Night of the Ghoul is a long lost horror film, recently found (at least some if it) by Forest Innman, a former filmmaker who spends him time digitisinNight of the Ghoul is a long lost horror film, recently found (at least some if it) by Forest Innman, a former filmmaker who spends him time digitising old film. When Innman, and his son Orson, manage to track down the film's creator in an old hospital seemingly on his last days, Innman can't wait to find out where the remaining pieces of the film are and promptly sneaks in for an interview under the guise of being an insurance officer. Little did Innman know, that that the film's creator, T. F. Merrit would spread a dark and horrifying tale, bridging the line between fact and fiction which would end neither of them leaving the hospital alive.
Night of the Ghoul #1 is immersive; not only does Scott Snyder's multi-layered horror have depth, it reads like a traditional horror with the requisite scares and ghoulish figures lurking in the night, completed by a mystery element involving Orson and his mother (separated from Innman) which was only teased in #1.
With so many threads written into this first issue, I was surprised to find that, on first read, the story itself feels 'complete', there's no cliffhanger ending, rather the opening stanza leaves the threads in a nice place, ready to be picked up in the second installment.
In terms of the art, Franceso Francailla does a great job. There's a healthy dose of black and shades of grey in the present-day pages while the Night of the Ghoul film pages are in sepia which helps to clearly distinguish between to the timelines.
Frank Drake, (a descendant of Dracula himself! Minus fangs and without the ability to morph into a bat), his fiance Jeanie (a young woman who plays thFrank Drake, (a descendant of Dracula himself! Minus fangs and without the ability to morph into a bat), his fiance Jeanie (a young woman who plays the damsel in distress role to perfection), and third wheel Clifton (a shady character if ever there was one! Think of the typecast movie villain) awaken the long slumbering beast that is Dracula when they crash his castle, claiming it for their own - well, it's Drake's since he inherited it - the details of said inheritance are a little sketchy, but nevertheless the story takes us to Dracula's castle where the bloodthirst man-bat lays waiting...
It's great to see Tomb of Dracula #1 get another physical printing. Whilst the story itself is pretty simple; young all American male inherits Dracula's castles and awakens him which leads to more vampires being created and the townsfolk living near the castle terrorised once more, it's still entertaining and reads as a nice complete story with some added character depth thrown in for good measure. The underlying love triangle between Frank, Jeanie, and Clifton was a nice touch as was Clifton's shady manner.
The art works on so many levels, bringing back that comic reading nostalgia and completing the story proper. The only downfall was the lack of darkness; for a story primarily set at the night, the backdrop looked to be set during midday. Nevertheless, this was a minor gripe in what was a decent read. ...more
Issue #1 of Creepshow is a bit of a mixed bag. TAKE ONE, the first of two stories is an ode to the supernatural horrors of Freddy, Michael Myers and JIssue #1 of Creepshow is a bit of a mixed bag. TAKE ONE, the first of two stories is an ode to the supernatural horrors of Freddy, Michael Myers and Jason; a nightmarish being who just won't stay dead. The Halloween backdrop fits this story really well and the art is great - albeit stomach churning, especially the last couple of frame with Phil and the candy bar...gross. TAKE ONE was the highlight of #1.
The second story, SHINGO, could've been a lot of fun but for some reason I just didn't connect with the alien clown/telly tubby posing as a kids birthday party entertainer. Felt more campy than horror. Perhaps if Shingo looked more like a creepy clown (Pennywise, anyone?) rather than an overstuffed kids toy I would've liked it more. That said, I did enjoy the domestic qualities of the story with the separated parents fighting for their child's love, it added a little bit of realism to the surreal. ...more
Decent set-up which crams a lot of story into a short timeframe. The characters are surprisingly fleshed out and the plot is gripping. The artwork is Decent set-up which crams a lot of story into a short timeframe. The characters are surprisingly fleshed out and the plot is gripping. The artwork is fantastic and complements the nighttime/moody tone of the narrative; the use of green and red as the predominant colours is a nice touch. Couldn't want much more from a first issue. ...more
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