Customer Reviews

Showcase Presents: House of Mystery Vol. 3

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
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I was 12 years old when these 1973-74 stories were first published, and at the time they were definitely scary. Volume 3 is the stongest volume in SHOWCASE PRESENTS: THE HOUSE OF MYSTERY thus far, as editor Joe Orlando's stable of writers and artists were hitting their stride. The "Filipino Invasion" was in full swing, with at least one story by Alex Niño, Nestor Redondo, Alfredo Alcala, E.R. Cruz, Ruben Yandoc, Gerry Talaoc, or Jess Jolodman appearing in each issue. Perfectly suited for the fantasy/horror genre, the Filipino school was distinguished by calligraphic brushwork, with beautifully rendered drapery and exotic women. Though Bernie Wrightson is identified with DC's mystery books, his contribution was primarily in the area of covers and introductory splash pages. This volume reprints a few very early (1968) Wrightson stories, including a story from THE SPECTRE, but the artist was just beginning to learn his craft at the time. A Wrightson/Kaluta collaboration is one of the highlights of this volume. The scripts are noticeably better than in the earlier issues; though often predictable, the stories tap into some of the wild energy (and jaundiced view of human nature) of the classic EC Comics. Reproduction is for the most part excellent, from high quality photostats. With comparison to the original comics, it's apparent that certain artists such as Niño were designing with color in mind, so I hope the sales of this bargain-priced volume will warrant full color archives of the best of DC's mystery books. Highly recommended.

It's the best volume of the lot thus far -- looking at the DC horror series in context now, these comics were a significant departure from the EC formula, which had emphasised 1950's gangster 'culture' and a 'pulp fiction' detective approach,albeit within very gory stories.

Also, the Marvel stories in the horror format were typically far more 'socially relevant' than the DC universe, drawing attention to racial issues, 'black power', the Vietnam war and environmental issues ( 'Man thing' ) as well as introducing cosmic themes of loneliness and the existential state of man ( 'Silver Surfer'), as well as verging into the plain dopey and the cod mystical ( 'Dr. Strange').

The DC horror 'cosmos' for its part, never got the praise it deserved, and was roundly ignored as inferior, slap dash and derivative product.

The fanatics amongst us always knew that judgement was simply wrong. And these reissues prove the value of the DC horror comics, particularly in the stunning work of the Filipino artists and in the clever short story scripts, some of which are hokey it's true, but a number feature tersely intelligent plots that easily rival the most offbeat prose and narrative of the early 'Twilight Zone' or 'Alfred Hitchcock presents' series.

All the 'characters' are here in the bizarre DC Cosmos : Nazi officers on the run clash with wizards in an Algerian desert; mean spirited business men ( literally) fall into the painting of hell they have above their desks; greedy landlords exploiting the poor get stopped in their tracks by voodoo dolls; cold hearted nightclub owners and rock stars in flares and paisley scarves make a pact with satan, ancient sailors rise from their ocean tombs, and witches lure avaricious bachelors to their doom.

Take that trip !

This chronological collection of comic book horror stories captures a time in the early 1970s when a new generation of artists like Bernie Wrightson, Neal Adams, Jim Aparo, Alfredo Alcala, Alex Nino, Jack Sparling, Mike Ploog (many of whose artwork is seen within this book), and others were lifting the medium's graphic palette beyond that of cartoon books into more cinematically inspired, wonderfully wrought images, capturing a more realistic and deliciously dangerous tone. It was like comics books weren't just for children anymore. It was neat. As an eleven-year-old kid, I could go down to my neighborhood liquor store and immerse myself in strange stories of the weird and wonderful, nervously stumble down dilapidated halls of exquisite gothic terror, or shiver in revulsion at the secret heart of evil in all men and the ghastly price they all must pay- stuff your parents and teachers wouldn't and couldn't tell you about. It provided a counterpoint for the natural curiosity the dark side of my imagination had living in the bland domesticity it felt entrapped within. Now, parents and teachers and "bland domesticity" are wonderful and beautiful things, most surely to be appreciated, but every boy needs a secret source to go to, a hidden place where demons, monsters, and ghosts gather to shriek, growl, and whispher about the fantastic and the exotic, the horrific and the grotesque, and the outre and the arcane, and many of the stories in this collection are the next best thing to it...and you don't have to sign a pact with the devil or be left with unsightly fang marks on your neck to visit...though we can't guarantee your hair won't turn white!

This book contains within its fragile black and white newsprint pages, some of the best horror illustrations in comic history. Forget EC and its clumsy inks and poor use of text boxes and lettering, the DC bronze age comics were a true marvel. With the flickering candle light images of Alex Nino or the moody line heavy drafting of Alfredo Alcala, and the talents of many other fine pencil/inkers this volume is an essential book in any comic art enthusiast's collection.

Odd that one has to be over 13 to review, because that is the age around which most of us read these first. Even so, they are still good reading, not only for nostalgia, but for the illustrations. MAD Magazine artist Sergio Aragonés is a real treat for his comical illustrations, but many of the artists that contributed to these comics were hard-working illustrators, making these worth looking at again from an adult perspective. Mystery is not the best word to describe these stories, as there is very little that is mysterious. Most center around death, murder, or revenge, and are not all that strange, but some stories will remind you of Outer Limits or Twilight Zone episodes.

I love these reprints although I do wish they were in color. I'll take them any way I can get them!

The Showcase Presents series has got to be the greatest gift to comic book fans since acid-free backing boards! I've been a fan of these classic comic collections ever since I picked up Showcase Presents: Jonah Hex, Vol. 1, and have been doing my best to collect them ever since.

This volume of House of Mystery reprints is just as god as the first two, with plenty of classic terror stories to reread and enjoy. None of the modern horror comics can hold their own against these time-tested silver-age tales, written in a time when style and creativeness trumped gore and over-the-top artists.

This copy is going right up on my comic reprints shelf, between Showcase Presents: House of Mystery, Vol. 2 and Zombie Factory: 27 Tales of Bizarre Comix Madness from Beyond the Tomb, although I doubt it will be long before I pull it down for another perusal.

This book is alright. The stories are good but nothing exceptional. Not one of those must have books.