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Vampirella Lives

Issue #1 (December 1996)

Regular cover - Joe Quesada $3.55
Linen cover - Joe Quesada $14.95
Signed Linen cover - Joe Quesada $?
Model cover - Unknown Model $3.50
Mature Reader Model cover - Unknown Model $3.50
Jay Company Museum Edition - J. Scott Campbell (25 copies) $100.00

Vampirella Lives, Part One [Artists - Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti / Writer - Warren Ellis]
A psychic old man goes to the cemetery in Whitechapel at midnight. He senses that something is going to happen, and happen it does. During a violent storm a grave bursts open and Vampirella emerges... Vampirella explains to the psychic who/ what she is and he tells her that the city of Whitechapel contains a mausoleum dedicated to Lilith, and is full of vampires.

In the mausoleum Vampirella relives the last moments with Lilith before she is crushed under the thumb of God.

Fifty miles away Hemorrhage is doing Mistress Nyx' work; causing death, mayhem and fear which she then feeds on.

Vampirella's return is very dramatic and she finds herself immediately in the middle of a major event. Surely she could have returned and had a couple of days of rest and recuperation before launching into her latest world saving adventure?

But then, I suppose an issue of Vampirella catching up with her e-mails, doing some laundry and watching a few soaps wouldn't have been half so exciting to read.

Issue #2 (January 1997)

Regular cover - Amanda Conner $2.95
Alternate cover - Adam Hughes (1,000 copies) $9.95
Model cover - Unknown Model $2.95

Vampirella Lives, Part Two [Artists - Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti / Writer - Warren Ellis]
Exploring the mausoleum dedicated to her mother, Lilith, Vampirella discovers a massive secret shrine with a statue of Lilith in the centre. She discovers that Whitechapel was built as a blood collection device to revive an ancient vampire - Lilith's eldest son. As they talk, vampires flood into the city bringing the relics of the Eldest Son with them and a massacre of humans begins. The blood flows down the streets and through the sewer system into Lilith's shrine.

Elsewhere, Mistress Nyx feels something "growing" in Whitechapel and sends Hemorrhage to investigate ...

The story so far is holding out a lot of promise and building up with every issue.

Vampirella is coming to terms with being alive again, and there is a lot of background information on Lilith and the Vampirella mythology - just in case you didn't know it already.

Issue #3 (February 1997)

Regular Cover - J. Scott Campbell $2.95
Live Model cover - Unknown Model (3,000 copies) $2.95

Vampirella Lives, Part Three [Artists - Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti / Writer - Warren Ellis]
The total population of Whitechapel (barring the psychic with Vampirella) is dead, their blood filling Lilith's shrine. The shrine fills with vampires watching the resurrection of the Eldest Son.

The Eldest Son tells the vampires of ~Lilith's death and of the end of everything. He also knows that Vampirella is in town, and commands the vampire horde to kill Vampirella and the rest of the world as revenge for Lilith's death.

Vampirella is on the streets fighting Hemorrhage, whom she defeats by using her hypnotic powers. Forcing him to stretch his powers to their limits, Hemorrhage rips all the blood out of every vampire and destroys the city - Vampirella is the only survivor.

A damaged Hemorrhage returns to Mistress Nyx, who learns that Vampirella is still alive (or alive again?).

The crescendo is achieved! A city wide slaughter, blood by the mega-gallon, and a new side to Vampirella that we haven't seen much of before. She is, after all, the daughter of the Ultimate Temptress, Lilith! Now we know why Vampirella is so beautiful, and it's not due to cosmetics or good luck.

One irritating point, though. We never get to know much about the Eldest Son of Lilith. We don't even get to see him as a fully revived "person" or learn his name ...

Oh well, it's just another one of life's mysteries ...

Vampirella Lives: Collected Edition (August 2001)

• Chapter I: Vampirella Returns from the Grave [Artists - Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti / Writer - Warren Ellis] (from Vampirella Lives #1)
  


• Chapter II: Whitechapel is Revealed [Artists - Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti / Writer - Warren Ellis] (from Vampirella Lives #2)
  


• Chapter III: The Return of the Eldest Son [Artists - Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti / Writer - Warren Ellis] (from Vampirella Lives #3)
  


• Epilogue: An Untold Tale between a Mother and her Daughter [Artists - Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti / Writer - Warren Ellis] (from Vampirella: 25th Anniversary Special)
  

Collected reprints of the Vampirella Lives story arc, with an extra story from the 25th Anniversary Special.

All the covers are identical, but the Hardback editions have a dust cover with the Amanda Conner cover over a gray book with either Gold or Red foil titles.

I have a copy which is signed by Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti in silver ink, but I do not think it is an "official" cover variant (there is no Certificate of Authenticity, though the signatures are genuine); more likely a one-off signed at a convention or similar event.