Customer Reviews

The Miskatonic Project: H.P. Lovecraft's The Whisperer in the Darkness

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The Miskatonic Project is a (as it is called) Perfect Paperback from Transfuzion Publishing. This enterprising comics company is compiling old classic series in nicely bound and presented omnibus editions. They are not doing it cheaply, however, as this book lists $16.99, undiscounted on Amazon, for 128 pages of material. As much as anything else, they are trying to put these comics into context, so there is a very good forward from noted mythos author Don Burleson (I never could get an inexpensive copy of Beyond the Lamplight) a chronology of the events in Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos with the characters of the Miskatonic Project placed in the timeline, minibios of the creators, and an interview with Mark Ellis and an 1991 interview with Don Heck (unfortunately deceased in 1995). The interview with Mark Ellis may be the best thing about the book; it explains the entire premise behind The Miskatonic Project and its creation, as well as the downfall of the team. As a bonus, Transfuzion Publishing provides the all too few pages of the adaptation that never happened, The Hounds of Tindalos. The dimensions of the book are 10 x 7", and the panels are black and white, allowing a full appreciation of the skills of the artists.

The Miskatonic Project was a series of three comics from 1993. The concept was that The Miskatonic Project was a small group of paranormal investigators from the special documents wing of the Miskatonic University library in Arkham. Per Mr. Ellis, the concept predated the X Files. Like Delta Green they strive to prevent the ascendency of the Cthulhu cultists. Rather uniquely, these comics take stories and characters from Lovecraft, and interweave the characters of the Miskatonic Project. In The Whisperer in Darkness they rescue Professor Wilmarth from the cult, and he recounts to them the events that took place in Lovecraft's story in flashback. They meet Inspector Legrasse, who is grievously wounded in an assault by the cultists. The Miskatonic Project decides to investigate the Akeley estate to stop the Mi-Go.

For its kind of book, this is an excellent compilation. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the art, and the last few extra pages of The Hounds of Tindalos made me wistful for what will never be. The book holds up very well in comparison to my contemporary favorites from Boom Studios. Certainly this is a better buy than Graphic Classics Volume 4 from Eureka Publications, which has excellent production qualities but very poor contents. I am enthusiastically ordering Transfuzion Publishing's the Worlds of HP Lovecraft. Anyone who likes Lovecraftian comics will not be disappointed.

With The Miskatonic Project, Mark Ellis and various artists have captured the tone and atmosphere of H.P. Lovecraft better than most of the the so-called 'adaptations' of Lovecraft on film. The time is the nineteen twenties and Lovecraft would still have been alive as the tale in this graphic novel unfolds.

The adventurous team of psychic investigators at Miskatonic University are about to get a first hand lesson in what happens to those who meddle in the affairs of the Cult of Cthulhu. The ancient beings from outer space have a nasty habit of rewiring the biology of those who get too close. Our heroes Lord Sabbath, Augustus Grant and the psychic Fleur Averoigne are attempting to help their friend Professor Wilmarth get to the bottom of rumors of strange creatures inhabiting the New England countryside, and the humans who worship them. Ellis has written a lot of action in along the way to keep even the most jaded SciFi/Horror comics fans happy.

This sumptuous volume not only gathers the original Miskatonic comics together, but like a fine DVD it includes many extra features to supplement one's need for further info on this exciting Project. For the first time, the images are presented in black and white, reminiscent of an old Universal film as Ellis intended. There is also a history of the Cthulhu mythos and interviews with writer Ellis and Comics veteran Don Heck, originator of Iron Man.

One couldn't ask for more in a graphic novel than is received in The Miskatonic Project. Let's hope that Ellis will now continue to bring us more of these Lovecraftian horrors.

Few people can deny the impact that H.P. Lovecraft's work has had on modern horror. The influence can be felt in many movies, books, and television.

Even the monsters and creatures that you see depicted in many popular franchises have been influenced by his work (Geiger's Alien, for example).

Although, I have to admit that many of the movies I have seen that were based on his work were less than stellar. It's a pity, since many of the stories are quite intriguing.

Hey, we're dealing with alien creatures that have been around longer than the dinosaurs here!

The thing about Lovecraft's work is the fact that humanity is very insignificant... we like to think we're the center of the universe, that god loves us and created us in his image.

Lovecraft shatters that illusion with his version of harsh fiction. Of course its fiction, but it does tell humanity as a whole to essentially `watch it; you're about as important to the old gods as that piece of lint on your shirt'.

Kind of puts things into perspective, doesn't it? But still, its fiction, and it is to be taken as such.

So, here we have Mark Ellis' Miskatonic Project - The Whisperer in Darkness. It's a compilation of the original comics published by Millennium Publications back in the early 90's - based upon H.P. Lovecraft's work.

As per usual, I will not write about any spoilers, other than those that you could get from reading the back cover of the book itself.

The Miskatonic Project is the mortal enemy of the old ones. They're determined to prevent Cthulhu and his spawn from retaking the Earth for themselves and delegating humanity to nothing more than cattle.

In the pages of the Graphic novel the heroes encounter the humans that have sided with the old ones, monsters that defy the imagination, and horror deep enough to freeze the soul.

Ok, truth be told, by today's standards, the horror and monsters that one reads about in the graphic novel are pretty tame. Hey, how can this stuff compare to the shock of things like Torture porn?

Still, when you consider the era that this material was originally written, it was very horrific. Stuff like this would have given most of the people who read it back in the 30's and 40's nightmares.

So, when you're reading it, try to put aside what you consider horror today and try to take the mindset of a person living back in those simpler times. You just might appreciate the material more if you do.

Any fans of Mark's Outlanders work will see similarities to the characters he created there... the most obvious being Augustus Grant. Just remember, this predates Outlanders by several years.

Now, was the story good? Yes. It had all the elements of a great story... stalwart heroes fighting creatures that are out to change the face of the world. Plenty of action, villains worthy of the heroes (hey, if you have a weak villain, you can't have a strong hero, can you?)

And, of course, monsters. The cherry on top of the ice cream sundae.

For a person like me, who knows about Lovecraft, and clearly understands the impact his work has had on modern horror, but has never actually read one of his novels or stories... I have to admit that Mark's work on the graphic novel has finally opened the doors for me. I want to pick up some of Lovecraft's work and experience it for myself now.

That alone should speak volumes.

Another thing that I have to point out about the graphic novel was the inclusion of bonus material.

Most of the graphic novels I've bought over the past couple of years have had maybe a guest introduction, and a gallery of covers for the original comics. Pretty weak if you ask me.

Not the case with this graphic novel. Not only do you get the original comics (in black and white instead of full color, which makes it all that much better), but a forward by Donald Burleson; a chronology of the Cthulhu mythology, interviews with Mark Ellis and Don Heck, and a bio of all those involved in the creation of the graphic novel.

Seems like a lot, right? But there's more!

There are several pages from a previously unpublished adaptation of the hounds of Tindalos - penciled by Don Heck, several pages of character sketches and even previews of upcoming material.

Finally, a shout out to all those who helped bring the graphic novel to life - Darryl Banks, Terry Collins, Deirdre Delay, Don Heck, Daryl Hutchinson and Melissa Martin-Ellis.

This is a must have for fans of any of the above, Outlanders, and of course H.P. Lovecraft. It's worth owning just for the bonus material alone.

5 out of 5