The second issue of Dark Horse’s rambunctious vampire buddy adventure is just as wacky as the first, but the added background and story development go a long way in making our vampire pals memorable.
Never taking itself too seriously, “Blood Brothers” manages to captivate with sheer fun and readability. By the end of issue two it doesn’t have to ask to be invited on to a list of your favorite comics of 2013; it can and will force its way there whether you like it or not.
With several conflicts presented, issue two features a hearty helping of action. Nick and Tree have their hands full and don’t appear to be anywhere close to solving their problems. Stops at vampires anonymous, a flashback or two and a cool car chase make sure the drama doesn’t let up. Writers Mike Gagerman and Andrew Waller’s story has plenty of depth, but it’s the layers to the plot you’ll appreciate. And while you feel Nick’s need to be human and Tree’s sense of loss with the thought of his friend leaving him, the biggest selling point of the series is the comedy. Making fun of its own cliches and those in other vampire tales, before surprising with smart humor, the writing in “Blood Brothers” never gets cold.
Evan Shaner’s pencils continue to guide the action and add another level of depth to the tale. Combining a fun and conversational tone, Shaner’s work never takes away from the written word. Like last issue, he’s able to capitalize on the emotions of the writing with facial expressions that match the situation to near perfection. The action scenes are also laid out well enough to see the scale of the drama. From fistfights over closed circuit TV to medieval orgies, Shaner can draw it all.
With its “Family Guy” meets “True Blood” storytelling, “Blood Brothers” has a demographic wide in appeal. With exceptional art to back it all up, it may be one of the best series in Dark Horse this year.
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports.
Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders.
His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023.
Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief.
Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale.
Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.
The second issue of Dark Horse’s rambunctious vampire buddy adventure is just as wacky as the first, but the added background and story development go a long way in making our vampire pals memorable.
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