Falconspeare

“Mr. Higgins Comes Home” found Mike Mignola in a humorous mood as he co-wrote the story of Very British vampire hunters J.T. Meinhardt and Mr. Knox with artist Warwick Johnson-Caldwell.  “Our Encounters With Evil” found Caldwell flying solo as he delivered an anthology of stories about the two, eschewing humor for quirky strangeness.  “Falconspeare” is brought to us solely by Caldwell again as he delivers a straightforward story of vampire hunting that turns up some regular evil instead of the supernatural kind.

James Falconspeare is a friend of regular protagonists, Meinhardt and Knox, as well as their fellow vampire hunter Ms. Van Sloan.  None of them have heard from the man for ten years before they each receive a postcard with a hint regarding his current location.  Tracking down the man is easy enough, but that’s only half the story.  The other half is James’ testimony regarding what he’s been doing for the past decade and his request for his friends to administer justice when he’s done.

While James’ story of the business of the past ten years should be the most compelling part of the book, Caldwell’s morality play falls somewhat flat.  It involves the vampire hunter taking on a vampiric noble, only to find out that things aren’t exactly what they seem.  This leads to James trying to find other ways to deal with this before coming upon a solution that’s downright Nietschean.

Aside from that initial twist, the storytelling in “Falconspeare” is straightforward and without surprise.  It’s also not hard to see the allegory in his tale as the vampiric noble is a fat, blond, bloodsucker who preys upon the unfortunate people in his domain, but is protected by those who would rather not deal with him.  This doesn’t really add anything to the story besides making me go, “BOY, THIS SURE IS SOME REAL-LIFE ALLEGORY HERE!”

I’d probably be more inclined to look more favorably on Caldwell’s storytelling had he succeeded in delivering the genuine comedy the previous two volumes had tried to deliver.  Outside of a prologue that gestures towards amusement, this is a very straight-faced story without the charm of its predecessors.  Caldwell’s art is still a treat, but it alone can’t carry this story that doesn’t have anything to offer beyond it.