when I stepped back and checked to see what I was reading. Even knowing this, it didn't work as a collection for me.
I've been reading and enjoying vampire literature before it was (recently) popular, and as I've gone through a number of good graphic novels lately, I was looking forward to some good, visually appealing vampire work.
The book starts in 1967 with a motorcycle-riding cowboy vampire being blown up in a diner. There isn't much by way of explanation except his boasting of being the first American Vampire. He (Skinner Sweet) talks about stories, stories about himself, and then we move to the year 1588, and it had been my impression that Skinner is still narrating, with the story of a village of vampires that decimate the Choanoke tribe of natives and how the natives learned to fight back. I was waiting for an explanation as to how Skinner Sweet, the First American Vampire, fit in to the story, but was never told. Then the story moves to 1856, Topeka, Kansas with a young couple looking to begin their lives together and make a homestead. The homestead is attacked by a vampire who looks not unlike Skinner (but it's hard to tell ... the art is very different in style) and there is a fight.
The story pretty clearly is done, and a new one starts, 1877 in Canada. A hunter/trapper encounters a lone child. They don't speak the same language but they both understand fear when vampires attack.
1924 Death Valley. Definitely another Skinner Sweet story, this one not narrated by him, but about him.
Hollywood, 1925. New York, 1940. Portland, Oregon, 1940. And then back to 1967 and we bookend the short pieces with Skinner Sweet once again talking about the stories told about him. Perhaps this is why I thought these were stories about a single vampire? The lack of consistency, both in story-telling, as well as in art, makes the first half to two-thirds of this book confusing.
That last portion of the book, fifty-some pages, is one story, "The Long Road to Hell," by Scott Snyder and Raphael Albuquerque. It's a story of teen-age love, in the midst of vampires, that survives to the bitter end. It is well told and illustrated, but it is a bit flat. There is nothing to hold us to the story. None of the characters are compelling.
The artwork in this collection, being from a variety of artists, ranges from strong and powerful, gripping dark art, to soft, almost romatic sketchy art that doesn't feel appropriate for vampire stories.
I like the idea of a graphic novel with short vampire stories, but this particular collection was less than satisfying. I'd be willing to try another volume -- there's promise here -- but they'll have to do a bit better than this to keep me interested.
Looking for a good book? This graphic novel features stories of vampires in the Americas, but it rambles and is very inconsistent. Let's try a different volume.
December 22, 2020
Spoiler free review of volumes 1-6, for spoilers visit: https://amanjareads.com/2020/12/16/am...
American Vampire is a graphic novel series that claims to bring horror back to the vampire genre. In my opinion, it failed. It's not scary and worst of all it's not that interesting.
I'm not a huge vampire fan to begin with. I think the whole genre is completely exhausted. There are a few notable exceptions like my favorite classic Buffy, and modern takes like the incredibly disturbing movie The Transfiguration. But traditional vampires are boring anymore. There's nothing left to discuss.
Seriously, how many ways can you spice up this old trope?! Let's move on!
American Vampire works off the premise that there are several species of vamps and the American ones are the newest and most dangerous. They threaten the way of life for the old school vamps who prey on young women and can't come out in the daylight. American vampires are bigger, faster, stronger, smarter, and blend into society better.
The whole series reads more like an anthology than one coherent story. It hops around through key points in American history but forgot to make me care about any of it. I didn't care about the main characters at all. They were underwritten and lacked a focused conflict.
The art is good and has some really fun monster designes but that's not enough to make it a desireable read. Overall, it commits the greatest sin of being boring. It's a very meh book.
Meh books are the worst to write reviews for. If I love something I can praise it for pages. If I hate something I enjoy laying out my argument for why it's bad. But for a graphic novel like American Vampire all there really is to say is meh.
If you really love vampires. Like love anything and everything vampy, this might be more fun for you. But for most of us I think it has done little to reinvent the genre or stand out amongst the dozens and dozens of simiar stories already out there.
American Vampire is a graphic novel series that claims to bring horror back to the vampire genre. In my opinion, it failed. It's not scary and worst of all it's not that interesting.
I'm not a huge vampire fan to begin with. I think the whole genre is completely exhausted. There are a few notable exceptions like my favorite classic Buffy, and modern takes like the incredibly disturbing movie The Transfiguration. But traditional vampires are boring anymore. There's nothing left to discuss.
Seriously, how many ways can you spice up this old trope?! Let's move on!
American Vampire works off the premise that there are several species of vamps and the American ones are the newest and most dangerous. They threaten the way of life for the old school vamps who prey on young women and can't come out in the daylight. American vampires are bigger, faster, stronger, smarter, and blend into society better.
The whole series reads more like an anthology than one coherent story. It hops around through key points in American history but forgot to make me care about any of it. I didn't care about the main characters at all. They were underwritten and lacked a focused conflict.
The art is good and has some really fun monster designes but that's not enough to make it a desireable read. Overall, it commits the greatest sin of being boring. It's a very meh book.
Meh books are the worst to write reviews for. If I love something I can praise it for pages. If I hate something I enjoy laying out my argument for why it's bad. But for a graphic novel like American Vampire all there really is to say is meh.
If you really love vampires. Like love anything and everything vampy, this might be more fun for you. But for most of us I think it has done little to reinvent the genre or stand out amongst the dozens and dozens of simiar stories already out there.
April 7, 2015
This week's theme for the Shallow Comic Readers is, well, pot luck!
A rather weak collection of American Vampire stories.
This first tale is American Vampire: Long Road to Hell, by series creators Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque. The best of the book, it's about a thieving young couple and their fight against the ones who turned them into vampires. At times poignant and clever, it's a decent enough tale that doesn't seem too out of place with the rest of the series.
Then second half of the book is from the Vampire Anthology issues, and has a number of stories by some rather big names in the business. Jeff Lemire, Gail Simone, Greg Rucka, Jason Aaron, Declan Shalvey, Becky Cloonan, Francisco Francavilla, and more. Being short stories, they don't allow much room for characterization and most fall into cliched stories with predictable endings. Most of then really don't make a lot of sense, to be honest. Francavilla's and Cloonan's stories are perhaps the most perfect, but then they are artist/writers who do pretty well at capturing a good story in a few pages. The art by Ray Fawkes was the surprise of the book; I knew him only as a writer, but he's a pretty good artist with a nice style. Would love to see more of his artistic work. Even the Snyder/Albuquerque contribution to this anthology was lame.
American Vampire, Vol 6 really doesn't move the series forward very much, if at all. It's not a good start for readers wanting to jump on board, regardless of what the back cover blurb says. Nevertheless, if you've read the previous five volumes and enjoyed them (like I did), then it's worth the hour's time to read through it.
A rather weak collection of American Vampire stories.
This first tale is American Vampire: Long Road to Hell, by series creators Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque. The best of the book, it's about a thieving young couple and their fight against the ones who turned them into vampires. At times poignant and clever, it's a decent enough tale that doesn't seem too out of place with the rest of the series.
Then second half of the book is from the Vampire Anthology issues, and has a number of stories by some rather big names in the business. Jeff Lemire, Gail Simone, Greg Rucka, Jason Aaron, Declan Shalvey, Becky Cloonan, Francisco Francavilla, and more. Being short stories, they don't allow much room for characterization and most fall into cliched stories with predictable endings. Most of then really don't make a lot of sense, to be honest. Francavilla's and Cloonan's stories are perhaps the most perfect, but then they are artist/writers who do pretty well at capturing a good story in a few pages. The art by Ray Fawkes was the surprise of the book; I knew him only as a writer, but he's a pretty good artist with a nice style. Would love to see more of his artistic work. Even the Snyder/Albuquerque contribution to this anthology was lame.
American Vampire, Vol 6 really doesn't move the series forward very much, if at all. It's not a good start for readers wanting to jump on board, regardless of what the back cover blurb says. Nevertheless, if you've read the previous five volumes and enjoyed them (like I did), then it's worth the hour's time to read through it.
March 24, 2018
This was a collection of short mostly prequel stories as well as one feature length tale. I enjoyed all of the stories in this collection. The Long Road to Hell, which was the feature length story, was a very human tale of a Vampire Bonnie and Clyde, although this couple was a lot nicer even as vampires. This was a touching story, emotional in a way I was surprised to see in a vampire horror comics. The short stories ranged from around 1588 to 1940 and showed the pasts of some characters we know and a few new ones as well.
For me this was a very well done anthology and a good way to fill in some blanks in the American Vampire universe. It was also cool to see a few different artists try their hand on the book.
For me this was a very well done anthology and a good way to fill in some blanks in the American Vampire universe. It was also cool to see a few different artists try their hand on the book.
July 29, 2021
Scott Snyder’s “American Vampire, Volume 6” includes the issue titled “The Long Road to Hell”, which features the 1950s greaser/vampire hunter Travis Kidd. It’s actually kind of a moving story about a nice young couple who fall into a bad crowd: vampires. They are turned, but they don’t really want to hurt anybody. Kidd catches up to them with every intention of killing them, but their hard luck story gets to him, so he does them one last favor…
The rest of the volume is ten short stories written and drawn by some familiar names in the comic book world, each of them delving into the histories and backstories of Snyder’s wonderful characters.
Truly one of the best horror comic book series currently on the market.
The rest of the volume is ten short stories written and drawn by some familiar names in the comic book world, each of them delving into the histories and backstories of Snyder’s wonderful characters.
Truly one of the best horror comic book series currently on the market.
July 9, 2018
This isn't a terrible comic, but it also felt like filler. The next volume is really supposed to start the next "Chapter" in the saga of American Vampire, so this feels like tales Snyder wanted to tell before moving on. It's fine. Not super inspiring, but also not a wasted read.
The series is losing a little momentum for me, so Vol 7 will be interesting to pick up after this.
The series is losing a little momentum for me, so Vol 7 will be interesting to pick up after this.
April 29, 2019
This is a reread and I think I've finally discovered the issue in which the American Vampire started to be weird and go downhill. It's a super thin issue with almost nonexistent Skinner Sweet plotline but boy are there many other non-relevant stories! The thing is, I hated those stories when I was reading it for the first time because I hated the different drawing styles. Second time around I quite appreciate them because they reflect the variety of speakers who were telling them. But it won't save the main story which the creators probably couldn't make up at the time and that's why they took a detour.
May 8, 2023
Not actually bad per se but not mind blowing either. Filler volume reserved for completists.
June 13, 2014
Most things read better in trade. I've not read very many things that would read better as singles. But this volume of American Vampire would definitely read better in singles. These two one-shots were released to bridge the gap between the end of Volume 5 and the beginning of Second Cycle, which will start in Volume 7 of the trades. Whilst I'm glad they collected these two one-shots in the trades, this whole book is pretty much inconsequential to the entire series, apart from revealing a few little hints and mysteries about some of your favourite characters. Of course, if you've read this far in the series, you'll end up reading this anyway, but these are definitely just little stories meant to whet the appetite before the proper storyline kicks back in. Not bad, but hardly essential reading.
March 18, 2014
This volume was a bit on the disappointing side. It doesn't really progress the story at all. Instead, we're treated to a series of historical vignettes, as vampires come up against Native Americans in colonial times, find their way into silent films, are involved in a massacre in Harlem, and so forth. While stylish and often told with little dialogue, these short little bites of story don't really add a whole lot to the series--we've already seen most of these things in the early going with Pearl's story in Hollywood and elsewhere. It's kind of a place holder of a book. If you're a fan, you'll want to read it, but it's really not a necessity.
July 23, 2019
I’d hardly call this an essential volume of the American Vampire series but I guess you need to sell them somehow so why not take two big issues, slap a hardcover on it, and call it a day. This collection consists of Long Road to Hell and American Vampire Anthology. The first of which I actually did like, and the latter being some of the worst art scraped up into short stories that loosely involve vampires. It’s not all bad, but it is more forgettable ancillary content than anything else.
June 4, 2022
جلد ششم خون آشام آمریکایی دنباله مستقیم جلدهای قبلی نیست و در اصل یک سری داستان کوتاه از شخصیت های اصلی و مکمل جلدهای قبلی در آن ها حضور دارن و در برخی داستان ها هم کارکترهای جدیدی وارد میشن. نکته جالب دیگه اینه که طراحی ها در برخی از داستان ها در این جلد تغییر میکنه و مونولوگ و پایان بندی جالبی داره که مقدمه چینی برای یک داستان با ابعاد عظیم تر در جلدهای بعدی به حساب میاد
February 3, 2016
This originally appeared at: http://www.comicpow.com/2016/01/20/ca... -- go there to see images
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American Vampire has always been more about America than vampires. Because America has always been portrayed as a land of opportunity, it has always attracted those most desperate for that opportunity. That has often led to the exploitation of those least able to defend themselves. Yet, unlike many countries, throughout a good chunk of America’s history, it has been one of the easiest countries to move up the social ladder. For some that meant running away from debts to start anew in America. For others, it was getting free, large tracts of land out west from the American government. From the industrial revolution forward, a good idea and a bit of luck could propel one to the highest heights. A great deal of fiction has explored what happens once someone catapults out of their poorer circumstances – sometimes up just one level and sometimes from poor to rich. Do they now treat their former peers with the same contempt they once received? Or do they remember where they came from and remain respectful of those in poorer circumstances?
While other countries have had similar stories, it has a greater association with America. Sometimes it’s been truer than other times. But it’s this big theme that unites all the stories in the second half of American Vampire Vol 6, made up of American Vampire Anthology #1. Here Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque hand their universe over to some of my favorite writers, including Jason Aaron, Becky Cloonan, Francesco Francavilla, and Gail Simone. The stories take place all over American history from the time of the first European settlers to the 1960s. (And one takes place in Canada!) All of them but the story bookending the anthology, The Man Comes Around, involve those in power taking advantage of those with less power.
A good chunk of the stories involve Hollywood. It’s no surprise that even the main series went from the wild west to Hollywood. There are fewer places in America in which the power dynamics are so imbalanced than in Hollywood. After all, while not just anyone can act, far more people can act than there are professional actors. It is the men who guard the money to produce movies that wield the power in determining whether or not a promising young man or woman becomes a star. Reality has many tales of those taken advantage of with promises of stardom. In the world of American Vampire, sometimes becoming a vampire means become a slave to yet another set of people with power over you. But it can also give you the physical power over others to allow for revenge. Plenty of both happens in these stories.
It’s not often that stories have us rooting for the bad guys, but the story in which a vampire is marked to be sold into slavery on a ship – shanghaid – certainly had me hoping he would take revenge on those who sough to take advantage of his poor condition. Another powerful story used vampires as an analogy of the power vacuum that existed in the 1960s among African Americans. Even those who were famous entertainers often found themselves treated like garbage when not on stage. Of course, Snyder and his collaborators on this anthology are never anvilicious with the morals and the stories remain great, short romps. It’s also fun to see the comic short story revived. The original comics were essentially collected short stories before they became stories that could last through a year or more of issues. It’s nice to see what can be done with short form comics with modern comic storytelling conventions.
Returning to the first half of this volume, we also have the very American subject of redemption. Again, I know there were redemption stories before America (see, for one thing, stories in The Bible), but they are certainly a common theme in American stories. A young couple without the education to take white collar jobs turns to masterful pick-pocketing to earn enough money to get married and start a family. It’s another interesting theme that certainly deserves some investigation. I’ve seen it in a lot of stories, mostly older stories from the 50s and 60s where characters who are down on their luck thinks that things will look up once they get married. Of course, being married won’t magically get them jobs or money, but for some reason it’s a pretty common theme. When they get caught by some vampires and turned, rather than lust for power like some of the trampled upon in the anthology, they decide to look for a cure and, in the meanwhile, only feed on evil people like wifebeaters. It’s not an unheard of trope, but the way Snyder couples their competing desires and fear of the unknown really brings the emotion to the reader while telling this most American of stories.
Questions? Comments? I love discussion and invite it whereever you happen to come upon this article.
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American Vampire has always been more about America than vampires. Because America has always been portrayed as a land of opportunity, it has always attracted those most desperate for that opportunity. That has often led to the exploitation of those least able to defend themselves. Yet, unlike many countries, throughout a good chunk of America’s history, it has been one of the easiest countries to move up the social ladder. For some that meant running away from debts to start anew in America. For others, it was getting free, large tracts of land out west from the American government. From the industrial revolution forward, a good idea and a bit of luck could propel one to the highest heights. A great deal of fiction has explored what happens once someone catapults out of their poorer circumstances – sometimes up just one level and sometimes from poor to rich. Do they now treat their former peers with the same contempt they once received? Or do they remember where they came from and remain respectful of those in poorer circumstances?
While other countries have had similar stories, it has a greater association with America. Sometimes it’s been truer than other times. But it’s this big theme that unites all the stories in the second half of American Vampire Vol 6, made up of American Vampire Anthology #1. Here Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque hand their universe over to some of my favorite writers, including Jason Aaron, Becky Cloonan, Francesco Francavilla, and Gail Simone. The stories take place all over American history from the time of the first European settlers to the 1960s. (And one takes place in Canada!) All of them but the story bookending the anthology, The Man Comes Around, involve those in power taking advantage of those with less power.
A good chunk of the stories involve Hollywood. It’s no surprise that even the main series went from the wild west to Hollywood. There are fewer places in America in which the power dynamics are so imbalanced than in Hollywood. After all, while not just anyone can act, far more people can act than there are professional actors. It is the men who guard the money to produce movies that wield the power in determining whether or not a promising young man or woman becomes a star. Reality has many tales of those taken advantage of with promises of stardom. In the world of American Vampire, sometimes becoming a vampire means become a slave to yet another set of people with power over you. But it can also give you the physical power over others to allow for revenge. Plenty of both happens in these stories.
It’s not often that stories have us rooting for the bad guys, but the story in which a vampire is marked to be sold into slavery on a ship – shanghaid – certainly had me hoping he would take revenge on those who sough to take advantage of his poor condition. Another powerful story used vampires as an analogy of the power vacuum that existed in the 1960s among African Americans. Even those who were famous entertainers often found themselves treated like garbage when not on stage. Of course, Snyder and his collaborators on this anthology are never anvilicious with the morals and the stories remain great, short romps. It’s also fun to see the comic short story revived. The original comics were essentially collected short stories before they became stories that could last through a year or more of issues. It’s nice to see what can be done with short form comics with modern comic storytelling conventions.
Returning to the first half of this volume, we also have the very American subject of redemption. Again, I know there were redemption stories before America (see, for one thing, stories in The Bible), but they are certainly a common theme in American stories. A young couple without the education to take white collar jobs turns to masterful pick-pocketing to earn enough money to get married and start a family. It’s another interesting theme that certainly deserves some investigation. I’ve seen it in a lot of stories, mostly older stories from the 50s and 60s where characters who are down on their luck thinks that things will look up once they get married. Of course, being married won’t magically get them jobs or money, but for some reason it’s a pretty common theme. When they get caught by some vampires and turned, rather than lust for power like some of the trampled upon in the anthology, they decide to look for a cure and, in the meanwhile, only feed on evil people like wifebeaters. It’s not an unheard of trope, but the way Snyder couples their competing desires and fear of the unknown really brings the emotion to the reader while telling this most American of stories.
Questions? Comments? I love discussion and invite it whereever you happen to come upon this article.
September 21, 2018
A little bit of filler, but interesting filler...
July 13, 2014
3.5 stars for vol 6 of 6. Overall rating for series 4 stars.
So sad this series has come to and end. I was disappointed in this issue only because instead of tying volumes 1-5 up this turned out to be short anthologies of vampire stories. I don't know if some of these arcs will be explored at a later time or if they are stand-alone segemnts showing the spread of vampirism.
Thsi series has turned out to be great and I am happy to learn it is only on hiatus but frustrated that I'm going to have to wait for the next round. I'm inexperienced when it comes to comic books and graphic novels and therefore have no clue how I'm suppposed to be on the lookout for upcoming issues. I'd much rather read them as a marathon read like I did with the first five volumes. The suspense is too great, the time gap making it too easy for my forgetful mind to remember details even from one day to another. However, I'm glad to know that this will continue since there were too many subplots left unanswered by the end of the fifth volume and to boot on a cliffhanger that left me biting my nails.
This is a series I have come to love, with characters I am invested in, and story lines that I must know what happens to. I cannot wait til the next installment.
So sad this series has come to and end. I was disappointed in this issue only because instead of tying volumes 1-5 up this turned out to be short anthologies of vampire stories. I don't know if some of these arcs will be explored at a later time or if they are stand-alone segemnts showing the spread of vampirism.
Thsi series has turned out to be great and I am happy to learn it is only on hiatus but frustrated that I'm going to have to wait for the next round. I'm inexperienced when it comes to comic books and graphic novels and therefore have no clue how I'm suppposed to be on the lookout for upcoming issues. I'd much rather read them as a marathon read like I did with the first five volumes. The suspense is too great, the time gap making it too easy for my forgetful mind to remember details even from one day to another. However, I'm glad to know that this will continue since there were too many subplots left unanswered by the end of the fifth volume and to boot on a cliffhanger that left me biting my nails.
This is a series I have come to love, with characters I am invested in, and story lines that I must know what happens to. I cannot wait til the next installment.
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