The Metamorphs

How about another creature-feature from the March 1969 issue of Boris Karloff's Tales of Mystery #25 (see our previous post as well.) Sci-fi horror can sometimes be a mixed bag, but sometimes-- like today's post-- they can really give ya the willies! You long-time THOIA'ers might even remember a similarly freaky ACG Forbidden Worlds tale that I posted here waaaay way back in 2007 called "Nightmare for Two" --check it out after today's shivery story! And adios to January finally too. Stay tombed for lots more in February, where things are doomed to be diabolically romantical, as usual...

Behemoth

Time to check in at the 'ol horror movie studio and see how the new SPFX are working out! It's a fun quickie from the March 1969 issue of Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery #25, and thus proves once and for all that AI technology has ALWAYS had a monstrous mind of its own! 

The Fiendish Spectre

This story was one of my first encounters with a Gold Key comic that truly frightened me. I mean, I was just a dopey little kid, but that evil Jack Sparling spirit with those claws and teeth --that nobody but the victim could see-- really did me good for a few sleepless nights. It also kind of reminded me of the Haunting record fiend in the old ads. From the December 1970 issue of Ripley's Believe it or Not #23.

Beasts and Banshees!

Thirsty Thursdays are here again, with a couple of sex-crazed supernatural thingies out lookin' for some flingies. I believe most people view these Ripley's stories as being a bit G-rated and tame, but how often do you see a comic book tale from Gold Key where a helpless lady in a nightgown is grabbed by her hair, and flung onto a bed where a half-human creature can then "follow his bestial instincts?!" "The Monster of Croglin Grange" is from the June 1969 issue of RBION #14, followed by a screaming second sizzler, "Prey of the Banshee!" from the October 1971 issue of RBION #29, --this one's highlighted with a beautiful John Celardo illustrated lead female looking like she stepped right out of John Buscema's pretty girl playbook.

Bride of the Brujo!

Brian's rockin' birthday salute in our previous post temporarily interrupted my planned Ripley-O-Rama, so here's the next installment for "Brujday Tuesday the 13th", comin' atcha from the October 1970 issue of Ripley's Believe it or Not #22. Featuring some cool transformation panels from Golden Age great, John Celardo, plus: burning at the stake, holy water in the face, a disintegrating body, tragic madness, and more! Yep, this story has a little bit of everything, including another gaspingly gruesome George Wilson cover painting to totally knock your fuzzy slippers off! A few more choice "believe it or whatevs" on the way too, so stay bruj'd...

Stone Dead

After her husband is distracted away in the night, a naive new homeowner gets two-fingered by a pair of rock hard spirits. This is a nice, spooky little tale from the October 1975 issue of Ripley's Believe it or Not #58, and yeah, it's not really about what you think it's about after reading my intro sentence. 

"Believe it, or not..."

Possessed

Very appreciative to the commenter from earlier this week who supplied an answer regarding another possible Ouija board themed comic story. And like our previous post, this one is also from the same weird Western series, the October 1963 issue of Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery #5 to be exact. It's an eerie Peppe / Toth team-up with very nice art, though with a title like "Possessed" it's kind of a shame it's not just a wee bit more scary. Still, it's a fun look at adult party games gone wrong, or is it really a blistering expose about sexual 60's pent-up housewife frustrations? Hmmm...