Comic Review - 30 Days of Night 11

            It took all month, but I actually found a “horror” comic that was not about zombies.  There were actually a few comics released on Halloween that were on the spookier side so if that is your idea of a good time, head out to your local shop and grab them before they are gone.  For my final comic of the October horror binge, I picked up 30 Days of Night #11 from IDW.  Steve Niles wrote it and Christopher Mitten took care of both the penciling and inking duties.  

Cover:

Not only does this cover have something to do with the interiors (though marginally) it is also the only cover available, on an IDW book.  I know, it’s a Halloween miracle.  If that wasn’t enough for you, it is a really well designed and beautiful cover.  From the color palette used to the way Mitten transforms the smoke into skulls above the crispy vampire’s head, it is incredibly well executed.  The colors, focusing more on a warm palette of reds/yellows/oranges for the majority, with the smoke producing the only cool colors on the cover really pops out against the browns and blacks that are more commonly associated with comic covers nowadays.  Even the logo of the book is in a stark contrast to the blue and white that it is placed over the top of. 

The cover illustration itself also does a great job of giving a preview of the general creepiness of the interior artwork (another bonus of having the interior artist do the covers).  The lack of black holding lines on the artwork is also a great design element to this.  Where other comics in the genre would go heavy on the black to raise the scare factor, Mitten does the exact opposite, opting to let the clarity of the image as well as the use of color do the talking for him, which works out phenomenally.  Mitten is obviously a perfect pairing for this subject matter and proves that all the way through the issue.

9/10 - Incredibly well done and fitting for the horror genre.  It’s pretty apparent to me that Mitten is enjoying himself and that shines through here more than anywhere else in the book.

Story:

            I will admit that coming off a month of zombie comics, I was a bit taken aback when I saw the vampires not only speak, but also use guns.  Of course then I realized that I wasn’t reading a zombie comic so it made a bit more sense.  What didn’t make sense was the talk of “where’s the robot” “let’s get to the robot” and yet I never once saw a robot, or even heard it mentioned again after the first few pages.  It was almost as if it was a placed plot device to get the characters in a situation where Hendrick (the bald guy with Lemmy’s facial hair) can get captured by the vampire horde.  It was definitely an interesting twist that Hendrick is then transformed into a vampire by Eben (who I assume is some kind of vampire middle-management).  However the method of transformation, by spitting into his eye, was a little lame.  I realize the sexual connotations that biting carries with it, but I would rather see that than spitting in the eye (which carries it’s own connotations…think about it).  I do find it interesting that all of the vampires carry guns though, and think that it is worthwhile to use them against other vampires no less.  What is in these guns?  Are these vampires more susceptible to things that would normally kill a human than those in the more traditional lore?  It would appear that these vampires are pretty hearty as the fat one gets pieces of his head blown out and removed without even batting what is left of his eyelashes.  That revelation just makes the sight of vampires in a Mexican standoff more comical than anything. 

4/10 – All in all it was ok.  There was not too much that was explained too well and there were a lot of hanging loose ends that it would have been nice to see some closure to.  I have a feeling that closure will be coming next month as we got a nice big “to be concluded” teaser at the end of this issue.  This seems like another book that would be better in trade than in serial form. 

Art:

            As I said before, Mitten is a great fit for this title and I have a feeling that the fact that his art is so Mignola-esque helped him land the gig.  That is not a bad thing because it works so well in a design sense.  The storytelling is not incredibly clear and the backgrounds can be fairly sparse in some areas, but the acting and the movement in the panels (especially in the vampire scenes) make up for the stoic, bland, text-heavy pages that involve just humans.

           

            I am also a fan of Mitten’s vampires.  They are not the traditional Dracula type, but seem more like a cross between a vampire and a more mobile zombie which works very well for the story.  Some of the design elements that he throws into the comic though, especially in the first few pages, don’t make a whole lot of sense, but that comes back to the marginal storytelling that takes place. 

While the designs are cool, what exactly are the crescent shapes supposed to be?

Some mysterious guys to hold her back (this is the first time they are seen) along with more crescent shapes that I assume are not gunshots this time.

This is apparently how vampires are created in 2012.  

How impersonal, and even more gross than bloodsucking in my opinion.

Did he just hit him with a thermos?  I hope he stole it off a school-kid.  Maybe it's full of strawberry milk.

6/10 – There are some great parts to this and some that will leave you shaking your head. 

Overall:  5/10 – An amazing cover is spoiled with some poor storytelling on the inside as well as some writing that doesn’t help the art in that regard.  If you are interested in the story or the genre I would suggest picking it up in trade.  Single issues will probably just leave you shaking your head.