Customer Reviews

Clive Barker's Tapping the Vein

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The stories from Clive Barker's The Books of Blood are ideal for a graphic novel adaptation because of their visual intensity and visceral power. Here Barker and various artists have made a series of comic books in the tradition of EC comics but with stories more powerful and with more depth than the old comics ever achieved. Although I like Stephen King's comic homage, Creepshow, Tapping the Vein is a much better buy and contains adaptations of some of the most original short stories I've ever read. The combination of great artwork and great storytelling make In The Hills, The Cities the best. And the great artwork for Pig Blood Blues adds much to this lesser Clive Barker story. One dissapointment is that I didn't care much for the artwork for The Skins of the Fathers, my favorite of the stories chosen for this collection. Still fan's of Barker's The Books of Blood will love this collection. I'm eager to see more adaptations like this, especially for his stories, The Last Illusion and Rawhead Rex.

Years before Clive Barker wrote The Hellbound Heart which later was brought to the screen and transformed into Hellraiser he already had much experience from the life of a writer. Together with friends in a theatre group Barker had written several scripts for the stage, and in 1984 he published a collection of astonishing short stories, which became known as the Books of Blood. These days Barker is not a horror writer per se, even though his creations still contain supernatural and/or horror-influenced elements.

Books of Blood have been a global success, and many different editions have been published by different publishers. Checker Publishing Group - known for their high-quality editions of new and classical comics - has now released some of Barker's most celebrated stories from, among other, Books of Blood in the shape of a comic.

It's not a very easy task to transform the bizarre world of Clive Barker into a different media, but all in all one must say that Checker has done a great job. The stories are "Human Remains", "Pig Blood Blues", "Skins of the Fathers", "The Midnight Meat Train", "In the Hills, the Cities", "How Spoilers Bleed", "Down, Satan", and "Scape Goats".

However, the read is not a very easy one, despite the illustrations that accompany it, and unfortunately, some of the contributors more or less fail to do their job. For example, John Bolton's drawings for "In the Hills, the Cities" are masterpieces of art, while Klaus Janson's contributions to "Skins of the Fathers" are aeons away from the creepiness of Bolton.

Still, the stories in themselves are all brilliant literature, and in most case the transformation into comics are quite successful, even though it must be said that the reader more or less has to read the stories in their original form before attempting to read the comics. This is the only way to fully understand what's going on (and sometimes you still don't, but that's just the way Barker works). If you've read the stories before and liked them, then this Checker release will not let you down, but if you're new to the world of Clive Barker you'll probably have a hard time understanding some of the stories.

This is one of the coolest things I've ever come by. The psychotic stories of Clive Barker transferred to the graphic novel format. Some of the very best Barker tales are chosen for this collection. The artwork completely captures every aspect of the disturbing yet poetic brilliance of Barker's stories. Bravo! A little spendy, but worth every penny. Trust me! As a die-hard Barker fan, I can say that any admirer, passive or devoted, will love this collection.

Years before Clive Barker wrote The Hellbound Heart which later was brought to the screen and transformed into Hellraiser he already had much experience from the life of a writer. Together with friends in a theatre group Barker had written several scripts for the stage, and in 1984 he published a collection of astonishing short stories, which became known as the Books of Blood. These days Barker is not a horror writer per se, even though his creations still contain supernatural and/or horror-influenced elements.

Books of Blood have been a global success, and many different editions have been published by different publishers. Checker Publishing Group - known for their high-quality editions of new and classical comics - has now released some of Barker's most celebrated stories from, among other, Books of Blood in the shape of a comic.

It's not a very easy task to transform the bizarre world of Clive Barker into a different media, but all in all one must say that Checker has done a great job. The stories are "Human Remains", "Pig Blood Blues", "Skins of the Fathers", "The Midnight Meat Train", "In the Hills, the Cities", "How Spoilers Bleed", "Down, Satan", and "Scape Goats".

However, the read is not a very easy one, despite the illustrations that accompany it, and unfortunately, some of the contributors more or less fail to do their job. For example, John Bolton's drawings for "In the Hills, the Cities" are masterpieces of art, while Klaus Janson's contributions to "Skins of the Fathers" are aeons away from the creepiness of Bolton.

Still, the stories in themselves are all brilliant literature, and in most case the transformation into comics are quite successful, even though it must be said that the reader more or less has to read the stories in their original form before attempting to read the comics. This is the only way to fully understand what's going on (and sometimes you still don't, but that's just the way Barker works). If you've read the stories before and liked them, then this Checker release will not let you down, but if you're new to the world of Clive Barker you'll probably have a hard time understanding some of the stories.

Tapping The Vein is a collection of Clive Barker tales - originally from the Books of Blood I believe - that were adapted to comic stories and published by Eclipse comics. The new edition from the Checker Publishing Group contains reprints from the Eclipse books.

The artwork throughout is first rate and favorite illustrators include Scott Hampton, John Bolton and Tim Conrad. The book itself is a handsome, well produced volume that was printed in Korea on thick glossy paper and has a sturdy you're-getting-your-money's-worth feel.

The stories themselves are something of a mixed bag. While they are of generally high quality, the volume contains not only horror but also fantasy, some of it with a mythic quality. They are generally well written and interesting but whether or not you will enjoy them all depends on the type of story you like.

Being a horror buff, The Midnight Meat Train and Pig Blood Blues were personal favorites. If one prefers myth, Human Elements and In the Hills, the Cities are entertaining. The remaining stories are generally fair and offbeat as well.

The problem with the volume is that horror fans expecting wild EC style comics from the Hellraiser creator are apt to be disappointed. On the other hand, someone who wants stories a little out of the mainstream in a fairly diverse collection should be pleased - provided they aren't easily offended by such sexual topics as homosexuality, bestiality, and transgenderism. (For the record, the reviewer is not.)

If you're looking for something different from the biggest horror phenomena since Stephen King definitely buy the book. But if you're looking for good old fashioned EC type thrills and chills check out the available EC collections or Bruce Jones marvelous comic Twisted Tales that was published by Eclipse and is long missed.

Brillant adaptation of Barkers short tales.
The list of ilustrators include P. Craig Russel,Scott Hampton,Klaus janson,D. Cowan,John Bolton,H. Gomez,Stan Woch,Tim Conrad,Bo Hampton and the colaboration in the adaptation of the stories of Steve Niles and Chuck Wagner among others.

Originally I was attracted to this title after playing the PC game CLIVE BARKER'S UNDYING. Highly atmospheric in its conversion from text to interactive graphics, the game left most players with a chill, a tingle - that would haunt and could not be shaken off easily. The graphic novel, however, left me with a bland, dull taste - and with an unquenched thirst of the paranormal. The artwork was apt, the ideas provided were original, the premises were even commendable. However, somewhere along the path of story development and conversion, the psychotic-horror tinge misses its mark. There is no cherishable after sensation to savour. Also sometimes, one needs to grope for the ideas for the 'read between the lines'. 'Pig Blood Rules', `Midnight Meat Train' - were the only well-rounded stories I remember with warmth.