pre-code horror Archives

"Prototype" probably isn't quite the right name for the concept.  It's often just a name, a visual look, or a super-power that was recycled for later use — perhaps sometimes knowingly, perhaps not.  Still, prototypes do have their appeal.  It's another little hook into understanding comics history.  While Marvel Tales #116 isn't widely considered a[...]

It's a shame that the cover artist of Haunted Thrills #13 is unknown because the skeletal in-your-face symbol of death on this PCH classic is driving the petrified couple in the backseat of that car straight to Hell.  Throw in some equally creepy interior stories like "Death Do Us Part" featuring a supernatural baboon and[...]

Chilling Tales #16 is the best of both worlds when it comes to Pre-Code Horror.  It's got a wonderfully creepy cover, and some classic horror interiors to match.  While we don't know who drew that cover, the contents here appear to have been assembled by Adolphe Barreaux's Majestic Studio.  Barreaux was a longtime associate of[...]

Over a decade ago, Bleeding Cool ran a "Terrible 25" list of great Pre-Code Horror comics on Halloween.  Such lists are fairly common around the end of October every year, but as I said back in 2010, they tend to cover the same unhallowed ground — consisting of lots of EC Comics plus a small[...]

Books are expected to be in-store October 7, 2020, and will retail for $24.99. #gallery-1 { margin: auto; } #gallery-1 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 50%; } #gallery-1 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-1 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */ The cover of PS Artbooks Softee Planet Comics. The cover of The Phantom Witch Doctor. Want to read some classic pre-code horror? The[...]

Vividly violent and sometimes disturbing images would no longer grace horror or other mainstream comics for the following decades, making pre-code horror one of the most collected books in the comic world This copy of Fight Against Crime #20 is one such book, and the auction is set to end May 20th. This pre-code crime comic[...]