Redneck - Legends and Lies: the truth about the Bowman's past

Redneck - Legends and Lies

It is difficult to find a more exploited narrative archetype than the vampire. Since Bram Stoker handed over Dracula to modern fiction in 1897, the myth of the voracious blood drinkers has declined in a thousand ways, touching every possible area of ​​the entertainment world. Certainly a medium such as comics could not remain indifferent to this suggestion, capable of giving life to a reinterpretation of the vampire par excellence, such as the wonderful Dracula by Georges Bess, or playing on different interpretations of the original, as for the Dracula Brothers or Vampire State Building . To enrich this gallery of characters with sharp canines, the Bowman clan certainly could not miss, protagonist of Redneck, a series with other vampiric content published in Italy by saldaPress and now in its fifth volume, Redneck - Legends and lies. > Part of the rich catalog of Skybound, Redneck was created by Donny Cates, a name that certainly needs no introduction, capable of ranging from the superhero context to more particular stories, such as The Ghost Fleet, Relay or Buzzkill. Cates' narrative vein is a guarantee, capable of giving life to stories that, while moving in the terrain of the imaginative and unreal, are able to grasp vivid and realistic nuances, involving the reader in deep and well-characterized worlds.

Redneck - Legends and Lies: the past of Cates' vampires

A custom that is not betrayed by Redneck, a narrative cycle that has been able to evolve to the fullest, thanks to the talent of Cates. As on other occasions, the screenwriter has decided to capture a particular aspect of American society to develop a story in which the supernatural element of vampirism becomes a well-exploited driving force, but which leaves the right space for other narrative components, animating a context. compelling narrative that passes with agility from social criticism to gothic fiction.

If we think back to the story of Redneck told before Redneck - Legends and lies, in fact, it is difficult not to notice how Cates has included some of the traits of rural America in the genesis of his comic. Already the name, Redneck, refers to the derogatory term with which the residents of the large metropolises mock the countrymen of the rural areas of the center and south, where old lifestyles remain that seem to clash with the dynamism of the most modern part of the nation. Small centers where everything seems to have crystallized, where traditions based on family feuds and latent racism remain, where despite everyone knowing everything about everyone, it is still possible to keep secrets in the safety of their homes.

In this urban dimension outside over time, the Bowmans can therefore hide their vampire nature, living according to a code strictly controlled by a householder, JV, who decides not to give in blindly to the vampire nature, but who prefers to follow a more human conduct. An atypical bloodsucking clan, in which the old patriarch, the Grandfather, wanders like an acid guardian of traditions, in an apparently immobile life until the routine is upset by a night of violence in which old grudges are brought to the surface , breaking the apparent security of the Bowman's existence, triggering a mechanism that, like a mad machine, forces the clan to have to reinvent an existence, hunted down and deprived of any possible security.

Without depriving you of the pleasure of recovering the first volumes of Redneck, it is sufficient to remember that Cates has been able to create a story in which the presuppositions of social criticism do not crystallize as the sole engine of the story, but slowly allow a sparkling reinterpretation of the concept of the vampire world to emerge. Limiting oneself to Stoker's conception is now impossible, the vampire has no longer been a solitary being for decades, but in several works we have seen him move within a culture and society parallel to the human one. From the books of Anne Rice to the settings of Vampire: The Masquerade, the society of bloodsuckers has opened up to a sort of institutionalization, a social system that Cates also wanted to revisit.

In Redneck, therefore, we have seen like elements like Parliament, a coven of Elders that has established the rules that vampires all over the world must abide by, but how much of this established order can resist before rebel forces are born? After guiding us through the escape to the South, Cates opened the doors for us to the world of Mexican bloodsuckers, but with Redneck - Legends and Lies a further step is taken: telling the story of vampires. Or rather these vampires, as Cates creates a spectacular division of fronts, leaving the Bowmans on one side, intent on creating a new life, and on the other Greg, part of the clan, but at the moment kidnapped by the powerful Demus, an Elder rebel who hides secrets that could rewrite the very history of the Bowman clan.

Return to the origins of vampires

While keeping the focus on his characters, Cates finds a dynamic for Redneck - Legends and lies narrative in which flashbacks allow you to retrace the history of vampires, from their dawn to the present. A journey through time that passes by incredible events and legendary figures, without forgetting to mention biblical passages that are reinterpreted as part of the vampire myth, touching the cornerstones of the genre by re-adapting them so that they do not give a sense of familiarity to fans of the genre fiction, but transforming them into the roots of this universe of his. A new look at the historical aspect of vampires, which is intertwined with the history of the Bowman clan giving life to an incredibly crackling chapter of Redneck, the consequences of which can only leave you with bated breath.

Cates decides to give a considerable boost to the series, focusing more on the power struggles of this occult world. Redneck - Legends and lies is probably the most compelling chapter of the Redeneck saga, considering that, despite being an evidently preparatory moment, it has the considerable task of imparting an impactful narrative turn, finally exposing the mechanics of Parliament by intertwining them with the past of the Bowmans, a past of violence and secrets that finally presents to the account to this sui generis family.

Lisandro Estherren, who, as for the previous volumes of Redneck, pushes Cates' plot to high levels. make the most of your trait to portray these atypical vampires. Tables made up of cartoons that seem to compose an obligatory visual arc, points of view that echo those of the characters and an impeccable management of dynamism, whether it is to emphasize the movements of a protagonist or to portray a choral battle scene. To further embellish Estherren's work are the colors of Dee Cunnife, which makes the best use of contrasts and strong shades, creating special effects, such as the cross of Demus. A combination of artistic flair and attention to detail that only benefits the definition of Redneck, which can be easily defined as one of the most interesting products in the saldaPress catalog.

saldaPress offers a well-made edition, with materials that give credit to this vampire-based adventure, even if some extra content, perhaps related to the genesis and inspirations of Cates would have embellished the work. On the other hand, saldaPress has accustomed us all too well with volumes rich in additional content, such as Undiscovered Country, but these small reader complaints cannot in the least affect the beauty of a high-class comic.