You know something that has always bugged me about Marvel Comics? That vampires not only exist, but that they’re not much of an immediate threat. Think about it. Outside of Blade, Moon Knight and the occasional horror-adjacent superhero like Doctor Strange, vampires are generally considered a minor inconvenience in Marvel’s scope. This would be like if the Marvel Zombies outbreak showed up in the 616 universe and was just “a thing” the Avengers would occasionally brush aside rather than an apocalyptic plague.
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That’s something writer Jed MacKay and the creative team behind Marvel’s newest event, “Blood Hunt,” seem to be keenly aware of. In Blood Hunt #1 a vampire cult manages to black out the sun, attack major cities with vampiric hordes and wipe out half of the current Avengers team with a kill squad comprised of six different shades of gory horror.
In short, this is a very fun comic book.
The events leading up to Blood Hunt are deeply rooted in Marvel Comics history—as far back as when Doctor Strange nearly wiped out all vampires back in the 1980s—but you can actually jump into this opening issue without any required reading. There are references to recent events in Moon Knight, Blade and even recent horror-themed mini-events like 2021’s “Darkhold Saga” and last year’s “Contest of Chaos,” but they’re all garnishes. The sun is blocked out in just two pages and four pages later the hordes have already mobilized. This issue grabs your attention from the jump.
I get the feeling Pepe Larraz’s artwork will be a sticking point with the five issues of Blood Hunt. On the one hand, the art does outstanding work with character designs, particularly with the six members of The Bloodcoven. But the artwork also has a certain inky murkiness, making action scenes read like static with recognizable characters wandering through rather than teeth-gritting, blood-soaked brawls. It’s not as noticeable when each of The Avengers are fighting off waves of nameless vampires, but certain moments in the Avengers vs. Bloodcoven fight are difficult to parse. It definitely fits the theme, but some of the intended effect wears off when you have to keep re-reading panels to understand what’s happening.
Finally, there’s a big twist at the end, though there’s no sense in spoiling it here. Even though it’s telegraphed fairly early on, the big reveal still hits its mark and is a bold choice for one of Marvel’s most recognizable characters.
After only one issue, it’s hard to say where Blood Hunt will land within the pantheon of superhero event comics. DC took its shot at “superheroes versus vampires” just a couple of years ago to mixed results and Marvel events have been hit or miss in recent years. But it’s been quite a while since I’ve seen one start on such a high note and it’ll have me hooked reading through the summer.
Published by Marvel Comics
On May 1, 2024
Written by Jed MacKay
Art by Pepe Larraz
Colors by Marte Garcia
Letters by Cory Petit
Cover by Pepe Larraz and Marte Garcia
