I’m still working my way through my collection of Split Lip Comics. (Check out Last Caress and Termites in Your Smile when you get a chance.) And today I’m delving into the seriously disturbing tales in
The Harvestmen and other unnatural creatures
Written By: Sam Costello
Artwork By:
Gary Crutchley, Nelson Evergreen, Kyle Harabedian, David Hitchcock, Jason Ho, Sami Makkonen, Brian McGleenon, and Erik Rose
Genre:
Horror anthology comic. A collected print edition of the webcomics on SplitLip.com
1 Sentence Synopsis:
Stories that explore monsters, creatures, and other ghoulish things that lurk in the darkness around us.
Stories that Linger
There are several stories in this collection that really stand out, but the most memorable, by far is the titular comic, “The Harvestmen.”
This one hit me right in the heebie-jeebies.
A young girl moves into a low income apartment and discovers there’s a bit of an infestation going on. This story will make your skin crawl for days after reading it.*shudder*
The other story that keeps returning to my thoughts is “Straw Men.”
There’s not really a great way to describe this story without spoilers. But I’ll take a crack at it. A farmer discovers a surprise in his field that makes him question everything.
What I loved about this story was it totally surprised me.
As you read you’re going to think everything is going in one direction and then it changes in totally unexpected ways.
The Artwork
This collection felt beautifully diverse in the art styles. Some, like The Harvestmen, were a little hard to make out because of the grungy ink style. But the style was so appropriate to the story that I really didn’t mind.
The most visually striking story in this book is “Cured“. Erik Rose, the artist, chose a really bold graphic style for the piece which made the details grab you like a really vivid nightmare.
Fans of The Thing will freakin’ love this.
Verdict
5 out of 5 blood spattered stars. This collection is Twilight Zone meets Dexter with a splash of The Re-Animator. It’s certainly worth checking out.
Drag a copy of your own under your bed to distract the monsters
Connect with Sam:
If you’d like to learn more about the Author, Sam Costello, I recommend you check out the interview I did with him: Who is the remarkable fiend that scribbles out Split Lip Comics?
And give him a holler: Website ∇ Twitter ∇ Facebook
