Issue Description

It all comes down to this: revenge. It's payback time, as fledgling vampire Pearl Jones finally confronts the vicious Hollywood coven that left her for dead, and Will Bunting reveals the final, shocking chapter in the saga of James Book and his deadliest adversary, American vampire Skinner Sweet. Be there for the unforgettable, double conclusion to the first arc of AMERICAN VAMPIRE.

“Curtain Call”. 1925. Pearl Jones and Henry Preston arm themselves with wooden weapons and confront B. D. Bloch and two associates. They defeat two with stakes and Pearl kills B. D. Bloch by exposing him to the sun. Pearl then confronts Hattie Jones on a movie set. In a flashback, we learn that Hattie intentionally turned herself into a vampire by cutting herself with the knife she cut Pearl with in the last issue. Pearl kills Hattie using the golden star from her dressing room.

Later, on a boardwalk, Pearl and Henry discuss their future plans. While Henry is briefly gone, Skinner Sweet approaches Pearl and tells her that he had been thinking about killing her, but changed his mind. Skinner says goodbye, but tells Pearl it “won’t be the last time”. Henry returns and he and Pearl begin the next stage of their lives together.

“If the Right Hand Offend Thee, Cut It Off”. 1912. Will Bunting continues his reading of “Bad Blood” at a bookstore. Three years after having been turned into a vampire, James Book struggles with his nature. He resorts to feeding on small animals to quench his thirst and hires quack doctors to try and cure him.

Back in Lakeview, men hired by Mr. Percy unearth Skinner Sweet with the intention of escorting him back to Percy. Sweet kills the men and eventually finds Percy’s mansion. Percy offers Sweet a deal – to join Percy and the old world vampires. Sweet declines by dragging Percy into the sunlight on his lawn and killing him. Skinner leaves muttering about his “plans”.

Book finally begs Abilena Camillo to kill him. Abilena agrees, but under the condition that Book sleeps with her that night. They make love and Abilena shoots Book under the moonless night. Later, Abilena visits Book’s gravesite with their daughter. Back at the book reading, Bunting says that Book never gave in to Sweet and that is the happiest ending he can offer. During a book signing, a shaken man from the audience hands Bunting a letter from Sweet that mocks Bunting and his mortality. The first story arc ends with Sweet standing outside the bookstore and he is being watched by an older Abilena Camillo and her daughter Felicia. Apparently the two have future plans for Skinner Sweet.

American Vampire (2010)

Publisher

Vertigo

Volume Description

Created by Scott Snyder with artist Rafael Albuquerque, American Vampire launched from Vertigo as a creator-owned ongoing series in 2010. It was originally supposed to feature an introduction written by Stephen King, but King opted to instead script the origin story of Skinner Sweet, which ran as a backup feature in the first five issues of the series.

The series runs in a format where series co-creator and artist Rafael Albuquerque will illustrate the main story arcs, then after those are complete, he will take a short time off to rest/gain lead in for the next, while a guest artist will illustrate a supplementary story that either focuses on a supporting character, or is a flashback.

With the success of American Vampire, Snyder wrote a limited series in 2011 called American Vampire: Survival of the Fittest, with art by Sean Murphy, that ran concurrently with the main ongoing series. Later in June 2012, a second miniseries titled American Vampire: Lord of Nightmares launched with Dustin Nguyen illustrating.

The ongoing series won both the 2011 Eisner Award and Harvey Award for Best New Series.

At New York Comic Con 2012, Snyder announced that following the conclusion of the Blacklist arc, after December's issue #34, the title would go on a temporary hiatus. During the break, Snyder mentioned that he and Albuquerque would continue to collaborate together, but didn't specify any further than that. The title is planned to resume publication in late 2013. During the hiatus, a special one shot starring vampire hunter Travis Kidd titled American Vampire: The Long Road to Hell would be released, with the story being co-written by Albuquerque. Following The Long Road to Hell, Vertigo would release American Vampire Anthology, featuring "lost" stories told by creators such as Greg Rucka, Jeff Lemire, Gail Simone, Francesco Francavilla, Becky Cloonan and more.

A full year after the hiatus was announced, news came out of NYCC 2013 that American Vampire would return in March now called American Vampire: Second Cycle.

Plot Summary

There is such a thing as vampire evolution. As the curse is inflicted upon new peoples of new lands, new bloodlines of vampires rise with their own unique characteristics and abilities. In the 1880s, the sadistic outlaw Skinner Sweet becomes the first American Vampire. He wars against other vampires and humans alike throughout American history and only intentionally sires one other of his kind, Pearl Jones who Sweet turns into a vampire in the 1920s.

The series would later jump to a few years later to the mid 30s, and focus on a young Las Vegas police officer by the name of Cashel McCogan (who would later co-star in American Vampire: Survival of the Fittest) as he is thrust into the war that Skinner Sweet waged against the ancient vampire species. Cash would eventually join the Vassals of the Morning Star, a vampire hunting organization after Sweet infects his unborn son, Gus, with his vampiric blood.

The series would then jump forward to the 40s, once again focusing on Pearl Jones' story, more specifically that of her human husband Henry Preston, who due to his age is denied entry to serve on the front lines in Japan during WWII, but joins the Vassals of the Morning Star on a secret mission to investigate Japanese experimentation with the vampire species. Unbeknownst to all but Henry, who plays dumb to the subject, Skinner Sweet is able to infiltrate the Vassals unit in which Henry serves. The arc eventually leads to a fight to the death between Pearl and Skinner, with some surprising revelations.

Following a short arc detailing Skinner Sweet's past before turning into a Vampire, the series' main story will jump into the 1950s, and follow a young vampire hunter by the name of Travis Kidd, who uses a set of wooden fangs to "bite back" the vampires. After Kidd's stories, the book stays in the 1950s, transition back to Pearl, where she joins the VMS and Skinner Sweet to kill hidden vampire covens within Hollywood. This arc, titled "The Blacklist" would change the dynamic of the entire series moving forward.

Collected EditionsAmerican Vampire Vol. 1 (#1-5)American Vampire Vol. 2 (#6-11)American Vampire Vol. 3 (#12-18 & American Vampire: Survival of the Fittest #1-5)American Vampire Vol. 4 (#19-27)American Vampire Vol. 5 (#28-34 & American Vampire: Lord of Nightmares #1-5)

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