'The Hidden' is a fine horror genre mash-up from Richard Sala

The Hidden (Fantagraphics Books, 2011)
Story and Art: Richard Sala
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

Strange creatures, most consisting of stitched-together body parts, have overrun the world, destroyed all civlizations and societies, and are driving humanity toward extinction. A group of survivors, keeping just ahead of the monstrous wave of horrors, are on their way to a location in the desert where they will either find salvation or doom.

There are some books and movies and comic books/graphic novels where too much talk about what's in it will spoil the enjoyment that can be gained from it. The main element of those works is the mystery at their core, and the excitement and chills readers and/or viewers derive from those come in large part from watching that mystery unfold as it's revealed piece by horrific piece.

"The Hidden" is one such work. It's a mixture of elements taken from the very foundation of the horror genre (such as divine, end-of-the-world prophecy and 19th century Gothic literature) and modern horror (such as post-Dawn of the Dead zombie tales and demonic secret societies that are manipulating the course of history and driving the world toward destruction as they gain more wealth and power), and as the plot comes together and the mystery is revealed, Sala's main sources of inspiration likewise come into focus. In the final analysis, this is a tale that mixes end-of-the-world zombie survival horror with themes from Mary Shelley's novel "Frankenstein, A Modern Prometeus". Along the way, Sala puts his always unique spin on the story and the material, with his artwork being simultaneously cartoony and creepy... and very, very gory at times. It is, however, always dynamic and clear and the story keeps moving swiftly towards its dark conclusion.

If you're looking for some light Halloween reading that is still spooky and dark, "The Hidden" is well worth your time. I don't think it's the best thing that Sala did--that honor is the tied books "The Chuckling Whatsit" and "Mad Night"--but if you've liked any of the works that have been reviewed at Shades of Gray, or any of the art that has been featured here at Terror Titans, this is a book you need to read.

The bad news is that the physical book is out-of-print, and those who have copies for sale are asking ridiculous prices. Fortunately, "The Hidden" can be had at ComiXology or for the Kindle as a digital download, for about 2/3rds the price of what I paid for my hard copy a few years ago -- or even free if you're a subscriber. 

The Fear-filled Phantasms of Richard Sala

 During the 31 Nights of Halloween for the past two years, we've been bringing you some of Richard Sala's uniquely spooky paintings. Our last post for 2021 is both an ending and a beginning, as far as Sala and his work goes.

It's an ending, because it's the year that is ending will be the last time we'll be spotlighting Richard Sala's work during our annual Halloween festival. But it's a beginning because for all of 2022, you'll find a different painting here by Sala every other Friday. They will be accompanied by brief text peices, some based on what Sala himself had to say about the featured illustration, others will be little story nuggets suggested by the art and made up by the folks here at the blog.

We say goodbye to 2021 with the cover of Richard Sala's second anthology "Black Cat Crossing" (1993). You will undoubtedly notice that the style is a little different than what you've come to expect from Sala if you're a regular visitor to Terror Titans. This is because Sala didn't start using the heavy lines and solid blacks that are a hallmark of what we consider the high point of his output until the mid- to late-1990s. (Most of the art we've been featuring has dated from a 20-year period stretching from the late 1990s into the 2010s.)

Until we meet again in January and the new year!

31 Nights of Halloween 'Halloween: Nightdance'

Halloween: Nightdance (Devil's Due Publishing, 2008) 
Writer: Stefan Hutchinson
Artist: Tim Seeley
Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

 Lisa is a teen struggling with a variety of personal demons... and she is about to come face-to-face with something far worse than any of them. Halloween is fast approaching, and so is the silent serial killer Michael Myers....

 "Halloween: Nightdance" is one of those rare graphic novels that will actually manage to invoke dread as you read it--horror comics are even harder to do well than horror movies, but Hutchinson and Seeley succeed brilliantly.

 Hutchinson's writing is fairly sparse and evocative, using just the right amount of words in the right places. He even seems to have a handle on how to properly tell a story in the comic book format, something tragically few writers in the field seem able to do. Hutchinson's pacing is spot-on throughout, whether you look at in on a page-by-page basis, or over the book as a whole.

The same is true of Seeley's artwork. Seeley is one of those also increasingly rare artists who understand how to lay out a comic book page and effectively move the story--and the reader--along just through the visuals. He also delivers several grotesque scenes beside which which some of Michael's film exploits pale. Even the murders seem more horrific here than in any of the films... perhaps because the images are frozen on the page, so the horror remains in front of you rather than flitting by at 24 frames per second.

The book is also as successful as it is because it invokes the mood of the original John Carpenter "Halloween" without aping it; it tells a unique story, in a unique fashion, but it does so while incorporating all the things that make a "Halloween" story a "Halloween" story.. Hutchinson clearly understands the elements of the "Halloween" property that make it different from other slasher films out there--and it's not just the knife-wielding guy in the jumpsuit. (I suppose that shouldn't surprise anyone, given that he was the creator of the acclaimed "Halloween: 25 Years Later.")

"Halloween: Nightdance" was the first in a series of graphic novels and comics that Devil's Due produced as part of the 30th anniversary of the release of Carpenter's "Halloween" film. It is well worth a look if you appreciate well executed horror stories... and that goes double if you're a fan of classic "Halloween". Heck, you'll even enjoy it if you're a fan of the recent Rob Zombie-helmed travesties... you'll get a taste of what "Halloween" should be when it's done right.