American Hero: Super Green Beret

July 4^th is a very special day for America as way back in 1776 we as a nation declared that we were no longer under British rule and that we would be our own nation and the United States Of America became one of the world’s biggest and best. This day every year since has been filled with fireworks, friends & family time and of course grilled out food! This year for July 4^th my lady Juliet and I decided to hang out and enjoy the day and good conversation about movies, comics and of course Horror Hosts and times like these are what make memories that will last. For this Independence Day American Hero update, I have chosen an obscure war hero named Super Green Beret who lasted only two issues and is a character that fits perfectly for Rotten Ink. So if you are ready to spend a little of your holiday time with me here at Rotten Ink and chat about Super Green Beret, then let’s grab a cold drink and get ready for the fireworks to celebrate our freedom.

The United States Army Special Forces, known as The Green Berets, were founded on June 19, 1952 and are the best of the best when it comes to Army soldiers. Growing up in a small village during the Gulf War really exposed me to the military as American Pride was very high. I mean sure, before that I knew a few people in the military like my Grandpa Salyers, but he would never really talk much about it. This was my first real look at military pride as in school for months we had to sing “Proud To Be An American” by Lee Greenwood and our music teacher acted like our Soldiers would know we were singing this for them. When I was older and in my early 20’s, the tragic events of 9/11 happened and once more pride in our military was high as they waged war on terrorism and nations who supported it. And of course this war still rages on to this day as many of our troops are still in areas of high fighting. Also here in our area is the famous Air Force Museum as well as Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, making the area very big for military personal as well as those who are into the history of our fighting forces. So here is to all the brave men and women who have served in our military and have fought for our freedoms and in their own way helped make this blog and update possible.

I’m just going to very briefly touch on the origin of this amazing American Hero known as Super Green Beret! Thile working for Lightning Comics, the team of C.C. Beck and Otto Binder created a war character called Tod Holton Super Green Beret that first hit comic racks in 1967 and was a way for them to deal with the Vietnam War as well as the stress of the time of war that was rippling through America. Super Green Beret lasted a total of two issues before Lightning Comics went out of business, and this was the only comic series made from the company. The character Tod Holton is a high school student who, when he wears a magical Green Beret and salutes, turns into the ultimate hero solider Super Green Beret! When thinking of War Comic characters, names like Sgt. Nick Fury, Sgt. Rock, The Unknown Solider and Enemy Ace come to mind, and sadly Super Green Beret really is a Forgotten Hero who in the world of comics is an American Hero.

Before we get to the comic reviews and before the fireworks fill the sky, I would like to chat a little about a cool toy line that I remember from my childhood that was made by Mattel in 1986 and featured soldiers as well as ninjas! This toy series was called GUTS! and they were all the rage for a very short time among my friend group. I can remember these little guys being everywhere when I was a kid. From the playground all the way to my cousins’ house, it seemed these army toys were super popular. I even owned some of them and can remember playing with them outside in the yard. To be honest, I think that the kids of my generation really liked them as they were a cooler version of the classic Green Plastic Army Men that have been must-have toys for generations. The series would not only feature Army Soldiers and Ninjas but also Laser Fighters and Underwater Attack Forces and not to even mention it had two vehicles released in the series. And the crazy thing being, with about 58 figures made, they all came out in the same year and the toy line only lasted that one year. It was clear Mattel wanted these figures to be a big hit as each character in the series got its own name. The downside to the figures was they fact they were not pose-able and had zero moving parts; plus they were only about 3” tall, a size that did not make them fit in with G.I. Joe figures and was bigger than even the M.U.S.C.L.E. toys making them a very awkward size. It makes one wonder if Mattel will ever try and release a new series of GUTS! and if they will change they style in order to make them more modern. Below are some pictures of GUTS! that include the back of a package that showcases some of the soldiers, an ad for the figures on sale and a group of the figures that was at Game Swap Kettering a year back.

Well at this point I hope you have a grilled cheeseburger or hot dog in hand and your favorite beverage by your side as it’s time for use to take a look at the comic series Super Green Beret from Lightning Comics. I need to first thank YouTube show Comic Tropes for bringing this American Hero character to my attention, and I also would like to thank sellers on Amazon and Ebay for having these comics in stock making this 4^th of July update possible. I want to remind all you readers that I grade these issues on a standard 1-4 star system and am looking for how well the comics stay to the source material, their entertainment value and their art and story. So let’s see what Super Green Beret brings to the world of war hero comics!

Super Green Beret # 1  **1/2
Released in 1967     Cover Price .25       Lightning     # 1 of 2

“Super Green Beret” Captain Roger Wilson is on leave from the Vietnam for two weeks and visits his nephew Tod Holton and gives him a gift that is a glowing green beret that was given magical powers by a Monk that Roger saved from a wild boar. And when Tod puts the beret on, he becomes an adult that is in complete Green Beret Gear, and he and his uncle find out the magic is real and that Tod has now become Super Green Beret! After his uncle leaves, Tod finds out his magical beret also can pick up war transmissions, and he rushes to Vietnam to save American soldiers that are pinned down inside a cave using his magic to get them out and back to base safely all the while bringing down the enemy. “Rebel Rat-Hole” the President of a Latin American country is under attack by rebels who want to end his life as he wants freedom for his country, and when Tod hears about the attack he puts on the beret and saves the life of the President but also loses his beret to a rebel who steals it and runs away. With the magical beret gone, he turns back into Tod and gets captured and taken to the rebels camp where he is to be shot and killed and asks to die with honor of wearing the green beret and turns into Super Green Beret and beats up the rebels and turns them over to the government. “White Magic In The Black Forest” Tod is at home and working on his history homework about World War II when he gets a message from the past and decides to time travel to the Black Forest of Berlin to aid some American Soldiers against a band of Nazis, and the ultimate payout for this mission is to stop Hitler from getting on a plane the day before he kills himself! The final story is “Sorcery Against Saboteurs!” Tod nexts picks up an evil plot by the Vietcong that has them wanting to blow up a bridge that American trucks are driving on, and when he gets there to stop it his beret falls off and into the water and he is once more taken prisoner but not before he stops the explosion! They then throw Tod into the river where the beret is and with the help of an alligator he is able to get the beret back on and stops a suicide boat that next tries to crash into the bridge. In the end Super Green Beret is able to save the Army Truck filled with soldiers, repair the bridge with magic and then lead the US Soldiers to the enemy base and once more Super Green Beret saves the day!

This first issue is King Sized and featured 4 action packed Super Green Beret adventures and one just normal war story and gives the readers a full dose of a war comic hero that Lightning was hoping would have been a major hit with comic fans and would have been their top character and could have launched them into a major player in the comic industry. Each of these stories featuring Super Green Beret are different and yet still the same as it follows a very simple formula of Tod getting a message from the beret, he puts the beret on and uses magic in order to help American soldiers and from time to time he loses the beret during the battle and turns into normal teenage Tod who most of the time easily gets it back. And while by modern comic standards this would be considered a very boring issue, I enjoyed the fact that it was clearly a product of its time and tried its best to deliver a message of USA is the best and anything is possible in a world so seriously strange…wait isn’t that the catch phrase of YouTube star Rob Gavagan? Tod Holton is a teenager who wants to grow up and be like his uncle and become a war hero, and when he gets a magical green beret he becomes a supernatural soldier hero that always saves the day. Tod is a smart kid who knows his history and can think quick in order to problem solve and have a plan to defeat the enemies of freedom. Super Green Beret is really just an adult version of Tod that is protected by magic and can use this magic in order to protect American Soldiers and use against the foreign armies. Over all Super Green Beret appears during the battle or event, uses his powers and like a phantom in the night is gone and returns back being Tod. The bad guys are the Vietcong and even the Nazis and the ones they show are bloodthirsty, terrorist freedom hating goons who are dangerous and dumb. The cover is pretty great and is eye catching at is show Super Green Beret kicking some butt and the bright yellow background makes it stand out. The interior art is done by Carl Pfeufer, and while very classically simple and not ground breaking, I like it for the most part besides some of the over exaggerated features of the comics bad guys, I could do without that. Over all Super Green Beret # 1 is a fun read, and while not amazing, it’s a great American Hero style comic that’s perfect for your July 4^th holiday.

Super Green Beret # 2  *1/2
Released in 1967     Cover Price .25       Lightning     # 2 of 2

“The Lion God Of Mokuru” A pair of American Peace Corps members are about to be thrown into lava on the orders of Simba The Lion God as they want to bring electricity to a small village, and Simba is not having it. The Monk that has the beret power calls on Tod to become Super Green Beret who saves the two men and fights off the villagers, who now are begging him to protect them from Simba’s rage! Super Green Beret starts looking around the volcano and ends up getting poisoned and taken prisoner by Domo Yamata, who is the President using the legend of Simba to make his people fall in line. Domo then tries to murder Super Green Beret by placing him in an active volcano with dynamite that will explode and set off some rumbles that will scare the villagers to think Simba is mad at them. Super Green Beret escapes the trap, but the explosion sets free Domo’s pet lion who goes after the Presidents son with Super Green Beret arriving at the right time and saving the young man, stops the lava from hitting the village and these actions make Domo the leader of his people he should be and that includes allowing the electricity to come to the village. “Dawn Of American Freedom!” Tod is hanging out with his classmates at a soda shop and remembers he needs to write a paper on 1776 and rushes to the library only to find it closed! He then decides to do the next best thing and that’s put on the magical Green Beret and time travel to 1776 in order to learn about that years history and battles. And right off the bat saves some Americans against British Soldiers and meets Martha Page and takes her to a ball hosted by General Howe. Once there he is found out to be an American Spy and is set to die via firing squad and escapes just in time in order to help the American Soldiers defeat the British ones. “Ambush” a small village in Vietnam is supporting US troops, but the North Vietnamese keep stopping any and all food shipments making the American Soldiers and the villagers starve. Super Green Beret arrives in time to save the village’s leader who sadly turns out to be a spy and has been helping the enemy all along as he is getting food while his people go hungry. Super Green Beret figures this out, but is attacked by the Village Leader’s Wife and they drop him off to the General of the bad guys that wants to kill him after they stop the next food drop off attack. But thanks to a young kid, Super Green Beret escapes and sets up his own plan and along with American Soldiers they take down the Vietcong with their own ambush. Super Green Beret gets the soldiers and villagers food and then returns home and his life as teenager Tod.

Wow, this second issue of Super Green Beret is really bad, and for the most part, sad to say, is super boring with poor storytelling! Some of my biggest problems with this issue are the fact they cannot keep their own lore straight as in the story “Dawn Of American Freedom” Super Green Beret walks around with the magical beret off, when every time before this made the hero turn back into a teenager, not to even mention his magical powers seem to go away for the most part and are replaced with super strength, and the Monk who placed the magic in the beret seems to be the one now who contacts Tod via the messages coming from the magic hat…like they really needed to get their character folklore down. While in the first issue I found myself enjoying every adventure equally as they each had a fun nature to them, in this second issue I found that I really was not much into any of the stories and “Ambush” would be the only one I can say had a glimmer of hope at being a solid War Hero comic story. Tod in this issue seems to kind of just have a smirk on his face at all times and has no issues blowing off his school work to go play hero, and even at one point turns into his alter ego just so he can try and catch up on a history paper he was slacking off on. So in other words Tod has changed and is not the teen that we meet in the first issue. Super Green Beret also has gone through a change as he is no longer super magically charged and now has the power of a weight lifting steroid addict! He also for some reason delivers some really bad one-liners while he is fighting the baddies even at one point talking about how he is from the Pepsi Generation…just terrible. The bad guys in this issue as well come off as dummies that have the upper hand and are defeated quickly when they fumble around. The cover for issue two as well is pretty dang good and eye catching, not to even mention the interior art is once more done by Carl Pfeufer and is great simple classic style stuff. Over all while I have never been a major fan of War Comics, I did find the first issue to be an enjoyable read and Super Green Beret to be a noble and patriotic character that was worth a read, and found the second issue to be the opposite and very much a boring poorly comic adventure. So Super Green Beret is a comic American Hero, and while he is no Captain America, he did do his part to fight for Freedom! Check out the artwork below to see the style of artist Pfeufer.

So I hope that you enjoyed this look at Super Green Beret on this 2020 July 4^th Holiday update! And I hope that during this virus crisis we are all going through together, you are getting to spend some safe/socially distanced time with your loved ones and eat some great grilled out food and that there are some fireworks in your area to fill the night sky. While this crisis is scary, I do also hope that it’s made us all appreciate our family, friends and co-workers even more than ever have before. For our next update, I am going to keep The American Hero theme going as I will be covering a DC Comic One Shot issue called Battle Classics that brings together many of their War Comic Heroes including Sgt. Rock! So until next time, enjoy your holiday and tell your family and friends that you care about them. See you next update for another round of War with comic book heroes.

 

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Zombie Apocalypse (2008)

Zombie films have been a popular part of the Horror genre for a very long time at this point, and the TV show The Walking Dead has ensured that Zombies will not fall out of style anytime soon. Most of the films that are coming from indie directors and companies also want their piece of the undead pie. And for this “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update we will be taking a look at a promo comic that was released alongside the 2008 direct to video film Zombie Apocalypse! This is a film that I am sure many of you readers have never heard of but that you are surely Googling now…go on…I’ll wait. So if you are ready like I am, let’s see what the Zombie Apocalypse world has in store for us in both movie and comic worlds!

The Zombies in Zombie Apocalypse are created by a gas that was made by the Government and the Illuminati to use as a weapon against mankind. What started as a lab experiment now has the gas make the undead rise all over town, and they infect and eat people all around them. The zombies in this film are all over and kill in packs as they overwhelm their victims with sheer numbers, but they also kill by themselves, and as a single zombie, they can be even more dangerous as they are more silent and can stalk with more ease. The zombies look like dead humans with many of them having bloody open wounds on their faces making them easy to spot, but can also cause lots of panic in the living who have to look at them. To dispatch their human prey, the zombies use not only their numbers but also their teeth that carry the virus and can rip flesh as well as their hands that they scratch and rip at their victims. They also attack with fury making them even harder to escape from once they have you in their grip. These zombies also move at a normal speed and are not super slow, but are also not super fast making them a moderate threat when it comes to them giving chase. But while they are dead, they do also have weaknesses as you can kill them with guns, knives and almost any normal way you can kill a person as long as you give them head trauma. They are also not that smart and can be out maneuvered when dodging them. Over all these zombies are not as threatening as the ones we have covered before like Dawn Of The Dead (2004), Plague Of The Zombies or even Human vs Zombies, but they still are a major threats and can kill and eat a human with the best of them. I should also note that the zombies who started this outbreak was set free by the despicable Agent Net who is using them to hunt down the man who trained him and has turned on the Illuminati, making his one of their secret weapons when it comes to killing humans.

Now that we understand the killing nature of the Zombies, we should take a look at the film they are from, Zombie Apocalypse. Like always I will take the film’s write up from our pals at IMDB, and I will write a little about the films production as well as my thoughts on the film. So if you’re ready, let’s see what this Zombie Apocalypse has in store for us.

Zombie Apocalypse (2008)

“Two college roommates get the fright of their lives when they head out to the bar, and come face to face with a shambling army of the undead. All Mark and Tom wanted was a fun night out on the town, but now they’ll be forced to fight if they want to survive until dawn. Thankfully Mark is handy with an axe, and medical student Tom has played enough video games to keep his cool in the chaos. With depressive video store clerk Raven helping to fend off the horde, they may stand a chance of making it through the night without getting devoured – or worse. But who is Miller, and what connection does his missing wife have to these horrible creatures. By the time the weary survivors find out, it may already be too late.”

Zombie Apocalypse was written and directed by Ryan Thompson and was his first feature film. It went direct to video and caused a mini splash for fans of indie zombie flicks. The film’s budget was around $5,000.00 and was released by Phantasmal Pictures that released many of Ryan’s other films as well. The cast included such actors as Kenny James, Hannah Gaff and David Calkins and many others including Kelly Knoll and Matt King, with this being many of their first roles. The cast and crew also went to many conventions and screenings to try and get this film out and in the public eye. The film when released was met with mix reviews with many Horror Fans being very displeased with it and giving it low star ratings. While not a household name when it comes to zombie Horror Movies, this film did make a mark no matter how small. The film did spawn a sequel in 2011 called “Zombie Apocalypse: Redemption” showing that it did have its own cult following.

I remember seeing this film before on the shelves of second hand media stores when I was looking through the Horror section to find a good fright flick to watch, but never bought it as I have been burnt out on micro budget zombie flicks for a long time. Years would pass before I would finally breakdown and buy a copy, and the main reason I did was because the copy came with the prequel comic and was perfect to cover here on Rotten Ink. So I ordered a copy of the film from Amazon and once in I read the comic and watched the film…the comic review will be coming up in this update soon while I can talk about the movie now. The film was not nearly as bad as most reviews would have you believe as it does have some charm with its over all dark humor and zombie shuffling around the streets. Another highlight for me was actress Kelly Knoll who plays Raven a woman who loves Horror and worked for a Video Rental Store…she reminded me of some of the ladies I knew that worked at local rental media stores. The downside is the acting is really terrible in spots, some scenes are out of focus and the widescreen presentation stretches the picture making it look odd. The effects are also pretty cheesy and most major blood splatter takes place off camera or so quickly you cannot make it out or worse is digital blood! Over all I enjoyed watching the film and while it is a bad movie, it does have some cool elements that make it enjoyable watch on a boring late night.

 

So now that we have taken a look at the film and the zombies who bring the terror in said film, I think it’s time we take a look at the promo comic that came FREE with the DVD! I want to thank Amazon for having this DVD/Comic Combo in stock and making this update possible. I also want to send a big thank you to the makers of this film for making this comic and bringing Horror Films and Horror Comics together. I want to also remind you all that I grade this comic on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comic stays to the source material, its entertainment value and its art and story. So if you are ready like I am, let’s see what Zombie Apocalypse has to offer in the way of scares on pages with ink!

Zombie Apocalypse # 0  *1/2
Released in 2008   Cover Price FREE     Apocalypse Comics     # 0 of 0

A biker is riding on a quest to find his wife who is missing and has clearly been kidnapped. He remembers the past and in a research lab his wife Dr. Irene Miller is ordered to fill a room with gas that poisons and turns a group of men into zombies. She is heartbroken that she damned these men, but the Army General in charge is pleased with the outcome. The plan is to use the zombies as soldiers and win wars with the undead, never losing another American life of foreign soil. The biker who was once an agent has gone rogue and is now wanted for all the knowledge he has about the zombie project, and while on the run and searching for his wife, he stops at a strip bar and after talking to an old man, he flashes back to when he met Irene and how his own partner Net turned on him and reported them to the higher ups who in turn took Irene away. As he leaves the strip bar, he is sucker punched by Net who throws him into a car and so ends this prequel comic.

The plot of this comic has a rogue agent on the run form the Government and the Illuminati all the while trying to find his missing wife! While this is a fun prequel comic that showcases our hero, naked ladies and the true evil nature of those in charge of Project Apocalypse…there is no horror at all and the zombies themselves are barely seen and are behind glass. Our hero is Miller, who is a man who is running from his past as well as trying his best to find his missing wife. We don’t get a feel for the character and who he is and in the movie he is a silent badass while the comic kind of has him being a confused man with a one-track mind. Agent Net only shows up on the last page for the most part and is a scum bag who’s idea of a fair fight is punching a man as he walks through a door, what a coward! The Zombies in the issue are an after thought as they really do only appear behind glass when the gas infects men who were locked in the room. The comic is bloodless and does not pack any scares as no horror action takes place. The comic does showcase nudity as a scene takes place in a strip club…so I guess it does at least have one of the three elements of a Horror Comic. The cover for this issue 0 is pretty good and does have a indie zombie look and feel to it. The interior art is ok and while not the style or art I like, Brian Sheehy does a good job with what he has to work with. Over all this is a cool promo comic that acts as a way to start the film, but is a pretty bad Horror Comic…so I guess I will give it a below average star rating as it could have and should have been more. Check out the art below to see the style of Sheehy.

So Zombie Apocalypse was a Indie Horror Movie that made a wise move when they made a comic book to go alongside it, and while this comic was not that great, I do give them credit for doing it as I have said before more filmmakers and companies should do this as it helps add to the film’s story and can even bring viewers in. Let’s be honest, I may have never gotten around to seeing this film and the comic is what brought me to it, showing comics as promo items work! But for our next update let’s leave a world over run with zombies behind and take a look at ghost pirates as we take a look at the 2005 remake of The Fog as well as the Dark Horse Graphic Novel based on it! So until next time, read a Horror Comic or three, watch a Horror Movie or two and as always support your local Horror Host! See you next time for terror of the sea….or is that ocean?

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Rottentail

Indie Horror Films and Indie Horror Comics go hand in hand, and when companies team up, great things happen! And for this countdown to Halloween and this From Horror Comic To Horror Movie update, we will be taking a look at Rottentail, an indie creature feature about a man who transformers into a killer bunny man. The killer rabbit man has been done many times in the world of Horror, and while some are pretty good, others are not and with this update, it will be the first time I have seen the film as well as read the graphic novel! I have been following this film since it was announced, mostly on websites like Bloody Disgusting, so when the film was announced for a DVD release, I made sure to pre-order it as well as ordered the Graphic Novel that spawned the film from Mavericks. So if you are ready, let’s go down this bloody rabbit’s hole and see what Rottentail has in store for us both in the world of Horror Movie and Horror Comic. I should also note that I am looking forward to this update as this will be my first time seeing the film as well as reading the comic!

So before we chat about the movie Rottentail, let’s take a look at the film’s bunny man! Peter Cotton is a scientist who is bitten by a mutated rabbit and transforms into a mutated Rabbit Man! While he is Peter Cotton, he is a very weak man who is socially awkward and whose only friends are the rabbits that are his test subjects for a sex drug. But as Rottentail, he is a crude wisecracking, super fast, super strong killing machine! His appearance is monstrous as he takes on the look of both man and bunny. Rottentail can use his strength and speed to quickly catch his target and uses his bare hands to dispatch humans very easy with neck breaks being one method. He could also use his finger & toe nails as well as his teeth if he chooses, as they are both super sharp and could easily rip human flesh. He is also very sadistic when he kills and finds gross ways to off people who have crossed him and even uses body waste to torment them before the kill. He can also use his powerful kicks as well as has no issues grabbing items and beating someone to death. He can also use his mutated appearance to scare humans and leave them open for attacks and death blows! But while he is a mutated human animal monster with super speed and strength, he does have weakness as he can be hurt like any living thing with guns, fire, explosions and so on, he also can be distracted by beautiful women and also looses his temper really quick also leaving himself open to be hurt. While he might not be the deadliest monster we have covered in a From Horror Movie To Horror Comic, he is still very dangerous.

So as you can see, this crude rabbit anti-hero knows how to deal with those who get in his way when he is trying to play hero. But next we need to take a look at the film that Rottentail came from, and as always, I will be taking the film’s write up from our friends at IMDB and after I will write a little about the film’s production as well as my thoughts on the film. So if you are ready, let’s hop on down the bloody rabbit trail and see what Rottentail is all about.

Rottentail (2018)

“Peter Cotton, a scientist that works on rabbits and infertility, learns that the military wishes to use his work to create superhuman soldiers. Cotton is bitten by an experimental mutant rabbit and changes into the evil Rottentail.”

Rottentail is a 2018 Horror Comedy indie film that was directed by Brian Skiba, who directed such other cult films like Blood Moon Rising, Slaughter Creek and Crushed Velvet to name a few. Once in production, the film cast such actors as Dominique Swain, William McNamara, Lisa Palenica and Corin Nemec as Rottentail, all of whom jumped at the chance to join this over the top film. Oh, I should also state that adult film actress Emily Mena also has a small part. But while there is nothing really special about the film’s production, one interesting fact that some of your readers might not know is that Rottentail was first a Graphic Novel that was written by David C. Hayes and seemed to always be planned to be turned into a film. The film’s original release date was April 12, 2018 and made a minor splash as news of it spread around the Horror circle, as people seemed to compare it to a tame Troma Film. In 2018 the film was released alongside other Indie Horror Movies as Suspiria, Malevolent, Summer Of 84, The House That Jack Built, Mandy, Hellraiser: Judgment and Climax to name a few. While Rottentail has not faired very well when it comes to critics’ and viewers’ ratings, it still has made its mark on the world of Horror.

This is one of those films I discovered while surfing the internet reading about Horror Movies that were coming soon, and once I saw the mutated bunny man, I knew this was one I had to see as I love creature features! And after looking for it on home media and seeing if any local theater in the area was going to screen it and of course none did, I had to give up my search when it was nowhere. So finally on April 26, 2019 it was released on DVD via Ammo Content, and I pre-ordered the DVD from Amazon and finally on July 10^th I got my chance to watch it…and while I enjoyed it in parts like the effects were good, the ladies lovely with adult actress Emily Mena being the standout, I still was not fully sold on this being a good Horror Comedy Film. Many things did not work for me like some of the crude humor fell flat and was just not funny as did Rottentail’s terrible one-liners that are real eye rollers not to mention the fact that Rottentail most of the time got on my nerves and did nothing for long scenes but talk nonsense. The worst sin of the movie is that it feels like it’s trying to be like Wolf Cop and Toxic Avenger and it fails to even be in the same cult theater as them both. While I cannot say I am a fan of this film, I would also say that I didn’t hate it as I feel it had some great moments that are surrounded by lots of bloody marshmallow fluff so I would say check it out if you like Horror Comedies with an annoying mutated rabbit man.

So as you can see, Rottentail is a film that is a silly Horror Comedy that is in the same realm as Troma Entertainment (just not as good) as it’s filled with lots of crude and gory moments. So while I found the movie to be just okay, let’s see how the Graphic Novel fares as this will as well be my first time reading it. I want to thank Mavericks Cards And Comics for getting this Graphic Novel for me and making this From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update possible. So if you are ready, let’s see if the GN is better than the film!

Rottentail # 1  **
Released in 2019     Cover Price $6.99     Source Point Press     # 1 of 1

Two guards are wandering around a scientific facility when a noise forces them to check it out, and they both meet their doom at the hands of a mutated rabbit! Meanwhile geeky scientist Peter is having a nightmare when jock Jake in front of Mandy bullied him and killed his pet rabbit Thumper in high school. After the nightmare, Peter goes to work at the lab and is just in time to see the bodies of the guards being wheeled out and is confronted by General Thaddeus Phelps who wants to use Peter’s fertility serum to make more rabbit mutant soldiers for war purposes! And as Peter goes to perfect the serum, the General goes to a secret room and watches as the now captured Rabbit massacres a man they placed in the room with him. Peter perfects his serum and makes his way to the test lab where the mutated rabbit has broken free and bites Peter on the hand holding the serum that transforms him into a mutated rabbit man himself! And after having sex with the General’s lady, Peter goes on a quest to get revenge on those who bullied him in school and after killing a truckload of backwoods friends he heads home to Easter Falls. Jake is now married to Mandy and owns a grocery store that is preparing for the town’s Easter Day Parade as Peter comes to town and starts his murderous rampage that includes Mandy as well as all of Jake’s friends. Anna is the only one in town that has figured out that all the disappearances and murders are being done by Peter and in the end at the parade in front of the town he kills not only Jake but also the comedian guest of honor! Just as he sets his sights on Anna the Air Force shows up and blows him up with a missile. In the end the General’s wife is in a secret lab and gives birth to a mutated baby rabbit as the world seems to not be safe from this experiment gone wild just yet.

This graphic novel was a fun read but also was very disjointed in spots and was an average Horror Comic that pretty much I had the same feeling about that I had for the movie, that it was just okay. The graphic novel and movie have some in common but are also very much different with the film Peter being almost an anti hero while the GN has him as a blood thirsty freak who kills not only for revenge but also just because he can. He also has no link to Mandy in the GN as he kills her brutally while in the movie he falls in love with her. Another change is Jake in the GN is a grocery store owner and in the film he is a TV preacher. The plot of the GN has Peter being used by the government for his serum that in turn when bitten by a mutated bunny turns him into a sex and murder crazed rabbit man who wants revenge on those who tormented him in high school. Peter in the comic as a man is a dork who loves his pet rabbits and is working very hard for Star Labs on a fertility serum. The rest of the characters from General Phelps all the way to Jake are kind of just generic and have no real personalities and are pretty much stereotype cardboard cutouts. As Rottentail, he is a horny, mean spirited mutant who loves nothing more than to rape and murder…in other words he is a total scumbag. The comic has lots of brutal kills and plenty of blood, guts and gore to please fans of Horror Comics. The pacing is fast, and this is part of my issue with it, as at times we jump around the story with many moments coming off rushed and head scratching to why the actions from one panel to another happened and over all the kills mean nothing as Rottentails path is a little unclear. The cover is great and captures the mood and feel of the Graphic Novel as well as the Movie, and the interior art is done by Kurt Belcher and while not my style, is pretty dang good and fitting for Rottentail. Over all this was ok ayand nothing special, and I would say if you like the movie or like over the top horror, I would say check this one out. Check out the art below to see the style used in this Graphic Novel.

So while Rottentail might have been a letdown in both the movie and comic department, it still is an original and silly Horror Comedy that aimed to please fans of Wolf Cop and Troma Flicks. And I need to be clear that while I was not a mega fan of Rottentail, I must say I was entertained by it and would watch a sequel if it was made. For our next update, we are staying in the world of Horror Movies and Comics based on them, as we will be taking a look at “Horror On Party Beach” and the amazing Photo Comic Magazine done by Warren. So until next time, read a Horror Comic or three, watch a Horror Movie of two and as always support your local Horror Host! Oh and remember to bring some sunscreen as Party Beach does get some sun…or and I should also warn beware of the monsters!