REVIEW: Killadelphia #12

Rating if the Book Were a Movie: R

Writer: Rodney Barnes
Artist: Jason Shawn Alexander
Colors: Luis NCT
Letters: Marshall Dillon
Cover: Todd McFarlane and Luis NCT
Editor: Greg Tumbarello
Publisher: Image Comics

Through eleven issues of Killadelphia we have had a front row seat to everyone the war to end all wars between humans and vampires. We have seen a rise in the power of vampires under the leadership of John Adam’s. We’ve seen humans battle back to somewhat equal footing in the time since President Adams’ passing in the early stages of the war.

Issue 12 starts off the vampires taking the war out of downtown Philadelphia and into the suburbs. Those humans have their “gated communities and the best security cameras money can buy”. It doesn’t mean a thing in this fight.

A lot of the focus of this issue is on a vampire named Tevin. He’s on a quest to right the wrongs of Abigail Adams. To make that happen he’s going to need to ask for a huge favor from someone that’s not eager to make deals.

We also get to touch base with the Sangster men. Rather than sitting around they’ve gotten access to police video footage and are taking the fight to the vampires.

Story: 1 Star

This series continues to hit it out of the park. We’re twelve issues in and it’s still anybody’s game. With some players changing teams the race to the finish line is going to be intense.

Artwork: .5 Stars

I liked the artwork on the cover. Let’s face it, when the “Toddfather” is doing your variant covers you have arrived.

While I have enjoyed Mr. Alexander’s work on the interior pages for most of the series I didn’t care much for the way things were depicted in the underworld. It is my opinion that a lot of the creatures and scenery appeared to be a touch on the cartoonish side.

After what we saw from the vampires hitting suburbia the kid gloves were already off. Why put them back on here? To me it was a missed opportunity to truly scare the snot out of a reader.

Dialogue: 1 Star

I loved the conversation between Tevin and his grandmother. It reminded me of talks with mine. When you have the backing of a grandmother that truly believes in you it feels like King Kong on cocaine. Mr. Barnes did a great job letting us feel that bond.

Editing: 1 Star

The lettering continues to be spot on throughout this series. I haven’t seen any grammatical errors that can’t be explained as slang. The creative came to play.

Mechanics: .75 Stars

“Killadelphia” #12 is just as easy to fall into as the first book in the run was. The reader becomes emotionally invested in these characters. Personally I have horses in the race for both sides in this one.

Killadelphia is starting to run into the issue that we see with some tv shows. We’re getting to have a few too many characters. While they all have critical roles they are not getting an equal amount of time in the spotlight. There are a couple of semi-key characters that I can’t recall the names of.

Big picture, this is a problem that can easily be resolved in one skirmish if the right players are involved and Sangster, Jr. remembers the bag with the stakes in it.

I am continuing to enjoy the twists and turns that come with “Killadelphia”. I’m looking forward to seeing where the story takes us next.