Tag Archives: the dunwich horror

HP Lovecraft’s 125th Birthday Celebration

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As we get closer to NecronomiCON  this weekend I thought I would go over some of the films based on Lovecraft  work.

First up we have Spring, now if you have not seen this movie you need to check it out it’s as much a Lovecraft film or homage as Alien is. (HR Giger  the designer of the creature in Alien was a huge Lovecraft fan.) In this story a man goes to Europe  after his mother’s death to escape some trouble and meets a woman who turns into an elder goddess smoking hot type monster at night. Very creepy movie. The blu-ray is loaded with bonus material like commentary with the directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, as well as creature make up effects and more.

imageThen we have he biggest film of all Re–Animator directed by Stuart Gordan  and staring Jeffrey Combs, one of many many projects they would work on together. As well as From Beyond. Both are great films and also star Barbara  Compton. Jeffrey  Herbert West is what all mad scientist actors should strive for. It’s a great gory movie and filled with amazing practical effects. The dvd and blu-ray come with a 70 min documentary on the making of the movie. From Beyond is a weird and oddly amazing Sci fi movie involving he Resonator a man-made monster that taps into your inner thoughts and fucks  with them. From Beyond recently got released from Scream Factory a year ago, and is loaded with their bonus material.

Dagon is a movie I got to watch with Stuart Gordan and  his wife (who also appears in a lot of his films) at the last NecronomiCON and it was a blast. Never have I had a movie in such a long time give me nightmares. A man and his fiance and their friends go on a fishing trip and end up in Innsmouth on a deserted island where he cult of Dagon lives. If you like half-naked Sexy squid woman this is the movie for you.

imageNow The Dunwich  Horror is a movie I have seen only once and I will be seeing it and Dan o Bannon’s  35mm  cut of  Ancestry  at the NecronomiCON  this weekend. Dean Stockwell stars in this with his creepiest role yet. Dan also wrote the original draft for Alien. His wife attends the cons in his honor to show people his original un cut work.

If you’re from Rhode Island, today marks the 125th Birthday of Lovecraft  and their will be a candle light vigil at his grave in Providence  RI.

IDW Publishing Previews – 1/11/12

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Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye #1

G.I. Joe: Snake Eyes #9

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #175

H.P. Lovecraft: The Dunwich Horror #4

Doctor Who #13

Dungeons & Dragons 100 page Spectacular

G.I Joe: Cobra #9

Cobra Annual 2012: The Origin of Cobra Commander

IDW Reviews – Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes #1, HP Lovecraft: The Dunwich Horror #1, 30 Days of Night #1, Cold War #1

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Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes #1

Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes #1I went into this first issue a bit skeptical.  The whole idea of a mash-up/crossover featuring the cast of Star Trek and Legion of Super-Heroes seemed silly.  I dig the Trek, but haven’t been much of a Legion fan.  So, I went into this expecting the worst.  By the time I was done, I wanted to read the second issue.

Written by Chris Roberson, the comic’s first issue sees two stories that then merge into one.  It’s not as straightforward as the Legion winds up in the Trek universe or vice-versa.  There’s much more to it and it’s laid out in a better way.  And for that well thought out plotting, the story really works.

The art is pretty decent, and I really dug the first few pages which I don’t want to spoil.  The story itself also has a throwback feel to it.  It’s not quite modern and gritty, this is a comic I might have picked up in the 70s or 80s (it’s not a bad thing).

The first issue is really all lead up.  The two groups haven’t really met each other, and instead the focus is on the circumstances where they would.  It very well could fall apart from here, but the first issue got me interested, and I went into this with a bad attitude.  So for that achievement, I have to give the series some props.

Story: Chris Roberson Art: Jeffrey Moy Publisher: IDW Publishing

Story: 7.75 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7.75  Recommendation: Buy

HP Lovecraft: The Dunwich Horror #1

There’s two items here, a longer comic and then an illustrated story.  There’s a lot out there based on the world of H.P. Lovecraft.  The man is a godfather of modern horror.  The stories also vary greatly in quality.  This one follows an amateur group of ghost hunters who get together when one of theirs passes away.

The good is, I really dug the characters.  Their interaction is very good.  The bad is, the story itself is pretty forgettable.  It blended into one of the numerous Lovecraft based stories I’ve read or even a general horror story.  Nothing makes it stand out.  It’s not bad in any way, it’s just not memorable.  There’s a good chance this’ll read better as a trade or graphic novel once it’s completed.

The art for the comic as well as the “prose” part of it is very good.  The second part especially, which I’d expect from menton3.

Overall, there’s nothing bad about this, just nothing where I can say it’s a must buy.

Story: Joe R. Lansdale and Robert Weinberg Art: Peter Bergting and menton3 Publisher: IDW Publishing

Story: 7 Art: 8.25 Overall: 7  Recommendation: Read

30 Days of Night #1

30 Days of Night #1I’ve never read this series.  I caught a bit of the movie, but really I know nada.  That’s good, because going into this, I have no preconceived notions.  There’s two parts to the story here, a battle that’s brewing between some vampire clans and also a woman who has a website that’s investigating whether vampires exist.  The two stories together have an X-Files mashed up with Underworld feel about them.  That’s a good thing because I really enjoy both of those pieces of pop culture.

Sam Kieth’s art just adds to it.  I’ve loved his art work, it’s so unique that’s often imitated but rarely matched in it’s style and look.  Here, it just fits.  The art and story work so well together, I’m hoping this is a combo that’s here for quite a while.

Writer Steve Niles has done his job here, creating an entertaining first issue that’s good for both long time fans (there’s small items here and there I can tell they’d enjoy) and for new readers (like myself).

Story: Steve Niles Art: Sam Kieth Publisher: IDW Publishing

Story: 8.25 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.25  Recommendation: Buy

Cold War #1

Cold War #1I like politics. I like noir. I like spy stories.  Legend John Byrne has mashed all of those together in this new series that takes place during the Cold War featuring a British spy that’s part Bond and Bourne.  The comic has that spy action movie cool about it, with the first ten pages being silent relying totally on the art to tell us what’s going on.  And through those ten pages we get to learn a hell of a lot about the main character Michael Swann.

The story then focuses on a scientist that wants to defect.  Swann is thrown undercover to figure out what’s going on.  There’s a great mix of sex and action with an honest 50s/60s vibe that’s exuded by the classic Bond films.  You can just here Sean Connery reading off Swann’s dialogue.

It’s just the first issue, but there’s a throwback feel to the series that reflects the time it’s set in.  So cool and smooth, like it’s main character Michael Swann.

Story: John Byrne Art: John Byrne Publisher: IDW Publishing

Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5  Recommendation: Buy

IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with FREE copies for review

IDW Announces H.P. Lovecraft Adaptation Comic Series

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Official Press Release

IDW Announces H.P. Lovecraft Adaptation Comic Series

New miniseries based on Lovecraft’s The Dunwich Horror Joe Lansdale brings the horror classic to the 21st Century 

[Lovecraft Cover]San Diego, CA (July 15, 2011)—In anticipation of Comic-Con International: San Diego 2011, IDW Publishing today announced H.P. LOVECRAFT’S THE DUNWICH HORROR, a comic series with a modern take on Lovecraft’s timeless short story of terror The Dunwich Horror. Starting in October, author Joe R. Lansdale and artist Peter Bergting bring to the 21st century audience classic horrors that influenced many prominent authors, most notably Stephen King, who cites Lovecraft as the largest influence on his own writing.
“It’s flattering to be working on a Lovecraft project, one of the most influential horror writers of all time,” said Lansdale, a seven-time Bram Stoker Award winner.
Originally published in the April 1929 issue of Weird Tales, and set in Dunwich, Massachusets, The Dunwich Horror depicts an eerie story of Wilbur Whateley, a sorcerer’s grandson and his search for the Necronomicon, a magical textbook said to hold the powers to open the way for the return of the “Old Ones” to Earth.
 “Like many before me, H.P. Lovecraft’s stories have had a great impact on my notion of what fiction can be,” said editor Denton J. Tipton. “Helping to bring Lovecraft’s work to a new generation of readers is a great honor, as is working with Joe and Peter. The legacy couldn’t be in better hands.”
Each of the four issues in the H.P. LOVECRAFT’S THE DUNWICH HORROR miniseries will also offer an adaptation of Lovecraft’s short story The Hound, by noted Lovecraft historian Robert Weinberg and artist menton3. First published in the February 1924 issue of Weird Tales, The Hound tells the cryptic tale of two grave robbers, who take their private collection too far when they dig up the grave of one of their own.
“Lovecraft’s story ‘The Hound’ is horror at its most intense,” said Weinberg. “The climax of the story is one you won’t forget!”
Readers are encouraged to ask their retailer about the variant Nick Percival covers and The Dunwich Horror prose chapbooks for each issue. Each chapbook will feature a portion of the original The Dunwich Horror prose; readers collection all four chapbooks will come away with the prose for The Dunwich Horror and The Hound.
Also coming in October from IDW Publishing, THE LOVECRAFT LIBRARY, VOL 1: HORROR OUT OF ARKHAM features terrifying tales by H.P. Lovecraft, including Herbert West—Reanimator, The Unnamable, The Colour Out of Space, The Dunwich Horror, and The Shadow Over Innsmouth. With art by Menton3 and an introduction by Robert Weinberg, this is one book that horror fans can’t do without!
H.P. LOVECRAFT: THE DUNWICH HORROR #1 (of 4) ($3.99, 32 pages, full color) will be available in stores in October 2011. 
THE LOVECRAFT LIBRARY, VOLUME 1: HORROR OUT OF ARKHAM ($16.99, 232 pages, full color, hardcover) will be available in stores in October 2011.
Visit IDWPublishing.com to learn more about the company and its top-selling books.
About IDW Publishing
IDW is an award-winning publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in San Diego, California. Renowned for its diverse catalog of licensed and independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro’s The TRANSFORMERS and G.I. JOE, Paramount’s Star Trek; HBO’s True Blood; the BBC’s DOCTOR WHO; Toho’s Godzilla; Sony’s Ghostbusters; and comics and trade collections based on novels by worldwide bestselling author, James Patterson. IDW is also home to the Library of American Comics imprint, which publishes classic comic reprints; Yoe! Books, a partnership with Yoe! Studio; and is the print publisher for EA Comics.
IDW’s original horror series, 30 Days of Night, was launched as a major motion picture in October 2007 by Sony Pictures and was the #1 film in its first week of release. More information about the company can be found at IDWPublishing.com.