In the era of Marvel NOW! can this beleaguered scientist rise to new heroic heights or is he doomed to be a misunderstood villain?  Read on to find out.

The official description from Marvel:

Morbius….the hunted, haunted fugitive.

Morbius…the dead souled scientist.

Morbius…the Living Vampire.

Somewhere inside Doctor Michael Morbius is a good man who just needs a second chance. After escaping from The Raft in Amazing Spider-Man 699.1, Morbius is scraping desperately through each day trying to carve out a life in a world that has turned its back on him. However his redemption…may be worse than his sin.
NOW Morbius returns in this long-awaited ongoing series, where the line between hero and villain becomes brutally and bloodily blurred.

Following his escape from a super villain prison our protagonist travels to Brownsville.   There he hopes to avoid detection from any of the various agencies or superheroes that are surely scouting for him. Due to the kindness of strangers he ends up in some unfortunate situations that both test his mantle and illuminate his assured evolution.

Joe Keatinge continues the work he began in Amazing Spider-Man #699.1 (read our review here) by offering a solid script that successfully sets the tone for this forthcoming saga.  From the opening page to the final panel this is a very straightforward tale with some nods to prior arcs that featured this “vampire-ish” character.  There are moments of some out of sync dialogue as the tone shifts a bit, but overall there’s a sense of humor and honesty that easily elevates Michael Morbius into something more than what he is.

The art by Richard Elson perfectly suits the tone of the narrative.  His proverbial pencil strokes illustrate a brooding mood that encapsulates the meat of this romp while slowly but surely showing how consequential these events can be.  From the use of solidly defined backgrounds to the oddly but inspired depictions of our protagonist there’s clearly a strong and consistent tone within these pages.

Morbius: The Living Vampire #1 at this point certainly has some room to grow but it does more than enough right in its first outing to warrant your attention.  Recommended.

3.5/5