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Released by: Dynamite Entertainment
Released on: May 1st, 2019.
Written by: David Avallone
Illustrated by: Dave Acosta
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Not caught up? Doctor Johannes Faust has sent our favorite buxom “hostess with the mostess†travelling through time where she's had a standoff with none other than Vlad Tepes where she ran into a whole lot of different people from various periods in horror history. But when Faust was unable to send her back to her home time? Well, Mephistopheles himself showed up and Elvira found herself in the Hollywood of 1935 and then….
…when this fifth issue starts, Elvira is caught in the middle of a squabble between Faust and his missus, who is none too pleased that her beau took off only to return with Elvira in tow. This woman, referred to as 'the face that launched a thousand ships' (meaning she's likely Helen of Troy) isn't happy about any of this. Elvira, not wanting in on that drama, opens the door to split but upon doing so realizes that Faust's deal has resulted in the three of them being located where his deal is to end. And thus beings Elvira's Inferno: Canto One!
Elvira and Helen figure they didn't make the deal Faust did and therefore shouldn't be liable for whatever his end of the bargain requires of him, but it doesn't work that way. Faust notes that this is Mephistopheles' error, not his, but when the devil himself shows up all involved realize there's more to this. Helen becomes irate when the bar disappears but Elvira asks Mephistopheles to send her home. Helen and Faust squawk, and are then sent off to… somewhere while Elvira and Mephistopheles walk and talk. He tells her she needs to speak to Lucifer himself, she makes a timely and clever Weinstein joke, and he's impressed with her bravery, which results in some funny dialogue and clever jokes we won't spoil here.
As she walks through Hell she meets up with Poe again, who explains Dante's design theory to her while she, again, makes some great jokes (this time relating to Clive Barker!) and he quips about dying at forty. He sends her to the ferryman and then, well, no spoilers, just well-played George Romero jokes.
David Avallone's tale of the foxy horror hostess' travels continues in this fifth issue. It, like the f four before it, is a lot of fun. If Avallone was pulling from a lot of classic horror books and movies in the first round, here he's clearly pulling from Dante, while still managing to make some well-placed pop culture jokes that'll resonate even with those who haven't read inferno. It works quite well, there's a lot of snappy banter here, the kind the Elvira herself has always delivered in her segments and her movies - in short, this feels 'right' (however, there was no need for the Hawaiian pizza jab - that's some good stuff!). Really though, it's a kick, it works on a superficial level but also throws in a lot of fun references that horror fans will appreciate.
As to the art? Once again, Dave Acosta (whose art is colored by Ellie Wright), does an absolutely killer job of nailing Cassandra Peterson's likeness - not just her curves, but just (if not more) importantly, her facial expressions, her eye movements and her overall tone. It can't be overstated how important it is when dealing with a properly like this, where Elvira is very much alive, just how integral to the success of this comic it is that the artist get the look right. Acosta gets it right and then some, also doing a fine job illustrating the supporting characters and the backgrounds.
These two Daves make a great team. Here's hoping the series continues to hit the high marks that it has hit so far, as this is a book that should make fans of the Mistress Of The Dark very happy indeed. Oh, and once again we get another killer cover from the great Joseph Michael Linsner, which is always a nice touch.