Два разказа - от добър ,по-добър! Първият ни връща в ранните години на Скинър и Брук , които участват рамо до рамо в битките с/у коренните жители на Америка а.k.a индианците. Тук си проличава кои по какъв път ще тръгне и защо. Престъпника и шерифа - вечното дерби на запада! Доброто с/у злото, в този случаи нещата са на кантар и достааааа мъгляви.Втория разказ ни отвежда по напред , някъде Джеймс Дийн-ово време (ако мога да съдя по прическите). И въвежда нов персонаж на име Травис Кид. Горкият Травис ... сираче в следствие на вампирски набез , пратен след това в психиатрия за да се лекува от кошмарите. Само че кошмарът тепърва започва за него , особенно след като търсиш отмъщение. По принцип Скинър оцелявa на остров сред група мутирали японски вампири , няколко бомбардировки ,сред прериите с/у няколко индиански вампирски племена и в Холивуд с/у нещасти европеидни такива. Но знае ли човек. Напълно е възможно това 19 годишно изтерзано момче да доведе до края му (шансовете според мен са .....нулеви. Но пък да видим.). I never wanted to start this book. I mean Vampires! Vampires make for Barbara Cartland stories with fangs.On the other hand there is also "Near Dark" by Kathryn Bigelow and my comic-store-clerc was quite persistent, so I gave it a try.Needless to say, AV is Vampires done right. No Cartland here, but the feel of Near Dark. Only better.AV entertained me from the beginning (and raised my faith in the clerc).Volume four now is the best yet, despite the fact that my favourite character (Pearl) has only a very brief appearance.There are three Storylines in this collection. "The beast in the Cave" sports the Artwork of Jordi Bernet (of "Torpedo" fame) whose style fits the western (which the first arc of vol 4 is) just like a glove. I really felt dragged back to western-comics of my childhood. OMG, that's EXACTLY what Apaches have to look like! The look on Skinners pre-undead life provides not only fun but also a deeper understanding of the character."Death race" introduces a new character that could have been dreamed up by Garth Ennis. Meet the larger than life teenage Vampire-hunter Travis in a roadmovie at the speed of light. We will see more of him in the future I guess. Even if he himself doesn't think too much of his own life expectancy. Another film springs to my mind (and not only because the story is settled in the 50ies - "Cry Baby" by John Waters only with (much) more violence and less music.The third story - The Nocturnes - is a two-parter set in the 60ies where Snyder captures the change of the Zeitgeist with great subtlety (although there is a fair amount of action, don't sweat it) and some surprising twists (who the hell are really the racist pigs in this southern town?)Some reviewers sneer at this arc, but I think it is very superficial to indentify the "new" Poole finds here as the new breed of Werewolfs he stumbles across. It's rather the beginning of a new mindset, he doesn't believe in at the beginning, but finds proof of in the end.The only bad thing I can think of is (since I'm collecting the Paperbacks) the loooong hiatus between the release of the hardcover and the TPB. It's been about a year. Here's hoping I don't have to wait that long for Vol 5.
What do You think about American Vampire #4 (2000)?
Still great. Noir, pulp, alternative history, horror, melodrama, drama ...
—Ulrah
Great read. I don't usually like 1950's pop, but this one is worth it.
—tracym
The art and the storylines just continue to be fantastic..
—Renate100
