Dracula the Unconquered #2: Captives of the Catacombs

Dracula and Thalia may have escaped from the Tower of London, but when they return to Dracula’s estate, they’re in more danger than ever!  Who is the madman that has caged them with a house full of deathtraps, and what does he want from the greatest of all vampires?  Find out if Dracula and Thalia can survive becoming Captives of the Catacombs!

The full 24-page issue will be out later this month!

We know it’s been a long wait since Dracula the Unconquered #1, but don’t worry:  #2 is on the way soon!  And to prove it, here’s a look at Drac and Thalia from Steve’s pencils for the second issue, coming soon right here at DraculaTheUnconquered.com!

What lies within that mysterious building, and what does it mean for Dracula and Thalia?  Find out soon in Dracula the Unconquered #2!

For more sketches, check out Steve Downer’s sketchblog!

Dracula the Unconquered #2:  Dracula and Thalia may have escaped from the Tower of London, but when they return to Dracula’s estate, they’re in more danger than ever!  Who is the madman that has caged them with a house full of deathtraps, and what does he want from the greatest of all vampires?  Find out when Chris Sims, Steve Downer and Josh Krach tell the story of our heroes becoming “Captives of the Catacombs!” 

24 Pages | $1.00 | Coming Soon!

Steve, Chris and Josh wish you the happiest of holidays!  Thanks for your support in 2011, and we’ll see you with Drac #2 in 2012!

The backgrounds are in 1920 x 1080 format, but feel free to resize them and share them with your pals!

Dracground 01: The Black Death

Dracground 02: BOOM

We hope you like them, and thanks for supporting Dracula the Unconquered #1!

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First, Chris appeared as the very first guest on the Geekin’ Out podcast, where he spent almost two hours talking about everything from Dracula’s pop culture connections to writing Thalia to the Canadian teen boat comedy, Breaker High.

In antoher first, this time at Nerdcenaries, interviewer Luke Herr talks to Chris about the math behind Dracula and whether or not he considers himself an expert on vampires in general.

Finally, Geoffrey D. Wessel at the Comics Bulletin gives us an extremely in-depth interview about the roots of the series and where it’s going to go, with questions about “strip-mining pop culture,” the notion of character by consensus, and Chris’s preparedness to take the criticism he hands out at his day job.  Plus, thoughts on the original Dracula:

Wessel: Then again, most people’s ideas of Dracula come nowhere close to what Stoker actually wrote. Sad to think that the god-awful ’90s film got it the closest.

Sims: That’s one of the things that attracted me to the character, though. The idea that we have this idea of Dracula that’s so much bigger and different than his portrayal in the novel. I made a joke that Dracula in Dracula isn’t really any scarier than any weird foreign dude who invites you to his castle and then locks you up and tries to steal your girlfriend. He’s just kind of a creep.

Check out the links for more information on the series, and be here next monday, October 31, for the debut of Dracula the Unconquered!

SIMS: I don’t do the big list, at least in the first couple of issues, the way it works in my head is that all your standard vampire powers and weaknesses — super-strength, they drink blood, sunlight burns them up — are common traits among all the vampires. But then you have the cool extra powers that are usually attributed to Dracula — being able to summon wolves and turn into a bat and take the form of mist — are King of the Vampires powers. Those powers are like the magical equivalent of a crown and scepter. They’re bestowed on you when you ascend to that level. So it’s stuff that Dracula used to be able to do, but now he can’t. To balance things out, and to explain anything else that’s come up, I have Dracula as a sorcerer as well. I mean, the guy’s a magical creature who was alive for hundreds of years. He’s picked up some tricks. You’ll see a bit of that in the first issue, too. The way I look at magic, and magical beings like Vampires, is that it’s all based in symbolism. Even the idea of the stake through the heart — it’s not because Vampires are magically vulnerable to wood, it’s because you’re literally nailing them to the ground so they can’t rise up from their graves. That’s how I try to think of it and present it, which I think dovetails with the idea of the powers as a symbol of rulership.

BIRD: Doesn’t giving Dracula magic just give you more to explain, though? Comics fans are notorious for bitching about how magic gets used as a deus ex machina (and also misunderstanding what a deus ex machina is, but you follow my point).

SIMS: In a way, yes. But like I said, it’s there from the start, and I think it fits with what I’m doing. The whole book is rooted in magic. Drac himself is a supernatural being, and like I said, the premise is largely influenced by stuff like Raiders of the Lost Ark. There are magical enemies, magical artifacts that he’s looking for, there’s wizards and spirits and ghosts. And once you establish that this is a world where all of that exists, and that your main character is right at the center of it, why not embrace it? Why wouldn’t a cunning warrior who knows there are people out there who want to kill him not figure out a way to bend that to his considerable will? Especially when he’s got decades to do it.

For more, read the full interview at MightyGodKing, and look out for Drac #1′s release on Monday, October 31!

First up, the Unconquered One himself:

Steve Says:  Drac is heavily inspired by Gene Colan’s iconic take as well as a general fondness for turn-of-the-century gentlemanliness. He seems like the kind of guy who would try to be the best-dressed dude in the room. His poses and gestures are overdramatic, even operatic. He’s very theatrical. I originally envisioned him with longer hair, but Chris suggested a look with short, slicked-back hair, a definite improvement.

Chris Says:  Steve nailed the attitude I wanted to have for Dracula right from the start.  Theatricality and appearance are very important to him as a character, just as they are in the original novel — the monster who builds the illusion of nobility.  I wanted him to have that sense of grandeur in his motion, and Steve gave him exactly that.  My favorite detail:  The bat-winged chain holding his jacket together.

And here’s Thalia:

Steve Says: For Thalia, I was inspired both by Beryl Hutchinson (Squire from DC Comics’ British superhero duo Knight & Squire) and my own sister. Thalia’s stocky, chipmunk-cheeked look was designed to contrast with Dracula’s gaunt, somber appearance. The bowler hat was there from the beginning; for some reason I can’t really imagine her without it. I toyed with the idea of giving her pants or breeches, but the long skirt just felt right, both for the character and the time period.

Chris Says:  I love Knight & Squire, so Steve and I were on the same page right from the start with his designs, and the visual dynamic of the two characters.  As for the hat, it cracks me up every time to see her holding it on while she’s running.  It’s got that great Lou Costello physical comedy to it that fits right in with the tone we’re going for.

Keep an eye out for more sketches, and watch for Dracula the Unconquered #1, available right here on Monday, October 31!