Appetite For Self-Destruction: ‘Night Club 2’ #1 Advance Review

While Danny and Amy continue to have fun with being superheroes fuelled by their vampire powers, in Night Club 2 #1, Sam continues to hold a grudge which has led him to slowly slips onto a darker and more irresponsible path. As such the spotlight, while focussed initially on Danny and Amy joyously taking out local goons, shifts onto Sam, a character who has dramatically taken a turn for the worse because of his seething jealousy of Danny and Amy’s blossoming relationship. A onetime geek whose powers have allowed him to rise through the precarious ranks of High School to become King of the Jocks and start up a relationship with “literally the hottest girl in the school”. He’s Peter Parker before his Uncle Ben was shot, but on steroids. An angry teenager (aren’t they all?) with a powerset to easy to abuse. Too easy to share.

In the first series we found our new born vampires learning the ropes and setting themselves some handy guidelines to avoid being found out. But Sam sees to no longer share these concerns as witnessed in this issue. His anger – and newfound social standing – have made him lazy. Or simply arrogant. And this leads to a very public display of his powers. Powers which he is happy to use for his own personal gain. Is Millar setting Sam up as this season’s arch enemy, or are we witnessing a redemptive arc?

Once more providing the kinetic art is Juanan Ramirez who excels at both the joyous, colourful highs of urban crime fighting as well as the grim, dark lows of the more gothic elements of this fun and unique series. Although as vampires a lot of the action does take place under the cloak of darkness. Nonetheless colourist Fabiana Mascolo does well to add a splash of much needed colour to proceedings, with well-chosen more muted colours against which the colourful homemade costumes worn by our young teen heroes pop. It’s a dark world they now inhabit, but with insane powers, these young crime fighters are having the time of their lives. And the bright clothes and cheap wrestling masks go a good deal of the way to expressing that to the readers.

With the gulf growing between the three friends – as witnessed first hand in this tense issue – if Sam is to redeem himself, he’s got a long way to go after events in this debut issue seems to be leading him even further down the dark and more irresponsible path he is on now.

Night Club 2 #1 is out on Wednesday 21st August from Dark Horse Comics and catch up with my recent interview with Millar here.