Review - The Adventures of Luna the Vampire #1(@IDWPublishing)

"OMG! What should I wear?!"

Vampires in space don't typically fare that well. There's the whole lack of viable blood thing. There's also problems like finding the right wardrobe to wear to a zombification ceremony. Those problems and more are recounted in The Adventures of Luna the Vampire #1 from IDW Publishing. The issue is written and illustrated by Yasmin Sheikh.

Ever wonder how it would be if outer space was populated by monsters? Or what it would be like to have a green ugly witch as your best friend? Then look no further! Welcome to the AMAZING everyday life of Luna the vampire. (Zombie postman and crappy job included.)

It's clear from the start that Sheikh doesn't really intend for The Adventures of Luna the Vampire #1 to be anything that requires to be taken too seriously. Each of the scenarios in the issue range from trying to find something to wear to losing weight, all told through the eyes of a moody vampire in space. Sheikh doesn't really give the reader much more context than that, instead focusing on the somewhat outlandish stories themselves as opposed to requiring the reader to piece together a universe. That's not necessarily a bad thing though, as it allows the stories more room to breathe as individual entities as opposed to cramming them into some overarching format. The way the stories are written and pieces together seems to to indicate that Sheikh is going for a younger audience who would be fans of something like Adventure Time.

Matching the relatively airy tone of the book itself is Sheikh's illustrations. Her style is very childlike in its approach, offering characters who are defined by exaggerated facial expressions and nebulous outlines. Luna in particular gets plenty of attention when it comes to rendering her, as Sheikh distorts her in ways that fit with the narrative on that page. The extremely simple panel layout grounds the book in a sense of pacifism where Sheikh doesn't intend to rock any boats from an artistic perspective. The colors chosen are pretty bright all things considered, especially when so much of the book is bathed in greens, blacks and purples.

The Adventures of Luna the Vampire #1 is a relatively harmless first issue that doesn't aspire to be anything more than a free-spirited take on a vampire in space. Luna's adventures (or misadventures) all seem to be grounded in broader real world issues. Sheikh's approach in writing the issue is keep things basic and prevent the book from being cluttered with extraneous trappings. The artwork is just as rudimentary, enforcing the notion that a younger audience will find plenty to enjoy in the book. The Adventures of Luna the Vampire #1 isn't going to be known as a groundbreaking book by any stretch of the imagination, but it does play in a pretty innocent playground very well.

The Adventures of Luna the Vampire #1 is in stores now.