Posted in: Comics, Comics Publishers, Current News, Dynamite | Tagged: Christyopher Priest, vampirella

Dynamite Relaunches Vampirella #1 by Christopher Priest & Ergün Gündüz

Dynamite Entertainment relaunches Vampirella #1 from Christopher Priest and Ergün Gündüz for March 2025.

Published Thu, 12 Dec 2024 12:57:08 -0600

Article Summary

Vampirella #1 relaunches in March 2025 by Christopher Priest and Ergün Gündüz.
The Long Night arc explores postpartum depression and a possible cyberpunk future.
Storyline marks a dual legacy number, also Vampirella #676, aiming towards #700.
New character Cicero claims to be Vampirella's son from a dystopian future.

Dynamite Entertainment relaunches Vampirella #1 in March 2025 by regular writer Christopher Priest and bringing back Ergün Gündüz to the series and character. With a Legacy number #676, Vampirella #1 will launch The Long Night arc… with covers by Lucio Parrillo, Greg Land, Elias Chatzoudis, Jay Anacleto, cosplayer Rachel Hollon and Mark Spears.

"The new story, "The Long Night" will introduce fans to parallel perspectives of the Daughter of Drakulon in the present dealing with a severe case of postpartum depression, even while finally reunited with her previously stolen infant son — and on the other hand a vision into a possible cataclysmic, cyberpunk future brought on by a bitter Vampi's nuclear holocaust! Attentive fans may recall mentions of "The Long Night" in previous issues of Priest's run as a prophetic nightmare mentioned by Vampirella herself and other characters. It is akin to a "vampire Ragnarök" end of days, said to be brought on by a child of Lilith. When the demon Belial uttered it upon the birth of Draculina, the assumption was that it would be the fate of Vampi's raven-haired, oft-evil sister — and not in fact herself. Priest's other working title for this storyline was "Season of the Witch," referencing the titular antiheroine's spiral into darkness and transformation into the Witch of Ashthorne. It all kicks into action in March's Vampirella #1 — while keeping a dual "legacy numbering" along the march to #700, marking this issue also as #676 — as a mysterious man going by the name of Cicero appears in Vampirella's life, claiming to be her son from the future. As a timeless vampiress, the Daughter of Drakulon's life extends well past her 50-plus years of publication going back to 1969, yet she still appears young and vibrant. The same logic carries on to her son, with the twist that he's come back from a time of her 100th anniversary!"

"I think the best kinds of challenges you can toss at a protagonist are the ones they cannot punch through. There's way too much boring violence being used to resolve conflict in today's comics," said Christopher Priest. "Good writing involves conflict but conflict isn't always about violence. You put your character in a headlock, in a no-win scenario, ideally in a mess of their own making, and then follow them as they resolve that conflict through their strength of character. Vampirella's present situation, her being suddenly confounded by the unimaginable impact of motherhood, is the direct cause and effect of the future story and the reason her son, an adult many decades in the future, has returned to warn her."

Vampirella #1 is solicited in Diamond Comic Distributors' January 2025 Previews catalogue.

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