Barnabas Collins Meets Vampirella in Crossover Comic - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JamesG · 06-26-2012, 05:24 PM

Barnabas Collins Meets Vampirella in Crossover Comic
by David-Elijah Nahmod
Jun 26, 2012

They're both undead, but they come from decidedly different backgrounds.

When Forrest J. Ackerman and Trina Robbins created Vampirella in 1969, Barnabas Collins was at the peak of his popularity. "Dark Shadows", the horror themed daytime soap opera that introduced Barnabas to TV viewers, was then commanding an audience of twenty million viewers.

By this point, Barnabas had been transformed from a villain to an anti-hero. Adept at time travel, Barnabas used his vampiric abilities to rescue his family from all manner of supernatural beings.

Vampirella was from another planet, literally. Drakulon was populated by a race of vampires. The landscape included rivers of blood. Vampirella comes to Earth in a spaceship as her people lay dying—the rivers of blood are drying up.

She becomes a superhero, and was quite a fetching figure in her bikini-like outfit and boots. She sold a lot of books for Warren Publishing.

"Dark Shadows" ran its course by 1971, while Vampirella continued until 1983. But like true vampires, neither character ever really died. They were resurrected again and again in one form or another, to the delight of their still sizable fan bases.

At the moment, these two iconic bloodsuckers are back in comic book form, courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment, purveyors of classic horror/sci-fi/fantasy characters in new comic book titles.

Now comes word of a really interesting venture from Dynamite: a DARK SHADOWS/VAMPIRELLA crossover, news of which has raised both the eyebrows and the anticipation of both characters' fandoms.

For Dynamite publisher Nick Barrucci, bringing these two icons together was a no brainer.

"It felt like a natural," he told FANGORIA. "Both Vampirella and Barnabas Collins have been around for four decades and never had a crossover before. We talked about it quite a bit and in discussing it with writers, Marc Andreyko (TORSO, MANHUNTER, DR. STRANGE) came up with the best pitch. The licensor for DARK SHADOWS was happy with it and we moved it forward."

Barruci told us that Dynamite was pleased with the sales performance of the Dark Shadows book, and that it would continue as a stand alone title.

"Overall, the response has been a 'positive curiosity'", reports Andreyko, writer of the Barnabas/Vampirella book.

"But there has been some concern voiced by old school DS fans about the huge differences in characters. This is no T & A book. The story uses both Vampi and Barnabas to their strengths and their different approaches do not go unnoticed by the characters themselves."

The TV version of "Dark Shadows" had a habit of explaining away story inconsistencies as being set in a parallel universe. Might this story be set in a parallel world, or is it canon in the characters' lives, we wondered?

"The arc fits in both characters' worlds," replied Andreyko. "But as for 'canon', I defer to my editor."

The writer addressed the book's time tripping epic sweep, which spans five centuries.

"'Dark Shadows' had such history that not tying into it seemed to waste a great gift, but the scope of this one opens centuries before Barnabas."

DARK SHADOWS/VAMPIRELLA will debut in August 2012 and will run for five issues.

"I had so much fun with this one that I would love to team these two up again," says Marc Andreyko. "So please buy multiple copies!"

For more, head to Dynamite's official site:
http://www.dynamite.net/htmlfiles/

http://www.fangoria.com/index.php/ho...rossover-comic

AB · 06-26-2012, 06:00 PM

This looks a little racy for the older fans of Dark Shadows.

MickeyMac · 06-27-2012, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AB

This looks a little racy for the older fans of Dark Shadows.

Well its not 1968 anymore

06-26-2012, 05:24 PM	#1
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 56,961	Barnabas Collins Meets Vampirella in Crossover Comic Barnabas Collins Meets Vampirella in Crossover Comic by David-Elijah Nahmod Jun 26, 2012 They're both undead, but they come from decidedly different backgrounds. When Forrest J. Ackerman and Trina Robbins created Vampirella in 1969, Barnabas Collins was at the peak of his popularity. "Dark Shadows", the horror themed daytime soap opera that introduced Barnabas to TV viewers, was then commanding an audience of twenty million viewers. By this point, Barnabas had been transformed from a villain to an anti-hero. Adept at time travel, Barnabas used his vampiric abilities to rescue his family from all manner of supernatural beings. Vampirella was from another planet, literally. Drakulon was populated by a race of vampires. The landscape included rivers of blood. Vampirella comes to Earth in a spaceship as her people lay dying—the rivers of blood are drying up. She becomes a superhero, and was quite a fetching figure in her bikini-like outfit and boots. She sold a lot of books for Warren Publishing. "Dark Shadows" ran its course by 1971, while Vampirella continued until 1983. But like true vampires, neither character ever really died. They were resurrected again and again in one form or another, to the delight of their still sizable fan bases. At the moment, these two iconic bloodsuckers are back in comic book form, courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment, purveyors of classic horror/sci-fi/fantasy characters in new comic book titles. Now comes word of a really interesting venture from Dynamite: a DARK SHADOWS/VAMPIRELLA crossover, news of which has raised both the eyebrows and the anticipation of both characters' fandoms. For Dynamite publisher Nick Barrucci, bringing these two icons together was a no brainer. "It felt like a natural," he told FANGORIA. "Both Vampirella and Barnabas Collins have been around for four decades and never had a crossover before. We talked about it quite a bit and in discussing it with writers, Marc Andreyko (TORSO, MANHUNTER, DR. STRANGE) came up with the best pitch. The licensor for DARK SHADOWS was happy with it and we moved it forward." Barruci told us that Dynamite was pleased with the sales performance of the Dark Shadows book, and that it would continue as a stand alone title. "Overall, the response has been a 'positive curiosity'", reports Andreyko, writer of the Barnabas/Vampirella book. "But there has been some concern voiced by old school DS fans about the huge differences in characters. This is no T & A book. The story uses both Vampi and Barnabas to their strengths and their different approaches do not go unnoticed by the characters themselves." The TV version of "Dark Shadows" had a habit of explaining away story inconsistencies as being set in a parallel universe. Might this story be set in a parallel world, or is it canon in the characters' lives, we wondered? "The arc fits in both characters' worlds," replied Andreyko. "But as for 'canon', I defer to my editor." The writer addressed the book's time tripping epic sweep, which spans five centuries. "'Dark Shadows' had such history that not tying into it seemed to waste a great gift, but the scope of this one opens centuries before Barnabas." DARK SHADOWS/VAMPIRELLA will debut in August 2012 and will run for five issues. "I had so much fun with this one that I would love to team these two up again," says Marc Andreyko. "So please buy multiple copies!" For more, head to Dynamite's official site: http://www.dynamite.net/htmlfiles/ http://www.fangoria.com/index.php/ho...rossover-comic Attached Images

06-26-2012, 06:00 PM	#2
AB Member Eternal Member Forum Icon Join Date: Dec 26, 2006 Location: The South Posts: 59,426	This looks a little racy for the older fans of Dark Shadows.