shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Oct 15, 2016 22:31:21 GMT -5
The Long Halloween: Week 3Share your #3 favorite classic comic horror character here. Be sure to include an explanation and (preferably) an image to justify your selection! The rules / guidelines
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Oct 15, 2016 22:36:06 GMT -5
Stephen StrangeAs portrayed primarily by Steve Ditko and Stan Lee  When done correctly, Dr. Strange is absolutely a horror story, as a mere mortal struggles valiantly to stave off threats larger and more destructive than the human mind could ever hope to comprehend. Additionally, unlike nearly every other superhero comic, Strange seldom ever seems like he's going to win, always biting off more than he can chew and often pleading to the lesser of two evils for help. The Dormammu Saga (Strange Tales #130-144) was the clearest example of this, as Strange was hopelessly outgunned and dealing with forces to large, so misanthropic, so inevitable, that I often found myself shaking with stress as I read -- how in the world was this going to work itself out by the close, and how did Strange find the energy to keep pressing on, even once his hopes had been entirely thwarted? To go back to my working definition of horror: Defining horror is, inevitably, a personal thing. It can't simply mean "scary," as most would agree that Tod Browning's Dracula (1931) isn't scary, and yet many would also argue that, for example, James Cameron's Titanic (1997) was. Clearly, one is horror and one is not, and "scary" isn't a factor in that consideration. For me, horror primarily concerns itself with establishing a morbid tone. It's a oneness with death on the part of the film itself, not just on the part of one or more characters. Indiana Jones can fight a bad guy obsessed with death, but it isn't horror unless the filmmaker expresses that viewpoint in the shots, lighting, setting, and overall tone as well. As a result, in a horror film, there's seldom a sense of hope (unless it's fleeting). Death is omnipresent and inevitable; any struggle against death is an exercise in near futility. That sense of morbidity is the common thread across Browning's Dracula, Friday the 13th, and even the Saw series, so it's how I define a horror comic or character as well. Is this character primarily associated with stories and contexts that elicit a sense of oneness with death? Dr. Strange pleading to the Living Tribunal, a being that could erase him and all of humanity with a sneeze, provides far more of all of this than a screaming girl confronted by a wolf man. This is true horror, even if it abandons the outward trappings, and it makes Strange's feats all the more heroic and sympathetic as a result.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 16, 2016 22:17:23 GMT -5
Week #3.... Lord Andrew Bennett  I have loved many vampires in my life, Dracula being chief among them, but in the realm of comics I think Lord Andrew Bennett just edges out the Prince of Darkness. Although there are a few comic adaptations of Dracula that do him justice he often comes across as two-dimensional but that's not the case with Bennett; he's tragic, heroic and sensitive at equal turns which just makes for some great reading. J.M. DeMatteis' take on a sympathetic vampire trying to take down his evil vampire former lover started off as a simple back up story in House of Mystery #290 it developed into one of the best stories to come out of that title, the story is compelling and the art was great especially in its many depictions of Andrew's "deaths" |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2016 23:13:22 GMT -5
Week three...Madame Xanadu, specifically as the horror hostess/lead character of Doorway to Nightmare...  each issue with a gorgeous cover by Kaluta. Take an exotically beautiful woman with the ability to foretell the future through the use of her Tarot cards whose shop/headquarters oozes creepiness including a wall full of demons, horrors, and lost souls kept in specimen jars and you have my choice for week three of the Long Halloween. Madame Xanadu helps those who have unwittingly become embroiled with the tangible hand of evil in our world, whether us unsuspecting dupe or helpless victim, facing down demons, vampires and othe rthings that go bump in the night.   The series was short lived, survived as a feature in Unexpected for a short time, had an ill-fated one-shot by Englehart and Rogers that was undercut by editorial interference leading Englehart to transform Xanadu into Scorpio Rose to continue the story as a creator-owned venture... (also short lived continuing on as a back up in Coyote and later finishing the story in a cross-over with Warrior Nun Areala)   However, DC didn't give up on Xanadu, and Doug Moench featured her as a member ofthe supporting cast in his Spectre run, serving as a confidante of Jim Corrigan and an advisor to the Spectre  Still later, Matt Wagner would do an entirely different take on the character in the Vertigo Madame Xanadu series that was influenced by Gaiman and the Books of Magic and rejected the Englehart planned origin for the character (the source of the rift b/w The Stainless one and DC)  This version would inform the new52 take on Madame Xanadu in Justice League Dark. DC also did another alternate take on the character in the National Comics one-shot Madame X (from 2012 so not classic by our standards) that is an interesting read.  But the character, as introduced in those stories in Doorway to Nightmare, is one that is full of mystery and potential and whose story is as alluring as her image presented by the materful pen and brush of Michael Kaluta. -M |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Oct 17, 2016 0:21:28 GMT -5
Always liked Madame's Theme song by Olivia Newton-John
A place where nobody dared to go,
the love that we came to know
They call it Xanadu
And now, open your eyes and see,
what we have made is real
We are in Xanadu
A million lights are dancing and there you are, a shooting star
An everlasting world and you're here with me, eternally
Xanadu, Xanadu, (now we are here) in Xanadu
Xanadu, Xanadu, (now we are here) in Xanadu
Xanadu, your neon lights will shine for you, Xanadu
The love, the echoes of long ago,
you needed the world to know
They are in Xanadu
The dream that came through a million years
That lived…
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Post by foxley on Oct 17, 2016 0:58:43 GMT -5
Entries in the previous 2 weeks have established that is okay to nominate teams, so with that in mind, I present my number 3 choice. #3. Desperadoes
A ragtag bunch of misfits consisting of stock detective Jerome Alexander Betts, freed slave Gideon Brood, soiled dove Abby DeGrazia, and Pinkerton agent Race Kennedy travel the old west solving crimes with a supernatural bent. In the first tale -- collected as A Moment's Sunlight -- Betts, Brood and DeGrazia hunt a serial killer Leander Peik who murdered Brood's family, while Kennedy chases the three of them. Only Peik turns out to have some real magical powers, and Kennedy ends up joining forces with his quarry to take down the greater threat. Other one-shots and mini-series followed. Personally I think the first tale is the best, although the later ones are also enjoyable. The books have a nice sinister feel to them, with a good mixture of supernatural and psychological horror, and good characterisation of the central characters, who are in many respects deeply broken people. All of the books are written by Jeff Mariotte (who owns the characters). In my mind the best artist of the team was John Cassaday, who did the first couple of the stories. None of the later artists ever quite captured the gritty feel of the west the way Cassaday did. So why do I love them? I love me a good western, and I love me a good horror story, but for some reason there are very few comics that combine the two genres. (The only other example that springs to mind is Tim Truman's Jonah Hex mini-series.) Writer and creator of Desperadoes Jeff Mariotte pointed out in an interview when the first series came out the old west is the perfect setting for a serial killer story: little organised law enforcement, people living in isolated locales with the nearest neighbours hours or days away, the ability for a killer to totally disappear just by moving and changing his name. |
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Post by brutalis on Oct 17, 2016 7:39:23 GMT -5
My #3 pick is the scientific vampire foe/friend of Spidey: Dr. Michael Morbius. Such a visually cool design in the black and red with his albino skin that he stands out immediately as a vampiric creature of the night. That this monster was of his own creation adding to the story and shock. Sadly over time Marvel have lost sight of what makes Morbius so fun and special but the classic rendition was one that i always enjoyed and looked forward to seeing whenever he showed up.
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Post by MWGallaher on Oct 17, 2016 12:53:38 GMT -5
3. Dracula (as portrayed in Marvel's Tomb of Dracula color comic series, primarily by Wolfman, Colan, and Palmer). ----  --- Going strictly by quality, this run should be at the top of my list. But this is about favorites, and there are a couple of horror-based characters that I just plain get a bigger kick out of. But their comics were never as consistently good as those in Tomb of Dracula #1-70.This series is so widely known and respected and generally highly regarded among comics fans that I doubt that I need to make much of an effort to justify this choice. But on reflection, what strikes me as most remarkable about this run was that the creative crew took what appeared to be a limited concept and played it out in a richly plotted, intriguing epic that led to a satisfying conclusion. While its contemporaries rehashed fight scenes and soap opera melodrama, TOD was a growing, engaging work that felt much more like a novel, with a broad and diverse cast balancing the main character. A main character who, though monstrous, was more than a monster, who was as fully developed a character as any in comics of the time. We feared him, we felt sadness for him, we cheered him, we knew him. I whole-heartedly believe that there has never, in any medium, been as powerful, emotionally engaging and artistically impressive depiction of Dracula than that which appeared in these 70 issues. Not a film, not a story, not a book--even Stoker's original!--compares with this.
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Post by DubipR on Oct 17, 2016 19:58:17 GMT -5
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Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Oct 18, 2016 19:24:25 GMT -5
My number 3 pick is... MONSTER (a.k.a. UNCLE TERRY) Springing from the pages of the UK's short-lived, mid-1980s horror comic Scream! and created by Alan Moore, the Monster strip made an impact on me as a kid in a way that very few comics did. Following the Moore scripted inaugural episode, the majority of the strip was written by John Wagner. It followed the adventures of a young lad named Kenneth and his hideously deformed uncle Terry, who had been kept locked away in a forbidden attic room for years by the boy's abusive father. The first installment of the story opens with Kenneth, a lad who was the same age as me at the time, digging a shallow grave for his Dad. There was something skin-crawlingly suspenseful and foreboding about that first episode, as Kenneth recalled his father's murder at the hands of whatever was lurking in the attic, and the lines "Kenneth Corman was only twelve. He'd never heard an adult screaming before" were particularly chilling to me back in 1984...  Ultimately, the monster turns out to be of the misunderstood gentle giant type and a series of episodic adventures ensue, with Kenneth befriending his affection-starved uncle, as the pair go on the run across England. However, while they were on the run, Terry tended to murder people who wronged him or the boy, due to his ferociously inhuman strength and complete lack of comprehension regarding society's laws. But the masterstroke was that the character was horrifically repellent and easy to identify with at the same time -- which is quite a balancing act. Perhaps key to the whole strip though, was the fact that Terry's horribly warped and drooping face never really lost its shock value for me...  Back when I was 12, I enjoyed all of the strips in Scream! (and it really is high time that the whole 15 issue run was reprinted in TPB form), but as I've grown older, a lot of the comic now seems quite childish or hackneyed. The Monster strip, which has been recently reprinted by the way, still manages to entertain and chill. |
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Post by Bronze Age Brian on Oct 19, 2016 10:18:43 GMT -5
#3: Evil Ernie
    Chaos! comics have always been a guilty pleasure of mine, and were basically the only comics I read for much of the 90's. I can't place what initially attracted me to them, but they were pretty extreme comics for their time. Whether it was Lady Death and her sultry sexiness vs. Satan and the armies of hell, or the succubus Purgatori basking in ancient vampire blood, these comics were wild and erotic and I was a fan of Steven Hughes artwork. But it was the Evil Ernie series that drew me in the most. On the surface Ernie might seem like a generic rock n' roll zombie from a bad death metal song come to life, but there was more to him. A deeper psyche existed within each twisted story (from the mind of Brian Pulido) that somehow appealed to me. Ernest Fairchild was a severely abused kid who developed telepathic powers early in life. He was sent to a doctor in an attempt to cure him of these powers by using the "Dream Probe", which ended up sending Ernie to an encounter with Lady Death, who promises her love to him if he destroys all life on Earth. Her love...that is all Ernie ever desired. He proceeds to kill everyone in his neighborhood, is sent to an asylum for further testing and is eventually killed during a neurotech experiment gone wrong. Lady Death infuses arcane energy into Ernie which turns him into a powerful undead monster that can now turn dead people into zombies to do his bidding. Together, Evil Ernie and Lady Death unleash a plan to bring "Megadeath" upon the populace of the world by obtaining the nukes, ending all life as we know it. Before he is stopped 200,000 will die, including the President (on live T.V.). And that's just in the first series! It's all very sick and demented, but for some reason I've kept coming back for more through the years. Where some horror themed characters "might" let you live if you ever were to encounter them...Evil Ernie would rip you to shreds in a heartbeat (and then resurrect you for his zombie army). There is a charm in that, as well as a nostalgia factor in that Evil Ernie epitomizes 90's trash culture. Something this Generation X-er can appreciate.
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Post by Rob Allen on Oct 19, 2016 16:08:53 GMT -5
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Oct 19, 2016 19:43:57 GMT -5
Dian Belmont - Sandman Mystery Theatre Sandman Mystery Theatre dipped its toes into a number of genres. But it definitely put itself firmly in the serial killer genre of horror many many times. And while Wesley Dodds was a great character, he was almost always outshined by Dian Belmont. Belmont had truly incredible growth as a character throughout the series and became one of the most fully realized female characters in comics.  Her assistance was frequently crucial in Dodds dealing with his cases. And it put her in peril any number of times. But she wasn't the classic woman in danger having a spunk, intelligence and wit that made her much more of a partner than a sidekick.  
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Post by Paste Pot Paul on Oct 20, 2016 0:18:08 GMT -5
3. Dracula
Tomb of Dracula -Marvel Comics
 I've been thinking about the books I chose for this Halloweeny thing here a bit over the last couple weeks, reading folks stuff, agreeing, disagreeing, and generally second-guessing myself. Should I have put Hellboy higher ? ( well yes actually...) Is that person serious about nominating that junk ? Damn why didnt I remember that. You know how it goes, but in the end the list is the list, and this week Im trotting out Drac. Just like that fulla about 5 posts ago, who stole my thunder, writing somewhat better than I ever will. See, as a kid of the 70s THE horror book to read was Vampirella, cos I was like 13, and she had ti.. um , boobs man, but like impossible for a kid to get a hold of over here. So instead it was Drac, and as a Marvel Zombie wannabe it had to be Tomb. Well thats how it starts, but then I find that this is all one great continuing saga, none of this 5 page story nonsense, and bugger me its good. What hooks me though is that beautiful art. This is where I discovered Gene Colan, the first artist I revered, years before I began to appreciate the King, and even 2 or 3 years before I found that Frazzetta dude. Genes art is like no other, none man. Even Kirby has people aping him, as do most of the bigger names. But none do Colan, hell who could? Born to do this book, I think so(speaking purely for the comic booky life importance rating) and its success is largely due to his work (cos really man, what the hell would a horror writer named Wolfman be capable of?), his designs, his consistency, and the obvious synergy the team as a whole had ( that wolf guy again and ole tom-boy). The other reason I love Dracula is also very 70s weighted. Christopher Lee's portrayal of the Count in the Hammer films of the 50s to the 70s rocked my world. He was, and still is Dracula to me and I could always see him in Genes work on the book. Anyhoo, off to start composing next weeks ramble...
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Post by Paste Pot Paul on Oct 20, 2016 1:56:26 GMT -5
When done correctly, Dr. Strange is absolutely a horror story, as a mere mortal struggles valiantly to stave off threats larger and more destructive than the human mind could ever hope to comprehend. Additionally, unlike nearly every other superhero comic, Strange seldom ever seems like he's going to win, always biting off more than he can chew and often pleading to the lesser of two evils for help. The Dormammu Saga (Strange Tales #130-144) was the clearest example of this, as Strange was hopelessly outgunned and dealing with forces to large, so misanthropic, so inevitable, that I often found myself shaking with stress as I read -- how in the world was this going to work itself out by the close, and how did Strange find the energy to keep pressing on, even once his hopes had been entirely thwarted? To go back to my working definition of horror: Defining horror is, inevitably, a personal thing. It can't simply mean "scary," as most would agree that Tod Browning's Dracula (1931) isn't scary, and yet many would also argue that, for example, James Cameron's Titanic (1997) was. Clearly, one is horror and one is not, and "scary" isn't a factor in that consideration. For me, horror primarily concerns itself with establishing a morbid tone. It's a oneness with death on the part of the film itself, not just on the part of one or more characters. Indiana Jones can fight a bad guy obsessed with death, but it isn't horror unless the filmmaker expresses that viewpoint in the shots, lighting, setting, and overall tone as well. As a result, in a horror film, there's seldom a sense of hope (unless it's fleeting). Death is omnipresent and inevitable; any struggle against death is an exercise in near futility. That sense of morbidity is the common thread across Browning's Dracula, Friday the 13th, and even the Saw series, so it's how I define a horror comic or character as well. Is this character primarily associated with stories and contexts that elicit a sense of oneness with death? Dr. Strange pleading to the Living Tribunal, a being that could erase him and all of humanity with a sneeze, provides far more of all of this than a screaming girl confronted by a wolf man. This is true horror, even if it abandons the outward trappings, and it makes Strange's feats all the more heroic and sympathetic as a result. Been thinking about a couple of your statements here and Im not sure I really agree completely bud. I think your statement that Strange staving off threats more destructive than the human mind could ever hope to comprehend is enough to classify the book as horror is a bit of a stretch. This describes most of the Marvel "cosmic" books (Warlock, Surfer, Annihilation, Infinity etc etc), so IMHO the definition needs to include reference to either the supernatural or occult. Its probably also the problem I have with your working definition of horror. IMO this definition could easily describe the Punisher series(which for a number of reasons COULD be described as horrific...for those on the receiving end of his attention...or those who despise the character)...Is this character primarily associated with stories and contexts that elicit a sense of oneness with death? Yes, theres gonna be a whole passel a mafia gunsels having a oneness with death real soon. You could even take that statement into the Infinity series, but I guess that Thanos' oneness with Death may well be best left for other forums...ahem. As I said above I believe there needs to be a supernatural, occult or mystical element to the story to qualify it as "horror", so Michael Myers of Halloween is Horror, as opposed to Dexter, a serial killer, so therefore just a thriller series(IMHO remember). To be fair, your assertion that Strange qualifies because of the Living Tribunal and the Dormammu story are good enough to satisfy how I would choose a character. |
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