Ex Sanguine #1

Saul Adams is a vampire with an identity crisis living a quiet (night) life as a vampire, keeps a low profile and tends to stay away from trouble. Until one evening trouble finds him, in the form of a young woman named Ashley, who happens to be a serial killer. Together they will share a connection beyond their control and like him, she has a monster within herself just yearning to escape and the streets will be flooded in blood as a result of this new partnership.

The Team

Written by Tim Seely (Hack/Slash Omnibus Vol. 1-3, Revival Vol. 1 : You’re Among Friends, Witchblade Rebirth Vol. 1) & Joshua Scott Emmons. Illustrated by Tim Seely & coloured by Carlos Badilla. Published by Dark Horse Comics.

The Pros

From the twisted mind of Tim Seely, the creator of Hack/Slash, comes a new horror series about an unholy alliance ready to spill the blood of anyone who gets in their way. I love horror comics and I especially loved this comic. I’ve always adored horror as a genre of entertainment, but only through books & movies and it’s only in the last year or so that I’ve started to appreciate horror comics. These days, society seems to be over saturated with vampirism and just when you think that movies like Twilight and TV shows like Vampire Diaries have bled the genre dry (cheesy pun intended), a cool as hell series like this pops up. But Ex Sanguine isn’t the only vamp comic out there worth your hard earned dollars. Check out Scott Snyder’s American Vampire from Vertigo, for cool as ice vampires that jump from one era to another with every story arc. There’s also Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan’s mini series The Strain from Dark Horse, from the novel of the same name about a new disease of vampirism that threatens New York City.

Getting back to Ex Sanguine, the story seems to focus on Saul & Ashley, but also features two FBI agents as supporting characters. Saul’s comfort zone is this little all night diner he seems to visits frequently, it reminded me of this low budget Canadian vampire comedy called Blood & Donuts. It’s about this likeable & pacifist vampire who hangs around this crappy coffee shop and develops friendships with unusual characters, strangely enough for a movie about a vampire, there’s not much blood in it. It’s worth checking out. I keep getting off track here, won’t happen again. The story also benefits from moments of humour here & there, there’s a conversation between Saul and a jealous boyfriend that involves the word “hipster” that just slays me. The blood & gore is not as heavy like in Hack/Slash, but it has its graphic & chilling moments for sure.

The illustrations are also from Tim Seely, who does a nice job with the creepy images and frightening faces. Saul’s full on vampire face would make the vamps from 30 Days of Night run to their coffins and hide. And a cover that speaks for itself. Whoa.

The Cons

Not a lot of negative comments here, although I’m not sure if I want to embark on a new series right now, but so far I like what I see.

The Outcome

This was a totally fun horror comic that has plenty of potential. If you’re a horror junkie like me, you’ll want to pick this one up.