Product Description: This story follows Stella Olemaun's efforts to warn the world about the threat the vampires pose - the vampires who overran Barrow, Alaska, killing her husband and most of the town. With an exclusive introduction by screenwriter Eric Red (The Hitcher, Near Dark), the flat-out terror of Dark Days will reaffirm the dominance of Niles and Templesmith over the realm of illustrated horror fiction.
Biting Sequel After the film adaptation of 30 Days of Night received only so-so reviews, instead of waiting for the movie on DVD, I decided to take a look at the original comics/graphic novels created by Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith.
Interestingly, 30 days was originally fielded unsuccessfully to studios as a screenplay before Niles hooked up with Templesmith to create the comic. Once the comic came out, even studios that had originally rejected the movie pitch were knocking down the 30 Days creators' doors to get the film rights (according to a 10/18/2007 IGN.com article).
Anyway, when I looked up 30 Days at Amazon, I found that more than just one version existed. There is the original 30 Days of Night; there is #2 called Dark Days; and there is #3 called Return to Barrow. There are even more in the series too, but the above three complete the trilogy created by the original partnership of Niles & Templesmith.
The first is the story of vampires that invade a small town (called Barrow in Alaska) at dusk on the first evening of 30 days before the sun will rise again. The second story is one of revenge; a survivor of the first story hunts and seeks to expose the existence of vampires; and the third story has the brother of a victim from the first story returning to Barrow to discover and expose the awful truth of what originally happened in the town.
The first 30 Days story is what the movie was based on. It's a fast read that took about an hour to get through. As an effect, the way the vampire's lines are written in the text bubbles is crooked, thin-fonted and sloppy; I suppose this was to trying to illustrate the sound of the vampire's voice, but it mostly made for some hard to read, headache inducing text bubbles.
Dark Days and Return were good, but not great like the original. But it was an overall fun series. I'll probably pick up the November 2007 release of 30 Days Of Night: Eben And Stella that picks up and fills an interesting gap between Dark Days and Return to Barrow. Niles is back for Eben and Stella, but Templesmith is out.
As for the movie 30 Days of Night, I'll check that out too after it comes out on DVD and let you if it really 'bites' like others have said it does.
Dark Days doesn't disappoint A strong sequel in the 30 Days of Night series. Niles and Templesmith once again prove their talents in the graphic horror genre remain razor-sharp. Though the book is certain to satisfy even the most hardcore fan's appetite for fleshrending monsters of the night, the compelling, character-driven story and award winning art makes this a "must read" for even the causal reader.
Vitamin D backlights: it gets the red out!! After Barrow, a few people (19 according to Return to Barrow and a couple from New Orleans) are left to pick up the pieces. In the quest to do so, a book entitled 30 Days of Night is written, visual evidence is examined, and a war spills out from the shadows atop the world to the streets of L.A. It has to be one of the best sequels I've read in some time.
In Dark Days, readers find themselves treated to some of the same people moving through a new story arch with the same stylized artwork, showcasing what Niles and Templesmith can do. Niles takes the siege of Barrow and puts a lot of pieces from that in play, including the loose ends that came from New Orleans. I liked the blend of the old with the blend of the new, and I especially liked the way the story moved because it was really amazing. I like what Templesmith does in this book, too, because he takes the minimalism we saw in Barrow and incorporates it into the very shadows and brings life to them. Sometimes it seems like the pictures seem to warp, bending with pieces of life all their own. I also like the hidden things that are sometimes placed in pictures, like the billboard for "Crack" flavored soft drinks. It makes for great bedtime reading.
For those who liked 30 Days of Night, you'll really like the continuation. Even if you didn't like the first installation you may find the second more interesting, with the story coming alive and adding in so much more. Even the size of the book had almost doubled, showcasing just how much is going on. It is definitely a great choice and then some.
Brilliant I'm not going to go into a long-winded review. I just want to say that I really enjoyed this graphic novel. Great story and great graphics. I also enjoyed 30 days of Night and Return to Barrow. I am a 36 year old female, so that will give you an idea of the difference types of people that can enjoy this series. AND, doesn't the guy on the cover look like that horrible little voodoo doll from that old old old movie. The one who came to life when a necklace was removed from it and chased this woman all over her apartment. I think she "killed it" in the oven.
Amazing... I picked up 30 Days of Night and Return to Barrow almost a year ago and loved them, but had a hell of a time finding Dark Days. It wasn't in any stores in Colorado, and the only place that I found it to be in stock was in a four-story Borders store in Washington, DC, and when I looked for it I could not find it. After and extensive search I found a copy here on Amazon and ordered it. After reading it, I am pleased to say that this is a great- and necessary- continuation of the 30 Days of Night saga. I don't understand how people can say that there is a lack of character development in this book. Stella goes from tough girl to sensitive woman, and Dane goes from being hell bent on revenge to falling in love with Stella. And the final scenes with the climax of the story (which I will not spoil) is so emotional, at least to me. Plus, Judith Ali's character was another emotional point, helping to add to the sadness of the story by sharing a loss with Stella, the loss of her son, the helicopter pilot in the first story. Excellent decision to add her in. The art by Ben Templesmith is, as always, wonderful. It's beautiful and grotesque, vague and clear, all at the same time. I will never understand where he gets his ideas of how to draw things and shade/color them. His style is so different that he's really one of the only comic book artists in the business that I actually actively seek work from. His style is so original and it's not cartoonish, like the artists for the 28 Days Later comic book were- it's dark and horrifying, exactly what a horror comic should be (the lack of him on the 30 Days of Night: Spreading the Disease comic was the main reason I was so hesitant to pick that up, and also that Steve Niles didn't write it. But that's beside the point.) Pick this up if you're a fan, and if you're not a fan, well, start being one I guess. If you've never heard of 30DON, definately pick up the original, this one, and Return to Barrow. 5 stars.
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