Superman and Batman Vs. Vampires and Werewolves

Superman: Miniseries

by Kevin VanHook, Tom Mandrake (Illustrator), John Landis (Introduction)

The Man of Steel and The Dark Knight take on the legendary creatures of the night in a no-holds-barred fight to save the world, and with the help of a rogue bloodsucker--not to mention Green Arrow--Batman and Superman stand a chance against an attack from the world's deadliest monsters. Original.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Batman, Horror, Superman, Dc Comics, Vampires

144 pages, Paperback

First published August 4, 2009

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disposable horror trash (just check out that B movie-worthy title) mixed with superhero melodrama, I checked it out of the local library on a lark as Halloween '17 was fast approaching. Not exactly an enjoyable or silly read as there some tragic, unpleasantly-depicted deaths that are quickly glossed over as just collateral damage, I guess. It should be noted that our title heroes receive capable assistance throughout from a handful of their 'SuperFriends' which leads to a more ensemble-like feeling.

[Lost Planet Airman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ehh, it was fun while it lasted, S&BvV&W.
But you really weren't all you claimed to be, were you? You were supposed to be the best of dark-and-light facing off against the scariest of dark-magic humans. But then, the vampire was given a human side and a voice in the story. And Superman seemed weirdly ignorant of sounds, or how to do more than hit things. And then the werewolves _fought_ the vampires, or was it that Bats and Supes joined forces with a vampire and a werewolf, or was it that Manbat fought werewolves and The Demon cast spells but Supes fought some other demon that was much worse, and "magic" ws everywhere Supes was but never affected Batman....

(muffled cries)





Nothing to see here, citizens. Please move along.

[Cait · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a three-star story, really, but it gets an extra point for the title. And it also has Wonder Woman and Nightwing in supporting roles and Jason Blood as a major player, and it isn't described terribly well by the title (awesome a title though it is). It also contains Batman and Superman both making some fairly big mistakes, which is what makes it more interesting than a generic fight-some-monsters story.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as I'd hoped. I'm not even sure why Superman is in the title, since he doesn't show up until the end of the second issue, and he gets about as much page time as Green Arrow and Jason Blood/Etrigan (neither of whom are in the title). Still, it's a fun little story.

[Stephen Olley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, that was fun.

[Ian · Rating 2 out of 5]

As cursed monsters, beset by a terrible hunger for human life, prowl the streets of Gotham City, Batman and Superman begin a hunt for the madman responsible. They find themselves unexpectedly aided by a vampire and a werewolf, who are seeking a cure for their conditions.

It has to be said that this book is every bit as dumb as its title suggests.
Which is a big shame, because it needn't have been; with there being plenty of potential to mix the supernatural horror world with the murky streets of Gotham.

The vampires and werewolves on offer here are the unsophisticated animalistic kind that could easily be swapped-out for, say, zombies for all that their individual lore actually impacts the story (which is to say that it doesn't).
In fact, the two titular monsters are treated exactly the same throughout the book and the story would have been identical if it was just vampires or just werewolves. Honestly, I suspect the only reason that both of them are here is because someone really wanted to slap that title on the front of a book. Or possibly because the 'Underworld' movies were popular at the time.

Far worse that the misuse of the monsters for me was the misuse of familiar DC characters.
Wonder Woman, Nightwing, Green Arrow, Etrigan and Man-Bat all show up for little better reason than to simply say they're in here. They have no real relevance to the story being told and are the epitome of gratuitous cameos.
The two title characters are badly-handled as well, although Batman gets the slightly better end of the deal (and is the reason I've given this 2 out of 5, instead of 1 out of 5). What really bothered me was how casual both Superman and Batman are about killing the werewolves and vampires. Sure, Supes tries to save an infected boy at one point, but other than that it's just a free-for-all of slaughtering monsters. For neither character to so much as hesitate felt so very wrong for both of them and, as with so much in this book, was clearly written to 'look cool' without any consideration of the implications.

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[Ben Truong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves is a limited series published by DC Comics and has Bruce Wayne as Batman teaming up with Clark Kent as Superman and fighting mythical creatures in vampires and werewolves. Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves collects all six issues of the 2008 limited series.

Vampires and Werewolves have been littering around Gotham City and Bruce Wayne as Batman and Clark Kent as Superman teams up with Marius Dimeter, a vampire, to stop Herbert Combs who are experimenting with the undead.

Supporting characters in the series are: Diana of Themyscira as Wonder Woman (Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves #1), Dick Grayson as Nightwing (Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves #2), Oliver Queen as Green Arrow (Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves #3–5), Jason Blood as Etirgan (Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves #3–6), and Robert Langstrom as Man-Bat (Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves #5–6).

Kevin VanHook penned the entire limited series. For the most part, it is written somewhat well. The plot is self-evident in the title says it all – Superman and Batman vs. vampires and werewolves, albeit the allegiances are not as evident. The World's Greatest investigates the unexpected sheer amount of vampires and werewolves in Gotham City with the help of Marius Dimeter they set their eyes on Herbert Combs who are experimenting on the undead. It is an interesting premise that was mediocrity executed.

Tom Mandrake penciled the entire trade paperback. Since he was the main penciler, the artistic flow of the trade paperback flowed exceptionally well. For the most part, I enjoyed his penciling style – especially the human characters, while the werewolves and to an extent the vampires are much to be desired.

All in all, Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves is written somewhat well, which explores the undead in the DC Universe.

[Kris Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't throw the word great around often or use it lightly, but this book is great. Great writing by Kevin VanHook, moody and evocative art by Tom Sutton, tasteful, exquisite coloring by Eyring...heck, even the letterer, Steve Wands, deserves a shout-out for his vintage, John Constanza-esque lettering. It looks like Constanza's work in the early issues of Swamp Thing, all creepy and angled. I love classic Horror stuff, and it doesn't get any more classic than vampires and werewolves, does it? Everything fires on all cylinders, and everything works. Top quality from top to bottom, you can't go wrong with this book.

[Ανδρέας Μιχαηλίδης · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly, initially I was going for a 1, but the art and designs are actually pretty and well-colored when you don't need to take physics and body posture into account - they are plain wrong and you can clearly see it.

There is nothing really to this comic. Hammer Horror and Lovecraft monsters appear, heroes randomly appear, there's fisticuffs and liberal killing (but not graphic enough to make it interesting, obviously), and some half-assed explanation about the whole thing.

I say give this one a pass.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wasn’t expecting much with this book, but it was actually surprisingly good. I read the entire thing in one sitting, so it must have been gripping enough for me to keep reading.
Admittedly i think Batman was much better written than Superman. At times, Superman’s motives seemed annoying and unnecessary. I think there was also a missed opportunity with Wonder Woman, who only briefly appears at the start of the book.
It was nice to see at least one Batman villain appear and one that seemed very fitting for the story/theme.
Don’t expect too much with this book, but it’s a decent read.

[Zachary King · Rating 2 out of 5]

Almost didn’t finish. Superman is barely in it, and the focus is more on a mad scientist summoning a Lovecraftian beast. Seems like a backdoor pilot for the writer’s OC, Marius Dimeter, who is almost like a vampiric John Constantine. Two stars because some Batman is better than no Batman.

[Zoie Bero · Rating 2 out of 5]

so mid.... barely any superman💔💔 but the art was pretty cool

[MeatAndPotatoes · Rating 3 out of 5]

As far as Superman/Batman stories go, this one was pretty average. The title made me think it was just going to be stupid fun with Batman and Superman fighting hordes of zombies and werewolves but they included some things about demons to make the plot more substantial and to give it a reason as to why the vampires and werewolves were magical and therefore, able to harm Superman. A few other heroes like Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, Man-Bat, and Etrigan show up but Etrigan is really the only one with anything to add. It ends on what I guess is an "ominous" note implying that the villain will break out of Arkham Asylum and recreate his reign of terror but by that time I was just bored with the book and didn't care.

[Ryan Laferney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a ridiculous book, which should be obvious from the title alone. Sadly, however, it's a pale imitation of what could have been an amazing comic. It's a mix of Lovecraftian horror and "the old mad occult scientist" seeking immortality tropes mashed up with a Batman detective story and Superman randomly punching stuff. It never rises above the tropes to truly horrific or interesting. And there are some nitpicky things that bothered me such as Batman slaying vampires! (which seems out of character for him as he is opposed to killing and vampires after all are former humans). But, if you accept this as the B-movie script it is, it's fairly entertaining. It's basically Hammer Horror meets the DC Universe. Corny, fun, but not great.

[Jaq · Rating 3 out of 5]

This might have been much more, instead it feels like a pale imitation of a great idea. The failure to fully realise the horror of what Combs has done, is doing and will do, really drags this collection down.

I also would have preferred more suspense, and more Batman - but that's a purely personal choice....

[Sterling · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a ridiculous book, which should be obvious from the title alone, but it's also a fun read. Although it does suffer from DC'S usual "heroes arrive too late to save anyone" problem.
It's not just Batman and Superman, either, Nightwing shows up, as does Wonder Woman and even Green Arrow (with wood-tipped arrows, of course.)
All in all, an entertaining book if you can get a copy.

[Caleb · Rating 2 out of 5]

I totally read this.

[Karla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ummm...pretty much what you'd expect.

[Christopher]

Seriously, it is better than the title sounds. They actually put together a good story with guest stars Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, The Demon Etrigan and drop lots of lore and even mention Lovecraft.

[John Yelverton · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just plain awful is the best way to describe this utter piece of garbage.

[India · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I saw this book, I was totally thinking that it would be really weird and lame, and pretty stupid sort of. But, once I read it, it's actually a pretty good story! It's entertaining to read.

[Milva · Rating 2 out of 5]

To było tak złe, że prawie dobre. ale tylko prawie.

[Neeti · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldve been some 15 pages shorter. Too much of the same thing happening.