Comic book legends Matt Wagner and Kelley Jones have been busy reimagining the unnaturally long life of Vlad Dracula through their graphic novel collaborations. The first of those, Dracula: The Impaler, still ranks among the most successful comic book Kickstarter campaigns of all time. Wagner and Jones are now delivering the third and final volume in the trilogy with Dracula: The Count. The big twist this time is that the book presents the events of the classic Bram Stoker novel from the point of view of Dracula himself.
With the Kickstarter campaign for Dracula: Book III - The Count live now, IGN can exclusively debut a new preview of the graphic novel. Check it out in the slideshow gallery below:
As with the previous volumes, Dracula: The Count is written by Wagner and illustrated by Jones, with both providing cover art. The book is published through Orlok Press.
“Anyone who’s familiar with Stoker’s original novel knows that once the action shifts to England, the title character is basically all but unseen for the remainder of the narrative,” said Wagner in a statement. “A sinister, charismatic and scheming vampire lord set loose on the streets of London… and it’s so frustrating because we never get to see him! Well, he’s definitely up to something most foul… and now Kelley and I are finally unveiling what he was doing during that terrifying period. We’ll see him exploring and planning to exploit his new home, this grand and modern British Empire, a vast realm on which, it was said, the sun never set.”
“From our very first discussions of this project, this was the part I thought would be the trickiest to pull off,” said Jones. “But it was also the part I was looking forward to the most! What Matt does so beautifully is to combine literary and historical accuracy with an utterly compelling story that keeps you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end. Every time I read one of his scripts, I find myself so fully engaged in how the story unfolds… I almost forget that I’m the one who gets to draw this incredible tale!”
“One of the distinctive aspects of Stoker’s original novel is that it’s epistolary… told exclusively in the form of journal entries, letters of correspondence and news articles,” added Wagner. “The only voice missing from these various narrations is the most crucial one of all… Dracula himself! So our version of these events is narrated by Dracula himself… from inside the mind of an unrepentant monster. As Kelley said, this volume was the most challenging in regards to accuracy as the events of the original novel are well-recorded, analyzed and annotated. And Kelley has absolutely brought his A+ game to this narrative. If you thought his work of BOOKS I & II was spectacular, wait’ll you see how he brings Dracula to life (er…undeath) on the foggy streets of Victorian London! I’ll say it again… this is the story that Kelley Jones was born to draw! And I’m the lucky bastard who got to write it!”
Previously, Wagner and Jones collaborated on Dracula: Book I - The Impaler in 2023 and Dracula: Book II - The Brides in 2024.
The crowdfunding campaign for Dracula: The Count is live now.
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