Have Yourself A Very Bananaman Christmas!

Merry Christmas Eve and welcome back to Rotten Ink. Growing up I watched Nickelodeon at my Grandparents house as their cable provider had it while ours in Waynesville didn’t have it just yet and I can remember being glued to shows like “Danger Mouse”, “Count Duckula”, “Mr. Wizard’s World” and “You Can’t Do That On Television” and one that was also very popular that my brother and I would watch was “Bananaman” that was a silly superhero themed British cartoon series, and sadly as time has passed I find less and less people remember this amazing character here in America and that is why for this 10 Year Anniversary and Christmas Eve update I have chosen to talk about him! So grab some eggnog, get a plate of Christmas cookies as its time we chat about the one and only British superhero known as Bananaman!

Eric Wimp is a young schoolboy who was rocketed to Earth as a baby from the moon and when he eats bananas he turns into Bananaman an adult costumed hero who can fly, is invulnerable, can breath in space and has superhuman strength. Bananaman is a superhero who works alongside the police who call him on the banana phone in order to stop crime as well as stop super villains fro hurting his city. During his heroic deeds he also gets help from Crow his pet bird who helps out when our hero is in a tight situation and always brings back up bananas to give him more energy and strength. While Bananaman is a superhero he still is not the sharpest knife in the drawer and this sometimes leads him into danger and traps that of course he will escape from in the end. The character Bannaman was created by artist John Geering along with writers Steve Bright and Dave Donaldson who brought the comic strip to readers that ended up spawning into the cartoon series and made him one of U.K.’s most popular superheroes. And sadly for those wondering artist John Geering passes away in 1999 and the comic strip when not reprinting old adventures is drawn by Andy Janes. A true iconic character for those who grew up reading and watching his cartoon and I for one am glad to have been able to watch his show here in America thanks to Nickelodeon.

The show Bananaman started airing on October 3, 1983 and was on BBC and was 5 minute cartoons that was based on the comic strip and featured the voice of Graeme Garden as Bananaman and Tim Brooke-Taylor as Eric and was super popular with viewers who grew up loving this superhero that read his adventures in Nutty. The show would last for a total of 40 episodes for three seasons and the series ended in 1986. But even with no new episodes being made it ran heavily in reruns until around 1999. The episodes was written by Bernie Kay and directed and produced by Terry Ward. The show would go on to be released on DVD in the U.K. and those fans from America would have to import it like I did in order to watch again. A fun fact about this show is the British comedy troupe The Goodies are who voiced all the main cast of the cartoon like Bananaman, Crow and Eric! While Bananaman never hit the peak of popularity in America like it did in the U.K. for those who grew up watching it no matter what nation you know just how fun and silly this cartoon was.

Like all great Superheroes that have came before and after him Bananaman has his fair share of villains that try to bring him down and ruin the city. And to be honest I think he has a great rogues gallery and while not on par with the likes of Spider-Man, Batman and Dick Tracy when it comes to the baddies he still has some great ones like the following that are some of my favorites. General Blight is an evil Army General and is his arch nemesis and is always coming with a scheme including unleashing The Snow Man a freeze and heat caring Christmas style snowman. Doctor Gloom is another great one who is the mad scientist sidekick of General Blight who creates enemies for Bananaman including Appleman. And I also like Rhubarb Man a walking talking piece of Rhubarb who moves around like a human. Other villains include Skunk Woman, Desperate Dan, Bubble-Gum Bert, Clayman, Witchy Woman, Grannie Punk, The Weatherman, King Zorg, The Heavy Mob and Spaghetti Man to name a very few. Really if you get a chance to read any of Bananaman’s comics or watch his cartoons make sure to do so not only to enjoy his adventures but to also see his baddies in action.

Like all great cartoons Bananaman has had his fair share of very cool merchandise for fans to collect over the years with some being official and others being made by fans themselves to show their love for the character. So if you are a Bananaman fan like myself you can get such cool thinks as T-Shirts, Home Media, Stickers, Dolls, Toys, Buttons, Posters, Statues, Trading Cards, Halloween Costumes, Action Figures, Drinking Glass and so much more stuff with most being fan made stuff that is available here in America. So if you like Bananaman make sure to check Etsy and Ebay as I am sure you will find some cool stuff for your collection.

So now that we have talked about Bananaman and things about him from his merchandise to his baddies I think we should now move to this Comic Capers graphic novel that features some comic book adventures of our hero Bananaman! I would like to thank a seller on Etsy for having this in stock and making this update possible. I want to also remind you all that I grade these comics on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comics stay to the source material, it’s entertainment value and it’s art and story. So if you are ready lets go to Nuttytown and head to 29 Acacia Road and see if Bananaman is home and what adventures he has in store for us!

Comic Capers: Bananaman GN  **1/2
Released in 2000   Cover Price $0.00     Beano Books   # ? of ?

“Eurovillain Contest” Eric is bored at home and decides to make a cable satalite dish so he can watch better TV when he finds that Lord Zorg has a show that is about what Eurovillain can stop Bananaman, and this of course causes Eric to turn into his superhero alter ego and head to Europe were along the way Weatherman and The Mole try and slow him down, but he ends up finding his way to Europe and the contest starts! The first baddie that attacks is Goudaman and his giant cheese wheel and at first the holes in the cheese are a maze that Bananaman can not figure out that us until he gets the idea to have a bunch of mice to follow him who eat the giant cheese wheel and Goudaman is defeated. Next Garlicman and his foul smelling breath attacks, but Bananaman uses a giant book to smash him after a fake court trail! And so many Eurovillain’s try to bring down Bananaman including Spaghetti Man, Ivan The Terrible, Abzorba, Doctor Gloom, Ragnar The Hairy and The Weatherman and all of them fail and are defeated by Bananaman and worse the judges have given all the baddies the score of zero making it that no one is going to win, that is until Big Rita a mechanic is mad at the poor scoring and shows up at the station and roughs up the judges as well as King Zorg and this makes her the winner of the contest. The second store is “The Secret Of Willie Boggins” on Arcadia Street young Willie Boggins as a secret when he eats a boiled egg he turns into General Blight! And as Bananaman goes after him our hero has a streak of bad luck that even hits his secret identity Eric Wimp. And after General Blight robs a bank he buys a whole big jar of pickled eggs and eats them at once and grows into a giant, and after Bananaman tries to stop him and fails he goes and eats a ton of bananas and turns into a giant himself, but the fight ends when both have stomach aches and have to use the bathroom.

This graphic novel was a fun silly very kid friendly read and showcases the true goofy nature of the hero known as Bananaman as well as several of his foes that all make appearances in this comic including General Blight who gets his own story out of the two presented. The plots of both stories are simple and yet affective with the first being a villain contest TV Show that has baddies going after Bananaman and a panel rates the villains to award the winner. And the second story has General Blight on a crime spree and even grows giant size and this forces Bananaman to have to do the same in growing to end the fight. Bananaman in this graphic novel is super silly and while he saves the day each time he kind of falls backwards into doing so and while he acts as if he knows what he is doing its clear at times he does not. But because he is silly this makes him a very charming hero and reminds me of Captain Klutz another hero we have talked about here on Rotten Ink and you should give that update a read here. And I have to say this graphic novel really did spark my love for the Bananaman character again as he is just such an awesome superhero with such a great nature. Also the fact he his a kid in his alter ego reminds me of Captain Marvel or Shazam as he is called now. Really sad that Crow is not in this as it would have been cool to have seen him around and helping out when needed. While many of his villains appear many of them do not get a lot of time on panels as they are defeated fast and our hero moves onto the next, I will though say that King Zorg gets his time to shine as he is the host of the TV Show contest and gets to say a few cheesy jokes before he his beat up by Big Rita who ends up winning the show. General Blight is the graphic novels main villain and he is able to win a few rounds with Bananaman as he runs him over with his bicycle, is able to rob a bank, turn into a giant and beat our hero is a fight showing he is truly the arch-nemesis for Bananaman! I also like how their big giant fight has to end early as all the food they ate made them have to potty bad and because they are so big they have to use cooling towers at a power station to relive themselves…so silly. The cover for this graphic novel is great and showcases both Eric Wimp and Bananaman and is eye catching with the interior art being done by an artist I could not find the credits for, but whom ever of the comic strip artist who did it they did top notch stuff. Over all this Bananaman Graphic Novel is not for everyone as I think those who do not know the character will find it to British in humor and way to kid friendly, but for those fans like myself it’s a fun read that takes you back to your youth watching the cartoon (or even in some cases reading the comic strip) and enjoying his adventures. Checkout the artwork below to see the style used in this book.

Bananaman was a great way to spend this Christmas Eve as he is such a very underrated superhero character here in America as sadly besides that very small run on the early days of Nickelodeon and those who imported shows or got on the Grey Market truly remember him, while in England he really is a well loved hero and still has a following and fan base to this day. I really hope that you readers have a great Holiday season spent with your family, friends and pets with lots of great conversations and plenty of tasty food. I also want to thank you for spending apart of your Christmas Eve here at Rotten Ink and making this 10 Year Anniversary very special and I hope you enjoyed the updates over the decade of blogging and hope it brought back great memories of your youth. So with that eat a Christmas Cookie or three, watch a Bananaman cartoon or two and as always support your local Horror Host. See you in 2023 for the best of 2022 Movie’s seen in the theater countdown.

Man Of Steel vs. The Mole Men!

Welcome back to Rotten Ink. For this update we will be chatting about something very cool, “Superman And The Mole Men,” the first film to feature the Man Of Steel and starred George Reeves as Superman who would go on to play the character in the awesome TV series from the 50’s! The thing about Superman is that the character is truly iconic and is a big part of Pop Culture in America and when thinking about topics that needed to be covered for Rotten Ink’s 10 Year Celebration, I knew that Superman had to be one of the topics as growing up the character was a. part of my childhood as I not only watched the George Reeves show but also read the comics, played the video games, had the toys, wore the shirts, watched the cartoons and even loved the films that have been released. And what is really cool about this Superman update is that I get to talk about the movie that started it all for many young fans in the 1950’s who loved Superman already from comics, radio show and even the movie serials, and soon after the movie’s release they got to see him every week in action on the TV show. So hold onto your seats as we are going for a quick update adventure ride with the one and only Superman as played by George Reeves.

Let’s first start off by taking a look at the film that the Photo Comic Graphic Novel we will be covering is based on, the first film to feature Superman. I want to remind you readers that the film’s write up will be taken from our friends at IMDB and that I will be writing about the film’s production, legacy and my thoughts. So let’s dive in and talk about Superman and his run in with the Mole Men.

Superman And The Mole Men (1951)

“Reporters Clark Kent and Lois Lane arrive in the small town of Silsby to witness the drilling of the world’s deepest oil well. The drill, however, has penetrated the underground home of a race of small, furry people who then come to the surface at night to look around. The fact that they glow in the dark scares the townfolk, who form a mob, led by the vicious Luke Benson, intent on killing the strange people. Only Superman has a chance to prevent this tragedy.”

Superman was one of the most popular superheroes and most read comics of the time. This meant that other media was in his future like radio and movie serials, and in 1951 he made his way to the silver screen with his first full fledged movie! The film was written by Richard Fielding and was distributed by Lippert Pictures and was a quick and cheap production as they really wanted to cash in on the popularity of Superman with young comic book readers. Lee Sholem, who before this film had directed “Tobor The Great” as well as two Tarzan films with “Tarzan’s Magic Fountain” and “Tarzan And The Slave Girl,” was selected as he knew how to make kid friendly Adventure Fantasy films. The film’s plot was based on the Red Scare that was gripping America at the time and even has elements of classic Universal Monster Sci-Fi films thrown in to a comic book feel. When casting the film they casted George Reeves as Clark Kent aka Superman, Phyllis Coates as Lois Lane and Billy Curtis and Jerry Maren as two of the Mole-Men. The film was shot in only 12 days at RKO-Pathe Studios in California and survived a double purpose as they wanted to have a hit that would bring kids to the cinema and it was also used to try and see if people had interest in Superman so that a TV Show could be made. And it did both of that as the film was well loved by kids in the early 1950’s and later in 1951 “The Adventures Of Superman” hit TV screens as a syndicated show. The film was scored by Darrell Calker and later the film was cut into a two part episode with changes when the show was released. The movie over the years has been released on VHS, Laserdisc as well as DVD so if you want to see Superman’s first movie adventure it is out in the world for you to be able to do so. And for those of you wonder in 1951 this film was joined by such other Sci-Fi and Horror Classics in the theater and dive-in screens as “The Day The Earth Stood Still”, “The Thing From Another World”, “The Man From Planet X”, “Abbott And Costello Meet The Invisible Man”, “The Son of Dr. Jekyll” and “Bride Of The Gorilla”.

Growing up I was a big fan of George Reeves as Superman as the old classic TV Show would air all the time in reruns on “Nick At Night/TV Land” and I would watch and as a kid I do remember wondering where Lex Luthor, Braniac or Mister Mxyzptlk were, but somehow it never bothered me enough as I was always looking forward to watching Superman bring down the bad guys and save the day. I saw the movie “Superman And The Mole Men” after I had already been a fan of the show as I remember some local area TV Station aired it some Sunday afternoon and my brother and I were glued to the TV and enjoyed every cheesy moment. I mean how can you go wrong with Mole Men running wild in a small town and Superman must save them from an unruly mob who wants them dead cause they look different and have been accused of crimes they did not do all out of fear. The one thing that annoyed me for the longest time is how long this film took to get a proper DVD release that was not just an extra on another Superman release, and even the one that is out now is by Cheezy Movies so it has no extras of its own. And while this film is not the best Superman film made, it is a good one and I would have loved to have seen this film in the theater in 1951 as I could imagine just how awesome that must have been for the youth at the time.

The Mole-Men who live under the Earth are the “Bad” guys of this first Superman movie but are they really all that bad as they are brought to the up to the surface world due to the actions of mankind who affected their world with their quest for oil and gas. And because they feel they are being attacked they go on the attack and come above ground with their weapons and are looking for answers when one of their own is shot and injured by a mob of humans who hate them because they look different. The Mole Men also have their skin glows in the dark and they are short in height. The Mole Men in the film are played by actors Billy Curtis, John T. Bambury, Jerry Maren and Johnny Roventini all who do a great job in the role and while Mole People might not be the meanest or deadliest foes Superman has fought in the movies they sure are strange and interesting ones.

George Reeves was born on January 5, 1914 in Woolstock, Iowa and had it semi rough growing up as his father left the family almost after his birth and he and his mother moved around and stayed in Kentucky as well as Illinois. And finally they settled in California and that is when Frank Bessolo entered their life and he married George’s mother and adopted him at the age of 13, and after 15 years of marriage the two separated and his mother would lie to him and say that Frank committed suicide…when in fact he was alive and well and would pass away many years later and George was unaware of this fact for many years. And starting around 1939 is when George Reeves started his acting career and even landed a small role in the film “Gone With The Wind” and through the 1940’s would be in many films including titles like “The Fighting 69^th”, “Torrid Zone”, “Dead Men Tell”, “Jungle Goddess”, “Samson And Delilah” and “The Good Humor Man” to name a very small few, as while he was never a main leading man he had that star quality. And in 1951 his luck changed when he was casted as Superman in both the film “Superman And The Mole Men” as well as the TV Show “The Adventures Of Superman” that would last 6 seasons and a total of 104 episodes and was a super popular show among kids and adults and George Reeves was Superman in the publics eyes. And this big role would also be a curse while he would get some small work during and after his run a Superman much of his roles had him playing the superhero such as his 1957 appearance on “I Love Lucy” on the episode Lucy And Superman. But in is personal life Reeves was said to be depressed over the typecasting of the Superman role and on June 16, 1959 it is said that George Reeves committed suicide by gunshot, while other do think that he was murdered and it was cover-up. George Reeves is one of the best actors to ever play Superman and is for me on par with Christopher Reeve as I think both of them embodied the heroic nature and character. While George Reeves was gone from this world way to soon his work lives on and his biggest cursed role is why he is still a well-loved actor to this day.

The tragic death of George Reeves was really a bummer to his fans and sadly for some has tainted the joy his portrayal of Superman brought them as it’s been rumored that that role is what drove him to depression, but please do not allow this tragic event to ruin your love for the show as it really is a fun and wholesome entertainment that is still enjoyed to this day. And now we are at the part of the update that we will be reviewing this Photo Comic Graphic Novel that was released by Fanzine and thanks to Amazon for having this graphic novel in stock and making this update possible. I also would like to remind you that I grade these comics on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comics stay to the source material, it’s entertainment value and it’s art and story. Now if your are ready lets look up to the sky as is that a bird? A plan? Or is it just Superman done as a Photo Comic?

Superman And The Mole Men GN  **1/2
Released in 2020      Cover Price $13.00      Fanzine       # 1 of 1

Lois Lane and Clark Kent travel to the small town of Silsby to write about the worlds deepest oil well, but when they arrive to cover it they are shocked when they are told by foreman Mr. Corrigan that the well has been shutdown and word had come down from the top of the company to do so. As Clark and Lois are about to leave he notices that all of the workmen’s tools are thrown into a hole and this intrigues him. When the Oil company puts them up in a motel for the night and keys the a company car Lois and Clark decide to visit the Oil Well again and head toward it, meanwhile at the well three little Mole Men come out of the ground and scare the old night man to death! And when Lois and Clark show up and find the body, Lois spots the Mole Men and freaks out and the sheriff is called up and she has to tell him what she has seen and that she thinks the Mole Men she spotted is who killed the watch man, and when the Doctor shows up he rules the death a heart attack. And while Lois heads back to the hotel Clark stays with Mr. Corrigan to wait for the Undertaker and when everyone is gone Clark gets the truth out of Corrigan about the well closing and that they found possible radiation, living organisms as well as that the center of the Earth is hollow! And things get worse when the townspeople find out about the creatures Luke Benson feeds them all fear and creates mobs in order to kill the visitors as they all now think that they are dangerous because the stuff they touch starts glowing. And when the Mole Men make the mistake of trying to befriend a young girl who’s mother freaks out, the townspeople are filled with rage and go on the hunt, and even when Clark sneaks away to turn into Superman he can not get them to calm down as Luke is the issue as he keeps winding people up. Luke and his mob end up shooting one of the Mole Men that Superman has to rush to the hospital, and they think they burn the other alive in a shed who by luck escapes and goes back down the oil well. As Luke and his mob head toward the hospital when the find out the wounded Mole Man is there as they want to kill him Superman runs them off just as more Mole Men appear with a laser gun in order to get their wounded friend back, and Superman is able to return the would Mole Man to his people as well as save Luke from a laser blast and in the end Superman and Lois watch as the Mole Men blow up the entrance to their world as they just want to be left alone.

What a fun and simple Photo Comic GN that does a good job of bringing the film to the pages and feels like a quick read and is truly a wholesome Superman adventure. As the plot is very simple and has Superman trying to teach a small town that just because someone is different does not mean you should hurt them. Superman does his best to try and keep law and order as a town goes wild and crazed and mob rule is the mindset all do to one mans hate filled words. Superman also does a great job of saving the Mole Men and the town people from being killed and shows that he hates bullies as well as the miss use of guns as at one point he takes all of them from the mob when someone almost shoots Lois Lane by accident. Luke Benson is a total idiot who hates to hate and over takes the town by making every one afraid of the unknown and they even over take the law as they over power and lock up the sheriff! And even after being a scum bag to everyone and causing injuries Superman still saves Luke from taking a laser blast to the chest. The Mole Men are not bad at all and are just discovering the upper world and mean zero harm, and because of their strange look they are hated and hunted and one is injured badly and his own people are forced to try and rescue him and when they do so they blowup the entrance to their world as they want nothing to do with mankind. This Photo Comic also took a black and white film and took stills and added color to them and oddly it works in a charming way, as the colors are basic but some how it adds to the fun nature of this story. And once more I have to stress this comics plot just like the movie is very simple and yet now in days has that classic feel of being good and understanding is what is right. The cover for this graphic novel is a little boring and underwhelming and the interior is stills from the film that have been colored in and dialogue added in, so that is good if you like photo comics. Over all this is a great read if you like the film its based on or just very kid friendly Superman stories, while I do think the cover price is a little high I do say its worth a buy for fans. Check out the photo art below to see they style used in this comic.

So as you can see, this Photo Comic Graphic Novel is a pretty good and entertaining read, but I know for many of you readers the fact that it is a Photo Comic will scare you away from checking it out, and I do understand as these type of comics are not for everyone. But I say if you like Superman as played by George Reeves I would give this at least a chance no matter how you feel about the style of comic. I should also note that Anthony Koontz is the man behind Fanzine and these Photo Comic Graphic Novels and he has also done ones based on “Invasion Of The Body Snatchers” and “Brain The Wouldn’t Die” and yes both of those will be getting the Rotten Ink treatment sometime in the future. So we are now getting even closer to our big Christmas Eve update and the next topic is something that many of you fellow kids of the 80’s will remember as it will be SilverHawks! So until next time read a Superman comic or three, watch a Superman film or two and as always support your local Horror Host…and I know those of you from Cleveland, Ohio did as you guys had Superhost! See you next time for a screeching silver metal hawk good time.

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)

Welcome back to Rotten Ink. For another “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update and for this one I will be taking a look at the battle of the worlds two most popular Kaiju those being Godzilla and King Kong and their battle that took place in 2021 in the theaters thanks to Legendary Pictures, and like all good monster movies this film spawned not one but two comic graphic novels to help promote the film and each one showcased the individual monsters before they even meet up on the silver screen. And before we get into this update I want you to think about which of these Giant Monsters is your favorite now and growing up even, as truly here in America these two are the Titans that made the biggest impact in not only movies but culture and they still have massive loyal followings and both have made impacts worldwide. So with that let’s take a look at Godzilla vs. Kong and the two graphic novels this film spawned.

So to start this off right lets take a look at both Godzilla and King Kong and their styles of battle and killing! And we will start off first with Godzilla who stands at 393 feet tall and weighs over 90,000 tons and is a massive destruction Kaiju who lets nothing stand in his way. He is very aggressive as he wants to be the Alpha Titan and will attack any creature or human base that stands in his way of ruling as if he views you as a threat he will kill. Godzilla is massive in size and can crush people and things under his feet, his massive tail can also kill and destroy people and can be used as a weapon against other Kaiju’s that he comes across. Godzilla’s look also is very scary and this can freeze people in fear and this could lead to their deaths. While Godzilla don’t target humans for the most part those who are in his way learn that he can deal them the death card. Godzila also has super powerful atomic breath that can burn through the Earth, can level buildings and can burn humans to bits as well as can cause serious damage to fellow Giant Monsters that get into his way. Godzilla will also use his teeth and claws to attack and they both as well can cause some big damage to his fellow monsters. He can be fast on land when in a rage, but is always super fast in the water swimming. Godzilla is also smart but one of his weakness is that he is driven by instinct and as well ego as he wants to be the top Alpha among Kaiju and will kill any other creature that gets in his way and opposes his rule. But because of this drive he also heads straight into battle and will not stop until he or the other creature is dead. Godzilla can be hurt as well by atomic blasts, giant battle axes as well as attacks from other Giant Monsters. Godzilla does not have much weakness and this is why many call him King Of The Monsters.

King Kong while more friendly to mankind still is a Kaiju and can deal death to those that cross him or those he cares about. Kong is super powerful as he can use his strength to overpower his fellow Kaiju as well as can smash human war machines like planes. And do to his size standing 335 feet and weighs around 50,000 tons and this size alone makes him a wrecking machine if he chooses to be. Kong’s look that is a massive gorilla can also strike fear in the hearts of humans as they fear that he could smash them with his feet, hands and his razor sharp teeth is a frightful sight as Kong lets out his massive roar. Kong is super fast and moves much faster then Kaiju like Godzilla, and Kong is also very smart and can use his environment to his advantage. Kong also uses weapons wither it’s something like a tree or his trusty battle-axe that he finds in Middle Earth he is truly a force of nature that can deal death to humans and Kaiju if he chooses. He is an Alpha when it comes to Kaiju and he knows that he really is a King among them. But while Kong is massive he does have some weaknesses like that fact he is caring towards humans he bonds with, he can be hurt via atomic breath, he can be cut by fellow Kaiju’s teeth and claws and because he has normal skin he can be hurt badly by this. Kong also can be sent into a rage as he is a Alpha and that means he does have an ego that can lead him into fights that he might not win if not planned out. Kong also can hold his breath for a while but can be drowned and smothered, as he does need air in his lungs to survive. While Kong has some weakness it’s a matter of luck in order of getting the best of him and he truly is one of the most powerful Kaiju’s due to his smarts, strength and speed.

As you can see both Godzilla and Kong as super dangerous if they want to be to humans, but to be honest they both in the Legendary Monsterverse series acts as protectors to humans and only kill them when attacked or protecting…and well by accident. But as you can see when it comes to other Kaiju’s they can and will kill them to be the Alpha and to be the protectors that their instincts tell them to be. Well I think its time to take a look at the film that pitted these two against each other from 2021 and as always the films write up will be taken from our pals at IMDB and after that I will write about the films production as well as my thoughts on the film. So if you are ready, let’s chat about Godzilla vs. Kong an epic Kaiju film for the ages.

Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)

“Legends collide as Godzilla and Kong, the two most powerful forces of nature, clash on the big screen in a spectacular battle for the ages. As a squadron embarks on a perilous mission into fantastic uncharted terrain, unearthing clues to the Titans’ very origins and mankind’s survival, a conspiracy threatens to wipe the creatures, both good and bad, from the face of the earth forever.”

Godzilla vs. Kong had seeds planted in 2015 when Legendary Pictures was able to get Universal to let Warner Brothers release the King Kong reboot that they were working on as they had already done Godzilla with WB in 2014 and fans knew that Kong would be joining the planned Monsterverse and finally they announced that yes a Godzilla vs. Kong film would be in the works after a few films would be released based on them both in order to build up the showdown. And this caused Kaiju fans to be cheering so loud for this giant monster showdown, but they were told it would not come out until 2020…so a wait was in store for us all as they confirmed this in late 2015. The next major news came in 2017 when they hired Adam Wingard to direct the film and he was a good choice as he already had films “A Horrible Way To Die (2010)”, “You’re Next (2011)”, “Blair Witch (2016)” and “Death Note (2017)” under his belt and at one point he was even selected by Peter Jackson to be the director of his never made sequel to the 2005 King Kong remake. Next they started working on the script and after many ideas and rewrites it was Eric Pearson and Max Borenstein who got the job based on the stories of Michael Dougherty, Terry Rossio and Zach Sheilds and they all added elements from the past three films in the shared universe. And in 2017 through 2018 they started also casting parts in the film with Millie Bobby Brown and Kyle Chandler coming back in their roles and names like Julian Dennison, Alexander Skarsgard, Rebecca Hall, Eiza Gonzalez and Brian Tyree Henry among others all getting roles in key parts. The film began filming on November 12, 2018 and took place in Hawaii and Australia and was your normal big budget film shoot with reshoots coming later to even add and help to the story. And from there the film had the visual effects added by a massive team-up from companies Moving Pictures Company, Scanline VFX and Weta Digital and this had to be done by so many companies as Warner Brothers really wanted to release the film in 2020 like they first promised. And then the film was scored by Tom Holkenborg who did a fantastic job of adding new sounds to already iconic songs in some pieces and his new songs are fantastic. The film had big promotion around it and posters were shown and Comic Con even got to see a clip and the buzz around the film was at a fever pitch as fans wanted to see it bad, and when pictures of the toys by Playmates based on the film leaked on line it was on as new character where shown and fans started wondering what these new Kaiju were. But sadly Godzilla vs. Kong was not released in 2020 due to the pandemic and movie theaters world wide had to shut down in order to slow down the virus. And the film was pushed to 2021 and even then people thought that it might not even be release until 2022! But the film did make it to the theaters on March 31, 2021 and even with the annoying pandemic still being around it did really well at the Box Office, but on the same day released in theaters Warner Brothers and there parent company AT&T also decided to put the film on their terrible streaming service HBO Max and this was cool for people who was scared to go to theaters due to the virus and was understandable at the time. The film did $467,863,133.00 worldwide via its theater run and was # 2 for the year at the Box Office in America and was released alongside other films like “The Conjuring: Devil Made Me Do It”, “The Suicide Squad”, “Candyman”, “Mortal Kombat”, “Snake Eyes”, “The Green Knight”, “Chaos Walking” and many more. The film was pretty well loved by both critics and fans and was the first big movie for theaters once they were able to open once more. And once on home media I of course bought it and have watched a couple of times sense its release.

Godzilla vs. Kong was one of the films of 2021 that I was most looking forward to as it was one that my gal Juliet and I would talk about all the time as well as many of my friends as we all debated and took sides on who they wanted to win the big fight! And our household was split as Juliet was team Godzilla and I was team Kong and even before the films release I ordered us both shirts that featured the Kaiju we were cheering for, and yes, we wore them when we went and seen the film at a Cinemark Theater. I invited many of my friends as well to watch the film and it was a blast seeing it in the theater and all of us had a great time eating popcorn, snacks and having some drinks all the while watching the monsters battle on the silver screen for our entertainment. And while Kong should have won the fight I enjoyed the heck out of the film and that’s why it ranked #2 on my Matt Goes To The Movies 2021 update in the Horror section. The film made me feel like a kid again in the theater as watching two of cinemas biggest iconic giant monsters fighting on the screen was something very magical and truly was a film that needed to be seen in theaters and not at home via streaming! And it was great as everyone of my friends who came with me to watch the film enjoyed the hell out of it and the best part really being is how split we all were on who should have won, and even in the end when the winner was shown no one was rubbing it in the other sides face. The effects of the film were great and I think that Legendary Pictures has done a great job of showing the age progression of both Titans in each film and have done a fantastic job of also giving them personality and growth over the films that make up the Monsterverse. The thing that really worked in the film is that several times Kong and Godzilla fight and after each battle one of the Titans has the upper hand given fans of each of them something to cheer and feel good about and making neither look weak. I am glad that Legendary Pictures was able to get Toho, Warner Brothers and Universal Pictures to come together and allow this and the other films in the series to be made as they truly are “Event” films that are super enjoyable to watch in the theater and with friends. I hope that this is not the last we see of Godzilla or Kong as both have many more battles to be had in the Monsterverse. To sum it up I really enjoyed Godzilla vs. Kong and while in my opinion the wrong Kaiju won the battle it took the two to really bring down the threat that was a giant tech company and their Mecha monster.

As you long time readers know, both Godzilla and King Kong are big time favorites here at Rotten Ink as both are characters I grew up watching and will always be covered here and with Legendary Pictures and Legendary Comics making new media about both of them this is great news as they will always be covered here. And I want to thank Amazon for having both of these graphic novels in stock and making this update possible. I want to also remind you readers that I grade these comics on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comics stay to the source material, it’s entertainment value and it’s art and story. So with that, let’s head to the world of Titans and see who has the better graphic novel!

Godzilla: Dominion # 1  **1/2
Released in 2021     Cover Price $16.99    Legendary     # 1 of 1

Godzilla is trying to protect his territory and find a new home and comes across the Titan Scylla who has been driven mad with hunger and has set her sights on a bomb at the bottom of the ocean and Godzilla knows that if the bomb goes off it will hurt the Earth as well as people and fights Scylla and makes her retreat into the ocean. Godzilla next appears to break up a fight between Amhuluk and Behemoth as they two are fighting over territory as well as are both hungry and as Amhuluk takes down Behemoth with plans on eating him Godzilla steps in and breaks up this could be feast and Amhuluk and Behemoth go their separate ways. Godzilla returns to the ocean and lets a strong current carry him as he rests and remembers back to a time long ago before man took over the world, and he then is attacked by meat eating giant fish that he ends up using his atomic breath and fries them. And as he continues his quest to find a new home Godzilla even remembers back to Mothra giving her life for his and that is when he runs into the Titan Na Kika as well as Warships and Helicopters that are attacking him once he surfaces, after defeating the war machines he once more finds a place to rest and recharges. Godzilla then finds his new home and must fight the Titan Tiamat in order to claim it and after a big fight Tiamat bows down and leaves Godzilla deep in his thoughts that is all about his real rival the one known as Kong.

Godzilla Dominion is a fun read and has some cool fights as well as features some other Titans that make up the Monsterverse. The Idea of this basically being a day in the life of Godzilla as he tries to find a new home is kind of a fun concept, but it is also flawed. While I really do want to stress that it’s a fun read and fans of Kaiju or should I say Titans will really enjoy all the monster fights as well as seeing many of the ones we are briefly introduced to in the 2019 film “Godzilla King Of The Monsters”, but the downside is that the comic feels like just scenes put together and at times it feels slightly underwhelming and also disjointed in spots. But while flawed in my opinion the comic still is a fun time if you love monster fights. Godzilla in this graphic novel is very much trying to be a protector to Earth as well as King of the monsters as he is trying to get them to behave as well as understands that their food source and territories are over lapping causing them to be at odds with each other. He also shows that he is a Titan who is always thinking as his past as well as the past of his bloodline is always on his mind and his hatred for Kong and his race is also boiling in his blood. The GN also has many other Titans with the coolest one for me to see being Behemoth the giant wooly mammoth with the long tusks, even though he looses a fight with a fellow Titan and almost becomes a meal, he still is my favorite of the other original Titans shown in this comic. I also like that this really feeds into the hatred that Godzilla has for Kong and it really does have to do with the history of war between the two races. The cover is really cool and has artwork by Art Adams and showcases Godzilla in all his glory. The interior art by Drew Johnson is really good and I love the way he draws all the Titans and also the way he draws battles is pretty interesting and well done. Over all this is a good read if you are a Godzilla fan and I cannot wait to see what the Kong graphic novel has in store for me. Check out the artwork below to see the style of Drew.

So now that we see what Godzilla has brought to the table in this Graphic Novel showdown lets head to Skull Island and see what Kong has in response.

Kingdom Kong # 1  ***
Released in 2021     Cover Price $16.99   Legendary     # 1 of 1

Monarch have called in their top pilots and are sending them to Skull Island on a secret mission as they might have found a new entrance to the Hollow Earth and they need a team to go in and secure the area so that scientist can enter and study the believed birth place to all the Titans. Audrey Burns a woman with a past dealing with Titans is selected to lead the group and they all run drills on Skull Island to get ready for the mission. Meanwhile Kong is around and a little annoyed by the new group of humans but still protects them from the likes of a Spirit Tiger that he ends up breaking the neck of. Worse a massive storm is heading the way of Skull Island and if it reaches the island it could cause death of many of the species that live on the island including the tribe of humans. The scientists also are starting to wonder if Kong is out growing Skull Island as he seems to be growing to large for the land to supply him with enough of a food source among other issues. When the drilling team starts to uncover the cave that could be the vortex to lead to Hollow Earth they soon find out that they have all made a big mistake as the winged Titan Camazotz is what was in the hole and he wants to challenge to make Earth his Kingdom! Meanwhile Captain Audrey and her men have a moment to chat about how Titans have effected all of their lives before they are sent out to check on the drilling crew that has went silent…and to make things worse the massive storm is now at Skull Island! Kong fights off Camazotz as Burns and her team enter the fight to help Kong against the Titan and his smaller minions while other get the drilling team out and safe. After Burns uses her airplane to hit Camazotz with a sonic boom, Kong finishes the beast off with a hit that crushes his skull and kills the evil creature. Once the battle is over Burns takes a leave to visit her best friend who was hurt in a Titan attack, the Skull Island Hollow Earth portal is closed as its unstable, Dr. Ilene Andrews takes over as head scientist watching over Skull Island and Kong and Kong himself gets fired up when he thinks about his bloodline’s past and knows Godzilla is out in the world.

Kingdom Kong feels more like your traditional Kaiju comic and follows humans on a mission as well as the featured giant monster doing what they do best and that’s fight, protect and be a giant scary creature in the eyes of humans. And in this comic Kong is as awesome as ever as he tries to protect life but also has no regrets on taking lives of threats to him or what he views as those in need of his help. The way he snaps the neck of the Spirit Tiger shows that Kong does not mess around, and the fact he fights off another Alpha Titan shows that he is not one to turn away from a fight. The main evil Titan in this issue is the winged terror called Camazotz who hides in the dark and wants to make the planet Earth his kingdom and also feels that by beating Kong he as well will become a Alpha Titan, and while he is a threat to Kong he ends up dead thanks to a crushed skull! The human parts of the story do drag a little mostly in the Scientist stuff, with Captain Burns and her crew being a little more interesting due to their PTSD over Kaiju attacks they faced in the past. The Titan fights are great and while at times in some panels the fights do loose a little of the impact as the art sometimes is mudded up with other elements. It was cool to see characters from the film make appearances like Dr. Ilene Andrews, Jia and we even see Dr. David Lind the brother of Nathan Lind who dies trying to enter the Hollow Earth as spoke about in the film. The cover is great and eye catching as its Art Adams artwork again and his stuff always looks amazing. The interior artwork is done by Zed and is solid stuff and I love the way he drew Kong as he captures the Titan very well. Over all this is a really good comic that captures that magic of Kong and tells a pretty interesting story that leads into the events of the film pretty well and also builds the hatred that Kong has for Godzilla. Check out the artwork below to see the style of Zed used in this comic.

So as you can see, while Godzilla might have won the battle in the film Kong won the showdown between the two Titans in the world of Graphic Novels as his was just a better read and had a more solid plot that did not have that random scenes thrown together feel like Godzilla’s did. But I do feel that if you are a fan of either or both of these classic giant movie monsters you should give these graphic novels a read for sure as both are entertaining in their own ways and are a great lead in to the epic film and act as a fill in for the gap that takes place between the film series. But with that we have all survived another Kaiju attack here at Rotten Ink and our next update will take us all to a place to relax around a camp fire enjoying a bowl of chili and watching a classic western film released by Alpha Video and the first of our new Wild West Round Up update theme. So until next time read a comic or three, watch a Kaiju film or two and as always support your local Horror Host. See you on the ranch for a War Of The Range!

For the Honor of Greyskull: She-Ra Through the Ages

Greetings readers – it’s Juliet, reporting back in for blogging duty. Back in the early days of Rotten Ink, 2013 to be exact, Matt asked his friends what franchises they thought should have been made into comics.  Interestingly several of my picks have become comics since then with one franchise in particular enjoying a reboot and subsequent relaunch into popular culture.  That franchise is She-Ra, and today we’ll be taking a look at both the classic Princess of Power and the modern Princesses of Power series including a modern comic for younger readers.  So saddle up your flying horse, grab the Sword of Protection and let’s head to Etheria for the honor of Greyskull!

In 1985, Filmation launched a spinoff to it’s animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.  Geared at young women, She-Ra: Princess of Power followed Princess Adora, the twin sister of Prince Adam (aka He-Man), who was kidnapped by Hordak at birth and was taken to Etheria where she served as Force Captain of the Horde.  After being saved by He-Man and reunited with her family, Adora then chooses to return to Etheria as a freedom fighter in the rebellion, taking up the Sword of Protection and the mantle of She-Ra.  

She-Ra: Princess of Power introduced many supporting characters, some of whom were created by Filmation and others by Mattel, presumably so they could add toys and other merchandise featuring the new characters. The series made its debut on TV in 1985, and the five episode introduction was packed as the film He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword. She-Ra: Princess of Power would run for two seasons and a total of 93 episodes. 

The original She-Ra series is one of those cartoons that’s just always existed for me.  I was so young when it debuted, that I can’t actually remember the first time I saw the show, rather, it was ever-present throughout my childhood.  Even after it went off the air, I had a VHS copy of He-Man & She-Ra: A Christmas Special taped off TV that I’d regularly watch.  I loved the characters, but moreover, I loved the idea of the characters and their world.  These were the types of characters that I’d make my own stories about while daydreaming (hello, future fanfiction and original fiction writer). Like many cartoons of its era, it faded away for a while but saw a huge resurgence of interest with the rise of nostalgic pop culture in the late 90s/early 00s.  And of course, the release of the show on DVD helped fuel that fire.  I have the DVDs, and it’s been fun getting reacquainted with the series, especially getting the watch the entire run in order, something I didn’t get to do as a child.  

In 2018, a new version of She-Ra debuted on Netflix.  She-Ra and the Princesses of Power was developed by Noelle Stevenson, already well known for her Nimona and Lumberjanes comic series.  It focused on a teenaged Adora’s journey of love and friendship from being a Horde force captain to taking on the mantle of She-Ra, the savior of Etheria. This series ran a total of five seasons on Netflix to wide acclaim for both its storytelling and its inclusive characters and relationships.  

I had heard good things about She-Ra and the Princess of Power since its launch, but being notoriously late to the game on Netflix shows, it took me until the fifth and final season was released to start my watch.  In all honesty, however, my timing couldn’t have been better.  I watched the entire run of the show in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic and was fairly awestruck.  It was amazing to see beloved, albeit sometimes one dimensional characters from the original series reborn with intentional stories and personalities all their own in bodies and with identities that reflect the varied and awesome realities of our world with a fantasy backdrop.  And then there’s the storytelling.  I have such appreciation for shows that are geared towards younger folks that don’t shy from complex stories and don’t pander to their intended audience.  Watching She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, I was moved to tears on more than one occasion and could imagine my younger self feeling all of the feelings when watching it.  

One thing that really surprised me going from She-Ra: Princess of Power to She-Ra and the Princesses of Power was which characters became my favorite from each show.  In the original show, I was a huge fan of Adora/She-Ra but also loved the looks of Peekablue and Frosta.  In She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, I totally adored Mermista and, mostly surprisingly of all, became a diehard fan of Scorpia.  Both of those characters grow so much through the series, and with Scorpia, you just want her to win and find happiness.  

Before we go on, I have to talk for a moment about music.  Both She-Ra series have memorable theme songs.  The original 80s theme is a riff on the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe theme with a voiceover from titular hero and a chorus of their name, though I find the She-Ra theme to be much catchier.   The theme for She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, however, takes catchy to a whole new level with the song “Warriors” performed by Aaliyah Rose.  It’s such a great anthem that’s guaranteed to get stuck in your head.In addition to the original run of Mattel figures and their accompanying playsets upon which the show was launched, the 80s version of She-Ra had plenty of merchandise both then and now including t-shirts, coffee mugs and cups, sticker and coloring books, board games, backpacks and Funko Pops. Starting in the 2000s, Mattel began to cash in on toy collectors’ nostalgia with several series of reissued He-Man and She-Ra figure sets, beginning with Masters of the Universe Classics.  This first series ran from 2008 until 2016 and featured She-Ra characters scattered among those from He-Man throughout the line.  These were good looking collectors’ figures that were based on the original Masters of the Universe sculpts rather than the original She-Ra figures (so they were bulkier and all plastic with sculpted hair).  My own collection includes both Adora and She-Ra as well as Teela from Masters of the Universe. There have been several additional reissue series in the same vein of Masters of the Universe Classics over the years with a new one that just started (the She-Ra from that series was released in February, 2021) and a line of ReAction figures.  Like its predecessor, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power also has its share of cool merchandise including t-shirts, enamel pins, stickers, a line of books and graphic novels aimed at younger readers, and an awesome line of Target exclusive figures.  

I had many of the original She-Ra figures growing up including She-Ra and a Crystal Swiftwind.  I remember always wanting the Crystal Castle playset, but alas, never actually had it (though my extensive Jem and the Holograms collection more than made up for that), but I do still have my childhood She-Ra coloring book.  I haven’t gotten any merchandise from the new show yet – save for the topic of our review, but I blame that on having watched it entirely during the pandemic and having not set foot in a Hot Topic in over a year as of this posting.  

So let’s talk about what we’re going to review today — in 2019, Scholastic (who you may know from your childhood book fairs) released a chapter book designed for grades 1-5 called She-Ra: Origins of a Hero.  Written by Tracey West, this book kicked off an unconnected series of books for the same age group that took place in the world of the Netflix show.  The fourth book, released in early 2020, however was a graphic novel called She-Ra: Legend of the Fire Princess.  It was written by D.G. Gigi and illustrated by Pauline Ganucheau with input from Noelle Stevenson.  That graphic novel, which was a gift from Matt, is the subject of today’s review. As a reminder, here on Rotten Ink, we grade these comics on a star scale of 1 to 4 and are looking for how well the comics stay to the source material, its entertainment value and its art and story. So get ready for an adventure of friendship and wonder as we look at She-Ra: Legend of the Fire Princess

She-Ra: Legend of the Fire Princess  ****
Released in 2020   Cover Price $12.99   Scholastic   #1 of 1

The Spirit Ember is the hot topic of the day as both the Horde and the Rebellion are seeking this lost rune stone.  As Entrapta and Catra plan their search, Glimmer tells the other princess of the legend of the Fire Princess, whose years of solitude trying to master the secrets of the Spirit Ember ended up destroying her kingdom.  Adora is disturbed by the legend, but soon her attention shifts as a Horde vehicle is reported outside Thaymor.  Queen Angela sends Adora, Glimmer and the others to investigate and permits them to search for the Spirit Ember. Meanwhile, Catra and Scorpia are on their own search, but are decidedly not on the same page about their objectives for the day.  As both teams race toward the Spirit Ember, it becomes clear that everything is not as it seems with the lost runestone and each team will have to not only decide if the rune stone is worth it, but also confront issues of trust and friendship along the way.

Comics based on cartoons (as opposed to cartoons based on comics) can really go either way: they can provide fans with additional stories that are faithful to the shows they love or they can utterly pale in comparison with the source material.  Lucky for us, She-Ra: Legend of the Fire Princess is the former. Just like the show, while this graphic novel is aimed at a younger audience, it’s a great read for fans of any age.  The story of a quest for a lost rune-stone would fit perfectly in the middle seasons of the show and, like all of the episodes, manages to balance the “quest of the day” with the larger things the characters are dealing with emotionally and interpersonally.  You can tell Noelle Stevenson had a hand in this because the tone is just right.  Gigi D.G.’s script is well-paced and gives each character time to shine, and Paulina Ganucheau’s art, which you can see below, fits perfectly with the style of the show.  Given that it is aimed at young readers, this will be a quick read for most, but it still manages to pack in a lot of story and a lot of heart.  If you’re a fan of the show and are craving more She-Ra content after the final season, definitely check this one out.

What a fun trip down the nearer and further stretches of memory lane.  When I proposed a She-Ra comic back in 2013, I had hoped that it would provide context and depth to the 80s characters.  Never could I have imagined a show as amazing as She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, and I’m so happy we have it.  For our next update, I’ll be handing the blog back to Matt, but we’ll stay in the world of nostalgia as we visit the 90s for a look at Malibu’s Prototype.  In the meantime, support your local comic shop, be strong and be brave.

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Godzilla King Of The Monsters (2019)

Kaiju Month comes to an end with none other than Godzilla King Of The Monsters.  He is probably the world’s most famous Kaiju Movie Monster as he has spawned so many films and is a household name all over the world! In fact I have even heard people refer to all giant monsters in movies as Godzilla, showing just iconic he is to the world’s culture. And again as we wait till November for Godzilla vs. Kong, I think Rotten Ink Kaiju Month at least can help add some giant monsters into your life and make the wait a little better. For me, one of the biggest movies announced so far for 2020 is Godzilla vs. Kong as watching these titans clash will surly be a great experience for all us monster movie fans. So let’s not waste anymore time as The King Of The Monsters doesn’t like to be left waiting.

Let’s take a look at the tools of destruction that Godzilla had at his disposal in this film to deal with the enemies he faced. Godzilla stands a massive 393 feet and weighs more than 99 tons, making Godzilla one massive Kaiju that can uses his appearance first and foremost to scare the life out of any human that is silly enough to be in his path. Because of his massive size, his feet also become a weapon of death and destruction as if he steps on a person, it’s instant death! Godzilla’s tail is also a method he can use to dispatch a target and is also very effective against other giant monsters, and would annihilate a human. Godzilla also has razor sharp teeth that he can use to chop down on flesh of his enemies, not to even mention his hands have claws. Godzilla is also pretty smart and uses his brain in his attacks, and even more to his advantage, he does not back down from any fight and will stand his ground. His main attack is his radioactive fire breath that will melt human flesh and bone and even burns and hurts other massive Kaiju, and this power gets even stronger and dangerous when its mixes with the spirit of giant Kaiju moth Mothra! While for the most part Godzilla is unstoppable as he shrugs off bullets and missiles, one human made weapon can zap him and bring him to a very weak state and it’s called the “Oxygen Destroyer.” Godzilla also gets his strength from radiation and if he can find a high source of it, he can heal himself. He can also be hurt by other powerful Kaiju monsters, but as I have stated, only one man made weapon could hurt him. Godzilla is truly one of the most powerful monsters we have covered here on Rotten Ink on one of our From Horror Movie To Horror Comic updates. Godzilla is truly one of the true King Of The Monsters.

So now that we have talked about Godzilla and his power from 2019 we should now talk about the film he is from. So as always we will be taking the films write up from our pals at IMDB and the films production and of course my thoughts & connection will be written by me! So lets seek some shelter and talk even more about Godzilla.

Godzilla King Of The Monsters (2019)

“The new story follows the heroic efforts of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch as its members face off against a battery of god sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient superspecies, thought to be mere myths, rise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity’s very existence hanging in the balance.”

Legendary Pictures and Warner Brothers once more teamed up to bring the moviegoers another Godzilla rampage for their Monsterverse, and this time around decided to add more Kaiju that fans know and love like Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah to the plot and used this film to build up the clash between King Kong and Godzilla that will now be out in theaters later this year. For this second film, they brought in Michael Dougherty to direct who had built up a name in the Horror genre with films “Trick ‘r Treat” and “Krampus. He also had a hand in writing this massive film. When it came to casting, they did not pull any punches and brought in heavy hitters like Vera Farmiga, Ken Watanabe, Zhang Ziyi, Bradley Whitford, Millie Bobby Brown and Kyle Chandler. And like all big budget film (they spent over $200 million on it), they had their fair share of production woes from script rewrites all the way to studio interference, but they pulled it off. When the film was done, they brought in Bear McCreary to score the film and when they started to release the trailers, no joke both Juliet and I thought they were the best trailers of 2019 as they built the hype so well and did a fantastic job of blending the movie footage to classic and creepy versions of classic songs like “Somewhere Over The Rainbow”. The film did pretty good for Legendary and Warner Brothers bringing in a worldwide total of $386,600,138.00! The film was released alongside other Horror and Cult films like “IT: Chapter 2”, “Doctor Sleep”, “Happy Death Day 2U”, “Brightburn”, “Black Christmas” and “Midsommar” to name a few.

Godzilla King Of The Monsters was everything I wanted in an American made Godzilla film and was leaps and bounds better that the 2014 attempt as it delivers some amazing Godzilla moments and gives viewers more Kaiju then they could shake a stick at. When the film’s first teaser trailers hit the theaters both Juliet and myself became kids again as we knew this was going to be an amazing movie going experience, and boy we were right as we enjoyed it and it was ranked my # 1 Horror Movie on my Matt Goes To The Movies 2019 update…that you can read right here. When seeing the film, I made sure to buy lots of tickets to bring my friends along with me as this was one of the films I was most hyped for and it really did live up to what I wanted from it. I loved seeing the other classic Toho monsters on the big screen as Rodan has always been one of my favorites and watching him clash with King Ghidorah and Mothra made me feel like a kid again, not to even mention that the use of the original Godzilla theme on the soundtrack put a massive smile on my face. When my friends and I all left the theater all of us really enjoyed it and all agreed it was what we wanted from Legendary Pictures and their Monsterverse. When the film was released on home media I made sure to buy it on DVD and even after re-watching it I found myself very much still enjoying it! So if you have not watched Godzilla: King Of The Monsters, I want to say shame on you and go and see it now and enjoy the monster fights and the great acting.

So let’s get to the review part of this Kaiju update. We will be taking a look at Godzilla: Aftershock a graphic novel that takes place after the 2014 movie and before 2019’s Godzilla King Of The Monsters. I for one can not wait to read this Graphic Novel as I have had it since it was released and want to thank Mavericks Cards And Comics for ordering me it and having it in my file. I want to also remind you that I grade this comic on a 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, let’s find a safe spot to hide, as this is surely going to be a Kaiju battle that will leave building smashed and monsters prowling.

Godzilla: Aftershock # 1  ***
Released 2019     Cover Price $12.95     Legendary      # 1 of 1

A giant Muto is attacking in Guam when Godzilla shows up and the Kaiju fight for a moment, but as the Muto escapes, Godzilla leaves by the ocean. Because of this Monarch is called in to investigate, and Dr. Emma Russell and the team are about to travel to Japan and must bring government worker Miles Atherton along for the ride. Once there, they look at the damage and the patterns of each monster with Emma being very negative toward Godzilla as she and her family lived through the events of San Francisco when they get a call that Monarch is needed in Japan. As she boards a plane, Emma is threatened by terrorist Alan Jonah at gun point and he is not able to do anything besides flee when Monarch Security Agent Tarkan Cavusgolu comes to the rescue! Now that the attempted attack is over, Emma along with Tarkan and Miles head to Japan where they enter a temple and find a massive hole that the Muto made. As they try to investigate it, a cave in happens and Tarken and Emma barely escape with their lives. They next get a report to head to Russia as another massive hole has been found. But they have issues as Alan Jonah has hacked into their entail and oddly enough Miles has been secretly talking to Dr. Mark Russell, the ex-husband of Emma. Once in Russia, they enter the hole and find frozen Muto eggs, and once more Alan appears and tries to take Emma prisoner, but this attempt fails as well as Tarken and Russian agents were waiting and take him prisoner. While in France, Godzilla once more fights with the Muto that is now being called Jinshin-Mushi, and the fight has left Godzilla injured and Monarch watching the situation as it’s now clear that Miles Atherton is watching Emma and reporting in his findings on her. It’s discovered that during the last fight Jinshin-Mushi bite and then inserted eggs into Godzilla that once hatched will end up killing the King Of The Monsters and that this seems to be a scenario that has played out for centuries! And in order to stop the eggs from hatching, Emma leads a team with heavy weapons to fight the Kaiju to save mankind from what would be a terrible event, and her plan goes wrong and leads to many deaths at the hands of Jinshin-Mushi and puts Emma in the hot seat with the government. But when things look grim, Miles Athertonx speaks up for her and she is granted another chance for Monarch to try and help Godzilla and bring down Jinshin-Mushi. And with a keyboard and speakers inside one of Jinshin-Mushi dug holes, she is able to use a few notes to kill the eggs in Godzilla who then kills Jinshin-Mushi by stomping on his head! In then end Emma and her young daughter are together, and she warns her the world is changing.

This was such a fun read and to me proves that Legendary Pictures not only makes entertaining movies but also does some damn good comic books and graphic novels and Godzilla: Aftershock is one heck of a great read. The plot of this GN has Godzilla fighting a giant ground digging Muto while Monarch is hot on the monsters tails as a terrorist is stalking them and stealing very sensitive information about the Kaiju. Godzilla is clearly very pissed off about this new Muto that is causing issues in the world and even loses a fight and has eggs placed into his body like a parasite! And while Godzilla is powerful in this graphic novel, he still shows that he can be weakened and that when hurt, his power goes down. The Muto called Jinshin-Mushi is very dangerous and is on a path of destruction and just wants to use another Kaiju to hide its eggs in to hatch and use the offspring to help take over the world, not only is it a Giant Monster killer but it also kills many humans as well. Dr. Emma Russell and the Monarch workers are working themselves almost to death as the world is in chaos over all the Kaiju running wild and a terrorist group trying to hack them and even kidnap one of their leads. Emma is really drained and worried about the fate of the world as she lost so much when Godzilla and the Muto’s fought in San Francisco as her young son was killed. I will say one lackluster part is the payout for Miles Atherton who is a government worker who seems to be collecting dirt on Emma only to help her out and then disappear. The plot of Aftermath is pretty simple and many pages showcase some great monster fights that are the true highlights of the comic, but there are some slow moments that come with Emma talking to the Government that lasts for many pages about plans and history. The cover is pretty cool and has a movie poster look to it and is very eye catching, plus the interior art done by Drew Edward Johnson is fantastic and captures Godzilla and the mood and feel of the Monstervese very well. Over all Godzilla: Aftershock is a great and fun read and does a pretty good job bridging the gap from Godzilla (2014) to Godzilla: King Of The Monsters (2019), even if the movie as far as I remember never mentions Jinshin-Mushi and his rampage and fights with Godzilla. Oh and before I wrap this up and tell you the fans of Godzilla to make sure to check this out, I was a little sad we did not get at least a King Kong cameo or reference. Check out the art below to see the style of Drew from this Graphic Novel.

With Godzilla vs. Kong being moved and this frightening virus spreading around the world, I really hope that this update helped make your day a little better and your wait for the film at the cinemas more bearable. Godzilla and King Kong really are two of the world’s most popular Giant Monsters/Kaiju movie monsters and each have their own diehard fans. I loved growing up and watching both these titans films on TV and VHS and they were parts of why my childhood was so awesome. And speaking of entertainment that made my childhood awesome besides Monster Movies, another thing that you longtime readers know is that Horror Hosts were a major part of my life. My next update will be about one that, along with such iconic names as Commander USA and Dr. Creep, made me the creative person I am today, and the host is Dayton, Ohio’s very own A. Ghastlee Ghoul of the Ghastlee Movie Show! So until next time, read a Horror Comic or three, watch a Kaiju film or two and as always support your local Horror Host. See you next time for a strange and wild time with one Ghastlee Ghoul!

The Turkey Day Labors Of Hercules!

Happy Thanksgiving friends, family and readers, and thanks for spending a part of your holiday with me here at Rotten Ink once again. As we all are sitting here waiting for the turkey, ham or whatever your main dish choice is to cook and while Football is on the TV, I want to reflect that this year will be the seventh time I have covered the one and only Greek Mythology hero Hercules. With this go round we will be covering a comic that showcases his 12 Labors! The tale of Hercules is one that I have always enjoyed, and I can remember renting many books from the library and even buying some all about Greek Mythology as it has always captured my attention as well helped fuel my creative mind, not to mention the classic Sword And Sandal films were staples of my viewing when I was a youngster. So if you’re ready to go on another Turkey Day Adventure with Hercules and myself, we should start our amazing adventure and see how Herc conquers his 12 labors and delivers another special update.

One of my favorite Hercules films of the 60’s has to be the one called “Hercules Against The Mongols” from 1963 that had Mark Forest play the role of Hercules! The film follows Hercules as he takes on the heirs of the conquerer Genghis Khan and shows why good always beats evil. But while this is a fantastic Sword and Sandal fantasy adventure film that showcases the power and noble was of Hercules, the sad fact of the matter is that this film was not originally a Herc film and was only dubbed one in the USA when distributers thought that the name meant more to movie goers than Maciste, the real hero behind this film as well as many of the Hercules, Samson and Goliath films here in America. The thing I like about this film is that Hercules takes on an army of bloodthirsty warriors who just want to conquer, take over and kill…and they don’t stand a chance against the pride of Olympus. Mark Forest makes a pretty good Hercules, and while he is now Steve Reeves, he captures the cocky hero nature of this demigod hero. This movie can be found on VHS, DVD and even plays on TV Station Comet TV from time to time, so if you love Hercules flicks, make sure to check this one out.

While we are talking about the film Hercules Against The Mongols, we should take a few moments and talk about actor Mark Forest who played the title role. Lou Degni was born on January 6, 1933 in Brooklyn, New York and began his bodybuilding career at the age of 13 as he knew that becoming a strong man was his calling. This lead to him opening his own gym in Long Island so that lifting would always be a part of his life. But during his adult life, he also tried his hand in acting and auditioned to play Tarzan in a film and did not get it but did end up taking a gig in Las Vegas playing one of Mae West’s musclemen and even helped earn his status of strongman by entering and winning weightlifting competitions including Mr. Muscle Beach in California. In 1958, the world of cinema changed when Hercules starring Steve Reeves hit cinemas around the world and the sword and sandal films became big business! And the second American actor approached to travel to Italy and make these films was Mark Forest who made his first film in 1960 with “Goliath And The Dragon” and many more would follow like “Son Of Samson” (1960), “Mole Men Against The Son Of Hercules” (1961), “The Lion Of Thebes” (1964) and “The Terror Of Rome Against The Son Of Hercules” (1964) and many more. During this time of course Lou Degni took on the stage name of Mark Forest, and this was the name he was best known for. Mark would ride the short lived popularity of the Sword and Sandal genre until the end, and afterwards got involved in opera in Italy and later became a vocal coach in California. Mark Forest is one of those classic actors that I hope someday soon Monster Bash Convention brings in so that I can meet him, while long retired from acting and weightlifting, Mark is a true legend of Cinema strongmen.

Remember in our first update about Hercules when we took a look at the DELL Comic and the Steve Reeve movies? Well we also talked about WWF Wrestler Hercules Hernandez during that update, and for this update I want to briefly talk about another Pro Wrestler who went by the ring name Hercules Ayala and was a monster of the squared circle. Hercules Ayala, whose real name is Ruben Cruz, was born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico on July 14, 1950 and upon moving to the mainland of the U.S., he meet NWA wrestler Angelo Savoldi at a gym and was trained by him to become a wrestler himself and had a very brief run in the WWWF. He then would go on to wrestle in such federations as Stampede Wrestling for around 8 years and even won the Tag Titles with Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart! Also during this run, he worked for smaller Canadian federation Lutte Internationale where he became their Heavyweight Champion beating David Shultz and losing it a month later to Abdullah The Butcher. He would return to Puerto Rico and would join WWC and as well would capture their World Title beating Randy “Macho Man” Savage! He would go on to feud with Carlos Colon and would lose a loser leaves town match in 1989 and was written off from WWC. A few years later, he would show up in AWF and become a World Champion again for a short time. He would go on from there to work sport appearances in Puerto Rico even for WWC again. While he is not a huge name here in America, he does have a big name around the world and his many title wins in many federations show that he made his mark in the world of Pro Wrestling.

So I am sure many of you readers are wondering about the Hercules Comic that I was writing and my friend Jeff Potter was doing the art for that was going to be released by Sparkle Comics as part of the Sword And Sandal Comic line…well sadly the comic has been placed on the back burner for now as the first release in the series Samson was not the mega hit we had hoped for causing some shifts in the production line, and Potter and I worked on bringing back classic superhero Black Jack back to the comic world instead! But while on the backburner for now, it does not mean that this Hercules comic is 100% dead as at some point Jeff and I will return to it and unleash it onto the indie comic reading masses as I am proud of the story I wrote and I know Potter’s art will kill it! So for those of you Hercules comic fans know that we will be releasing this comic soon it was just not in the cards for 2019. Below is some very early concept art that Potter did for the series so you can see the style we were aiming for.

So I think it’s time for this update that we take a look at the graphic novel of Hercules and the 12 labors set before him, and this one is a great pick to showcase Hercules in all his heroic glory. I want to thank Amazon for having this in stock and making this update possible. And as always I want to 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, let’s head out and see just how Hercules can complete his 12 labors!

Hercules: The Twelve Labors  **1/2
Released In 2007     Cover Price $8.95     Graphic Universe   #1 of 1

Zeus, the King of the Gods, had an affair with a mortal woman that spawned the demigod Hercules who was hated by his stepmother Hera! When Hercules was a youngster the evil Goddess even sent venomous snakes to his crib to kill him, but they were no match for his power. As an adult Hera, masking herself as Zeus, makes Hercules pledge himself to his cousin King Eurystheus who is jealous of his powerful cousin, and with Hera whispering in his ear, they come up with labors for Hercules to do. The first labor has Hercules going to Thebes and killing the man-eating lion with the thick hide with his bare hands, and when he does so, he skins the lion and makes himself a new cloak! His second labor is to go to the swamps of Lernea to take out the Hydra! Once in the swamp Hercules and his nephew figure our how to defeat the Hydra and do so. The third labor is to bring back a golden deer, that King Eurystheus thinks Hercules will kill and bring down the wrath of the gods for killing it…but Hercules is too smart and brings it back alive! After each finished task, King Eurystheus is getting more and more angry at his cousin and Hercules with ease finishes the next that are to kill a massive Boar, clean out multiple stables in a single day, chase off killer birds who are tormenting farmers, steal a angered white bull from a King, later steal a pair of horses that are being abused by a king that are now cruel and man eaters and his ninth labor has Hercules at was with the Amazon Women as he is tasked with getting the queens golden belt! And after each task King Eurystheus grows more frustrated, and Hercules himself gets more disappointed as he does not like being a thief for his greedy cousin. The tenth labor has Hercules stealing cattle from a Monster that he ends up killing. With his eleventh labor he must get a golden apple from a tree that he needs the help of Titan Atlas to do so and must switch places with him holding up the sky for a short time! With his twelfth and final labor, King Eurystheus send Hercules to Hades to bring back the three headed dog Cerberus and with the blessing of Hades, he tames the beast brings it to King Eurystheus and ends his labors!

This graphic novel is a great kid friendly read that brings the legend of Hercules alive for readers. The plot is simple and has Hercules having to do labors that are impossible for most in order to please his greedy cousin who is a King with the hopes that Herc will die as that is what Goddess Hara, who is the one who set this up, wants. Hercules is very prideful, noble and respectful to the demands of the Gods as he does what he is asked even if he disagrees with it. Plus I feel like the Hercules has the feel of Hercules from the old Sword And Sandal films, making it a very fun adventure to read. Hara is the issue’s main villain as she gets joy out of trying her best to kill and ruin Hercules and his legacy. She pushes so much for his downfall that she herself gets outsmarted by Hades who figures out that she is the one who has set this all up. The second baddie has to be King Eurystheus who is just a cruel and jealous man who hates his cousin cause he has the power and respect that he wishes he had! The side killer animals are great as well as who don’t love the Nemean Lion or Cerberus! The pacing of this graphic novel is also very fast and teaches you the story without dwelling on the small details, making it a cool action comics mixed with a little history in folklore. It’s also very cautious of showing any violence as it’s clear this is meant for all ages and to be used as a teaching comic. The cover reminds me of something you would find at a School Book Fair and is eye catching for youngsters, but not so much for adult readers. The interior art is done by Steve Kurth and is good stuff and has a real Marvel/Star Comics appeal. Over all this is a great read and one that could help get kids into Greek Mythology as it delivers a fun time. Check out the art below to see the style of Kurth!

Thanks for spending another Thanksgiving with Hercules and myself here at Rotten Ink, and as always Sword And Sandal comics will always have a home here on this site….but I am sad to say that next year will be the last time, at least for a while, that I will cover Hercules on a Thanksgiving update as I felt I have talked about almost all I can about this iconic mythology hero. Now don’t get too sad as I will continue to do Thanksgiving Day updates as many of you readers seem to enjoy them on this holiday, so next year I will be taking a look at Hercules Unbound from DC Comics and this will wrap up this tradition of Herc on Turkey Day! I hope you enjoyed this update and that you are having (or had) a great Thanksgiving as holidays with loved ones, something you should never take for granted. Our next update will start our countdown to Christmas Eve and we will be taking a look at the GoBots, those underrated changing robot toys from the 80’s! So until next time enjoy your turkey, watch a football game or two and as always cherish your loved ones. See you next update for a robotic good time!

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: The Fog (2005)

In the 2000’s Hollywood filled the cinema with remakes of iconic Horror Movies of the past.  Many of them were not well received and are still very much snubbed by viewers and fans who wonder why they were even made. One of the films remade was The Fog, a classic 1980 spooky ghost flick that was originally made by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, and the weirdest thing about this one is, rumor has it, they wanted it to be remade! And as you guessed this countdown to Halloween and From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update will be all about the 2005 remake of The Fog as well as the Dark Horse Comic prequel based on it! So if you are ready to brave your way into The Fog, I think we should get started on this From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update!

The Fog Ghosts from this 2005 remake are evil spirits who have many ways of killing people, and before we get too deep into this update we need to take a look at their ways of dealing death. The Fog Ghosts come from the sprits of people who were lepers who were sold a patch of land in order to live their lives out, but instead they were tricked and killed by men who robbed them and then killed them all by burning them alive on their ship. And after many years of being dead at sea, the lepers have returned and want revenge on the ancestors of the people who wronged them. The Fog Ghosts travel by sea on their massive ghost ship as well as by turning into a very thick fog that they also do on land in order to stalk and terrify their prey on land. By turning into the fog, the Ghosts are able to get into just about anything from closed doors to inside cars via the vents making them super hard to escape from. The Fog Ghosts’ ways of killing a human are this: they can appear out of nowhere and use objects like knives and such, they can use their powers to explode glass and then use the shards to slash and stab their target. They can spread sickness and cause healthy people to became very ill with leprosy similar to their human lives, not to mention the fact they can melt not only metal but also human flesh causing a person’s skin to melt and rot off their bones! The Fog Ghosts also do not seem to care who they kill or injure as their main goal is revenge and this makes them super dangerous. Another aspect of them is their rotten appearance which, once they get into human form, also terrifies and shock the humans that are to be their victims. Nothing is really known to hurt The Fog Ghosts as they are spirits and things like guns, knives and other weapons have no effect on them. The Fog Ghosts are very powerful and no matter where you run you can’t hide as they will find you!

So as you can see, these Ghosts of the Fog are super deadly and are truly some great movie bad guys…well at least in the original film, they are awesome, and in the remake they are passible. But now that we know about The Fog Ghosts’ killing ways, it’s time now to move onto the remake film that spawned them. The film’s write up, as always, will be taken from our pals at IMDB with the production and my thoughts being written by me. So if you’re brave enough, let’s chat about The Fog from 2005!

The Fog (2005)

“The inhabitants of Antonio Island, off the coast of Oregon, are about to unveil a statue honoring the four men (Castle, Wayne, Williams and Malone) who founded their town in 1871. Nick Castle is one of the descendants of the men, and owns a fishing charter company, using his vessel, the Seagrass, for tourism. When his girlfriend Elizabeth Williams returns to the island after spending six months in New York, a bizarre series of events begin to occur, including several gruesome deaths and the presence of a mysterious fog. When Elizabeth slips in Nick’s boathouse and falls into the sea, she finds an old journal from 1871, written by Patrick Malone, one of the town’s founders. It tells how a man named Blake bought half the island for use as a leper colony. While bringing his people to Antonio Island in their clipper ship, the Elizabeth Dane, Blake is betrayed by Castle, Wayne, Williams and Malone. The four men locked Blake and his people in the vessel, stole their money and possessions.”

The film was made to help cash in on the rise of Horror Films being remade, as many filmgoers were feeling nostalgic for films they grew up watching and the studios thought remakes were better than sequels so they pumped them out. And when John Carpenter and Debra Hill made the mistake of saying they would like to remake The Fog, enter Revolution Studios (Sony) who green-lit the film before a script was even written as they saw the names Carpenter and Hill attached and they wanted to try and cash in on the slight Horror boom. The film was written by Cooper Layne with Rupert Wainwright stepping in to direct and Graeme Revell doing the score. When it came time to cast the film, they brought in Tom Welling who played Nick Castle who was best known for playing Clark Kent in TV Series Smallville and he was joined by Selma Blair, Meggie Grace, DeRay Davis, Kenneth Welsh and Sara Botsford, to name a few. The film shot in Oregon and Canada and actress Selma Blair did her own stunts showing that she is one of the best actresses of my lifetime. The film sadly would also mark one of the last productions that Debra Hill was apart of as she sadly lost her battle with cancer and passed away on March 7, 2005. The film was released on October 14, 2005 as was met with poor reviews from both fans and critics and brought in $29,550,869.00 at the US Box Office for Sony and $16,650,563.00 via Foreign screenings. The film ranked # 92 for the year and beat out other cult films as Doom, Dark Water, Land Of The Dead, Cursed, The Devils Rejects, Wolf Creek, The Cave, Cry Wolf, Alone In The Dark, High Tension, Stay and Venom showing that while hated it did bring in movie goers who wanted to see The Fog Ghosts once more on the big screen. The film also would go onto win the Worst Film award for the Fangoria Chainsaw Awards showing the Horror fans just did not really care for this film and found it not to be scary at all.

The Fog (2005) was one of those films I decided to skip seeing in the cinema and just waited for it to come to DVD as I was very lukewarm on the trailer and I heard terrible things about it from friends. I can remember the day it hit home media, my then girlfriend Jennifer and I headed to Wal-Mart and I bought a copy on DVD, and we made a dinner and a movie at home night out of it. And I can remember the dinner was good as was spending time with Jennifer…the movie we both thought was just okay and nothing special, and I for one did not find it even close to capturing the spooky nature of the original. The film was one that I had only watched once and only for this update did I dust it off and watch again. Even after watching it for a second time, I had the same opinion about it just being okay. The best thing about the film is actress Selma Blair, who played DJ Stevie Wayne as she does a great job with what she is given and as always she is just beautiful on the screen. The other thing that I can praise is the effects of the Fog Ghosts are pretty cool for an early CGI PG-13 Horror Movie, and while in some shots they seem a little off, they still are pretty cool and can deliver some fright to younger viewers. Over all this remake of a classic is unnecessary and adds nothing to the folklore of the characters and only really seems to tame them down. It’s not a terrible movie and not one of the worst remakes, made but it’s up there.

So now that you know about The Ghosts Of The Fog and why & how they kill as well as have chatted about the remake Horror Movie that houses their nightmarish killing spree. Now let’s take a look at this prequel graphic novel that was released by Dark Horse Comics in order to help promote the film. I want to remind you that I grade these comics on a scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comic stays to the source material, the entertainment value and its art and story. So if you’re ready, let’s find a safe place away from the fog and gather around an old oil lamp and chat about the ghost pirates of The Fog!

The Fog # 1  *1/2
Released in 2005     Cover Price $6.95     Dark Horse   # 1 of 1

A thick fog is rolling in and is worrying the poor and the rich, as it seems like a bad omen for those who live on the island. Richard is the town’s richest man, and his brother Francis is a penniless loser who seems to have a nasty infection on his hand that he claims he got by moving a log in the fireplace. Meanwhile the Chinese workers are being paid very little and are being disrespected by the uneducated white farmers around the town. Richard dislikes his brother, as, after his visit, he finds the same raw rash has now appeared on his shoulder. Francis has kidnapped and murdered a Chinese man as he is a man who is sick in the mind and enjoys the pain death brings. Whatever the skin sickness Francis has starts to spread throughout the island infecting everyone, besides the Chinese who have their own worries as they are upset about their missing loved one that has really been murdered, and worse they are the ones who have brought the fog and the sickness as they have been cursed by a Monk and this curse follows them all over! The Chinese set sail to leave the island as the sickness spreads even more, and Richard, the island’s main authority, is slipping into madness over the stress of the illness and his perfect island society crumbling down all around him! In the end the leader of the Chinese workers is killed when the town is at war with themselves over the pain, and with that the curse stays on the island with the locals as the Chinese workers sail away to San Francisco. Richard and Elizabeth along with the rest of the folks on the island have their skin rotten, and they decide that it’s the island that is making them sick and that they will make a new home on another island.

The Fog is a great story that has some great spooky elements, but sadly this comic prequel is just kind of boring and lackluster and lacks any real chills or thrills. The plot of this Horror Comic is about how a group of Chinese workers who have been cursed land on an American island as cheap labor, but soon the curse of the fog catches up to them and the white people of the island become very ill with a plague that is bringing down their normal ways of life and causing them all to have fits of anger and rage plus it’s slowly and painfully killing them all! The graphic novel’s main stars are Richard and his wife Elizabeth, who are the town’s wealthiest citizens and the ones who have the dream of making this island a perfect home for all who live on it! Richard Blake is a man who had it all and now is facing the fact his skin is rotting off his body and everyone around him is also infected. He is also a visionary who wants to create a perfect place to live for not only himself but for all those infected on the island. Elizabeth Blake is a kind woman who tries to keep peace between her husband and his scumbag brother. She as well is sick and fights through the itchy pain of her sickness. There is one ghost in the comic of the Chinese worker who was killed, as he comes back for his revenge as well as to save his one time wife from drowning…or is it he tries to drown her? But the issue’s main bad guy is Francis Blake, who is a real nut who not only enjoys murder but also hurting himself, plus his act of murder is what unleashes the curse on his fellow islanders! This graphic novel downplays the ghosts of the fog and shows more about how fast a cursed sickness spreads and how it affects all the people in a small island town. The Horror element really is lost here, but I should say you do get some blood, gross skin and even a zombie ghost of a murder victim. The cover of this graphic novel is pretty cool and eye catching; the interior art is done by Todd Herman is pretty great and has that Dark Horse Comics charm. Over all this is nothing groundbreaking when it comes to a Horror Comic based on a movie, it did entertain me and the last few pages of the comic are pretty good. I would say skip this one over all unless you are a mega fan of the 2005 remake of The Fog. Check out the artwork below to see the style of Herman.

So while The Fog remake was neither a great movie nor a great graphic novel, it did make its mark on both mediums. I think that the worst thing about this graphic novel is the fact the pacing is so slow and it doesn’t deliver any real horror. But maybe our next update countdown to Halloween will bring the chills and lots more blood as we take a look at Jeepers Creepers and the Dynamite Comics based on the films. So stay out of the fog, watch out for ghost pirates and be ready for more Horror Comics out next update! 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 a bloody good time with The Creeper!

 

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!

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Jennifer’s Body

Hello. Matt’s turned Rotten Ink over to me today. Who am I? Who are any of us really?  Ha! Just kidding. My name is Natalie Claude. I’m Matt’s friend and the writer behind the Blood Scream comic Goth. I’ve been reading comics for a long time. I don’t get into super hero books at all. Mostly I read horror and independent comics. When Matt asked me to write a blog about Jennifer’s Body as a horror movie to horror comic I was elated! I’ve been singing the praises of this movie for years. I’ve never felt like it got the recognition and attention it deserves. I didn’t know they even made a comic based on Jennifer’s Body until Matt pointed it out to me. I was excited to give it a read.

The main baddie in Jennifer’s Body is Jennifer Check. Jennifer is a self-centered, vain, egotistical teenage girl growing up in the small town of Devil’s Kettle. She only really seems to care about her popularity, boys and her best friend Needy Lesnicki. She leads a typical, small town life until she is used by a band from the city in a virgin sacrifice to Satan. The band wants to make it big in the music business and think getting in league with the devil is the only way to do it. The problem is Jennifer is not a virgin. Therefore, the ritual rather than killing Jennifer, results in a demonic transference. Her new demonic status affords her heightened strength, levitation, increased bite force, rapid regeneration and enhanced beauty. However, these demonic traits fade when she is hungry and needs to feed. (What does she feed on you ask? Human boys, of course!) This seems to be the only time she is vulnerable enough to be killed.

Here’s what IMDB says the movie is about.

Jennifer’s Body (2009)

“Nerdy, reserved bookworm Needy Lesnicki, and arrogant, conceited cheerleader Jennifer Check are best friends, though they share little in common. They share even less in common when Jennifer mysteriously gains an appetite for human blood after a disastrous fire at a local bar. As Needy’s male classmates are steadily killed in gruesome attacks, the young girl must uncover the truth behind her friend’s transformation and find a way to stop the bloodthirsty rampage before it reaches her own boyfriend Chip.” 

I love this movie. Jennifer’s Body is easily in my top 3 favorite movies of all time. Really?! Yes, really. Jennifer’s Body is a lot of complex social issues and metaphors disguised as a teen horror movie. It uses humor and great performances by Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried to mask what is essentially a movie about being the survivor of assault and what that can do to a person. Jenny, I’ve got your number and I see what you’ve been trying to say all along. If you haven’t seen it yet, please watch it. Check all your notions about it at the door and take the dive. I guarantee it is not the movie you presupposed it to be.

Now having said all these glowing things about the movie the same cannot be said about the comic.

Jennifer’s Body #1  *
Released in 2009     Cover Price $24.99     Boom     # 1 of

The Jennifer’s Body comic from Boom fails to hold to or grasped what made the movie so great. It is broken up into 4 stories centered around Jennifer’s male victims. It tries (a bit) to mimic Diablo Cody’s writing style but it falls flat. The art work is decent, but not outstanding. The stories are not engrossing or particularly complex. There’s a half-hearted attempt at saying “boys have problems too!” I feel like it’s the book version of “that guy”. You know the one I’m talking about. The one that has to chime in every time folks try to have an honest conversation about rape culture. “That guy” will always be there to cut in with “Boys get raped too!!!” I’m sure you know him. The comic seems completely tone deaf to the message the movie was sending. Honestly, it turned into a chore to read and had I not been writing this blog I wouldn’t have bothered to finish it.

However, to be entirely fair to the author Rick Spears, the graphic novel was released before the movie. The comic’s copyright is August 2009. The movie wasn’t released until mid-September. It’s possible he didn’t even see the actual movie before he wrote the graphic novel. He may have been just working from a screenplay. Either way, there’s no way this was a passion project. This was a job. I get it. He likely read through the screenplay a couple of times or possibly watched a rough screener copy of the movie and wrote this thing. My guess is he wasn’t digging for anything deeper. It’s easy to Monday morning quarterback something a decade later after watching and analyzing the movie dozens of times. In a perfect world the graphic novel would have been written by a woman that really grasped the true messages of the movie. In a perfect world this would have been a passion project that sought to enhance the movie. We don’t live in a perfect world. We live in this one. Therefore, taking into account all of these things, I give it 1 out of 4 stars.

The Jennifer’s Body movie is funny, witty, well written and has great acting. It’s socially relevant without being preachy and hits on subjects that are hard to face. You can buy a copy here.

The comic, unfortunately, is pretty freaking terrible and doesn’t even begin to live up to the source material. You can be the judge though and pick it up here.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my two cents on this brilliant movie that got a raw deal in the comic world. Maybe the renewed interest in the movie will mean it can have a new chance in the pages of a comic. I highly doubt it though.

Matt, back here: I want to send a big thank you to Natalie for stepping in and doing this “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update as she is not only one of my favorite people in the world but is also the biggest fan of Jennifer’s Body I know! For my next update, we will be leaving comics behind and will once more enter the world of Horror Hosts as we will travel to England and talk about Dr. Terror! So until next time, read a Horror Comic or three, watch a Horror Movie or two and as always support your local Horror Host.

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Godzilla (2014)

Godzilla: King Of The Monsters is out in theaters, and this update is our final  for Kaiju Month. For this “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update, we will be taking a look at Godzilla: Awakening that was released in 2014 based on the Godzilla film by Legendary Pictures that is part of their Monsterverse. Godzilla is one of the world’s biggest icons when it comes to Kaiju and giant monster films, and he has proven that his films can be successful here in America, not only in Japan. I also would like for you readers to know that Godzilla comics have been released by many different companies like Marvel, Dark Horse and IDW and all of them are well worth finding and reading as well. So if you’re ready, let’s see what kind of mayhem and fear the one and only Godzilla has in store for us.

So before we get into Godzilla from 2014, we need to take a look at Godzilla from this film and his powers of destruction. Godzilla is a massive Kaiju that is 350 feet tall and weighs 164,000 tons making him a massive force to be reckoned with and so big that he could crush city blocks with one stomp of his foot. His appearance is reptilian and just the sight of him sends humans into a frenzied panic causing them to also to be involved in accidents that leads to human injuries and deaths. Besides his massive body size he also can use his long tail to knock down buildings and other giant monsters that get in his path. Godzilla’s main weapon of attack is his atomic breath that is so extremely hot that it can melt steel and severely burn and even kill other giant Kaiju so just imagine what it can do to a normal person! He also has a wicked loud roar that sends fear and chills down the spine of all those who hear it. And let’s not forget that Godzilla also has razor sharp teeth that can shred and grip onto his enemies. While on land Godzilla is a little slower but he can also swim and be in the water for long periods of time making him a threat on both land and water. In this film Godzilla does not go out of his way to kill humans or even cause destruction as his main focus is to protect the world and stop other Kaiju who do have very bad attentions. But with this said, just with battling the other Kaiju creates collateral damage. Godzilla cannot be hurt by bullets or normal ways of stopping a threat and for all accounts he does not seem to have that many weaknesses as it looks like maybe attacks from other Kaiju might be the only thing that can hurt him! Godzilla is a true Kaiju who is very powerful and if he wanted, he could massacre most of the world’s populous, so let’s be happy that he is on our side…for now.

So as you can see, Godzilla is the most powerful of the three Kaiju we have looked at this month as Gorgo nor Reptilicus don’t even come close to the power of the King Of The Monsters. But now that we know about Godzilla and his ways of destruction, we need to know take a look at the 2014 film that spawned this update! The film’s plot will be taken from our friends at IMDB and after I will talk about the films production as well as my thoughts on the film. So take shelter as Godzilla is on the loose!

Godzilla (2014)

“In 1999, the Janjira nuclear plant was mysteriously destroyed with most hands lost including supervisor Joe Brody’s colleague and wife, Sandra. Years later, Joe’s son, Ford, a US Navy ordnance disposal officer, must go to Japan to help his estranged father who obsessively searches for the truth of the incident. In doing so, father and son discover the disaster’s secret cause on the wreck’s very grounds. This enables them to witness the reawakening of a terrible threat to all of Humanity, which is made all the worse with a second secret revival elsewhere. Against this cataclysm, the only hope for the world may be Godzilla, but the challenge for the King of the Monsters will be great even as Humanity struggles to understand the destructive ally they have.”

Hollywood originally tried their hand at making a Godzilla film in 1998, and the film was a bomb as its budget was way too high and word of mouth was brutal causing all plans for a franchise to be cancelled. But while Toho continued to make Godzilla films, America was out of the game until 2014 when Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures released a new film…but it was a very long road for them to get this in theaters and even was responsible for putting the death nail in many other Godzilla films that were being developed or even stuck in developmental hell including “Godzilla 3D,” a sequel to Godzilla vs. Hedorah that was being done by Yoshimitsu Banno. Once Legendary worked out a deal with Toho, all these other projects were cancelled, and by 2010 they took complete control and decided to develop their own story and direction and would even make sure to let the world know that this would not be connected to the 1998 film. By 2011 they had Gareth Edwards on board to direct, and David S. Goyer was brought in to rewrite the script with Drew Pearce putting the polishing touches on it in 2012. This whole time Legendary Pictures did press appearances at comic cons and interviews on websites to keep the build for the film as well as to answer concerns that this film would be a letdown as they could not shake the dread of the ’98 film. And crazy enough, in 2013 Frank Darabont was brought in to add more to the script that was original written in 2010 and was penned by David Callaham! During this time as well, the film started to be cast with names like Bryan Cranston, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ken Watanabe to name a few and of course during this time as well the design of Godzilla was being worked on to perfect his new American appearance. And from here production went like all mega budget films go and took place all over the world and much time was spent to make sure this was made just right for fans of Godzilla. On May 16, 2014 it was released in theaters and was met with pretty big fanfare and delivered a better Godzilla film for America. Godzilla was the 13^th grossing movie in 2014 and brought in $529,076,069.00 worldwide on a budget of $160 million. The film beat out such other cult films as Annabelle, The Purge: Anarchy, Dracula Untold, Ouija, Deliver Us From Evil, Oculus and I Frankenstein to name a few, and would make it to # 6 out of 11 for my “Matt Goes To The Movie 2014” update. So as you can see, Godzilla was a massive hit for moviegoers worldwide and had lots of other great Horror Films released alongside it that year.

In 2014 when this movie was released, both Juliet and myself were really hyped to rush to the theater and see it as we are both massive fans of Godzilla, and we got our tickets to see the film on the IMAX Screen at the Cinemark Theater at The Greene and rushed to get the best possible seat. We had ourselves a large popcorn to share, and I drank a Blue Icee as we settled in and waited for Godzilla to smash his way back onto the big screen! As the theater filled up and the lights went down, we both were glued to our seats waiting for the film to start…and after watching it, we both left the theater a little under whelmed and slightly annoyed by the film’s choice to only show Godzilla in glimpses for most of the film until the end. While I did not hate the film and for the most part was entertained, it was Juliet who really had a dislike for it. And as time went by even at work we talked about Godzilla from 2014 as one of my former employees Jeremy really loved this film and even has said its better than “Kong: Skull Island” and to me that’s crazy talk! When this film was released on home media, I did end up buying it on DVD, and after watching it a few more times I have learned to enjoy it a little more. While Godzilla 2014 is not even close to being my favorite film in the long going movie series, it at least is one that brings destruction thrills and chills to the big screen and has sparked more interest in the character here in America. So while some of you readers love this film and others dislike it, one thing that I think we can all agree on is that it’s great to have new Godzilla films coming out that as well sparked some new King Kong films so for that I will say, Thank You Legendary Pictures! Oh and I call this version of Godzilla old fat neck as his neck is huge, and this nickname seems to annoy Jeremy who really does love this film and the Godzilla attached to it.

Godzilla from the 2014 film is a true Kaiju that seems to not have his sights on stomping out human lives and almost seems a little more interested in protecting us, but even with that said he still is a master of destruction and could be one of the most dangerous monsters we have covered on a From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update! I want to thank Mavericks Cards And Comics for having this graphic novel in stock and making this update possible. I want to also remind you all that I will 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 it’ art and story. So if you’re ready, let’s spend a little destructive time with Godzilla…from the 2014 film that is not the original Toho one.

Godzilla: Awakening # 1 ***
Released in 2014     Cover Price $12.99    Legendary Comics   # 1 of 1

An older man named Serizawa invites his son over and starts to tell him that all he knew of his work was all false and that he has worked for the government for many decades and that the world is filled with giant monsters! He tells his son that the first time he ever saw the Kaiju known as Godzilla was when America dropped the big bombs on Japan and that he later saw him again when he was a member of a ship’s crew that was called to help an American ship a year later on a small island. Serizawa meets Shaw, an American who has been hired to study Godzilla as well as the other massive monsters of the world and is trying to now save his crew who are trapped on the ship that has been docked on land in the trees! Once they save the crew Serizawa finds himself joining Shaw as a team member that is made up of both Japanese and American Soldiers that are working for Monarch in order to find and stop giant monsters that are running wild throughout the world with one being Godzilla and the other being a bat-winged Muto. While Godzilla is talked about as a savior, the Muto is talked about with fear by those who have seen them. The team travel even to the bottom of the ocean to find out more about Godzilla and then also find out that the Muto is really multiple living organisms that come together and grow as they feed on radiation and the bombing of Japan is what awoke the creatures and that we have pretty much doomed ourselves and that Godzilla is really our only hope of bringing it down as he is the creatures life long enemy! When they finally meet, Godzilla destroys half of the Muto creature and the government tracks down the other half later and nukes it killing off the Muto once and for all. But back in present day Serizawa passes away and now his son joins Shaw and sets his sights on bringing down and understanding Godzilla!

Legendary Pictures did a fantastic job taking the film and making a good solid action horror comic read with Awakening that delivers a Godzilla rampage to fans of the film. The plot of this comic is not so much about Godzilla nor the Bat-Winged Muto but mostly follows Serizawa, a Japanese survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima who has become a bitter person toward America and learns to work alongside them when he becomes a part of a team that is exploring the Kaiju that have been awakened from the bombing as well. Serizawa, as the story goes along, grows as a person as well and finds that he really cares about human life and does whatever he can to save lives as well as learn what he can about each of the giant monsters they are hunting and studying. Serizawa is a really interesting style of hero as he does not do amazing fight moves nor does he have any superpowers…all he has is his brain and a caring soul. Shaw is a military man all the way, and he befriends Serizawa when he saved his life as well as many of his crew members from a Muto attack. Shaw also seems to be a good person, but he does seem to doubt his friend about the legend of Godzilla throughout the graphic novel. Serizawa’s son is learns a lot from his father when he comes clean about what he really did for a living, and this also sparks the son into wanting to follow in his footsteps and he as well joins Monarch in order to study and stop all the Kaiju. The Bat-Winged Muto is sadistic as the multiple organism creatures goal is to eat radiation, kill humans and grow to a massive size and become truly unstoppable! Godzilla is the story’s main hero as he protects the world and fights off the Muto and trying his best to keep him from growing in size. But while he is the main attraction, Godzilla in this graphic novel much like in the movie takes a backseat to the human leads that take up 85% of the over all book, and while the story is good, I am not going to lie, way more Godzilla would have been nice! The graphic novel is bloodless and has very little death in it but does bring one some destruction and deep meanings about us being our own worst enemies with all our mass weapons of war. It was written by Max and Greg Borebstein and both are clearly fans of Godzilla as they do their very best to capture the mood and feel of the 2014 film its spawned from. The art is really good and is done by a team that includes Eric Battle, Yvel Guichet and Alan Quan and all of its pretty solid stuff and each draw Godzilla really well! Over all this is a solid and fun graphic novel tie-in to the 2014 Godzilla and was an amazing tool to help promote the film. Check out the art below to see what Godzilla looks like in this book. Oh and if you loved the movie, make sure to give this a read!

So as you can see, the Godzilla from the 2014 film makes a great comic book character and with “Godzilla King Of The Monsters” hitting theaters in just a few days, another graphic novel is in the works and you can look forward to be covering it as well here at Rotten Ink! I also hope you enjoyed Kaiju Month, and we will have another one next year for the release of King Kong vs. Godzilla so you will have that to look forward to in 2020. But for my next update we are leaving the Kaiju behind and will be taking a look at super powered cows that were the mascot of for the chicken restaurant Chick-Fil-A! So until next time, read a Horror Comic or three, watch a Kaiju film or two and as always support your local Horror Host. See you next time for an epic cow hero good time!