“Super Creepshow #1” Review – An Unstoppably Great Horror Show

Writers: Kieron Gillen (“Creeping”), Ryan North (“Speed Freak”)
Artists: Rossi Gifford (“Creeping”), Derek Charm (“Speed Freak”)
*POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD*

A Super Creepshow Indeed

For any fans of Creepshow, I can tell you right off the bat that this is a completely worthwhile treat. As for those that may not be aware of what Creepshow is, it’s a long-running anthological franchise where each installment tells several short horror stories, hosted by the man of the hour: The Creep. In this instance, the stories center around the idea of “superhero origins gone wrong.”

Creeping

The first story we get is “Creeping” by Kieron Gillen, a total play on the classic Spider-Man origin story with perhaps a dash or two of the infamous Man-Spider arc. Reading this story was probably (definitely) the first time in awhile I’ve had a visceral reaction to what was going on. The writing from Gillen was so perfectly creepy and grotesque that there was a point where even I, an avid horror movie and Spider-Man fan, had to look away because I knew where things were going.

As for the story itself, I found it to be a surprisingly very heartfelt love story! Gillen does a fantastic job at keeping the reader engaged throughout, making us wonder what horrors or plot developments we’ll see as we turn the page.

Speed Freak

That now brings us to our second story, “Speed Freak” by Ryan North. Going by the title, you can probably guess where this one’s going… or perhaps not, as I almost certainly didn’t. This story was a fairly simple one, yet was just as impactful, showing how far one’s sense of justice can go when unchecked. I won’t spoil what happens here, but this story most certainly left an impact on me as I’ve thought about it over the last few days.

How would I be if given that sort of power? Can someone having the power of speed be trusted to maintain their sense of justice while knowing they can’t be caught? North also does a fantastic job at showing how one person seeking justice can effect others negatively.

All in all, both stories are great reads from start to finish.

Grotesque Yet Lovely

One thing that’s absolutely stuck with me after reading was the artwork by Rossi Gifford in “Creeping.” Everything about it was simply phenomenal. Being this odd blend of old school pulp and new school horrific greatness. The level of detail is astounding, from seeing an eye dart across the panel in a spray of blood to the shading and how it helps further enhance the different settings. While I won’t completely give it away, there was a panel at the end that I thought would absolutely give me nightmares. All I’ll say is you’ve never seen a mother spider like this, and you should hope you never will in real life.

Comparatively, I found the art by Derek Charm to be rather simplistic and a bit lacking in “Speed Freak.” Outside of getting a sense of the super speed, everything else felt rather flat and one-dimensional, which is a shame as the story itself is amazing. This isn’t at all a knock towards Charm himself, as his style is great in the right context, but I feel as if it didn’t entirely work here. That being said, there were a couple of panels I genuinely loved towards the end, specifically in relation to the house of one of the main characters. I also thoroughly enjoyed the cover art he created, shown below!

Overall Thoughts – 8.75/10

Between the artwork of Rossi Gifford being a standout and the writing from both Kieron Gillen and Ryan North being horrifically stellar, “Super Creepshow” is sure to deliver the frights and screams to any and all who add it to their collection!

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Comments

Are you a fan of the “Creepshow” franchise? Do you intend to pick up “Super Creepshow #1”? Let’s discuss in the comments below!