The latest story arc come to a close, but does it go out with a whimper or a bang?  Read on to find out.

The official description from Dynamite:

The “INQUISITION” storyline reaches its dramatic conclusion in this issue! Vampirella must defend her recent actions and prove that she hasn’t been corrupted by the influence of Chaos…before her most powerful enemy drives her to madness! The balance of the universe rests upon Vampirella’s shoulders, and the weight may be too much for her to bear!

If there was a way to properly describe this arc, I’d definitely call it the proverbial “calm before the storm.”  Our heroine has been brought to the Conjuress and before a tribunal to be judged for her actions in recent issues.  I’ll be honest as soon as the structure was established the ending of this release was never in doubt, but the strong writing kept me interested form beginning to end.

Brandon Jerwa continues his stint as the series writer, delivering a very engaging script that succeeds in not just entertaining but reflecting on the history of our protagonist.  He uses established plot threads in a way that delivers good dialogue while catching readers up on what’s been going on in Vampirella‘s recent life, and he does this without letting the conversations become boring.  I especially liked the inter-cut scenes that informed the narrative just enough to keep the pace at a more the acceptable speed.

Heubert Khan Michael does a fine job on the art, rendering the court room scenes with the best of them.  His pencil work, somewhat light details but sturdily structured set pieces ultimately yield a strong visual experience.  There were however a few panels were faces and angels looked a bit off and rather unflattering, but thankfully these were minor moments that didn’t affect the overall atmosphere of the book.

Vampirella #23 succeeds in ending this arc while opening the next one.  With strong writing and good art this issue easily earns a recommendation.

4/5