A brand new chapter continues, “The Strain: The Night Eternal: #2” brings to life the epic third part of Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan’s giant-sized horror novel. The plot moves at breakneck speed delivering one twist after another. If you’re enjoying the TV series on FX, then you better get “The Strain” comic right now.
Written By: David Lapham
Art By: Mike Huddleston
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Price: $3.99
Release: September 17, 2014
Reviewed By Jorge Solis
The vampire plague began to spread when Flight 753 mysteriously landed at JFK International Airport. First on the scene, Dr. Ephraim Goodweather and Nora Martinez, the disease detectives, were too late to stop the biological threat. The Master, the leader of the vampires has now won, spreading eternal darkness all across the entire globe. After triggering a series of meltdowns, the sun was completely blocked by a nuclear cloud. Eph wants to continue fighting the good fight but his spirit cannot keep going after the loss of his missing son.
David Lapham delivers a somber and bleak narrative where our defeated heroes have split apart. Nora has had enough of Eph and can only see him as a wasted drunk. Even The Master sees his opponent as a laughingstock, wishing he had a worthy adversary. Vasiliy keeps the faith because of what Abraham taught him, but he is just one of the few.
Eph’s love interest, Nora, is given more personality in this installment. Just through a conversation on Skype, Lapham has developed her character, who used to be mousy and quiet, to a more verbal and authoritative persona. There is so much resentment in her dialogue towards Eph, as if she blames him for something that happened to her.
In the opening pages, artist Mike Huddleston has given us a vampire apocalypse that is dark, cloudy, and muggy. The moody atmosphere is kept dreary in the panels through the rainstorms. The rain causes all the primary color to fade away, leaving only a gray tone. Almost everyone is drawn in thick shadows. In an impressive wide shot, we see Central Park in ruins.
Eph looks like a homeless bum thanks to his long hair and scruffy beard. Looks can be deceiving though because there is an action hero in him. Huddleston illustrates Eph taking down one of the vamps, driving a sword through its neck. These are the action sequences that makes this comic worthwhile.
If you’ve been around since the beginning, there’s no reason for you not to grab “The Strain: The Night Eternal” #2.With great results, the bleak tone and spirit of the novel has been translated into the comic book medium.