From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Arachnophobia (1990)

Posted on September 3, 2025 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to Rotten Ink and to another “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update that is part of our countdown to Halloween 2025. For this one I think we will be taking a look at a classic PG-13 fright flick that is all about killer spiders and is produced by Steven Spielberg. That film of course is Arachnophobia! This film sparks fear in many who truly do fear spiders as this film has hundreds of them running around homes and yards and even crawling up sink pipes and under doors…I am sure for many this is one of the scariest films of the 1990’s, those who truly have arachnophobia that is. So if you are ready, get your bug suits on as it’s time to check out these deadly spiders and the film that spawned them.

Let’s first take a look at the Spiders who are the human killers of this film and their ways of deal death to them. The Spiders are a mix of a new species from Venezuela and an American female House Spider that mate and create a very sinister short-lived species. These new spiders are fast as well as sneaky and can quickly descend on a person that is their prey. Their appearance as well can shock and scare people and can even cause major panic among those with a fear of spiders. The Spiders’ main way of dealing death is the poison they inject into a person after biting them with their fangs, and death comes quickly and painfully and triggers seizures and heart failure. They are deadly by themselves as well as in packs and can sneak into places via cracks as well as drains. They also have a Queen that can lay lots of eggs and cause them to spread fast, and if they are not stopped, they will kill and take over towns and cities causing death with every bite. They are also able to survive basic insecticide as they are immune to its effects and will also kill other insects and animals around in order to protect the eggs of their unborn. While they are very deadly, they can be killed and destroyed as they can be stepped on and crushed, they can be killed by highly toxic powerful insecticide, they can be burned with fire, or shot with a nail gun, electrocuted via a power box…but mostly father time is not on their side as they quickly die of age. This new species Of Spiders are super dangerous as one bite will kill you instantly and while they can be stopped they remain a major threat to humans and are very deadly.

So now that we have looked at these deadly spiders and their ways of killing humans, I think we should take a look at the 1990 film they are from, Arachnophobia! Like before I will be taking the film’s write up 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 stay out of the webs and away from the spiders and take a look at this cult classic family horror film.

Arachnophobia (1990)

“A large spider from the jungles of South America is accidentally transported in a crate with a dead body to America where it mates with a local spider. Soon after, the residents of a small California town disappear as the result of spider bites from the deadly spider offspring. It’s up to a couple of doctors aided by an insect exterminator to annihilate these eight-legged freaks before they take over the entire town.”

Horror movies were very popular at the cinemas and drive-in theaters even into the early 90’s and lots of kids enjoyed heading to the theater to watch them. That’s why there was a rash of PG and PG-13 horror films being released and wanting in on this horror action was Disney as well as Steven Spielberg who got on board with the idea of a horror comedy film that circled around killer spiders loose in a small town and with first time director Frank Marshall leading the film and Don Jakoby and Wesley Strick writing the screenplay. They new that this film would be a hit with the youngsters as well as adults as it was intended to both scare and make you laugh. The film was given a budget of $22 million and hired on for cast were names like Jeff Daniels, John Goodman, Julian Sands, Harley Jane Kozak, Brian McNamara and Kathy Kinney to name a few, and most of the filming took place in California with the jungle shots being filmed in Venezuela. The film had over 300 Avondale Spiders on set, and their safety was taken very seriously as actors and crew had to make sure to not hurt any of them. In certain scenes they used dummy spiders as well as made the actors wear special shoes to pull off scenes that involved crushing them. In order to make the crunch and squash sounds of spiders under boots they would step on potato chips and mustard packs. The film was heavily marketed with trailers, print ads and TV spots as Disney, who was distributing the film thought that they had a hit on their hands, and they were right as the film would be released in theaters on July 18, 1990 as a big summer release and would bring in a total of $53.2million dollars and was a hit also with viewers and critics with the film winning the Best Horror Film award at the Saturn Awards. The film would also be a huge success when released on home media both in rental and home sales, and this only helped build the film’s cult following. The film also proved to studios that PG-13 horror films could work if done right and many compare the films mood and tone to such films as The Birds and Jaws. The film was released in 1990 alongside such other Horror Films as Basket Case 2, Bride Of Re-Animator, Child’s Play 2, The Exorcist III, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, Maniac Cop 2, Nightbreed, Predator 2 and Tremors to name a few. And still to this day the film has a major cult following and is even rumored to be getting remade by James Wan’s production company.

The first time I saw Arachnophobia was when my Dad rented it for a family movie night at home while we lived in Waynesville, as while my brother and I wanted to see it in the theater we just never got to as our theater trip around that time was seeing Gremlins 2: The New Batch for us, and seeing how Gremlins was a favorite watch in our house it made only sense for us to see Part 2 over other films at the time. I think my Dad rented it not only because my brother and I were always into horror movies, but because he was a fan of John Goodman who at the time was very popular due to his role as Dan Connor on the hit sitcom “Roseanne”. I really enjoyed Arachnophobia and can remember the kids at school talking about it as the small town we lived in had tons of spiders around with lots of them being Wolf Spiders and we would all do the “What If” that one had a poisonous bite. And like all good films I bought much of the merchandise released like the soundtrack on cassette tape and even the book based on it that was at my school’s book fair. What makes this film work is that it plays on the fear of spiders and the threat of being bitten by one that will kill you instantly, and when you are a kid creepy crawlies were a big part of Halloween time and it was put into your mind that spiders are to be feared! The film was very well cast with it being really cool to see actor Julian Sands in a good guy role as I always knew him as The Warlock, and I think he is a very underrated actor in general. At times the film is very over acted and that is very fitting as it gives it that true B-Movie feel and makes it feel like it would have been at home during the 1950’s playing alongside such films as The Deadly Mantis and Tarantula at the drive-in as apart of a double feature. While the film is not overly violent or bloody, the scares truly come from the spiders themselves as well as some of the effects that show spiders crawling out of the mouth of one of their victims…just gross. And I should also point out that actress Kathy Kinney who plays Blaire Kendall, the wife of the town’s mortician, is known for her role as Mimi Bobeck on the sitcom The Drew Carey Show and she also had a small role in the Christmas film Scrooged. Over all if you are looking for a good, spooky, family friendly horror film to give Arachnophobia a shot as it’s an entertaining watch. Also John Goodman is awesome and is lots of fun in this film as the weirdo exterminator.

So now that we have chatted about the killer spiders and the film they are from, I think it’s the time on this update that we take a look at the comic book adaptation that was released by Disney Comics to help promote the film when it was in the cinemas. And I really do like that this PG-13 family friendly horror film got the comic book treatment as I think the film lent itself to be a comic with all the creepy crawlies and weird characters. And I would like to thank Bell Book And Comic for having this comic in stock and making the update possible. And I would also 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, their entertainment value and their art and story. So if you are ready, let’s head to Canaima, California and avoid these spiders!

Arachnophobia # 1 ***
Released in 1990 Cover Price $2.95 Disney # 1 of 1

In the jungles of Venezuela goofy photographer Jerry Manley has joined a expedition to document spiders that are found deep in the wild, they group finds a new species of Spiders and Jerry gets bitten by one and ends up dying and is flown back to America with one of the spiders in the casket! His body arrives in Canaima, California and once the coffin is open the spider escapes and is now loose in the town. Meanwhile Dr. Ross Jennings and his wife Molly have just bought a new home with a old barn that is filled with spiders, and Ross is terrified of them all cause of a childhood trauma. The spider finds a mate and creates a very deadly new species, and worse for Ross the doctor he was replacing has decided to not retire yet causing him to have to wait around before he takes over the practice in the small town he didn’t want to move to, and worse the old doctor is out of touch on how to treat peoples illness. The new breed of spiders are spreading out in the town and are biting people and causing them to pass away from their poison and the two doctors have different theories on what is happing, but while this is going on Molly meets the town exterminator named Delbert McClintock who hates bugs and loves to kill them. More and more people are dying and including the old doctor from the spider bites, and Ross is doing his best to try and figure out what is happening as the new spiders has yet to be figured out to be the killers. Ross ends up calling Dr. James Atherton, a spider specialist, for help who is the man that lead the expedition in Venezuela when Jerry was killed and he and one of his helpers head to Canaima to investigate these deaths. The town is starting to be over ran with these killers spiders and Dr. Jennings, Dr. Atherton and Delbert McClintock go on a quest to try and find the new species queen to stop the species growth and along the way find more and more people dead as well as more and more aggressive spiders. The queen ends up killing Dr. Atherton as the nest is in the barn of Dr. Ross and when they all show up at the Ross home they find it is over ran and Ross must get his wife and kids out of the home and Delbert McClintock tries to hold the spider back. In the end Dr. Jennings has a showdown with the spider queen in his cellar and ends up killing her using fire and a nail gun, and with that the new species of spider dies off and Dr. Ross Jennings is a hero and finds that he loves living in Canaima.

This comic adaptation is lots of fun and is able to play up the horrors of the spiders as well as the silliness of the characters very well, and while some moments seem to come out of left field like them suddenly showing that Ross Jennings had kids it somehow just kind of works for this comic as it plays up on the more b-movie feel of the story. The plot is this a new very poisonous spider species is invading a small town and the local Doctor along with the towns Exterminator must find a way to bring the horror to a stop by finding the queen of the species before she hatches more eggs. The main hero of the story is Dr. Ross Jennings, a city doctor who finds himself in a small town who must battle the old ways of the out dated town doctor, get over his fear of spiders and has to be the hero that brings down the queen in a blaze of fire. A very unlikely hero but one who does what he must to protect his family and town from being killed. Delbert McClintock is a heavyset goof ball who is the towns exterminator, and his main goal in life is to kill bugs as he just hates them and he is a good guy to have on your side during a infestation like this. Dr. James Atherton is kind of a mystery as while I think he wants to help skill the spiders, I also think he wants to study them as his main interest in in new spider species. The Spiders are killing machines as they bite and kill all types of people from town and seem to do so even when not provoked and that makes them so dangerous and shows why the people of Canaima should be scared to death of them. The comic is not bloody at all but does have lots of death as people are being killed by spiders all over the comic, and it plays the creepy horror and not for bloody horror for the scares. The cover is cool but is kind of lazy as it is just the movie poser with comic logos added, the interior art is done by Dan Spiegle and is good stuff even if the character look nothing like the actors who played them. If you are a fan of the film or like more of a kid friendly type of Horror give this one a read as it will surely entertain you. Check out the artwork below to see the style used by Spiegle for this adaptation comic.

As you can see, Arachnophobia is a super fun family friendly Horror film that made for a very fun comic book read thanks to Disney Comics. And I for one would like to see what James Wan and his production company does when they get around to filming the remake, though I would like to see it done as a reboot or sequel personally myself. I have to also point out you can never go wrong with a movie that has a spider on fire being killed by a nail gun, just classic B-Movie stuff. And with that this update has came to an end, but do not worry we have more horror-themed updates coming your way as for this month I am going to stick with PG-13 horror movies that got the comic book treatment and our next one will be House II: The Second Story and the Marvel Comics adaptation of it! So until next time, read a horror comic or three, watch a horror film or two an as always support your local horror host. See you next update for a travel through dimensions and time in order to protect a Crystal Skull.

From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Eight Legged Freaks (2002)

Posted on May 12, 2025 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to Rotten Ink and to another “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update. As you can see, this year has been packed with lots of Horror Comics that are based on films as I have been in that kind of mood, as these type of comics are something I have been a big fan of since I was a kid. This update we will be taking a look at a film that once more made giant spiders both scary and silly for movie goers in 2002 and that film is a Warner Brothers release called Eight Legged Freaks! The film would end up getting the comic book treatment thanks to Wilstorm Comics, the sub company of DC Comics! So if you are ready, let’s avoid these rampaging giant spiders and let’s talk about a Horror Film and Comic!

So let’s start by taking a look at the massive spiders that are the killing machines of the film and comic, who have many ways of dealing death to humans. The Spiders started out normal size and were from the collection of Joshua Taft, who had a massive arachnid farm and are all types of breeds like Orb-Weavers, Tiger Wolf Spiders, Spitting Spiders, Trapdoor Spiders, Jumping Spiders and a Tarantula, all who have their own ways of trapping and attacking their prey, but things get worse when these spiders are feed grasshoppers from a local pond that have been near a toxic chemical that causes the spiders to grow in size and become more and more aggressive. When they escape the spider farm, they attack the small town of Prosperity, Arizona and kill any living thing in their way from human to animal. The spiders are lead by Consuela, the female Orb Weaver, as she calls the shots and almost all the spiders are attacking to impress her as she is truly their Queen. The Spiders are pack killers who attack in large groups but are just as deadly on their own, and their size as well as appearance truly strikes fear into the hearts of the humans who have the displeasure of running into them. The Spiders have many ways to attacking and tracking humans with some using the ground to pull victims in while others will leap onto their human prey and they all do so with super fast speed. They also have long fangs to bite into flesh as well as spread poison into blood streams. They can also use their legs to grab and pull their victims to death. They also feed on the humans they attack with some of them being webbed up in order to eat later and even give as a gift to their Queen for her to snack on. The Tarantula himself is like a tank as his massive size and power allows him to break through doors, walls and obstacles in his way as he really is a powerhouse of death and destruction. Plus again the sheer number of them and the way they work together with deadly speed and precision make them the ultimate killing machines. But while The Spiders are very deadly and way larger than your normal arachnids, they can be killed by fire, explosions, gunshots and even stabbing can punch their final ticket to Spider Heaven. So in other words these chemically enhanced spiders are super deadly and super effective at killing humans.

So as you can see, these mutated large spiders are very dangerous and can kill a human very quickly with so many different painful ways, but now that we have chatted about them I think that it’s time that we take a look at the film they are from and that’s of course Eight Legged Freaks! And like always, we will be taking the film’s write up for our good old friends at IMDB, and then I will write about the film’s production and then my thoughts on the film. So if you are ready, grab some massive bug spray and lets talk about these eight legged freaks!

Eight Legged Freaks (2002)

“After a long absence, Chris McCormick returns to his quiet hometown of Prosperity, Arizona, to reopen his late father’s mines. However, a chemical spill and lethal toxic waste have created an unstoppable army of giant spiders who prey on the unsuspecting locals, turning Prosperity into an endless buffet. Now, it’s up to Chris, Sheriff Sam Parker, her son Mike, Sam’s plucky daughter, Ashley, the conspiracy theorist Harlan, and a handful of survivors to stop the hairy menace, and save the town. But, who can stand in the way of the disgusting eight-legged freaks?”

Director Ellory Elkayem was no stranger to Horror Films about insects as he already did a short film called “Larger Than Life” in 1998, and in 2000 he directed the film “Creepy Crawlers” that was also known as They Nest. When he was thinking of his next film, spiders came to mind and so Eight Legged Freaks was to be. The film was originally called “Arach Attack” and the screenplay was written by Ellory as well as Jesse Alexander and would be produced by Dean Devlin and find its distribution via Warner Brothers. The film would hire David Arquette and Kari Wuhrer as the lead roles with such names as Scarlett Johansson, Doug E. Doug, Scott Terra, Rick Overton and Leon Rippy making up most of the supporting cast. The film would go through a name change as the Iraq War was about to start and they thought the name Arach Attack was in bad taste so Eight Legged Freaks was selected, even though in some foreign markets they stuck with the original title. The film had a budget of $30 million and lots of time went into the film’s special effects as most of the film’s spiders were CGI based around real spiders movements. I should also note that the spiders kind of have voices with iconic voice actor Frank Welker lending his talents to some of them as did Rob Paulsen and Kevin Michael Richardson. The film was slated for release on March 15, 2002 but was moved to July 17, 2002 when the original release date had it going up against the animated kids film Ice Age. The film was released with mixed reviews with both critics and fans finding themselves enjoying it silly nature, but many think that it runs out of steam by the film’s final. The film would end up bringing in around $45,867,333.00 and was a modest hit for Warner Brothers that ended up spawning a PC Game based around it called “Eight Legged Freaks: Let The Squashing Begin” and even was in talks for a sequel that never happened as it looks like WB pulled the plug. In 2002, the film was released along such other Horror Films as Cabin Fever, Signs, Bubba Ho-Tep, Queen Of The Damned, May, Halloween Resurrection, The Ring, Resident Evil and Fear Dot Com to name a few.

Eight Legged Freaks is a film that clearly was inspired by the classic B-Movies of the 1950’s and that is what made it such a fun watch as I saw it for the first time at the Drive-In as a double feature with Halloween: Resurrection and it was such a great time spent with friends and family. I can remember everyone having a great time with Eight Legged Freaks and even hearing cheers at times when the spiders would get blasted, plus I am pretty sure every male in the 1990’s loved and had a crush on Kari Wuhrer, who played the Sheriff and was known for her roles in such films as Adventures Of Ford Fairlane, Beastmaster 2, Thinner and Anaconda before being in this film. It’s shocking that she was not cast in way more Horror Films over the years as she had the prefect look for them. The film’s main star was David Arquette who of course is the brother of Patricia, Rosanna and Alexis and was a popular actor with the youth in the 90’s thanks to his roles in such films as Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Airheads, Scream 1-5, Muppets In Space and Ready To Rumble, to name a select few. And what makes David great for this role is that he brings a level of heroism as well as goofball that is prefect for this type of film. The effects for the Giant Mutant Spiders are really good for the time, and while they are CGI, they do seem like they are there live with the actors. The films score by John Ottman is also really well done and captures that classic movie sound of the past and yet also has the sounds of the present day Sci-Fi Horror. One thing that also makes this film cool is that the spiders have a hierarchy with The Female Orb Weaver being the true Queen and the one calling all the shots with the massive Tarantula being the general of her army and the true battle tank when it comes to going after the humans. When the film was released, I originally owned it on VHS and would upgrade to DVD over time and it’s a film that I still watch every few years. I think the best way to sum this one up is if you like Horror Movies like “Giant Spider Invasion (1975)”, “Tarantula! (1955)”, “Arachnophobia (1990)”, “Earth vs. The Spider (1958)”, “Kingdom Of The Spiders (1977)”, “Tarantulas: The Deadly Cargo (1977)” or any of the other Spider themed Horror Films make sure to give this one a watch as I think you will truly enjoy it.

Now that we have chatted about the Giant Spiders and the film they are from, Eight Legged Freaks, I think that it is time that we take a look at the comic adaptation done by DC Comics (WildStorm). I want to first thank Bell Book And Comic for having this comic in stock and making this update possible. I would also 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, its entertainment value and its art and story. So if you are ready, let’s see what these Giant Spiders have in store for us in these spooky comic pages.

Eight Legged Freaks # 1 ***
Released in 2002 Cover Price $6.95 Wildstorm # 1 of 1

Sheriff Sam Parker is in front of the town’s mall with her shotgun in hand shooting at the massive spiders that are attacking her town, and as she fights for not only her life but the people she swore to protect, she thinks back to how this all started. A trucking caring toxic waste swerves to avoid hitting an animal and this causes a barrel to fall into the town’s stream and turn the grasshoppers big, in turn Josh the owner of exotic spiders has been capturing them and feeding them to his spiders and this causes them to grow in size as well. And after Mike Parker visits and leaves Josh’s spider shop they escape and attack and kill Josh and his pet bird! The town’s mines are in trouble and are slated to be closed as the owner has passed away and his son Chris McCromick has returned to town to over see the sale, and is feeling guilty for doing so. Meanwhile the barrel of toxic waste as been found in the stream by Sam and her Deputy, and on her way home Sam finds her daughter on the back of a motorbike with Bret, the son of the Mayor, and gives the teen a ticket for endangering her daughter! Later that night the town is having a meeting in the mall held by Wade, the mayor, as he is saying that a big company wants to buy the land and houses for a project, but Chris shows up and refuses to sell the mine as he claims his father seen the mother load of gold in them and he intends to find it…he also punches Wade for saying things about his father! That night several towns people including one cat are attacked and killed by the Giant Spiders, as these arachnids are making their way into town. The next morning Sam gives her daughter a stun gun for protection and Chris shows up to ask her out on a date as Sam and Chris have a past. But things get crazy for the town as the Giant Spiders keep attacking and the only people to stand in their way of taking over is Sheriff Sam Parker, Chris McCormick, Conspiracy Theory Radio DJ Harlan Griffith, Sam’s two kids Ashley and Mike Parker, the Mayor Wade and his son Bret as well as what is left of the town! The standoff takes place in the towns mall and then spills into the mines…and thanks to teamwork and the methane gas that fills the mines they are able to spark a big fire that kills off the massive fires and saves the town from being destroyed.

This comic adaptation is a fun read with lots of spider attacking action, but it also speeds up lots of the film’s plot as well as downplays major characters from the film as Harlan Griffith is barely around and only has one major angle in the story besides being the comics narrator, and poor Deputy Pete Willis is nothing more than a background player. So if those two are some of your favorite characters from the film, be prepared to be a little disappointed in their lack of appearance in this comic. The plot is simple and has toxic waste making spiders grow to monstrous size that attack a small town that’s people must fight back to survive. The main hero for me in this comic is Sheriff Sam Parker as she is the town’s law as well armed with her shotgun she takes out lots of spiders, also comes up with meeting at the mall for all the survivors and is also the one who watches after her kids and uses the stun gun to start the spark that sets the mines ablaze the burns up the spiders. And Chris McCormick is the secondary hero as he does his part of keeping people safe, and knows his families mines well and comes up with the idea to start the fire to ignite the gas, but he does fail in his attempt to save Ashley from the spiders, and it’s Sam that has to rescue them both…so yeah Sam is the hero. And to a lesser degree you also have to say that Mike Parker’s knowledge of spiders makes him a hero, as his warnings of the abilities of the spiders make the people more aware. The Spiders are very violent and are looking to make humans meals as well as trap them to impress their Queen. The comic is lots of spooky fun, but I also feel that while they retain some of the scares of the film they humor is a little lacking and the laughs are pulled from the story to clearly speed it up to fit on the pages of the comic. The comic does have lots of deaths but is lacking in human blood splattering, but you do get the green blood of the spiders all over the place. The cover is very cool and showcases Sam, Chris and Harlan with a massive Spider behind them, very cool and eye catching for fans of the film as well as those who like Horror Comics in general. The interior art is really cool and is done by Joe Phillips, and the way he draws the spiders is fantastic, and his art for the humans is good but the likeness to the actors who play the characters is very slight. This is a comic that I truly think fans of the film should get and read as well as those Horror Comic readers who enjoy spiders and more family friendly horror. Checkout the artwork below to see the style of artist Phillips used in this comic.

Eight Legged Freaks is a fun cult film and also an entertaining comic book and is one that I think is often overlooked when people talk about PG-13 Horror Films. And I am still very annoyed with Warner Brothers and their subsidiary New Line Cinema as their parent company Discovery owns as well DC Comics and they have yet to truly merge their film properties into Horror Comics as I think readers would enjoy comics based on A Nightmare On Elm Street, Lost Boys, Critters and Final Destination to name a few. And before you say it, yes, I know that many of the above mentioned films have had comic books over the years. But as you can see, this From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update is winding down, but do not worry our next update will be another of those themed updates as this time I will be talking about the 2003 shot on video Horror Film “The Bonesetter”! So until next time, read a Horror Comic or three, watch a Horror Movie or two and as always support your local Horror Host. Make sure to lock you doors at 7pm as The Bonesetter is on the loose.

Flash Gordon Savior Of The Comic Universe!

Posted on December 14, 2016 by bloodlinematt

ROTTEN….INNNKKK….Savior of the Blog-verse! Yeah, I know that was super lame and not very clever, but this winter seemed like a good time to do a terrible parody of a classic Queen song as it fits today’s update as we take a look at the 1980 film Flash Gordon and the Whitman Comic adaptation. It’s pretty great adventure stuff to get the blood pumping this cold winter night! Can you believe we are this close to Christmas and our huge Christmas Eve update? This time of the year is always wonderful, looking back at things from your youth and fun times with family and friends, and that’s why I choose Flash Gordon as the film and character this time around. It’s something that always brings back good memories of when I was a kid. When we were young, my parents had a Beta player and this is how I first saw Flash Gordon as my Dad rented it from the video store for me and my brother. From start to finish I can remember we both were glued to it. Later, when it would showed on cable like HBO or Showtime, we taped it and would dust it off from time to time. I can also remember using our G.I. Joes and Star Wars figures to play Flash Gordon as figures based on this movie were never made in my youth. I miss those days of going to the video rental store with my parents and picking out a couple of films for us all to watch on a family movie night. I have one funny story about a Troma movie that was rented for the kids that I will share in an update in the future. So get your space suit on and bundle up as space is even colder than this winter night, and we’ll go on an adventure with the one and only Flash Gordon. Oh yeah, make sure to also bring a blanket, some hot chocolate mix or even some hot tea as the chill in the air will make them a must.

In 1980 an epic science fiction film was released by Universal and was slated to be the next mega hit in the genre like Star Wars before it. Best of all, the film was based on a character who already had a built in audience as he had comic strips, comic books, radio dramas, novels, movie serials and toys based around him so by this point Flash Gordon was a household name. So why didn’t it overthrow Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back as the # 1 film of 1980? Flash Gordon ended up at # 23 bringing in $27,107,960.00 on a budget of $20 million, beating out such cult films as The Elephant Man, Raging Bull, The Fog, Mad Max, Prom Night, Motel Hell and The Gong Show Movie. I think some of the issue started with the production of the film as the rights owner for Gordon in films was famed producer Dino De Laurentiis who, in the 70s, turned down George Lucas who wanted to make a Flash Gordon film. This sparked Lucas to make Star Wars. Meanwhile De Laurentiis wanted to make his version of Flash Gordon cheesy and humorous, and this angered Sergio Leone, who was slated to direct, as he wanted it to be more faithful to the comic strip. But after many setbacks, a director was found in Mike Hodges, and casting started with Sam J. Jones playing Flash Gordon, Melody Anderson as Dale Arden, Chaim Topol as Dr. Zarkov and Max von Sydow as Ming The Merciless, all of whom were wise choices for their roles. But once more, late in production drama reared its ugly head again and fights between De Laurentiis and Jones left the actor leaving prior to post production forcing lots of his dialogue to be dubbed by a voice actor. This drama also lead to a sequel never being made. But in 2015 rumors began going around that a reboot sequel might be in the works and that Sam J. Jones might be returning in the role of Flash! So what do you readers think, should they make a Flash Gordon 2 with Sam J. Jones returning in the title role or do you think a remake is the wiser choice?

The soundtrack to Flash Gordon is fantastic with the score being done by Howard Blake and the rest being done by the amazing band Queen! While the score is mostly forgotten, the song “Flash Gordon” by Queen is the first thing that pops into the people’s minds when hearing the characters name…you know at least a handful of times you yourself have done it while reading this update. That’s one thing the film always had going for it, the soundtrack was a popular album for people of the 80’s to have in their collection of vinyl and cassettes. Queen always did make amazing rock n roll music, and their work for Flash Gordon showed that they could also make the music of the movies and will always rank up as one of the most catchy theme songs for any science fiction characters. And for those wondering, I do play the score music from Blake on WYSO from time to time.

As I have stated, growing up me and my brother were fans of the film, and I would have loved if some company like Kenner or Remco would have made 3 ¾” figures based on this film as it would have been epic while playing Star Wars if Flash Gordon showed up and Princess Leia fell in love with this hero jock and he and Han Solo had to fight it out to win her heart. But in 2015, thanks to collectible website “Entertainment Earth” and toy company “BifBang Pow!” a series of figures was made. They released four figures this size that include Flash Gordon, Ming, Aura, Vultan and Barin, and each come with weapons and bendable knees and elbows. When I was just a youngster, the only things that I can remember that were released was a video game, the comic adaptation, the novel based on the film and the soundtrack. So for those youngsters reading this, and those young at heart, if you buy these Flash Gordon 3 ¾” action figures make sure to have them mix with your Star Wars toys as well as your Funco ReAction figures and have one hell of an epic Toy War!

While we might not have gotten action figures, 20^th Century Fox Games did release a video game based on the film for the Atari 2600 for all the fans to enjoy in 1983, but like most movie tie-in games, this one really had nothing to do with the movie and was in fact originally not even a Flash Gordon game as it was really just a redone port of a game called “Spider City” that was a popular PC Game in the early 80’s. But in this version you play as Flash Gordon who has entered Spider City to rescue missing spacemen and to destroy all the hatching spider pods. You of course are flying a ship, and by beating levels, the game will give you an extra life. The graphics are what you would expect from an Atari 2600 game. The first time I learned about this game was in 2009 when Game Swap Kettering was stocking the store, and one of the Atari games in the box was Flash Gordon and of course I had to buy it and play it. While very cheesy, it still was fun play and something that fans of classic gaming should try. Check out below for a screen shot of the game as well as the cover box front and back, and all you old school gamers who grew up playing this understand just how fun this and so many other Atari games can be.

So we have taken a look at Flash Gordon the Movie, the soundtrack, the video game and the toys, and now I think it’s time that we all climb aboard the Whitman Comic Rocket and travel to Movie Adaptation Land and see just how well this one holds up to the film. I want to thank Jason Young and his Mom for selling me these issues in a long box buy and must remind all you readers and astronauts that I grade these 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 with that, let’s prepare for lift off! I should also note that the adaptation was placed many issues into the long running Flash Gordon comic series put out by Gold Key and Whitman so that’s why the numbering is high on these issues. So it’s take off time, get ready to have a fun adventure with Flash Gordon and friends.

Flash Gordon # 31 ***
Released in 1981 Cover Price .40 Whitman # 31 of 37

Flash Gordon is a football player for the New York Jets and is on a plane with Dale Arden when their plane goes down and lands near a greenhouse where by gunpoint they are forced onto a spaceship and into orbit by Dr. Zarkov who believes that they all must stop an alien attack that he thinks is forcing Earth’s moon to crash into the planet killing everyone. He wants to find and stop the mastermind behind it. In space, the three pass out and are swept into a black hole and end up landing in the Mongo Kingdom run by Ming The Merciless along with his daughter Princess Aura and his golden metal masked adviser General Klytus. This is bad news as Ming wants Dale as his slave, Aura wants Flash as her slave, and Klytus wants all three Earthlings dead! Flash does not stand for this and fights with the guards, but all this does is give him a one-way ticket to a public execution that very night! Flash is given a shot and then gassed and is believed to be dead, but in reality Princess Aura changed the shot that let her new man live and uses her boyfriend’s (Prince Barin of the Treemen) planet as a hiding place for Flash. Meanwhile Ming has taken Dale as his own and has ordered Zarkov’s mind to be taken over and turned into a slave! But thanks to Aura’s crown, Flash is able to contact Dale and tell her he is alive. This causes her to escape Ming’s bedroom and start her escape and saving of Zarkov.

This comic adaptation does a good job of compacting the film into comic pages and moves the pace along really well! So far the story is the set up and has Flash, Dale and Zarkov traveling to space and crash landing on Mongo, the planet of galaxy warlord Ming, and finding out they are just pawns in his twisted game to destroy Earth. The comic has action, adventure, drama and romance as all these things were tangled together in ink and paper. Flash Gordon starts out as a hero jock who wins the attention of a young woman he is next to on a plane, but quickly turns into a hero as he is a prideful man who would clearly die to protect his new friends. Flash also has a charm as both Dale and Aura fall in love with him just by seeing him. I wonder if it’s because he is a pro football player who has money or if it’s his chiseled good looks? We also learn he is good at fist fighting as he handles many guards at once and seems to know how to defend himself. Dale Arden seems like a normal young woman who, when survival is on the line, will fight back and not just roll over and die. It’s also clear that Dale fell in love with Flash Gordon at first sight and that she will not be Ming’s love slave without putting up a fight. Dr. Zarkov is a crazed old man who’s outlandish behavior got him banned from NASA and his way of getting help on his rocket ship is to pull a gun on people who just survived a plane crash. It’s odd as both Flash and Dale seem to forgive him pretty fast and even look to him as a friend. Even more crazy is they would not be in the danger they are in if not for his crazy gun pulling ways. To be fair though, Dr. Zarkov did do all this to save Earth from doom that would be coming from the sky. Ming The Merciless is cold blooded, and life and death do not matter, as in his mind all that does is his rule over all. I think Ming is a great villain as he tries to murder outsiders on sight, forces women to be his love slaves and rules his Kingdom with such an iron fist that other planets are scared to feel his wrath. Princess Aura is a mystery at this point as she is a man-eater who clearly uses men to get what she wants but also seems to not enjoy her father’s wicked ways. General Klytus is clearly a man who loves to place judgment and punishment on anyone he feels is a threat to Ming and his rule. We don’t get much background on Prince Barin besides he loves Aura, and he is the leader of the Treemen. The winged leader Vultan of the Hawkmen is also around but is not given anything to make a judgment of his character. The cover is your typical cheesy photo collage mixed with art design that Whitman and Goldkey Comic used on most their adaptations, but the inside art is fantastic and done by Flash Gordon comic series artist Al Williamson who is an underrated artist who captures science fiction elements really well. This is a great start as on this cold day; I really enjoyed this first issue in the adaptation and I am really looking forward to seeing what issue 2 has contained.

Flash Gordon # 32 ***
Released in 1981 Cover Price .40 Whitman # 32 of 37

While escaping, Dale Arden runs into Dr. Zarkov who claims that his mind could not be beaten into being blanked, and the pair board a ship and try to leave only to be captured by the Hawkpeople lead by Vultan. They are about to deliver them back to Ming when Dale begs him to join forces with Flash Gordon, who still lives, and the Treemen to overthrow Ming who is they all hate. Meanwhile Klytus has heard that Gordon is alive and warns Ming who has his daughter who has returned home arrested and tortured in order to find were she has left Flash. Flash himself is being tormented and set up to be murdered by Prince Barin, who is jealous that Aura has fallen for the Earthman. During the fight, the Hawkmen attack and take both Flash Gordon and Prince Barin prisoner as Vultan is not going for an alliance against Ming and is delivering them all to the evil ruler. Prince Barin as a royal can challenge a duel before sentenced and picks Flash Gordon, and the two fight on a circle that has spikes. Flash wins and saves Barin from falling off the circle as Klytus arrives on the ship and demands all the prisoners come with him and this sets Flash off and he slams Klytus onto the circle of spikes killing him! Vultan and the Hawkmen fly away as they fear the wrath of Ming who now has shown up and has Dale, Barin and Zarkov taken to his castle, and after Flash refuses an offer from Ming to join his side our hero is left on the ship that is now blowing up.

Flash Gordon steps up his game and not only passes the Treemen’s log test that has a poisons beast inside it, but he also beats Barin in a duel to the death as well as murders Klytus by slamming him down on spikes! Flash didn’t even blink as he slammed a living person onto spikes, killing him in a terrible painful way. But to be fair, the man who he killed was Klytus, the evil right hand man of Ming who looks like he took fashion tips from Dr. Doom and had sent a number of people to their deaths. This second issue covers Flash fighting the odds and yet still some how turning the negatives into positives and starting an uprising against the rule of Ming. It’s great as Ming even mentions that his subjects are starting to talk about this man named Flash Gordon who has beaten all the odds. Ming The Merciless in this issue tries his best to corrupt Flash, and when he can’t, he wants him dead, not to mention he also is ok with the torture of his daughter as he is pissed she disobeyed his wish of having Flash killed. Ming is also claiming Dale as his future wife and adds forced love to his evil deeds. Prince Barin is a jerk who comes around once he finds that Flash is a good man. Vultan comes off as a coward and a lackey for Ming as Dale and Zarkov take a backseat and are just prisoners who are the driving force for Flash Gordon to fight and do the right thing to save them and the Earth. The cover is another photo collage/art mix and is cheesy good as the art inside is Al Williamson again who is doing a great job at capturing the looks of the actors as well as his backgrounds are really well done. This second issue is as good as the first. Coming up is the final in this adaptation, and I for one am enjoying every page.

Flash Gordon # 33 ***
Released in 1981 Cover Price .40 Whitman # 33 of 37

Flash Gordon escapes the blown up ship on a tiny glider and is able to contact Vultan and the Hawkpeople who now are on the side of good and set up one of Ming’s warships that they take over. Meanwhile Ming has set his wedding to Dale for that night and is forcing his daughter Aura to be the Maid of Honor and is going to kill Zarkov and Barin live for entertainment! Aura sneaks away and frees Barin and Zarkov from the prison, and the two flee into some tunnels. Flash, Vultan and the Hawkmen bring the fight to Ming’s kingdom. As Dale is being forced to marry Ming, the Earth is also on a path to doom as in only six minutes the moon will crash into the planet causing earthquakes and tidal waves. Flash crashes the ship into Ming’s castle and impales the evil ruler with the tip on the ship. Ming however does not die and Flash rushes him with a sword in hand as Ming turns his own power ring on himself ending is reign of terror. In the end Aura and Barin take over ruling Mongo, Vultan takes the job of royal guard commander and Dale, Zarkov and Flash stay on Mongo as they do not have a ride home.

The doomsday clock was almost at 12 for Earth, but thanks to the heroic act of Flash Gordon and his allies, we are all safe for the time being. The plot of this issue is this simple: Ming is having a shotgun wedding, Flash has brought people together to fight the power and in the end, good clashes with evil and as always, good wins. Flash Gordon once more proves how loyal and brave he is, as he takes his own life in his hands and crashes a ship into a castle that had a force field around it and was only saved by Barin who blasted the controls with a pistol. But what Flash did to save the Earth as well as Dale shows you that he is a real hero who puts the needs of others before his own. Dale and Dr. Zarkov do what they can to help with Zarkov trying to help turn off the force field and Dale bides them time to attack. Glad to see Vultan and the Hawkmen turn from cowards to right doers as they join the forces to bring Ming’s evil rule to an end. Prince Barin wins the most as he gets not only Ming’s hot daughter Aura, but he also gets to rule the planet! Ming does not put up much of a fight as after he has the ships front needle impale him, he then would rather zap himself with his own ring than to fight Flash Gordon. I always wished Ming would have been a more badass villain like Darth Vader in Star Wars in this film and comic as an epic fight between Flash and him could have been a major movie moment of the 80’s. I think what really make this comic adaptation work is that it feels like a grand space adventure that you’re on with an iconic character that is allowing you to tag along on. The comic does a pretty good job of working the movie into comic pages but like most adaptations, some of it feels very rushed with elements missing. One par that is removed is the silly comedy moments of the film and in its place are more serious action moments. The cover is like the others, and Al Williamson’s art is classic and captures the feel of not only the movie but Flash Gordon altogether. If you’re a fan of this movie or even just enjoy a good Flash Gordon story, I would say check out these issues as well as the rest in this comic series as they are a fun read and can hold you over till Gordon’s next big screen film hits your local cinema. Below is a piece of art from Williamson that I think showcases everything that this comic has to offer, so take a look at it and enjoy.

So yeah, Flash Gordon,, the film from 1980 as well as the comic adaptation of it are great ways to be entertained, and those of you who didn’t like the humor of the movie should check out this comic adaptation as it’s all the action elements. I really do miss the old movie adaptations from companies like Marvel, DC, Whitman and Dell as they always seemed like having something a little extra on the movie or even TV Shows they were based on. But it’s now time to reveal what our Christmas Eve update will be about. We will be leaving the Mongo Kingdom and instead enter Kingston Falls as we take a look at “Gremlins” and the Golden Book comic adaptation based around this iconic movie that was one of my all time favorites in youth! So until then, be safe this winter, spend some time with your loved ones, read a comic or three and make sure to return on Christmas Eve to spend some time with Gizmo and all his friends. See you all then!