Looking at things in strictly structural terms, second issues are often a tricky wicket in the comic book racket. In today’s marketplace, especially, it’s a pretty safe bet that you’re going to lose nearly half your readership (at the very least) between the first and second installments of any given book simply because cover prices are so fucking high (the going rate for the series under discussion here today, Empire Of The Dead, or as it’s known to Marvel Comics’ legal department, George Romero’s Empire Of The Dead Act One, is $3.99 per 28-page issue, with only 20 of those pages devoted to actual story and art) that a title has to be seriously flawless right out of the gate in order for everybody to shell out their hard-earned cash for a second serving. So you’d better give the diminished-yet-loyal cadre who have showed up for the second round good reason to keep coming back for more — a nifty plot twist or two never hurts — and you’ve also gotta put in some serious work on fleshing out the world you showed in only the broadest strokes in the series’ debut installment.
With those two admittedly impromptu standards in mind, it’s safe to say that Empire whiffs on the first — badly, in fact — but connects rather nicely on the second, and therefore the end result is a decidedly mixed bag indeed.
Nothing much happens here in terms of plot progression, with Romero choosing instead to paint a more complete picture of his zombie-and-vampire-infested future New York City. We learn that the devious Mayor Chandrake, his even more devious nephew Bill, and their ghoulish entourage live, appropriately enough, at the infamous Dakota apartment building, and that Bill is a bit reckless in terms of his procurement methods for new flesh (and blood). We learn that SWAT-officer-turned-zombie Francis Xavier is displaying even greater signs of intelligence (or at least more successfully mimicking learned behaviors, as she proves when she arrests a criminal) than previously thought. We learn that uber-zombie Zanzibar is an even bigger bad-ass in the coliseum than we figured by way of a particularly gruesome fight sequence. And we learn that Dr. Penny Jones can be somewhat ruthless in pursuit of her research goals, even going so far as to enlist her feminine wiles to aid her cause.
But that’s about as far as things go here. There is some impressively Bacchanalian excess going on in the Chandrake suites, with carnal blood-letting taking up most of the issue, and there’s some political “court intrigue” introduced in the New York city council, but there’s no real story advancement taking place in the traditional sense, with Romero apparently being content to take this opportunity to merely expound upon his characters and their various situations a bit more fully (except for poor Paul Barnum, who’s scarcely given anything to do). That might work reasonably well for one issue, I suppose, but we’re going to need more the next time around — a lot more, in fact, especially given that part three will mark the more-than-halfway-point of this initial five-issue arc. I’m not ready to say this second issue was a failure so much as a missed opportunity, but it all hinges on what happens (or doesn’t) next.
At least the art doesn’t let the side down, though. Alex Maleev’s rough. sketchy illustrations are rich with atmosphere and convey a genuine sense of both brutality and foreboding, while the variant covers (by Maleev, Arthur Suydam, and Greg Horn, respectively, as shown) are all pretty goddamn cool in their own way. Now it’s just up to “Mr. Zombie” himself, George A. Romero, to give his artist some more interesting things to draw. I’m down for another issue, but the go-nowhere nature of this one has tempered my initial enthusiasm for this series quite a bit.
The ball’s in your court, George. You haven’t let me down yet (as mentioned in my review of issue one I was even a fan of Diary Of The Dead), but this is a new format for you with new demands — and new possibilities. I’ve still got exactly $3.99 worth of faith that you won’t disappoint me now, either.
Through the Shattered Lens 
Reblogged this on Trash Film Guru and commented:
I take a look at issue 2 of George Romero’s
Empire Of The Dead” for Through The Shattered Lens website.
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Romero has always talked about expanding his zombie storytelling to involve something more supernatural and it looks like he’s doing it with this series. Of course, he’s not the first to pit zombies vs. fangs.
These types of monster vs monster mash-ups tend to be too campy and over-the-top to take seriously, but once in awhile something very good rises from the heap. Here’s to hoping that Empire of the Dead is one of the rare gems.
I agree with you on this being a missed opportunity, but I’ve long given up on trying to gauge a mini-series on an issue by issue basis. Just like longform tv series like True Detective, sometimes the lull in the story arc actually helps set-up the rest of the story.
So far, Empire of the Dead is looking to be more like something from Romero’s original draft for Day of the Dead than any of the zombie films he has in the can. As long as he’s going in this ambitious route I can forgive him even if the whole affair falls flat on its rotting face.
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I don’t expect it to fall flat on its face, but I think a second issue this lackadaisical in terms of plot development would or could be more easily excused in, say, a 12-issue series than a five-issue one. Sure, this is only the first “arc” of what promises to be apparently four or five, but in a five-issue series you have to make each installment really count for something and have some precisely-timed story “beats” that move things forward. In today;s comic marketplace, that’s something too many writers have lost sight of. Brian Bendis is probably the most egregious repeat offender in this regard — he can spend six issued doing nothing and then hit you with five or sic rapid-fire developments in one issue after a half-year of nothing, but it’s all too common with other writers, as well, and it’s a shame to see Romero go down that road with this issue. If you want a good example of a guy who “gets it,” check out Scott Snyder — his current work on “Batman” is largely written in the modern’ decompressed” style, but he also hits at least one or two very nicely-timed story “beats” in each issue that genuinely advance the plot forward. It’s not that hard to do, Romero just didn’t do it here.
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It’s why I have this sinking feeling that Romero’s being too ambitious but not having enought time to allow it to succeed. Now, if the series is a sales success then maybe he continues it with a new mini-series.
I’ve always seen Romero as better when doing stand-alone story arcs. Even though Night thru Land really could connect one after the other they also could stand on their own.
I have a nagging suspicion that this series is going to be an intro to a much longer series if Marvel decides it’s best in the long run to let it continue. With the massive success of The Waling Dead comics and tv show I think Marvel will hedge on letting Romero have further volumes of this story. Though it would mean mini-series final issues that could be full of cliffhangers.
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Oh, further volumes are already planned, it’s no secret. I’ve heard that four separate five-issue ‘arcs” are in the works, some websites have even reported the number as being five, but it’s going at least four, so in the end this will at least be 20 issues long. Bu there will definitely be gaps in publication between each arc, so every five-issue “act” is going to have to be somewhat self-contained as well.
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In some ways I felt issue 2 was better, but also weaker. Where’s the plot? Now I fully get a screenplay is vastly different than a comic, but Romero always had great characters (only brought down in Diary of the Dead due to average actors).
In the comic world writing is weak and characters boring. I don’t expect deep characters right away. For me outside of Rick and Tyreese it took me a while to connect with the characters in the comics for Walking Dead even the show to some degree. In season 1 I only really liked Shane and Rick. Season 2 on I connected with the other characters.
But back to WD comics even if it took a whole for me to connect they however moved the story. Empire of the Dead they add zilch.
I’ll read issue 3, but I’m not into this. I might drop a review for issue 2. But its so underwhelming I don’t even know what to say. If I love or hated it that would make it easier but as of now based on two issues I don’t care.
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Yeah, I’m feeling pretty “blah” after the second ish as well — I liked the way Romero set the table in #1, but he didn’t do much of anything to move the story forward here. Like you, I’ll give it one more, but he’s really got to show something to keep me around after that point.
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