Grimm Fairy Tales presents Helsing #2 Review


Do we really need an off shoot series that’s dealing with this family tree? Read on to find out.

The official description from Zenescope:

Jonathan Harker and the Vampire Brides

In pursuit of the mysterious stranger that sent her the lost diary of her father, Liesel Van Helsing travels to Rome. There, she comes into contact with Jonathan Harker, a meek bookshop owner, who will assist her in her quest to find her target. However, they might not get far, as they are being followed by a trio of deadly vampires known as the Brides!

GFT Helsing 2_Variant CoverThe world is a very dangerous place, and as we continue to explore the more monstrous side of the Grimm Fairy Tales universe I’m continually glad we have this heroine to combat the forces of evil. And as the creative team delivers the second part of her solo act, there’s a lot of worthwhile elements with some distinct hiccups along the way.

Pat Shand pens the script and the overworked but consistently quality scribe yields yet another worthwhile adventure for our unique protagonist. The key to this particular yarn lies in Liesel Van Helsing and her personality. It’s on display as she discovers an alternate history for her family while dealing with present day threats and questions. I found a couple instances where the narration by her father felt a bit too stiff but these did little to hinder the forward progression of the text.

There were moments when I absolutely enjoyed the illustrative works of Tony Brescini but to be frank the final renditions for many of the pages came off rather bland. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but some of the panels came off rushed. Even so with the assist by Andres Esparza and the colors delivered by Fran Gamboa and J.C. Ruiz the visual package still managed to convey some necessarily distinct points.

Grimm Fairy Tales presents Helsing #2 is a comic that offers up a compelling literary track while losing some of its visual flare. Despite that this is still a release that’s certainly worthwhile and one that I can recommend.

OUR RATING
7
  • + Liesel Van Helsing is a strong protagonist!
  • + Pat Shand nails a rock solid script!
  • - Some bits of the narration are stuffy.
  • - The visuals can be underwhelming...

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