Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2 Review

 

Writer: Justina Ireland

Pencilers: Marcelo Ferreira & Chris Campana

Inkers: Roberto Poggi, Sean Parsons & Craig Yeung

Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg

Letterer: Cory Petit

Cover Artists: Marcelo Ferreira, Roberto Poggi & Rachelle Rosenberg

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: June 12, 2024

 

Peter Parker teamed with the Lizard and Misty Knight to rescue her partner Colleen Wing and Dr. Michael Morbius. The Lizard led Spider-Man and Misty to an abandoned church with an underground lair. But when vampires swarmed the fake church, the terrific trio sought refuge at a church guarded by troops armed with holy water weaponry. Can Spider-Man, Misty, and Lizard rescue Colleen and Dr Mike? Does Dr Mike have a cure for vampirism? And why do vampires seem drawn to the Lizard? Let’s grab some garlic, thwip into Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2, and find out!

 

Story

TJ once worked for the Beyond Corporation. Now, he is Theocritis, the vampire CEO of Hemoglobin Inc. Theocritis is developing three vampire-related products for the market. One of them is Cure, which curbs a vampire’s bloodlust. Theocritis used Dr Morbius' blood to engineer Cure. Dr Morbius has spent years seeking a way to go from Living Vampire to Human. Hemoglobin Inc. hasn't found the solution, but they've achieved promising results. Dr Morbius agrees to peruse their research and see if he can help Theocritis. Although he plays it cool, Dr Morbius has a good reason to help out Theocritis in Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2. The vampire CEO imprisoned Dr Morbius’ friend, Colleen Wing. The private eye can shrug off a pair of handcuffs, but Colleen will need more than a hairpin to escape the vampire compound.

 

While others largely yanked Peter’s strands until now, he plays detective as effectively as Colleen or her partner Misty in Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2. He doesn’t benefit from Theocritis’ briefing, but Spider-Man intuits the Lizard's vampiric appeal. That victory comes with a cost. Still, it enhances Spider-Man's understanding of the web in which Misty and the Lizard ensnared him. Theocritis founded his company on Beyond Corporation’s proprietary technology. Maxine Danger insists that anything Theocritis develops belongs to her. Spider-Man plays it cool and doesn’t give away that he discovered Misty and Colleen were working with Maxine Danger.

 

Justina Ireland doesn’t clarify Theocritis’ connection with Blade and The Structure. Still, a vampire invasion provides the perfect cover for Theocritis to ramp up his vampiric business operations. Theocritis is on a rapid journey from office flunky to CEO, but he's still a fanboy. The way he manipulates an employee suggests his goals are less than noble. Still, at least Theocritis' efforts address a social ill that most elected officials would rather ignore than tackle.

 

 

 

 

Art

Justina Ireland’s story is so spectacular that it takes an army of artists to bring it to life in Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2. Marcelo Ferreira, Chris Campana, Roberto Poggi, Sean Parsons & Craig Yeung convey the impressive laboratory of Hemoglobin Inc. Colleen peers out through the glass panel of her sanitized pen. Her expression and the bite marks on her neck suggest she's no longer in a hitting-and-quipping mood. High-speed camera shots reveal Spider-Man's acrobatics in the park, but the Lizard's ground-shaking landing disperses the undead. Maxine Danger may have escaped jail, but the prim and stylish CEO opts for attire and a new corporate vehicle taken from Wez’s gang in The Road Warrior.

 

Rachelle Rosenberg conveys the cleanroom environment of Theocritis' biotech startup. He may wear a suit, but his all-red ensemble suggests his likely future residence, provided Maxine doesn't get to him first. The skies of New York take on attractive pinks, purples, and oranges. The lamp posts and the glowing headlights of Misty’s motorcycle illuminate the yellow-green ground fog that hovers over the park. Rosenberg also enlivens silhouettes with purple highlights, completing the eerie atmosphere in Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2. Amid all the gray, bloodless vampires, Misty Knight's red outfit, enlivened with reflective black leather and her golden arm, seems the perfect foil for pink-haired Maxine's Punk sensibilities.

 

Cory Petit thwips large black uppercase lettering into white dialogue balloons and white narrative boxes with red borders. Spider-Man’s thwips and the Lizard's roaring complete this story of corporate warfare and the toll it takes on everyone when CEOs value profits over people. Thanks to Marvel for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

After his recent battles with Ben Reilly, Peter Parker finally meets the woman who stole his clone’s memories. While Miles Morales’ mentor agrees to meet Peter halfway, her partner is in danger of joining the undead in Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2. But is a manufactured vampire the equal of a natural-born bloodsucker?

 

Rating 9.4/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.