Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Collected Best, Vol. 2 (Paperback)

~ John Bolton (Author), Clive Barker (Author), Dave Dorman (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The stories in this uneven anthology come from the Epic comics series of a decade ago, which was inspired by a continuing series of horror movies, all of which originated in Barker's novella The Hellbound Heart. Though the stories are set in different times and countries, they all show human encounters with the Lament Configuration. People who succumb to temptation and manage to solve the puzzle enter the domain of the Cenobites, hideously deformed creatures who inflict eternal suffering on anyone handy. So the fundamental subject throughout each tale is mutilation and pain, not simply death. Superficially, some of the stories resemble the gruesome 1950s horror comics that EC Comics produced with disturbing excellence. A few try to do more by exploring the attraction of s&m themes for a mass audience of Cenobite wannabes. Unfortunately, most of the contributors veer toward gross-out techniques. There is some good art here, as well as some interesting scripts, but they're seldom in the same story. The most successfully unified pieces are "Pleasures of Deception" (script by Phil Nutman; art by Bill Koeb), in which an artist is inspired by the Cenobites to discover a wonderfully new way of seeing reality; and "Cenobite!" (script by Nicholas Vince; art by John Van Fleet), which shows episodes in the life of the kind of man who'd be a willing recruit for this squad of master torturers. Those also, not coincidentally, are among the collection's least clinically graphic. They give readers a chance to reflect on what's going on, not just flinch.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Among the many spin-offs from horror jack-of-all-trades Barker's first hit movie was a comic book that enjoyed a five-year run, 1989-94. This second best-of collection of stories from the periodical is, like Collected Best (2002), better looking than reading. That isn't damning with faint praise. Comics stories ought to work visually as much or more than verbally, and horror stories usually cry out for visual pyrotechnics, which is what they got in the Hellraiser comics. Bill Koeb in "The Pleasures of Deception," John Van Fleet in "Cenobite," and Steven Johnson in "Old Wives' Tale" revel in technique as they advance a story, betraying such things as the torn edges of collaged paper, paint splatters, scratches, and some frames' origination as photographs. Adopting more conventional comics-like styles, John Bolton achieves a glowing effect suitable to the medieval setting of "The Canons of Pain" by letting the texture of the medium he paints and draws on show through, and Gil Ashby exploits the etiolated look of thin watercolor washes appropriately in the AIDS parable "Fury." Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Checker Book Publishing Group (June 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0971024979
• ISBN-13: 978-0971024977
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #525,936 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars In the flesh, November 8, 2006

By	Majo Pavlovic "mad about magic" (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

First of all, I would like to mention that I am 27 yrs old graphic novel author,and painter, as well as a comic art teacher, here in Sarajevo, Bosnia.
I'm about to publish my new work soon, together with my students, in a form of album.
But, let's get back to fantastic world of Mr. Barker, and gore visions of those authors, who had made his stories to life, on paper, and canvas.
I'm visualist in a first place, but I like a fine and interesting story to.
So, we have ten short stories in this collection.
My favorite one is PLEASURES OF DECEPTION, because the storyline is good, intense, but also confused and dark.
Artwork is dark and expressionistic, what makes this story complete.
CENOBITE has interesting artwork, but the story itself is not so good.
OLD WIVES' TALE has a superb story, but i didn't liked the artwork.
I think that everyone has a different oppinions, tastes etc, and all readers, or fans of HELLRAISER series can find something for them in this volume.
But the third volume is much better, trust me.
More stories, more pages, and some very creepy illustrations!
In any case, if you are a true fan of Mr. Barker's work, you should get one copy.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Oh dear Pinhead, you're truly the Greatest..., December 13, 2005

By	Stefan Isaksson "www.stefanisaksson.se" (Malmoe, Sweden) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Okay, so I admit it: I'm a sucker for Hellraiser.

I've seen all the movies tons of times, according to me Clive Barker is the best author in the history of the world, I'm a collector of all the official action figures, I'll buy a replica of the Lament Configuration as soon as I can afford it, and I've even serious plans about hanging chains from the ceiling of my apartment. In other words; Hellraiser + Stefan = True.

All this means that I'm probably unable to be very objective when I review a Hellraiser comic. Or? Well, since I'm a great fan of the series I assume I think in a way that closely resembles that of other fans, and to all of you I can only say: Clive Barker's Hellraiser Collected Best II is a definite must for all of you who prefer hanging out with Pinhead and his fellow Cenobites. As is the case of all anthologies, not all contributions are equally good, but the greater majority of all the writers and artists who contribute to the collection should be very proud of what they've managed to produce.

Because it's truly an amazing collection. The story Razing Hell (pts. 1-3) is especially good, which uses the Hellraiser legend in a both creative and exciting way, and I had a constant smile on my lips as I read it. Other stories worth mentioning are The Blood of a Poet, which takes place in Europe after the First World War, and The Pleasures of Deception, where a young artist is inspired by the Cenobites into creating very macabre pieces of art.

These days, most horror movies are nothing but stupid stories mixed with fake boobs, lousy dialogues, and boring nü-metal music, and thus, being a horror buff it's very refreshing to partake in the Hellraiser legend, even though it's "only" through a comic.

I still prefer books to comics, but Hellraiser Collected Best II is truly a pleasure to experience, and I can honestly recommend it to all you Cenobites out there.