Once upon a time, she was known as Draculina. But now, Victory has a cursed ring, and an agenda all her own. Your Major Spoilers review of Victory #1 from Dynamite Entertainment awaits!

VICTORY #1

Writer: David Walker
Artist: Brett Weldele
Colorist: Brett Weldele
Letterer: Tom Napolitano
Editor: Matt Idelson
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 21, 2023

Previously in Victory: She started as Vampirella’s lover and ended up a very powerful pawn of Vampi’s mother, Lilith. Along the way, Victory’s made new friends, seen countless horrors, been saddled with a demon’s ring that she can’t get rid of, encountered the ghost of an old friend, and opened too many dimensional gateways to count. Despite that, there’s so much that we don’t know about Victory, like what her childhood was like.

Or what she’s been doing with her demon ring and the crazy powers it has granted.

IS MAKING BAD DECISIONS A GENETIC THING?

Our story begins an unknown number of years ago, as young Victoria Harris foolishly prepares to take a dare from some local boys. Her father, a man of the cloth, catches her and runs them off, then administers the antidote for foolish children: His belt. Victory makes not a sound throughout her punishment, nor when we smash-cut to the present to find her on the run from a monster-truckload of demons. Of course, since she’s taken a job driving, they’re not just chasing her, but an innocent couple in the back of her cab, leading her to defend them. When she finally lets them catch her, she goes hand-to-hand, using the Ring of Belial to even the odds, while observing strangers remark that it shouldn’t actually do what she’s doing with it.

Oh, and also, they’ve come to get help with the end of all existence.

DEMONS, A CAR CHASE, AND OLD FRENEMIES

The first thing I need to report is that this issue features a character named Lucy Fuhr, and I can’t decide if that’s brilliant or just stupid. The sheer amount of unexplained Vampirella lore in here was initially disturbing to me, but Walker’s script smooths over it pretty quickly. I still don’t know why she’s wearing her slingshot bathing suit under her clothes as she drives a taxi, but it’s easy enough to gloss over. Weldele’s art is lovely, even subtle in places, but there’s a pleasantly cartoonish aspect that I enjoy a lot. The coloring is not my favorite, focusing on yellows and browns without much to contrast them, though, which mutes all the reds and makes the blacks a bluish-gray color. I’m also not entirely sure about the inconsistent use of backgrounds throughout the story, but I’ll be interested in seeing the next issue of Victory to see if that’s a stylistic choice or something about this issue’s setting.

BOTTOM LINE: AN INTERESTING START

Even if I feel like I need to read a lot more before I understand all the complexities of what’s going on here, Victory #1 delivers an entertaining story, a first chapter of an origin, and a compelling adventure hook, all with art that’s enjoyable, to earn 3 out of 5 stars overall. The usual questions about cover art versus interiors aside, I found this to be a pleasant read.

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VICTORY #1

60%

60%

An Origin Story

As someone who hasn't been reading the Vampirella books closely, it's a bit daunting to step into, but once you acclimate, the story is intriguing.

• Writing

  7
• Art

  6
• Coloring

  5
• User Ratings (0 Votes)
  0