Tweet
Published by: IDW/Yoe Books
Released on: Dec. 10, 2014
Writers: various, but not credited (unknown)
Artists: various
Cover: A.C. Hollingsworth
Purchase at Amazon
Click HERE for last issue's write-up.
Issue after issue Haunted Horror continues to be a bi-monthly highlight with its reprints of some great 1950s pre-code, brain-rotting stories of revenge and ghastly deaths. Seven tales fill this issue, complete with a fantastic cover courtesy of Shelly Moldoff which originally held the contents of This Magazine is Haunted #13.
“Death's Revenge!†from Mysterious Adventures #16 (1953); art by Doug Wildly. A man cheats at cards and for his trouble he's brutally murdered by his card playing companions. At the anniversary of the murder, one of the killers decides to play a joke on the others and dress up his goon like the murder victim, but the victim is actually coming for them at the same moment. Watch for a particularly graphic murder in this one.
“Horror of the Cannibal's Dinner†from Dark Mysteries #15 (1953); art by Joe D'Agostino. A missionary finds his way to a remote Kenyan village and wins them over. After his death, his shithead son takes over the plantation and turns all the tribes people employed by his father into slaves. He punishes a woman for trying to escape, but he shouldn't have done that to a witch doctor. It will cost him dearly. This one has a decapitation, yeah!
“The Murdeous Mimics!†from Beware #11 (1952); art by Paul Cooper. A young couple moves to Alaska and settles down in an area the locals and the animals avoid. Nothing weird about that, go ahead and build your house. A dying man stumbles into their cabin and lets them in on the fact there are some alien life forms out there that kill and mimic those they kill. Hmm…frozen wasteland…alien life form that imitates…even a dog who is the initial carrier of the creature…sounds familiar. Anyway, you can guess what happens, but still it's a good one.
“Headless Horror!†from Chamber of Chills Magazine #8 (1952); art by Abe Simon. The host of a television show that exposes so-called haunted houses as fake takes on a haunted house he'll wish he hadn't. His friends find him dead, impaled on a spear to be more detailed, and they watch his recording of his own death and proof of the existence of ghosts. This one has a detachable head and a lot of blood. The dialogue is goofy, and the “twist†sucks, but the way the story is laid out is cool and the art is good and nasty.
“I Walked at Midnight†from The Beyond #17 (1952); art by Al Eadeh. A couple of vampires hunt for victims in the graveyard without realizing the other exists. Once they meet up, meh…another one with some dumb dialogue, and a story that pretty much blows, but the art is evil. The female vampire surely gave little kids some nightmares.
“While the Iron Was Hot!†from Weird Mysteries #12 (1954); art by Tony Mortellaro. This one is a real sicko. A tailor gets fed up with his nagging wife, a woman he fears, and a woman who will not let him leave the house until he finishes a dress for a rich fat woman. The one problem he has is that he needs a bigger sized dress dummy. The bitch won't let him leave so he becomes resourceful and uses what he has at his disposal. Ed Gein might have read this one. That last panel is worth the price of admission alone.
“The Devil from the Deep†from Nightmare #2 (1952); art by Lee J. Ames. Two rich men of science find a mermaid while on a deep sea fishing trip. One of them falls in love with her instantly, as if under some spell. The other man knows something is wrong, but lover boy refuses to believe it. Even threatens his own pal with violence if he doesn't leave it alone. When the mermaid proves to them both she is dangerous, lover boy still poo-poos it. His love is so deep only death can severe the bond. Hint hint.
Another outstanding issue. Every story chosen for reprint deserves it, whether for the just the art or both the story and the art. These horror tales from the past are so fun to read and let's hope this series continues to run. And maybe, just maybe, Yoe will start a series to reprint some of the lesser known 70s horror stuff. Lord knows there is lots of that out there too.
