From the August 1952 issue of Forbidden Worlds #8
Monday, May 12, 2008
The Eyes of Death
I’ve been holding out from sharing this King Ward classic because I’ve been hoping to upgrade this issue with a better copy, though of course not having much luck. Anyway, enjoy this atmosphere-soaked story... the scans are a bit rough but it’s still a very spooky one!
From the August 1952 issue of Forbidden Worlds #8
From the August 1952 issue of Forbidden Worlds #8
I'm not sure which Eric is more of: mean or stupid. I'm leaning toward stupid.
ReplyDeleteWhat's with all the red here? I feel like I'm watching a low-rent Bava imitation!
ReplyDeleteActually the story would suit Bava too--ancient family with a dark secret literally buried in the family estate--unlikeable characters being nasty to each other, ghosts...it could totally work.
The art didn't strike me as "great," but it had a few weird flashes that made it interesting. The "family portrait" panel a the top right of page 2 and the close-up of Eric following are priceless, and the battered Eric near the end is great too. Not the best, but an entertaining read.
I LOVE KING WARD ART. IT'S SCRATCHY BUT WONDERFULLY MOODY AND TEXTURED, WEIRD ANGLES, AND VERY WELL COMPOSED, MEANING THERE'S ALOT MORE GOING ON IN A SINGLE PANEL THAN MOST 50'S COMICS. IT'S SLIGHTLY CARTOONY TOO WHICH I LIKE, SIMPLE THINGS LIKE THE 3RD PANEL ON PAGE 6 OF HER TURNING AROUND, AND ON PAGE 7 JUMPING FROM THE WINDOW. AWESOME STUFF.
ReplyDeletefantastic post........its been awhile since youve featured a king ward story.
ReplyDeletebig fan
I agree the color job is a bit botched on this story but King Ward is one of my favorite illustrators too. I've said this before about his clever use of simple silhouette to set a mood (panel 3 page 1), and his cinematic angles (all of page 7), claustrophobic compositions (pick one), his linework is weirdly organic and alive, almost sinister, and totally unique to the storytelling. Ward never played it safe or clean as most ACG artists of the era tended to do, which is exactly why I find his style so haunting and original.
ReplyDeleteIf I had more stories by him I'd do a tribute someday, unfortuantly I don't (for the moment.)
I agree with the accolades regarding Ward's line work. I'm not a big ACG fan, but Ward's art really improves the quality of this story. Too bad, as stated, that the colors are so awful.
ReplyDeleteAnd poor Eric- he looks like a rather unfortunate offspring of Lon Chaney and Peter Lorre. How do all these unappealing 50s men get such cute tail? Damn, I guess I need to find me a castle somewhere...
Say it with me: F*CK!!.that is the sorriest way to die i have ever seen in a horror story in ANY medium,and the funniest too!.it must have been somenthing to see him pounding his head like that!.I agree about the coloring,but you can tell it was a bleed,otherwise it works great in scenes like the first panel.as for the Chaney jr. resemblance,it varies;in the 1st panel of the last page he looks like a younger Boris Karloff with Down-syndrome.
ReplyDeleteNice story today- leaves me with that morbid curiosity of what it would be like to be left to die inside of a brick wall... Especially with your wife tied to the chair across from you.
ReplyDeleteGood post Karswell.
ReplyDeleteIt is a shame you don't hear more about guys like King Ward, I mean he's definitely no Jack Kirby but from the few examples I've seen posted here he should be remembered along with many other slightly overlooked ACG leaguers like Lin Streeter, John Blummer, and Ogden Whitney.
Thanks! And kp the good work!
I like seeing King Ward get some praise here today, makes me proud to be posting his stories. Thanks again to everyone who commented.
ReplyDeleteFYI: Someone mentioned Ogden Whitney and coincidently I'm putting together a nice tribute of some of his best work, be on the lookout for this sometime early next month. And be here bright and early tomorrow as Ken Shannon returns to tackle a potential menace from "outer space!"
>Ken Shannon returns to tackle a potential menace from "outer space!"
ReplyDeleteAWESOME!!!!!