This is a real treat.
What They Say:
It’s a lucky time to be a horror fan! Celebrate the tremendously terrifying thirteenth volume in the Creepy Archives hardcover series with classic tales by Bernie Wrightson, Bruce Jones, John Severin, and more, as the esteemed horror magazine hits another fruitful period of frightful delights in the mid-seventies! Collecting the classic Creepy magazines #60 through #63, plus several color pieces by Richard Corben, Sanjulian, and Ken Kelly–with black-and-white stories throughout by Tom Sutton, Jose Bea, Bill DuBay, Jose Gual, and many others.
Creators:
Writers: Bill DuBay, Rich Margopoulos, Steve Skeates, Richard Corben, John Jacobson, T. Casey Brennan, Carl Wessler, José bea, Tom Sutton, Bernie Wrightson, Larry Herndon, Jack Butterworth, Bruce Jones, Martin Pasko
Artists: Sanjulian, Bill DuBay, Adolfo Abellan, Jose Gual, Richard Corben, Martin Salvador, Gonzalo Mayo, José Bea, Leo Summers, Tom Sutton, Ken Kelly, Bernie Wrightson, John Severin, Vicente Alcazar, Isidro Mones
The Review:
This is a real treat. Creepy was one of the classic horror comics back in the 1970s along with Tales from the Crypt and Eerie. The comics featured tales of macabre supernatural horror, science fiction monstrosities, and good-old run-of-the-mill murder stories. The quality of the stories in terms of plot and artistry vary greatly, but when the stories work, they work very well. This volume contains one of the most disturbing stories I’ve ever read—Bernie Wrightson’s “Jennifer”—but even when they don’t quite work, the style and the joy taken in telling them make this a highly enjoyable read.
One of the hallmarks of these stories is that the characters were almost uniformly unlikable. They’re often stupid, amoral, greedy, and vain. For example, one of the first stories, “Slaughter House,” tells the tale of Tom and Toni O’Neil—a married couple that investigate the paranormal. They buy the eponymous house in order to document the various supernatural phenomenon people have reported occurring there, including the spirit of a malicious dwarf. In and of itself, the investigation of a haunted house isn’t stupid, but they bring their infant with them despite the fact that the house’s very first victim was a child. The baby becomes the center of the house’s attention and grisly, terrifying events spin out of the O’Neil’s control.
The real gem in this collection, though, is “Jennifer” by Bernie Wrightson. Jim is out hunting one day when he comes across a clearing where a sees a man attempting to kill a girl. He ends up shooting the man but is horrified to see the girl’s face—it’s deformed and grotesque yet somehow pitiful. This pitiful quality spurs Jim to take the girl home and adopt her. Jennifer quickly takes over his life, driving away Jim’s wife and children, and bringing him to the edge of madness.
What really makes “Jennifer” such a powerful tale is Wrightson’s art and pacing. The horrifying pitifulness he imparts to Jennifer’s face and eyes sells the story. The hold she has over Jim is hypnotic, as is the story’s hold over the reader. Although this is only one of many stories in the collection, I chose to focus on this one because it provides a perfect example of what this comic tried to accomplish and how powerful it is when it succeeds.
Part of the fun of this collection, though, goes beyond the story and art. These issues are faithfully reprinted, meaning that the letter page (“Dear Uncle Creepy”) and advertisements are reproduced as well, making you feel like you’re traveling back in time. It was especially neat to see the ads for the old movie monster model kits. I never bought any, but those are part of the collective zeitgeist of mine, and many others, childhoods. There’s a definite nostalgic joy in reading this, even if you were born after the comics were originally published.
In Summary:
Even when the art or the stories fall flat, the overall content is strong enough to make this worth buying if you’re a fan of horror comics. There’s a great nostalgic feel to this volume, thanks in large part to the reprinting of the issues in their entirety, including the letter’s page and the ads. This is also great because we get to see some of the work of the true greats in comics, such as Bernie Wrightson, back in their heyday. This is good, creepy fun.
Grade: A
