From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: The Abomination (1986)

Posted on June 23, 2026 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to Rotten Ink and to yet another “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update. This one will be a truly blood splattered one as we will be talking about the 1986 Super 8 shoot beastly creature feature The Abomination and the 12-page comic adaptation that came inside the Blu-Ray release of the film done by Visual Vengeance! This is one that I have wanted to cover since it was released in 2023 but waited as it is a perfect fit for our themed year! I am also hoping that this update will not only make fans of the film happy but will also introduce more horror fans to it, as we all know that many of you readers love the horror flicks of the 1980’s and this is one that is often over looked. So if you are ready, let’s dive into the blood splattered world of The Abomination and see what gore awaits us.

Let’s start off by taking a look at The Abomination itself! The Abomination is a parasitic demon that grows in a person’s body as a tumor and once vomited out it grows into a massive creature that wants to destroy all of mankind. As the tumor it smells horrible, pumps like a heart and can slide to move to enter a person’s body once more. Once grown The Abomination is red in color with a big mouth filled with razor sharp pointed teeth…and its appearance is truly horrific and can frighten a person into hysterics or even death. The Abomination will control its host to commit murder as it feeds on human meat, flesh and blood and will drive the person crazy as well as into fits of rage making them act out towards their family and friends. The Abomination also reproduces inside its human host causing it to have offspring that will grow to be just as vile as it, and that will also want to consume human flesh and with this offspring it becomes even more deadly for anyone that is in its path. The Abomination also has its human host that is willing to kill for it as well as feed it whenever it gets hungry, making a poor soul its mind controlled murderous minion. It also has tentacle arms that it can use to pull victims into its mouth making them food to try and stop its hunger. And that is the thing about The Abomination and its offspring, it seems to have no weakness as when it starts growing, reproducing and feeding it looks as if it cannot be stopped! It’s a safe thing to say that The Abomination could be one of the most dangerous and deadliest demonic parasite creatures we have ever covered here on Rotten Ink. That is if you think this creature is real, and not just in the mind of Cody who is being investigated for murder.

Now that we have taken a look at The Abomination and its way of killing and eating humans, I think that we should now take a look at the film he is from and that of course is also called The Abomination and was released in 1986 to the home video market. Like always, I will be getting the film’s plot from our friends at IMDB and then I will write about the film’s production as well as my thoughts on the film. So if you are ready, let’s see what terror awaits us.

The Abomination (1986)

“An old woman coughs up what she believes to be a tumor. While asleep, the thing crawls inside of her son and reproduces inside him, then causes him to go on a killing spree to feed it.”

In the 1980’s the video rental business was booming and many directors were making horror films to get onto the shelves and into the hands of viewers as horror was a big part of the boom and fans were always looking for the next big scare to watch over the weekend with friends and family. Enter Bret McCormick, a young director and producer. He had a vision and a dream, and that was the film Abomination that was released on video in 1986, McCormick was a longtime horror fan who even made his own films as a child using a Super 8 camera. The film was shot in Texas and his father was the one who put up most of the film’s budget, as McCormick was told that distributors wanted gory horror films and he being a fan of that genre he wanted to make it and get the VHS out into the rental stores. Also during this time McCormick had a filmmaking partner in Matt Devlen who was developing a movie called “Ozone: The Attack Of The Redneck Mutants” that also has budget money provided by McCormick’s father. When casting the film actors like Scott Davis, Blue Thompson, Jude Johnson, Rex Morton, Suzy Meyer and Brad McCormick were brought in to be apart of the main cast. The film was shot in a short amount of time and spent lots of time in the editing processes before being finished and then struggling to find a distributor, and later would finally find a small distribution company to release it and it would gain a cult following thanks to being found in rental stores. Over the years, this splatter flick would become a very underground cult film with copies of the VHS selling for hundreds of dollars and being talked about in many cult magazines. The film in 1986 was released with such other horror films as Chopping Mall, Zombie Nightmare, RawHead Rex, Night Of The Creeps, Spookies, Deadtime Stories, Slaughter High, Class Of Nuke’em High, Street Trash, Neon Maniacs, Sorority House Massacre, King Kong Lives, Blood Hook, Demons 2, Psycho III, Friday The 13^th Part VI: Jason Lives, Troll, Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2, Little Shop Of Horrors, Gothic and From Beyond, to name a few. And for those wondering, Bret McCormick would go on to make other horror films as Highway To Hell, Children Of Dracula, Bio-Tech Warrior and Repligator.

The Abomination is one of those films that I can remember seeing in the pages of the horror magazines and fanzines that my brother would buy and it always being talked about for its gross nature and special effects…but of course with the VHS being rare, it would be a very long time before I got to finally watch it. It would be via the gray market that I would finally get to see this film as my friend and film mentor Andy Copp hand it via his Nightcrew Video label, and it was a very fun watch and helped fuel my fire in making indie films with my friends via Independent B Movie. The film, for its small budget level, had great special gore effects and one great looking creature, and really the gore in this film is that of a Herschell Gordon Lewis film. Plus for this level, the acting is also not that bad and I have to say that actress Blue Thompson should have been in way more horror films through the 80s and early 90s as she truly had a great look to her suited for the genre. And while I enjoyed this film back then and even now, I will say that it is not for everyone as it has a weird pacing, some scenes go on for way to long and at times it kind of makes no sense…so I think that horror fans that don’t like the more backyard and DIY style productions might not enjoy it as much. This is a film that I am shocked never got a sequel after it gained its cult following as it is one that could have easily became a franchise. In fact when watching the film in 2023 working on this update, it came to me that the film would really go well showing alongside films like Basket Case, Street Trash, Slime City, Deadly Spawn, C.H.U.D. and Video Violence at a horror movie marathon. If you have not seen this film, make sure to get yourself a copy of the Visual Vengeance Blu-Ray as they packed it with extras and it’s the best this film has looked in decades. And spoiler, I was not that down with the idea that The Abomination was only in the head of Cody who is the true killer of all the victims as he is just insane.

Well I think now that we have talked about the film The Abomination as well as the parasite meat-eating creature from it, we should now review the mini promo comic that came with this great Blu-Ray release of the film. And I have to say that while I really do dig the idea of mini promo comics inside DVDs and Blu-Ray cases based on the film it is an extra for, but I do wish that this would have been a full sized comic as it would have been great to see Visual Vengeance/Wild Eye Releasing just open up a comic publishing branch as so many of the films they release would make for great adaptation comics. I would like to thank Diabolik DVD for having this Blu-Ray with Promo Comic in stock and making this update possible. And while I did slightly help on the making of this comic as I helped with some of the dialogue, I would like to 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, its entertainment value and its art and story. So if you are ready, let’s head out to Texas and see what The Abomination has on the menu to eat.

The Abomination # 1 ***
Released in 2023 Cover Price $0.00 Visual Vengeance # 1 of 1

Cody’s mother is sick with a tumor and she is obsessed with an evangelist named Brother Fogg who is on TV preaching and trying to get his followers to send him money. And as Cody goes on a date with his girlfriend Kelly, his mother ends up puking up the tumor that she gives credit to Brother Fogg and his healing words. That night as Cody gets home and falls asleep he thinks he has a nightmare as the tumor crawls into his mouth and makes him wake up scared, shaken and before breakfast, he coughs it out and places the tumor under his bed and heads to eat breakfast. Later that day Cody feels off and drives around only to end up at his friends house where he kills her with a camping knife and then takes her corpse home and as well hides it under his bed, and learns that the tumor is growing into a Abomination (a creature with a big mouth filled with sharp teeth) and ate the flesh and meat of his dead friend. His mother goes to Brother Fogg for help as her son is acting so weird and she thinks he might need an exorcism. He agrees to it, and they make an appointment. But Cody is angered by this and feeds his mother to The Abomination and also gets Brother Fogg at his office and then kills a few more people to feed this carnivorous creature. But Cody meets his maker when his girlfriend Kelly shows up and uses a pitchfork to end his life, but she soon is grabbed by The Abomination and becomes more meat for the beast.

This is a very cool adaptation promo comic for a very underrated 80s fright flick, and while I wish it would have gotten a full size comic and more than 12 pages to tell its story in…it does do a good job of getting the story in the short page count. The plot is about Cody, a man who ends up having a demonic, human eating tumor creature growing and taking over his mind causing him to kill people in order to feed it. Cody starts off as a normal guy who worries about his mom, dislikes the fake religious figure on TV and enjoys spending his time with his girlfriend Kelly, but once The Abomination enters his body, he becomes a killer driven by the beast to kill as it needs to feed on human meat and flesh. Poor Cody also stops caring about his family and friends and even feeds his own mother to The Abomination! Cody’s Mother and his girlfriend Kelly care about him and want to get him help when is attitude changes, but they both end up finding hell in the belly of the beast. Brother Fogg is a TV Preacher who is truly a fraud and only does his healing and preaching for money, and he as well gets what’s coming to him when he becomes eaten by this tumorous creature when he is sitting on the toilet. The Abomination is a disgusting demon tumor creature that loves to control, infest, kill and eat humans and has the large teeth and massive mouth to do so. With this comic only being 12 pages some of the films plot, kills and oddness had to be cut, but the creators behind it do a good job of trying to make it all fit and feel like the film on the pages. The comic is packed with lots of blood as well as gory kills and the horror truly is The Abomination as that thing is creepy and brings the scares to the readers. I really do wish that Visual Vengeance/Wild Eye Releasing would think beyond just making 12 page promo comics for Blu-Ray releases, as it would be great to have many full size adaptations of not only this film but many others of their releases…but sadly I don’t think they will do this and it’s a shame. The cover for this mini comic is really cool and eye catching and of course the interior artwork done by my friend Marc Gras is fantastic stuff. I dig the way he draws The Abomination, and he does do a great job of making the characters look like the actors who played them! To sum it up, this is a very cool comic that is a must have for fans of this 1986 film as who would ever think this comic would have been made! Check out the artwork below to see the style used by Marc in this promo comic.

As you can see, The Abomination really is a very underrated 80’s direct to video film as it is packed with so much bizarre moments, a creepy creature, lots of gore and should have way more fanfare than it gets, and I am glad that it got this promo comic as it allowed me to cover it here on Rotten Ink on a “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update. And do not worry, I will cover the other promo comics that they released as those films as well deserve to be talked about and given The Rotten Ink treatment. Our next update will keep us in the world of horror comics based on horror films, and we will also be celebrating July 4^th as we take a heroic splattastic journey with The Toxic Avenger and his Marvel Comic adventures. So until next time, read a horror comic of three, watch a horror film or two and as always support your local horror host. See you next update as I think The Toxic Avenger is the perfect American hero to cover for this From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update marathon.

Horror Host Icon: Alistair Cookie

Posted on August 14, 2022 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to Rotten Ink! This update is going to be a fun one as it’s a “Horror Host Icon” update all about Alistair Cookie, the host of Monsterpiece Theater…now I need you all to relax and just have fun with this one as I am sure some of you are saying out loud “Alistair Cookie is not a Horror Host he is an educational kids show character.” You are not wrong in your thoughts, but hear me out: some of the segments he hosted had kid friendly horror themes, he himself is a monster and again just sit back and have fun with this one. While he might not be a full fledged Horror Host, he is a Host of a parody themed movie show and much like Count Floyd was a gateway for young kids to discover the wonderful world of Horror Hosts. So grab some cookies and milk, and let’s talk tales with Alistair Cookie of Monsterpiece Theater who is coming to you from Sesame Street.

Alistair Cookie is a blue monster that wears a smoking jacket, with early episodes even having a pipe that he would eat at the end of the show (this was done away with not to make smoking look cool to kids) and sits in a massive wingback chair in a study with a fireplace surrounded by books and photos of his friends from the past. He is a cool and calm host and loves cookies and milk as he showcases a short segment that is based on a book, fable or film and is done to teach the viewers a lesson of education as well are done in a silly nature to deliver a chuckle. And Alistair loves himself some cookies and will devour them and at time even gleefully talk about the cookies. Alistair not only during an episode would interact with the viewers at home but also those Muppets that appear in his sketches, and even at times Alistair himself will be in one of the spoof segments! Alistair Cookie started being the host for Monsterpiece Theater in 1978 that was a part of the classic educational series “Sesame Street” and was a take off of the PBS show Masterpiece Theatre and its host Alistair Cooke. Monsterpiece Theater lasted for around 36 episodes (within the main show) and came to an end in 1999 as part of the Sesame Street segment lineup. During its run, Monsterpiece Theater would spoof books, shows and movies like NYPD Blue, Chariots Of Fire, Dances With Wolves, Dr. No, Gone With The Wind, Hamlet, West Side Story and The 39 Steps to name a few. While Alistair Cookie and Monsterpiece Theater might not be on the air anymore with new episodes, kids of the time like myself loved the show and enjoyed every time it was apart of Sesame Street. And I should say that Monsterpiece Theater aired on PBS during its run, and for those of you who grew up in the late 70’s through the 90’s you know just how cool Alistair Cookie was and just how zany and crazy he was to eat cookies and share a tale with us all. I want to also say that the shows opening theme is great and has a regal sound with later seasons even having Alistair eating and talking about a cookie he is eating.

Cookie Monster is the Muppet behind Alistair Cookie and he is one of the biggest stars in the history of Sesame Street on TV. Cookie Monster is a Muppet who was created by Jim Henson and played by Frank Oz from 1969 to 2004 and David Rudman helped from 2001-2004 before taking over the role that he is still doing to this day. But Cookie Monster first appeared in TV Commercials for General Foods as he would steal and eat snack food along with fellow monsters and he was called Wheel-Stealer, but oddly enough his commercials never would be aired and the future Cookie Monster would not get his big break until 1967 when he would be used in a IBM training film and a few years later he would be called Arnold The Munching Monster and would be used in commercials for Munchos a potato chip from Frito-Lay. But then Cookie Monster took a role on Sesame Street starting in 1969 and his career was set and would lead to him being a featured cast member and one of the most loved Muppets of all time. He would go on to star in movies as well as shows like Saturday Night Live, Martha Stewart, All Things Considered and The Colbert Report and so many more. Cookie Monster who is called that cause he loves to eat cookies also later would tell kids that cookies are good but they should also eat veggies, but keep in mind he has not lost his love for cookies and is still appearing on the show to this day! And growing up indeed Cookie Monster was one of my favorite characters from Sesame Street and I had books, a patch and toys that featured him and one year my Birthday Cake had Cookie Monster on it. When you think of Icons of the Muppet world Cookie Monster has to be at the top of your list. And come on you know reading this Horror Host Icon update the song “C Is For Cookie” that he sang is going through your head. And on a side note Alistair Cookie was suggested to the Horror Host Hall Of Fame Board to be on a ballot and sadly did not get the vote to make it on in around 2021.

Like all good “Horror Hosts” Alistair Cookie has had a really cool doll made of him that was sold by PBS and come complete with his chair as well as smoking jacket. And this is one doll that I wish I would have known about as I would have 100% bought it. Now you can only find it via third party sellers on sites like Ebay and they are going for high prices. But fans of Alistair Cookie I wanted to make you aware that this doll was made and is out there for you to collect.

Monsterpiece Theater was a staple on Sesame Street for a few decades and Alistair Cookie was a Host that kids always enjoyed seeing on their TV Sets. And we are now at the part of this review were we will take a look at show and what I have here is a Best Of DVD set that I was able to get thanks to my brother and because there is so many of them I will be picking my favorite 8 episodes. And keep in mind the “movies” he showed was all part of the host segment and at times Alistair himself would be the star of the short he was hosting! So with that grab a cookie or two and pour yourself a very tall glass of milk as we are going to talk Monsterpieces with the one and only Alistair Cookie.

Best Of Monsterpiece Theater Vol. 1
Starring – Mel Gibson & Grover Not Rated 1978-1999

Host: “Upstairs, Downstairs” Alistair is sitting in his wing backed chair with a pipe and welcomes viewers and the short has Grover going up and down stairs and getting winded doing so. Once back to Alistair he thanks us for watching and then eats the smoking pipe! “Gone With The Wind” Alistair starts the episode by welcoming us to the show and saying he is very happy to bring us his favorite film today…but then says that he has never seen it but heard it was good. The short has a mansion being hit by a windstorm and inside Kermit and a female Muppet watch as things are being blown around and are both confused to what to do to stop it, and while doing match they both end up being blown away by the wind. And when we join Alistair his library is also now being hit with wind and he ushers us out by thanking us for watching. “1 Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest” Alistair with book in hand is sitting in his library and welcomes us to the show and builds up the show as being a showcase of the number 1’s historic flight over the cuckoo’s nest. The segment goes wrong at first as number 3 flies over a chicken coop, and four falls from the sky into a pig pin than finally number 1 fly over the nest. In the end Alistair is relieved that they finally showed the right segment and bids us farewell and relaxes back into his chair. “Twin Beaks” has Alistair himself going toe the strange town of Twin Beaks that is populated by birds and he is trying to figure out why the town is called that and even talks to the bird with a log to try and get the answer, and does notice that all the birds do have two beaks. Once back in the library Alistair takes a pie and eats it down and ushers us once more out of the show. “Lethal Weapon 3” once more Alistair welcomes us to the show and says tonight’s feature is packed with danger and the mega movie hit Lethal Weapon 3. We then join Mel Gibson and Danny Glover standing by a Danger sign and they are looking around when all of a sudden a giant # 3 falls from the sky. And in the end as Alistair ends the show a giant # 4 falls from the sky and lands on his chair. “Hamlet” the show starts with Alistair in his chair and the moon is out and he says tonight’s episode is very classy and is very proud to bring the viewers Hamlet! The segment then has a castle and Mel Gibson as Hamlet who is reading a book when Elmo enters the scene and watches as Hamlet goes through emotions reading the book and when asked how he can get a book Hamlet tells Elmo to go to the library. In the end Alistair eats a Danish pastry as well as the plate it was on. “Dances With Wolves” Alistair once more is happy to bring the viewers a blockbuster film that is filled with action and buffalos and ushers us into the short that is set at a ball that has farm animals dancing and a young female big has no one to dance with, so enter the wolf. And just because they are different they still have a great time dancing together. Alistair ends the episode shoving cookies into his mouth. “Dr. No” Alistair is once more in his chair and tells the viewers that the night’s episode stars the master spy James Bond! The segment takes place in a eye doctors office and James Bond needs Dr. No’s help in order to read. In the end Alistair eating cookies tells the viewers that next episode will be another James Bond adventure.

That was such a fun Horror Host Icon update that I know has many of you readers split on if he is a “Horror Host” or not, and believe me I have heard that same debate over even the likes of Count Floyd, The Crypt Keeper, Miko Macabre and the cast of Dinner & A Movie as many do not look at them as full fledge Horror Hosts. And I myself say that all mentioned are indeed Horror Hosts and while they are not your traditional style hosts they all have their own styles, fans and creative ways to be a Host. And in the case of Alistair Cookie I think he is a gateway Host for kids that will help them to discover other movie hosts, as lets be honest many of the parody segments are based on cult films and TV shows from Twin Peaks all the way to Hitchcock’s 39 Steps and even a Lethal Weapon 3 in between. Also to be honest I loved all the episodes on this disc and just picked some of the more fun and silly ones. So to wrap it up I want to thank Alistair Cookie for all his years on Monsterpiece Theater that has lead to so many great memories for me as well as thousands of others who grew up with his antics on select episodes of Sesame Street. For the next update we will be leaving Sesame Street as well as the world of Horror Hosting and will be heading to Jellystone Park to visit one of my all time favorite cartoon characters Yogi Bear! So until next time eat a cookie or three, enjoy a glass of milk or two and as always support your local Horror Host! See you next time as we go on the hunt for some picnic baskets.