Miskatonic Theatre

When one thinks of the worlds of H.P. Lovecraft, especially one who is already familiar with his works, downtown Manhattan isn’t the first thing that springs to mind. Generally the 20th Century’s master of the weird tale causes people to think of long dead underwater cities, reeking chthonic tunnels and dark clusters of ancient forests. But, if you’re in the city, and are an intrepid investigator, you’ll have head down to Manhattan’s East Village. There you’ll mount the cracked and pitted stone stairs outside of 85 East 4th Street. Once inside you’ll sidle up to a ticket-booth, a glass partition

Last Week’s Comic Book Reviews

Comic Reviews: Week of March 28th Action Comics #899 (DC – writer: Paul Cornell; art: Jesus Merino) I’ll be damned if Paul Cornell doesn’t write the best Superman stories. We haven’t seen Superman in about nine issues, and I couldn’t be happier. Paul Cornell has made Lex Luthor beyond interesting as a lead character. We know he’s a genius, and we know he’s evil, but Cornell reminds readers that Lex is also ruthless and calculating, and just plain awesome. The story so far has centered around Lex’s attempts to control the power of the black rings introduced in “Blackest Night,”

Last Week’s Comic Book Reviews

Comic Reviews: week of March 23 Batman: The Dark Knight #2 (DC — writer: David Finch; art: Scott Williams) Parts of this comic work very well, especially for Batman. The main story involves Killer Croc and Penguin, and while I enjoyed the very . . . painful . . . interactions between Cobblepot and Batman, I was disappointed by the traditional kidnapping plot involving Bruce’s childhood friend, Golden Dawn. It’s reminiscent of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, specifically the Joker kidnapping Rachel Dawes. And while Batman’s interrogation of the Joker in the movie is stunning, here his attack on the

Dare To Enter The Vault of Horror

When most people think of Tales From The Crypt I’m sure they think of the zany Crypt Keeper puppet that frightened throngs of “kiddies” staying up past their bedtimes through the ’90s, or maybe they think of that Billy Zane movie that followed the memorable HBO show in which the aforementioned puppet hosted. However you “slice” it “boils and ghouls,” Tales has had many incarnations over the years after its initial horror comic existence that started the franchise.  Before the series was brought to television, another EC Comics series curdled the blood of moviegoers. That film was Vault of Horror.