Welcome back to Rotten Ink. Halloween 2024 is creeping up on us very quickly, and I am sure many of you readers are like me as I love the cooler weather and the leaves turning and falling to the ground as the wind picks up and brings that chill down your spine…and also around this time it feels like ghosts, witches, goblins, werewolves and vampires are watching you from a distance. That is why this time of the year is perfect for us horror comic readers as the spooky atmosphere and chill in the air makes for perfect reading weather…I love reading horror comics in a local cemetery around this time the most, but to be honest I do this year round as it is my go to quiet place to enjoy the terrors on the pages. Today’s update is a “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update that is based around the sleazy low budget slasher film called Mardi Gras Massacre that splatted its way into grindhouse theaters in 1983 and would be a prefect one to read while visiting your town’s creepiest cemetery. So if you are ready with the cold chill in the air, it’s time to enjoy this horror comic based on a cult film that is set in New Orleans and is surrounded by the mystic of an Aztec Cult.
Let’s first start by taking a look at John, the killer of this film, and his methods and reasons for killing his victims as he truly is an odd and bloodthirsty slasher. John is a middle aged man who has black hair and dresses very nicely in public. While very odd looking in appearance, he does not standout from the crowd, but his looks do give some ladies the heebie jeebies. He looks like he comes from money as he wears a big gold ring and carries big wads of cash that he is able to draw in his victims, mostly prostitutes, with. He is looking for “evil” women that he can lure in and then sacrifice to an Aztec god to please them. While in killing mode John wears a golden mask, a robe and uses a dagger to cut, stab and shred their skin with his main goal being to remove their heart. His golden mask and dagger truly do strike fear in his victims’ then still-beating hearts as they find out his true intensions are not to make love but to slaughter them. John does these killings as he thinks that doing so will give him powers, and he is a true believer in this Aztec cult. But while he mostly kills women, he will kill men if they cross him path or try to do him wrong. His dagger is his main tool of dealing death and he is very skilled in his ritual ways of killing that includes making his female victims feel good with oil messages before he kills them. But while John is dangerous and coldblooded, he is a normal man and can be killed like any other human so that means shot, stabbed, crushed, burnt and blown up, among many other ways one could die. While John is only a mortal man, this slasher is super dangerous and is a master butcher with his dagger. And I should note that John was not the killer’s real name, just that he was a “John” that picked up sex workers.
Now that we have taken a look at John, the masked Aztec ritual killer of New Orleans, I think it’s time we take a look at the film he is from, Mardi Gras Massacre! Like always, we will be taking the film’s plot for our friends at IMDB and then I will write a little about the film’s production as well as my thoughts about the film. So if you are ready, let’s put on our party masks, grab some beads and head to this Mardi Gras Massacre.
Mardi Gras Massacre (1978)
“Police try to capture someone who is committing ritual murders of women during Mardi Gras in New Orleans.”
During the late 1970’s the grindhouse theaters and late night drive-in movies were gaining steam and more and more viewers were flocking to see these cheaply shot films and the more sleazy and exploitive, the better as horror, adult, martial arts and sci-fi films flooded these theaters and many would become cult classics over the years and most made lots of money for the companies who released these films. Jack Weis was one of those producers who cashed in at this time as he was a jack of all trades. He could also direct and write and was already the maker of such genre films as “Death Brings Roses (1975)” and “Crypt Of Dark Secrets (1976)”and in 1978 he wanted more profits so he came up with the script for Mardi Gras Massacre and would quickly get the film into production and would hire such actors as Curt Dawson, William Metzo, Gwen Arment and Laura Misch Owens. The music was done by Dennis Coffet and Mike Theodore, and the movie was filmed fast and yet sat around until 1983 before being released to theaters on February 11. At first it had an X rating due to the nudity and gore and would later be listed as a Video Nasty in England. When released in America, it was part of a triple bill alongside the films Sorceress and Humanoids From The Deep and would over the years build up a cult classic status after hitting home media on VHS, DVD and later Blu-Ray. When released in 1983, it came out alongside such other horror movies as Jaws 3, Psycho II, Sleepaway Camp, The Keep, A Blade In The Dark and Christine, to name a few. While it’s not a super popular and talked about film, for those who have seen this sleazy masterpiece of horror cinema they know the charm it has.
The first time I saw Mardi Gras Massacre was on a VHS that I bought from a video rental store called Accent Video that used to be in Ohio when I was a teenager. They had such a massive horror section as they carried not only the mainstream but also the cult and very weird! They would also over time end up selling some of the films when they needed to make room or sadly the film would stop renting. And on one of the trips to the store to see what horror films they would have in the used section is when I would get my copy of Mardi Gras Massacre, and when I watched it with some friends, I can remember we all had a good time watching the film and laughing at some of the more over the top moments. This film is not for everyone as at times it’s slow moving and is packed to the brim with lots of moments that feature female nudity and low budget style gore effects and main characters that don’t even get names! But to me, these are some of the reasons this film holds such a charm as it really does feel like a grindhouse film. It’s one of those films that has heroes that are two cops…but they are kind of scumbags themselves as one steals money and degrades a prostitute behind her back after he acts like he cares about her. But I will say that some of the prostitutes are the most likable characters in the film, and I have to also say for those of you who have seen this movie, what the hell was up with the pimp character Catfish? That really was a very strange dude who twitches around and talks in weird rhymes. The film’s gore effects for the time were really good and there is lots of it as several ladies are sacrificed and cut up by John The Killer. The most lovely of the “evil” ladies in this film is Laura Misch Owens who played Shirley, the first victim of the film who was also in the 1976 film Crypt Of Dark Secrets that was also directed by Jack Weis. When you hear from those who were involved in this film, it seems that production really was affected several times due to money issues and that is even why it sat unreleased for many years. This makes you truly wonder how many horror films from the 70’s and early 80’s had this same fate and have never been released, as the funds never came through. I am a fan of this weird little film that kind of makes no sense, has a strange soundtrack that features a killer that never even really gets a name.
Mardi Gras Massacre is a very weird cult horror film that is a sleazy gem that is very often overlooked, and that is why it is so awesome that it got the comic book treatment in 2022 via Severin Films and I am very much looking forward to reading this comic. I first would like to thank Severin Films for publishing and releasing this comic and making this update possible. I also want to give a big thank you to all the creators that made this comic possible as the world of horror comics needs more comics based on these type of cult horror films. 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, their entertainment value and their art and story. So if you are ready, let’s see what The Killer was up to on that Mardi Gras that many years back.
Mardi Gras Massacre # 1 ***
Released in 2022 Cover Price $14.99 Severin Films # 1 of 1
The body of prostitute Shirley Anderson has been found dumped on the train tracks, and Detective Mayer and Detective Frank Abraham head to a local bar where she used to pick up her clients and meet Sam the bartender who sends them to talk to Sherry, another lady of the night who tells them that the man Shirley left with that night had a big gold ring on. The Killer strikes again; this time he kills a stripper and it is clear he is killing what he thinks are evil woman, sacrificing them to an Aztec God. When this body is found, the police chief is really mad and wants the killer found, and this causes Abraham and Mayer to call in a cult expert who informs them about the Aztec Cults. Also Detective Abraham at this time is dating Sherry, and they are very much an odd couple. The Killer strikes again, and meanwhile Sherry and Abraham have a fight and break up over the dirty cop stealing the money of the deceased ladies of the night. She goes out and parties getting drunk and it’s Mayer who makes sure she gets home safe. During Mardi Gras, the killer hires three ladies to come over ,and he has the plans to sacrifice them all to his Aztec God with one of the ladies being Sherry, but they are all saved by Abraham (who patches things up with Sherry) and Mayer who go after the Killer, who ends up driving a car off the docks and into the water. When they tow the car out of the water, the Killer’s body is missing but his mask is left behind.
This is a really cool adaptation of a cult film that has a very simple plot as it’s about a Killer on the loose in New Orleans that is killing ladies of the night as he feels that they are evil and his God from Aztec lore needs sacrifices. On his trail are two cops who need to capture him before Mardi Gras. This basic story has charm as the sleazy nature of the film carries over to the comic as our Killer lures in young beautiful ladies to strip down for him and become his victims. But while the comic does have its charms, I should also note that it has a few flaws with the biggest being much of the film does not make it into the comic with the opening kill of Shirley missing. We just open with her body being found. The biggest parts missing are the dates and relationship between Detective Abraham and Shelly; it is talked about but not fully explained. And now that I am thinking about it, even The Killer’s motivation, showcasing he has money and even his charming ways to lure and capture his prey is missing…and for those of you who like the character Catfish, he is as well missing from the comic. The Killer aka John is a pretty dang bloodthirsty murderer as he kills at least three women in this comic and uses his trusty dagger to end their lives. Also it makes you wonder if he truly died when the car crashed into the water and his body is not found…or is he still out there killing more ladies for his Aztec beliefs. The heroes of this comic are Detective Abraham, who is kind of an ass and is corrupt as he steals money from crime scenes and seems to take favors in order to not report crimes. But we do see that he also has a weak spot for Sherry, and even after he hurts her feelings, he kind of feels bad and that’s a change as in the film I feel he is just a scumbag from start to finish. Detective Mayer, on the other hand, seems like a decent cop that really wants to crack this case and is embarrassed by his partner’s behavior. He tends to look the other way when bad things are going down that involves his partner and that is where he is flawed. Sherry is a prostitute who seems like a nice woman, but who tends to make bad choices as at the end of the comic she almost dies by going to a Mardi Gras Party with two other ladies at The Killer’s home! The comic has some blood and gore as the death of the prostitutes are mostly shown and has the red stuff flowing, and the comic also has lots of nudity holding with the feel of the film. The cover is pretty cool and holds the vibe of the film it’s based on and is eye catching. The interior art is done by Simona Simone and is fantastic stuff and after seeing her work in this comic, I am very much a big fan of her work and hope that we get more Horror Comics based on films from her in the future as she is that awesome. Over all this is a pretty great comic and one that is a must-have for fans of this cult film. Check out the artwork below to see the style or Simona Simone used in this creepy and sleazy comic.
I have to say that this Mardi Gras Massacre comic really was a cool read and was a nice treat for fans of the film as well as horror comic readers in general, and I cannot stress enough that I hope that Severin Films continues to release these comics based on the horror and cult films they release as they are doing some great work thus far. And with Error 444 and Wild Eye Releasing at least making comics that act as Blu-Ray extras, we might be heading in the right direction as media companies are seeing that comics are great tools to promote the films they release. And companies like Blood Scream Comics, Eibon Press and American Mythology are still killing it, releasing comics based on horror films. With that, I think it’s time that we get away from Mardi Gras and head to the world of pro wrestling as we will be taking a look at the crazed madman Waylon Mercy! So until next time, read a horror comic or three, watch a horror movie or two and as always support your local horror host. And until next time, just remember “Lives are gonna be in Waylon Mercy’s hands”!
