Some eerie Iger Shop illustrative touches highlight this haunted tale of horror from the deep (aka the Brian Barnes family tree.) I always find it odd to see the distinct Iger style featured in a publication that isn't Superior, or Ajax / Farrell, and this time it's Comic Media's nerve-wracking November 1952 issue of Horrific #2.
8 comments:
So that's why I never got any inheritance from great-great-great-granddaddy Silas!
I really love the art in this thing; it's all twisted and rubbery. Page 2, panel 2, what even *is* that? The face looks like it's gone through a skew process in photoship and the gnarled monster hands? It's just nuts but it works so well. Every panel like that screams "horror comic."
Page 5, panel 4 is also really neat -- why that angle? His body couldn't fit realistically around the coffin and his hand seems to be backwards -- but it's a really cool angle. Again, screams "horror comic."
I also love ghost that are so ... accepting ... of their fate. Going to be cruising the ocean forever? Well, best get started!
Silas' body sitting up and pointing to his killer reminded me of the obscure Poe tale "Thou Art the Man."
This is a bit of a refreshing change from the usual trope where only the killer can see the murdered person. In fact it's a better version in every way including the ending.
@Brian
Page 5 Panel 4: He's pulling out a nail from the coffin lid with a claw hammer. There's nothing wrong with the angle, assuming he's a leftie. The question is why they'd have wanted to nail the coffin down so quickly anyway.
Such a very enjoyable horror story and marvelous art that gives satisfaction with its style depicting the wavy, gruesome asymmetrical horror elements because horror and fear do not look ever neat and never felt neat either. The scene where the bodies switch happen is very nice twist
This one certainly delivers on the vibe. This artist lays the texture on in spades. The gnarly faces, the knuckle veins--all very moody. I really love the high-dollar wood grain on the coffin, especially in the splash (say, is that oak?), and all the glorious heads of hair, too (the second circle on page four, for example). Great stuff.
It's a little surprising since I'm such a terrible reader in most ways, but I also know "Thou Art The Man!"
So I also see the resemblance.
It's not the greatest etching, but I dig the layouts with all the Golden Age circles and the variations in angle & camera depth. The drawing does have its moments, though, with the first and last panels being particularly strong. The corpse in the first one has a Simon/Kirby look to it.
The last panel is helped along by that poetic caption. Most of that last page is standard horror story denouement but the last two panels have a strange peacefulness or acceptance to them. Usually sailing on forever would be the worse fate, but instead of a lack of rest this has a sense of community and the worse fate is being excluded from that community & left purposeless.
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