2.24 Book Review: Cthulhu is hard to spell


 I got the preview issue, which does not contain the whole thing, just early stuff for reviewers. After reading the preview, I would highly recommend this anthology.

So the art in this is absolutely incredible. While the cover might give you a sort of indication it's MG, it certainly isn't aimed in that direction. I would say the vibe and themes really hit me as Young Adult. There isn't any swearing or bloodshed, so it is relatively safe for conservative types. Grandma is likely to be mildly confused instead of outraged.

Cthulhu is hard to spell is an anthology from a huge collection of artists and writers. I ventured to the kick-starter page for the anthology in order to get the complete list:


A Lovecraftian comic anthology

Nora (art and words by Angela Oddling) -- a dejected teenager living in an ice village sets out to find Aphoom-Zhah and thaw his cold heart.
The Dunwich Boys (art by Esther Pimentel, words by Eddy Hedington, letters by Nikki Powers) -- Yog-Sothoth has materialized in a house in Dunwich, and the Dunwich boys have to banish it from their neighborhood.
The Eternal War (art and words by Eric Young) -- A retelling of the origin story of Lovecraft's universe, translated from the Voynich manuscript.
Cat is Cryptic (art and words by Megan Hutchison) -- a retelling of the Cats of Ulthar, one of Lovecraft's most beloved stories.
Tsathoggua's Triumph (art by John Edingfield II, words by Clay Adams) -- Tsathoggua dreams of his eventual conquest of the universe.
Cleaning the Mess (story and art by Brandon Perlow, words by Paul J. Mendoza, Letters by Wilson Ramos, Jr.) -- Cthulhu has conquered another world, but all he really wants is his master to come find him.
Song for the Harbinger (art by Brianna Gilmartin, words by Heather Kenealy) -- Ghroth doesn't understand why nobody likes his singing, all he wants to do is harmonize with planets, and they keep blowing up.
The Yag-Kosha Mystery (art and words by Kelly Dochy) -- Yag-Kosha, the pacifist alien, has a mysterious koan for you.
Mons (art and words by Matthew Childers) --Explorers on Mars find an ancient tome that could unlock the secrets of the universe, or unleash a Lovecraftian horror.
The Summoning of Brkthruslpk (art by Robin Dassen, words by Don Perkins) -- A group of kids works to summon the ancient god Brkthruslpk onto the world.
No DQ (art and words by Ryan Fisher) -- A weak, sickly wrestling fan gets to live out his fantasy of being a star after a mysterious stranger endowing him with an enchanted garment.
Slumber (art by Lloyd Ladera, words by Sarah Anderson) -- After being woken up on a spaceship, a man has to escape the Lovecraftian horror chasing him.
That's Cthulhu to You (art by Zac Skellington, words by Leo Baxter Kiker) -- An oddities store gets a new pet: Cthulhu.
How to Summon the Dark Lord Hastur (Art by Cara Stemo, words by Johnny C, letters by Travis Duda, logo design by Nathan Burns) -- A card game, a tragic birth, a goverment experiment, and a violent crime all converge to release a deadly horror on the world.
Church of Mormo (art by Claire Leslie, words by N.S. Kane) -- Greek spirit Mormo goes door to door trying to recruit Cthulhu worshipers to her cause.
She Came Upon a Great Tree (art by Nick Kremenek, words by Mike Speakman, edited by Greg Smith) -- A delivery driver and part-time cultist must find a great tree to unleash Cthulhu and Hastur onto the world.
Flycatcher (art by Dan Scalisi, words by Frank Martin) -- Even though they have been warned for years, the fly people of Dipterra are not prepared for the wrath of Yba'sokug.
The Rally (art and words by Mary Bellamy) -- Lucifer needs new generals, and has decided to recruit Lovecraftian gods to his cause.


So with such a big line-up, it's a really diverse anthology in theme and tone. From bitter-sweet moments when the world comes to an end, to the very relatable 'we could be replaced by a radio and run off to spread chaos' moments of bad decisions.

My personal favourite story was Azatoth's Slumber. The art was very vibrant and exciting, and the personalities really felt strong.

Alright, I've mentioned a few times the art is good, but that's probably a bit vague. While I am no art critic, and all the artists very much have their own style and design on this, I found all of them to be pretty shiny. There are a myriad of very gorgeous styles in here, from watercolour to digital and the art overall was very engaging.

I'll be very excited to get a flesh and blood copy of this anthology at some stage, especially given how jam-packed the full version will be.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2.14 Author Interview: K.M.Pohlkamp

Image
Today I’m going to be interviewing the fabulous K.M. Pohlkamp, author of Apricots and Wolfsbane . Her debut novel released in October and it is chock full of girl power and intricate details. Please check it out and support her by leaving a review if you do! Summary of Apricots and Wolfsbane Lavinia Maud craves the moment the last wisps of life leave her victim’s bodies—to behold the effects of her own poison creations. Believing confession erases the sin of murder, her morbid desires are in unity with faith, though she could never justify her skill to the magistrate she loves. At the start of the 16th century in Tudor England, Lavinia’s marks grow from tavern drunks to nobility, but rising prestige brings increased risk. When the magistrate suspects her ruse, he pressures the priest into breaking her confessional seal, pitting Lavinia’s instincts as an assassin against the tenets of love and faith. She balances revenge with her struggle to develop a tasteless poison...
Read more

3.6 Pulp fiction, no, not the movie

Image
image from google search I'm low-key obsessed with the golden era of pulp fictions. The dime-store reads and the age in which books were being churned out over the period of three days . I'm too young to have any experience of this golden era... or am I? Wikipedia says : Pulp magazines (often referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the 1950s. The term pulp derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazines printed on higher-quality paper were called "glossies" or "slicks". Image from google search The era of pulp fiction was one of huge and rapid development for many genres, niches and some of the most curious writing. It was also rife with copy and paste stories, terrible hashed up prose and plenty of cliche. Amid the muck, long running series emerged, some of which are still going to this day, and plenty of classics were...
Read more

3.4 Author Interview with K.A.Doore

Image
Recently I had a chance to ambush K.A.Doore and squirrel an interview from her just as her hit debut hit the shelves! At the time, I hadn't gotten a chance to grab a copy yet, but now it waits in my TBR pile and I cannot emphasise how excited I am by the details behind this novel! It combines two of my favourite things; murder and fantasy. This might pop on LGBT reader's radar and for a good reason.     Tell me a little about the culture you built in this book? What did you borrow from the real world and what was made up? I really wanted to create a culture that arose logically from its setting, so I holed up in the university library for a few months researching various deserts and the people who thrive in them. Ghadid is a synthesis of what I learned and my own experiences in the Sonoran desert, as well as a fair amount of extrapolation (as you do). That said, I can still point to a number of things I borrowed, like the belief that a soul lingers for sev...
Read more