Another awesome issue of full color horror anthology spawning from the mind and writings of one Howard Phillips Lovecraft. This time there are three tawdry tales in the book, and again they are better than a lot of things that you could put into your brain. If there is anything that Boom! has been getting right over the last couple of years it is for sure horror comics. I mean these are the people putting out the Hellraiser comics.
First in the line up is “Alimentary, My Dear Cthulhu,” a little crime drama about a murder in a house full of crazies. All sorts of strange things are happening, not the least of which is a special detective with a fully open third eye. That is the starting point of this little weird out of a tale, and it really only goes down hill from there. The art on this particular story is not my favorite (something that the plot totally makes up for), it is sketchy and in some ways just seems unrefined and unfinished. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t terrible, it just isn’t my favorite.
Next is, “On the Wagon.” An alcoholic is whisked away to his friends house, only to arrive to find that not only is the house “dry” is is also home to an intervention. What they don’t realize is that the alcohol isn’t just an addiction or a drug of choice, it is holding something sinister at bay. Or do they?
Finally is “Cruise of Cthulhu.” This is a little commercial for the Alhazred Cruise Line, where all of your rest and relaxation is coupled with a deeper understanding of your roll in calling the dread god from the deeps. This is funny and a great play on the ideas of the Mythos. Chee, who so far has done art on at least one tale in every issue, puts forward something that looks like a painting. That painted style really gives this the feel of an advertisement, and I think it is a really good pairing with the story itself.
Overall this is another really solid issue of Cthulhu Tales, really glad that I stumbled on this comic because it has done nothing but give me more cool Mythos tales to read, and you can’t go wrong with a good Lovecraftian tale.
gl