In the late 90s/early 2000s, Christopher’s priests redefine the Black Panther for the new millennium. Now, in an exclusive interview with AIPT, the priest revealed that he wanted the same revival of the steamy Vampirella.
Since her inception, people’s general opinion on Vampirella has not evolved much. Instead, it’s easy to fire Vampirella for her outfit and her throwback appeal to an outdated, bygone era. But that is where the priest comes out. Unlike Vampirra, who is just to showcase horror movies, Vampirra is more than just a no-eye treat. If people can pass through sexy covers, the priest promises that they will find depth.
“She’s not that different from us,” the priest said. “She just wants to live a normal life with her friends because she is a space vampire.”
What makes her very special to the priest is her deep humanity. It tells us that we all live perfectly under the pressure of family drama that almost resonates with the Universal.
Vampirella #15 (2021). Art by Peach Moko. Courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment.
When asked about the 56-year history of the Vampire, the priest likened his run in the comic to JJ Abrams’ Star Trek. Co-captured by artist Ergün Gündüz, they aim to guide Vampirella to a new frontier and welcome fresh readers. Most of the time, they want to provide a story of carrying past Canons without all the corresponding luggage.
So, as the character recently reached the 676th issue, Vampirella was changed to the new #1, which was up to the big anniversary at #700. The priests hype the future and talk about the possibility of returning writers and artists from everything through the history of Vampirella.
It was a long list and sometimes it looked like homework to new readers, and I spent a lot of my time reading back issues. The priest understands how daunting it can be, and like Abrams’ Star Trek, people can let go of their guesses, more than Vampirella is in the eye, and they can dive into wild rides.
Comic Controversy
At the beginning of this new series, the priest tackles postpartum depression and maternal difficulties. When asked about his inspiration, the priest had to care for him (same) by recalling his childhood memories of his 13-year-old sister when she gave birth to a baby.
“All of a sudden there was this crying stranger in our house. “What if Vampirella has a baby she doesn’t want?
The experience was fundamental in the life of a priest, and he inhaled the creature into the permanent fixtures of Vampirella’s fiction and breathed the truth. It came from the contradictory emotions, learning to love something unexpected, and drifted into Vampirella’s continued struggle.
Vampirella #1 (2025). Courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment.
Speaking about the baby, the priest added that the idea came from a conversation with his editor, Matt Idelson, and that the green light was given to him by Dynamite CEO, Nick Barach.
Priests have a history of this type of important editorial decisions throughout their tenure in the comic book industry. He recalls his stint as a 20’s editor for Marvel Comics in the 80’s. It is a controversial debate that continues today, something the priest finds again in his marriage to Superman Lois Lane.
“Okay, so you’re married to Superman and Lois Lane. What’s up now?” the priest said. “They have a son, John Kent.
For the priest, instead of “yes and…”, sometimes it’s “yes” but…” there’s always a catch that keeps the status quo unharmed.
So, what does this have to do with Vampirella? Simply put, the priest wants to take her on a journey. Or, as he further explains, “These characters are easily written in the corner and you can find yourself in a cul-de-dead.”
If there is any meaningful change in Vampirella’s life, the priest wants to follow it. The last thing he wants is a marketing stunt that promotes sales of some issues but quickly loses steam and makes it pointless to publishers regain change or, even worse, make it pointless. And when you look at the reversal of Spider-Man’s marriage, history seems to have proven him right.
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21 (1987). Art by John Romita, courtesy of senior Marvel comics.
Let the calm rest
In her current arc, the priest says that he continues on six issues. The adult baby from Vampirella, named Cicero, goes back in time from the dystopian future. The second issue currently being released features depictions of sexual assault. This is presented as Xeero fucking his girlfriend. To touch on this, the priest is not shy about the controversy.
“Whatever I say is cancelled anyway,” the priest said.
He explains that he doesn’t like fridging. This is the act of killing female characters, usually due to the motives and development of male characters. He sincerely admitted what happened with the Green Lantern himself and Katma Tuy, the wife of John Stewart.
The priest says this is not the case with Cicero, as both characters in question #2 have agents. This is a lead-up that will be repaid later in the series.
With Vampirella, characters of all genders are important and not just plotting devices. The priest recalls similar priorities while writing Superman: what was lost for DC, and how he fought to be set in mainline continuity.
Because, as he continued, “It’s not just a Superman story, it’s also a Lois Lane story.”
He emphasizes the importance of that seemingly random difference. The way both characters fight to maintain their love beyond the light of physical and mental distance. In the priest’s cartoon, Lois is not a prop from the background, but an active character with his own mission and struggle.
Superman: Lost (2023). Art by Carlo Paglayan. Provided by DC Comics.
Nevertheless, the priest knows that there is inevitable that there is a certain conflicting interpretation.
“It’s like the people on the side of Iron Man and Captain America in the civil war,” the priest said. “Cicero doesn’t know he’s wrong. But does that make him right?”
When the story is well told, there is always a debate of good and evil, and it can justify things, and the conversation is generally healthy. The priest does not hold back his words for an invisible audience – he has not filtered his opinions forever.
Still, he still condemned Xeero’s actions and stated that if Cicero had only accepted responsibility, the dystopian apocalypse he came to would not have happened. He argues that this recognition of fraud and recognition of mistakes is something that is lacking from people who are responsible for more lives than most, especially those in the power.
“You’re looking at Obama. He’s apologised,” the priest said. “He said, ‘I’m sorry.’ You haven’t seen it anymore.
As an aside, priests return to the way that, at this age and age, the context is very easily peeled off from its original intentions. He talks about how people spread the John Kent headline about being bisexual without actually reading the story. He tries to make sure that readers read the story to the end before reviewing and not give premature opinions.
Vampirella #2 (2025). Courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment.
Talk more about Cicero, the priest associates the character with Jericho. Jericho wrote in his stroke of death: a rebirth run in DC. He compares Jericho and his late brother, Vampirella, and her dark sister, Draculina.
“Jericho is a good child,” the priest said. “Grant, Lavagger is a bad guy.”
He then delves into the nature of evil and how parents can unintentionally destroy children. For him, evil easily slips into the cracks of his family. What happens when Vampirella ignores her child at his important developmental moments? What does the trauma of the generation of Deathstroke do to his children? Evil continues like a shadow until no one notices it is too late.
“That’s the evil,” the priest said.
The colour is cartoon music
To convince the readers of a journey to evil, the priest explains how Vampirella’s son Cicero started as an inconspicuous FedEx driver in the future. Gradually, readers can see his descent and transform into a hair-dyed, Emo Dracula-like figure in the upcoming trench coat.
Speaking of Dracula, the priest mentions his work on Vampirella/Dracula. Rage comics and how I couldn’t settle down to writing Dracula due to the design of artist Christian Rozado.
“People kept drawing Dracula like Bela Lugosi, smooth black hair, you know, collars,” the priest said, imitating Lugosi’s iconic gloves.
The priest had admitted that Rosado manifested his vision in a singular and powerful way.
“Christian Rosado was the first man to get what I was aiming for,” the priest said. “This is a modern person who doesn’t notice walking down the street. You know. A very modest guy. Still, he’s in the Black Panther vein with this guy who always works on another level. If you know what you’re looking, I played Cello, even when he was walking.”
Vampirella/Dracula: Rage (2023). Art by Mike Chrome. Courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment.
Only after Rosado painted a more calm Dracula would it all be clicked for the priest. And the same thing happened when he began working with Vampirella’s current artist, Ergun Günduz. He explained how he wasn’t terrifying his Vampirella, and that’s what Gunduz fits perfectly into the book.
“I’m going back to Ackerman,” the priest said of Forest J. Ackerman, the original creator of Vampirella. “What was Ackerman’s original intention? He was spoofing science fiction.”
The priest added: “Most vampires in cartoons come across, like in cartoons, and above. The main issue with the horrors of comics these days is that Bernie Wrightson is gone.” The priest lamented the death of the artist and gained fame with his detailed horror comics such as Swamp Sing and Frankenstein.
The priests provided further praise to the artists, pointing out how the right collaborators nurture life in their work.
“There are things in movies that don’t exist in comics. They’re healthy in movies,” the priest said. “More precisely, there’s no sound. And we fall into it every time. There’s no sound in the comics. I have no color. Our colorists are our music. They’re our soundtracks.
In that memo, Gündüz colours his own art, and the priest praises the splash page in the upcoming issue #3 of Vampirella.
“It’s amazing what he can do with colour,” the priest said. “But the enormous amount of details this guy invests in. There’s something interesting here.
The priest teases Vampirella, who escapes to Vegas on a whim, praises Gunduz for the perfect filming of the crowded Vegas airport. Regarding Gündüz’s unique pop art style, the priest says, “No one is portrayed like this. No one fits his style.”
Vampirella #3 (2025). Courtesy of Dynamite Comics.
The priest emphasizes his inter-writer and art collaboration, saying, “This is probably the best part of working on this book.”
And that would keep writing Vampirella until the priest jokes and he gets kicked off.
In the words of the priest himself, “We’re really just charting vampirella and territory and exploding it. Nick Barki and dynamite really give me a huge amount of autonomy and say, “Look, this is your version of Vampirella. I won’t deny the version of Tom Sniegoski.” He does his own thing here, so he does great work there.
