Kelley Jones and Matt Wagner Make a Feast Out of Dracula

We all crave a good meal. The challenge is savoring it once it's placed before you. Kelley Jones and Matt Wagner have wickedly, and delightfully, discovered a way to make Bram Stoker’s Dracula not one good dish, but three...and possibly four and five.

For the last several years, they’ve transformed the classic vampire novel into a feast impossible to gobble down in one sitting. By taking throwaway sentences in the book and building two graphic novels out of them (Dracula Book I: The Impaler, Dracula Book II: The Brides), they’ve miraculously extended their love affair with Vlad, and ours in the process as well.

Now, with Dracula Book III: The Count, which only has a week left on Kickstarter, Jones and Kelley properly excavate Bram Stoker’s book. This third entry tackles the iconic plot, but only from Count Dracula’s perspective. We all know this story from Jonathan Harker, Mina, and Van Helsing’s point of view, but how did the vicious beast at the center of their fear experience the whole endeavor? No more letters. Only the Count’s singular, hungry howl of self.

We’ve read and watched many Dracula adaptations, but none as exhaustive and creative as this. As a result, this week’s podcast had to match Jones and Wagner’s studious passion. All together, we dig deep into their previous entry, Dracula Book II: The Brides. We discuss how, in chaining themselves to Dracula’s perspective, they create unparalleled empathy for the monster and his godless pursuits. Is there danger in that?

Again, Dracula: The Count only has seven days left on its Kickstarter campaign. Please visit the crowdfunding project by clicking HERE. You can continue the conversation with Kelley Jones by visiting his Instagram. You can follow Matt Wagner on Blue Sky and Instagram.

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