Comic review: Eerie #6- Old destroys new

Writers and artists: Numerous
Editor: Cousin Eerie
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Released: 17th December 2014



I was lazily reading this book over the new year period, not expecting to review it (as it’s a couple of weeks old now), when it slowly dawned on me that the final tale in the trilogy was in a completely different league to the previous two tales.

That story was titled ‘The Night the Snow Spilled Blood,’ and was written by Don McGregor, and illustrated by Tom Sutton.

The writing was more detailed, there was a lushness, a richness of emotional depth, and a feeling that the writer knew what he was doing, had something to say, and was going to slowly, and calmly take his time to say it properly. As the story concludes the narrative threads that are introduced at the beginning of the tale come nicely together, giving the reader the satisfaction that a circle has been completed. The story made sense, had meaning, and fitted together as a fully formed coherent whole. In other words, it was a good old-fashioned horror story, cleverly constructed, and very well written.

My first thought was that the story couldn’t have been written today. Simply put, it was too good, too clever, too carefully constructed, and too intelligently written. I wanted to be wrong. I don’t want to be one of those old comic book fans that drone on and on about the good old days, but you know what? I wasn’t wrong. I was right. The story wasn’t written today. It was written sometime in the early 1970’s, and this was a reprint for people like myself who missed out on the story the first time. That’s pretty bloody depressing for me, because I want to feel good about comic book writers of today. I want them to be good. I want them to say something. I want them to connect with me. I don’t want to live in the past. I want to live today, but what can you do when the writers are playing it safe in corporate career mode, have nothing to say and less of a clue on how to say it?

The other two stories in Eerie #6 aren’t terrible. I don’t hate them. They don’t offend me, but they do something worse than that, they wash over me. They are blah, very whatever, read, discard, no impression is made. In that sense they are much like a lot of other contemporary comics. They exist, they are okay, but they aren’t really doing anything, and they certainly aren’t saying anything.

The first of these stories is ‘The Ash Tree’ by Kelley Jones. This is a project where the art is the goal, and the story the background. That art kind of looks old fashioned and cool, not spectacular, but it could fit in an old comic without standing out too much I guess. Why you would want to produce something that looks a bit like an old comic, but is unlikely to be commented on is a bit of a mystery to me though. The story itself is an old witch gets revenge tale, taken from an over-exposed horror writer’s tales from over a century ago. Read, forget, and next story. I’m not offended, but little impression has been made.

The second story in Eerie #6 (‘Run, run, as fast as you can,’ by Landry Q. Walker and art by Dev Madan) is another revenge tale, this time using the very tired trope of an abused wife creating some creature to punish her abusive husband. Nothing is said, the husband is tortured, it’s very cute and all of a sudden, it ends. It’s very predictable, not particularly clever, and as the core of the narrative is empty of meaning you are left feeling particularly unsatisfied as it all concludes. The art had some nice panels, but a nauseating tone of cuteness permeated everything about it, contaminating my enjoyment, making me feel like I was watching one of those torture porn modern movies that get pushed out today.

And so, to that last tale, the old one, the one that stood out like a gold nugget in a pile of horse manure. The descriptive panels are longer, there’s more writing, and it’s quality writing as well. You feel like you really get into the head of the protagonists, they are real people, they have emotional lives that you can identify with, and you care about what happens to them. The art is secondary, but it’s good, not overly stylised, and not trying to make up for a mediocre story by putting on a razzle and dazzle distraction show. That story is gripping, and you don’t get the full facts until the final panel of text. You are left with that lean back in your chair, moment of realisation. That moment that you always get in a superior horror short, a moment that leaves you feeling satisfied, a moment that makes the entire reading experience so enjoyable, and has you happy to come back again, and again and again for another hit.

I challenge any comic book reader to purchase a copy of Eerie #6 and argue with me that the last of the three stories is not a far, far superior piece of work in comparison to its two companions. Old isn’t always better than new, but sometimes it seems like the horror comic writers of the past really are head and shoulders above the writers of today, and you really notice it when you read anthologies like Eerie #6 that combines quality old with the painfully mediocre new.

Eerie #6 offers an amazing front cover by Jim Pavelec and Chris Seaman, a glorious horror tale from the early 1970’s and two average tales from today. It’s a must buy book, but as a commentary on the sub-standard horror comic landscape of 2014/15 it’s saying a lot more than dear old Cousin Eerie probably realises.

Rating: 8/10 (for the cover art, and the 70’s horror comic re-print)