Is Vampirella the lost daughter of a far-off planet where the rivers run with blood? Or is she the offspring of the demon Lilith, who spawned her to hunt and kill her former progeny, the vampires? Or does her origin run even deeper than has previously been explored?

Well, obviously, Vampirella owes her truth birth to the wet dreams of countless comic book and horror fans, for whom the notion of a sexy and scantily clad vampire who fights the forces of darkness has always been beyond provocative. But Mike Carey, who knows his way around Hell (he has Vertigo's Hellblazer and Lucifer titles on his resume, after all), has decided to explore her roots a little more fully -- and there are some surprises in store, both in the circumstances of Vampirella's birth and her ultimate purpose.

By tale's end, Carey has crafted a new direction of Vampirella that speaks of a strong potential for future books. It sure beats that Vampi manga crap that they tried.

The art by Mike Lilly is gorgeous, in a way -- but he might be drawing a little too much on those wet dreams I mentioned earlier. When Vampirella makes her first appearance on page 4, for instance, her boobs are bigger than her head. And her costume must be sewn from some special cloth-like alloy to bear up under the constant strain she puts on it. Down, boy!

All in all, it's a solid package for Vampirella fans, and it speaks well for what lies ahead -- a little less cheesecake, perhaps, but a lot more action and horror.