Creepy #18
Writers: Various
Artists: Various
Letters: Nate Piekos of Blambot & Peter Bagge
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
It’s that time of year again. The days grow shorter, and the nights grow longer. Yet we tend to sleep a lot less. Not surprising, considering the number of scary stories, movies, and video games we subject ourselves to throughout the month of October. Should you actually treasure sleep, Creepy #18 is a mix of comedy, horror, and poetic justice.
My personal favorite tale of terror is a historical fiction piece that centers on Rufus Wilmot Griswold, an American anthologist, editor, poet, critic, and rival to Edgar Allan Poe. Historically speaking, the trouble between Poe and Griswold began with The Poets and Poetry of America anthology. Poe submitted several several works to the volume. Only three made the cut, and Poe probably wouldn’t have minded so much is the rest of the poetry within the volume had been any good (with the exception of Poe, all of the other poets have vanished into obscurity). Poe made sure the public knew that Griswold was a total hack, and thus a rivalry was born. Even after Poe’s death, Griswold did everything in his power to defame Poe. Ironically, Griswold’s actions actually generated interest in Poe’s work.
In the aptly titled “The Executor,” Griswold is given legal precedent over all of Poe’s works. True to life, Griswold does what he can to ruin Poe’s reputation. When interest has been generated in Poe’s fiction however, Griswold finds himself under attack. Characters from Poe’s works come to life and murder him. Sweet, sweet justice. No wonder Poe left all his works with Griswold.
Creepy is kind enough to add a bit of comedy into the mix with “Keeping up with the Creepys,” in which Uncle Creepy and Cousin Eerie compete to obtain the most antiquated mode of transportation possible. The remaining tales venture into folk tales with”Winner Take All” (Where we learn that winning isn’t everything.), science fiction with “The Man Who Walked Through Walls” (Beware of cats. They really will murder you.), and urban legends in “Over the River to Charlie” (And that’s why dollhouses are creepy). Each causes readers to shiver at the conclusion of the tale.
Anthologies are difficult to construct. All it takes is one story to disrupt the book’s flow. Creepy, however, appears to have no problems finding its own nightmare fueled groove. The stories chosen for this frightfest are worthy additions to the horror genre, and the illustrations provide each tale with it’s own unique atmosphere that will leave chills running down your spine. Given the creeptastic writing and graphics Creepy #18 has to offer, Uncle Creepy is sure to be around for at least another fifty years.