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‘Cursed Comics Cavalcade’ #1: The Horror News Network Review

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DC Comics has been giving a lot of love to monster and horror fans throughout 2018.  Beginning the year with The Swamp Thing Winter Special, closely followed by the Young Monsters in Love anthology, and ending with the EC Comics inspired Cursed Comics Cavalcade (not to mention the recently released Walmart exclusive Swamp Thing Halloween Horror 100 Page Giant), DC has not been afraid to mix their traditional monster characters in with their standard superhero fare.

Like any successful comic book anthology (especially one that is 20 pages short of DC’s successful relaunch of the 100 Page Giant Super Spectacular editions), the Cursed Comics Cavalcade collection casts a wide enough net to satisfy fans and collectors of all ages, from classic DC silver age fans to those who regard the New 52 as a bygone era. read more

Jennifer Beals Joins ‘Swamp Thing’

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According to Deadline, Jennifer Beals is the latest actress to enter the bog and join the Swamp Thing series. Beals will play Sheriff Lucilia Cable, who is described as “tough as nails and pragmatic whose fierce devotion to her son, Matt, is rivaled only by her sworn duty to serve and protect the town of Marais.”

Earlier this month we announced that Derek Mears, best known to horror fans for his role in the 2009 remake of Friday the 13th, will be portraying the titular character, Swamp Thing. Crystal Reed signed on to play the female lead in the series, Abby Arcane while Maria Sten joined the cast as Liz Tremayne. read more

Derek Mears Cast as Swamp Thing in the Upcoming DC Universe Television Series

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Derek Mears is no stranger to monster roles, having played Jason Voorhees (in the 2009 Friday the 13th reboot), a Predator, and many other aliens and creatures of the night over the course of his career.  Well, it’s time to add another to Mear’s extensive menagerie, as the over-sized actor just landed a plumb role as the title character in DC Universe’s upcoming Swamp Thing television series.

Splash Report broke the news earlier today and they also added that while Mears will play Swamp Thing (in a practical effects suit nonetheless) he will not be portraying the soul of the monster, Dr. Alec Holland.  At this time it is not clear who will play Holland, or how they will incorporate the performances of both the monster and his human (or plant) soul. read more

Crystal Reed and Maria Sten Join ‘Swamp Thing’

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Casting has started to heat up for the Swamp Thing series coming to DC Universe digital streaming service in 2019. Two cast announcements have been revealed by Deadline in the last two days. Crystal Reed has signed on to play the female lead in the series, Abby Arcane. Maria Sten also joins the cast as Liz Tremayne.

Reed’s character is described as a smart and caring, CDC Doctor whose strong sense of empathy puts her at the center of a horrific life-threatening epidemic in her hometown, where she faces emotional demons from her past. read more

DC Comics Pays Homage to Classic EC Horror Comics in October with ‘Cursed Comics Cavalcade’

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Taking a page right out of comic history, DC Comics will release a title that is sure to be popular with both horror and super hero fans alike entitled Cursed Comics Cavalcade #1.

The new anthology comic will be out just in time for Halloween on October 10 and will place the best of the DC Universe in Tales from the Crypt-style settings and situations.   Stories featuring Batman, Wonder Woman, Guy Gardner, Swamp Thing, Zatanna, have already been announced for the collection and more are sure to come. read more

‘Swamp Thing’ Series Coming to DC Streaming Service in 2019

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According to the Hollywood Reporter, a live-action Swamp Thing TV series “…has landed a script-to-series order at DC Universe, the upcoming DC-branded streaming service.”

The series will be “Based on the DC Comics characters created by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson, the one-hour drama series would follow CDC researcher Abby Arcane, who returns to her childhood home of Houma, Louisiana, in order to investigate a deadly swamp-borne virus. She develops a surprising bond with scientist Alec Holland, only to have him tragically taken from her. But as powerful forces descend on Houma, intent on exploiting the swamp’s mysterious properties for their own purposes, Abby will discover that the swamp holds mystical secrets, and the potential love of her life may not be dead after all.” read more

‘Sunglasses After Dark’ Author Nancy A. Collins: The Horror News Network Interview

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There aren’t many writers that one can say defined a genre for a period of time, but when it came to the late 1980’s and into the early 1990’s, Nancy A. Collins brand of urban fantasy and her goth-punk vampire Sonja Blue certainly did.

When Collins released Sunglasses After Dark in 1989, it brought a gritty realism and punk aesthetic to the previous staid and dignified vampire, and ushered in a whole new sub-culture of horror fiction.  The Bram Stoker Award Winner’s work influenced countless artists at the time, and her work is still admired by fans of horror novels and comic books worldwide. read more

‘Young Monsters in Love’ #1: The Horror News Network Review

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This week was a special one for DC monster fans, as the company not only released the stellar Swamp Thing Winter Special #1 (by Tom King and Jason Fabok), but they also dug through their vaults and unearthed a host of their monsters from every era for a Valentine’s Day anthology special entitled Young Monsters in Love #1.

Borrowing the title from yesteryear’s romance comics of the 1950’s,  Young Monsters in Love #1 is a lengthy anthology featuring both obscure and popular monster characters from DC’s long publishing history.  With 80 pages to work with, the collection is able to highlight a number of characters that we rarely see such as I Vampire, the Monster Commandos, and Monsieur Mallah and the Brain, while also giving some fan favorites like Man-Bat, Solomon Grundy, and Swamp Thing a short story or two. read more

‘Swamp Thing Winter Special’ #1: The Horror News Network Review

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Swamp Thing has been one of the most enduring “monster titles” to grace comics since the character’s debut in House of Secrets #92 in 1971. The title has also been written by some of the greatest writers in comics history, beginning with creator Len Wein, and followed by Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, Mark Millar, Brian K. Vaughan, Scott Snyder and many other accomplished writers.

Therefore, it is no surprise that the hottest writer in comics Tom King (Batman, Mister Miracle) recently added his name to the “Swamp Thing Hall-of-Fame” by penning the Swamp Thing Winter Special #1, which stands as a moving tribute to the late Wein and his recently deceased co-creator Bernie Wrightson. read more

Horror News Network’s 2017 Comic Awards: Len Wein Named Horror Comic Honoree of the Year

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Horror News Network is proud to honor Len Wein as this year’s Horror Comic Award Honoree.

The world of comics lost another giant when Len Wein passed away in September of this year.   Wein was not only responsible for the creation of Wolverine in the seminal Incredible Hulk #181 (along with the late Herb Trimpe), but he also wrote the adventures of “the Green Goliath” for five consecutive years in the 1970’s, one of the longest tenures on the title by any writer to date.

And speaking of “green”, Wein was also responsible for the creation of one of the greatest horror characters in the history of comics: The Swamp Thing.  Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson captured the attention of all horror comic fans in House of Secrets #92 (1971) which introduced Dr. Alec Holland and his more famous mossy alter-ego to the world.  Due to the “muck monster’s” immediate popularity with fans, Swamp Thing soon earned his own series, running for a total of 24 issues (with Wein scripting the first 13 issues). read more