There are few things I love more than a good comic book anthology series, particularly a horror anthology. Horror comic books are tough to maintain for long periods and even the most successful of the (The Walking Dead) often overstay their welcome and become repetitive bores. Being an anthology allows for concise horror stories to be told in their entirety and it is a formula that Creepshow has a long history of and continues with this third issue with its two self-contained stories.
The first story is titled “Hair” and comes from L Marlow Francavilla and Francesco Francavilla where a barbershop is the gathering point in a small town where the bodies of local hunters are being found in the woods sans their heads. The title is a bit of misdirection and there is not much of a story here unfortunately but Francavilla’s art continues to delight in all things horror and you can tell that he enjoyed drawing the last payoff page to the story. The best horror stories have a bit of a moral lesson or a punishment to the deserving but this one missed the mark storewide, I was expecting one more twist at the end but it was still a nice short read.
The second story is titled “The Bridge” and comes from Ariela Kristantina and Jorge Corona. It is a very timely take on a social influencer who searches for the perfect photo shoot spot despite the objections of the locals and perhaps something even more sinister.
It is hard to go wrong with a story that starts with the Crypt Keeper lounging on a beach drinking a cocktail from a skull. I really enjoyed the artwork on this one, even though I am not familiar with Jorge’s work, its style really worked well within the story. Who does not love a story about an influencer getting their due after being their usual obnoxious selves? Well, maybe the influencers themselves but if I had to guess most of them would be flattered to get even more fame from a story like this. Strange days indeed.
Special mention must be made for the two-page letter column in the back of the book, many titles have gotten rid of their letters pages or use the space to promote other books in the publisher’s line but Creepshow provides space for fans of the series to gather, talk horror and offer feedback on the previous issue. It brings me back to my childhood and reading the letter columns at the back of Marvel’s comics and seeing familiar names or even, gasp, someone from my state shows up. Even though the calendar says it is turkey time, great horror titles like Creepshow helps keep us horror fans in the Halloween spirit a bit longer.
Creepshow #3
Image Comics – $3.99
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