From Horror Movie To Horror Comic: Ape Man (1943)

Posted on September 23, 2024 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to Rotten Ink and to another From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update as these themed updates are so much fun to do and you readers really seem to enjoy them. For this update we will be taking a look at the 1943 B-Movie classic The Ape Man that stars horror icon Bela Lugosi as the title character and the Blood Scream Comics adaptation of the film that was done by Scott Scarborough who took the story of the film and added an Ohio touch to it as well as adds his own touches to make it more spooky as well as silly. Due to this comic being released by Blood Scream Comics I will not be giving the comic a star rating as that just feels gross to do as I am connected to Blood Scream and I am proud of everything we have released. I am a fan of the film Ape Man and really am looking forward to doing this update, so if you are ready, let’s dive into this From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update.

Let’s first take a look at Dr. James Brewster, the villain and killer of the film, and his ways of dealing death to his victims. Dr. James Brewster is a brilliant scientist who during a failed experiment turns himself into a half man and half ape being that is filled with anger and sorrow. Brewster has super human strength and can use this in order to squeeze and choke the life out of his victims, he can also use it to his advantage to keep them captive as well as at bay. His anger can fuel him into going into an almost berserk like rage and will cause him to rampage and during this time he can cause death as well as serious injury. His appearance as well can shock those that see him as his long jet back hair and crazed eyes as well a grunting noises and ape like walk is sure to strike terror in his victims. Dr. James Brewster also has the need for human spinal fluid in order to try and find a cure for his condition makes him dangerous, as he is desperate and will commit murder or have others do so for him in order to get it. Brewster also has a gorilla named Ape as a friend that he abuses as well as commands to do his bidding and that includes abducting and murder. Dr. James Brewster, while strong and brilliant, does have weaknesses that could lead to his death as while enhanced he is still a living breathing man creature. Brewster has temper tantrums that cause him to lash out and break things around him causing destruction and also make him very sloppy in protecting himself and this could lead to an accident or even him being killed by someone who is wise to his evil ways. Also his nasty temper and lack of respect for his gorilla sidekick Ape can lead to his death as if he pushes the primate to far the animal might just fight back and break his back or crush his neck. Dr. James Brewster can also be stopped by being shot, burned, stabbed, poisoned or crushed as well as could die from other natural things that kill humans. One of his biggest flaws that could lead to his destruction would be his slow decent into madness as it is mudding up his brain and causing him to truly become a savage animal. Say what you will but Dr. James Brewster aka The Ape Man is very dangerous and his rage and madness makes him a threat to anyone who gets in his way.

Now that we have chatted about Dr. James Brewster aka The Ape Man and his murderous and sinister ways of dealing death, I think we should now chat about the 1943 film he is from called The Ape Man. I would like to remind you readers that I will be taking the film’s plot from our friends at IMDB and after that I will write about the film’s production as well as my thoughts on the film. So with that, let’s avoid Ape and try and sneak into the lab of Brewster.

Ape Man (1943)

“Conducting weird scientific experiments, crazed Dr. James Brewster, aided by his colleague Dr. Randall, has managed to transform himself into a hairy, stooped-over ape-man. Desperately seeking a cure, Brewster believes only an injection of recently-drawn human spinal fluid will prove effective. With Randall refusing to help him, it falls to Brewster and his captive gorilla to find appropriate donors.”

The Horror boom of the 1930’s continued into the 1940’s and during this time many smaller film producers as well as production companies got into the act of making spooky films to fill the theaters as movie goers seemed not to be able to get enough. Monogram Pictures was one of these companies and along with the producers Sam Katzman, Jack Dietz and Barney Sarecky they came up with the idea for a sci-fi horror film that would be called “The Gorilla Strikes” and would later have a title change to “The Ape Man”. The film’s script was written by Barney A. Sarecky and was based on the Karl Brown story “They Creep In The Dark” and they hired on William Beaudine to direct as he was a veteran of cinema as he had been making movies snce the 1920’s! When casting the film they brought in such names as Louise Currie, Wallace Ford, Henry Hall, Emil Van Horn, Minerva Urecal and the big star for the film was Bela Lugosi who would play Dr. James Brewster, the film’s main villain. At this time Lugosi was still working for Universal from time to time and was still a big name at the box office for Horror and that is why the indie companies tried to lock him in for these roles. The film began filming on December 18, 1942 and was filmed in only 15 days and was your typical fast paced indie production for that era. The film would be released in theaters on March 5, 1943 and was met with mixed reviews from critics and fans. The film was released alongside such other films as Son Of Dracula, The Mad Ghoul, The Return Of The Vampire, I Walked With A Zombie, Frankenstein Meets The Wolfman, Dead Men Walk and Phantom Of The Opera among others in 1943. The film would become a cult classic over the years once it was released on home media and new viewers discovered this fun and cheesy classic that has Bela Lugosi as a half man and half ape creature. The film would have a sequel in 1944 with “The Return Of The Ape Man” that was a very loose sequel and Bela Lugosi returns this time as Professor Dexter and the Ape Man is a Caveman. The film also starred John Carradine, George Zucco and Judith Gibson.

The Ape Man is one of those films that took me many years to track down and see as I had always read about it as I was a big fan of Bela Lugosi and had seen many of his films thanks to VHS releases as well as being aired on TV when I was a youth. But The Ape Man was one that seemed to not be carried at any of the rental stores my family had a card to and TV just seemed not to air it. But I finally got to see it when I was a teenager when I found a copy of the film on DVD released by Alpha Video at one of the local malls as my friend Josh Weinberg and I were on the prowl to find some classic Horror Films to watch while we scarfed down some fast food and talked about some shot on video movie ideas we had. And during that trip Josh bought the film “The Mad Monster” starring Glenn Strange and I have to say this made for a great double feature! When watching The Ape Man I was glued to it as I found it to be a very delightful cheesy z-grade film that showcased Lugosi doing what he does best and that was creep around all scary like and spook the viewers with his masterful performance. His appearance as The Ape Man was great as they gave Lugosi long black hair on his head, face and hands and the look of madness in his eyes made for some classic scares. After watching the film Josh and I even toyed with the idea of making a shot on video sequel to the film, that sadly we never did make, but man I wish we would have done that one as I am sure that it would have been a cheesy watch just like the original…and who knows maybe one day I will get the old Independent B Movie and Bloodline Video crews back together and make Ape Man 3 as I am sure the awesome company SOV Horror would love to release it! I feel that many of the Z-Grade Horror Films that Bela Lugosi made in the 40’s and 50’s are often over looked and tossed aside for being Golden Turkeys but I have to say many of these films are loads of fun. The Corpse Vanishes, Bride Of The Monster, Voodoo Man, The Black Sheep and Devil Bat are all great and entertaining films in their own right. In fact, if you have not seen Devil Bat make sure to check it out as it’s an over the top film that Lugosi shines in. But back to The Ape Man, I also have to point out that I really like the film’s score music done by Edward J. Kay as the opening them to the film is very exciting sounding and draws you in. I also have to say that actress Louise Currie who plays photographer Billie Mason is stunning and had worked with Bela Lugosi as well in 1944 in the film Voodoo Man. If you have not seen The Ape Man and love the films of Lugosi or just like 1940’s sci-fi horror, make sure to give this a watch as you can find the film on DVD as well as can watch it even on YouTube.

The Ape Man is truly a forgotten gem that blends horror, sci-fi, romance and even comedy together and was a fun film to watch Bela Lugosi act like an ape in as he would shuffle around the sets. And now that we have talked about the film as well as the main monster of it Dr. James Brewster, we are now at the part of this update that we will be taking a look at the comic book that is based on it! And I would like to thank Scott Scarborough for creating this comic for Blood Scream Comics and making this update possible. I would like to also remind you that due to this comic being released by Blood Scream Comics and by connection to this publisher I will not be giving this comic a star rating as that just seems very silly. So if you are ready, let’s head to the lab of Dr. James Brewster and see what kind of Ohio twist Scott put into this tale of classic terror. Oh and remember this review will have spoilers so read on if that does not bother you.

Ape Man # 1
Released in 2021 Cover Price $3.99 Blood Scream # 1 of 1

Dr. James Brewster is locked in a cage in his lab in Ohio, as he was trying to find a cure for polio as he had been diagnosed with the disease but instead of finding a cure has turned himself into a monster that is part man and part ape as he has to inject himself with the spinal fluid of apes in order to live. Dr. George Randall has called for Agatha Brewster, the sister of James who is also a scientist that is working in Africa, and the three are trying to find a cure. When there Agatha also meets the gorilla sidekick and friend of James named Ape who is very loyal as unknown to all James has been injecting Ape with human brain fluids to make him smarter as the two have plans to take over the world. Outside the Brewster estate, FBI Agent Richards as well as photographer Billie are watching as a newspaper reporter is peeking in the windows and this leads to Ape going outside and removing the head of the reporter! And Agent Richards calls his boss J. Edger Hoover for permission to investigate the Brewster Home as he and Billie saw Ape and The Ape Man. That night Brewster and Ape go after Wilber Wright at his home but things go wrong when FBI Agents bust in and wound Ape, the agents are both killed and Wilber escapes. But as Brewster and Ape are returning hope they run across Agent Richards and Billie and after Ape beats Richards bloody Brewster takes Billie to his lab as he wants to make her is bride and the mother of what will bring in the new race of super apes! Once at the lab Brewster is using his experiments on Billie and George tries to stop him only to have his neck slit, more FBI Agents also rush in and end up killing Ape with bullets as well as electrocuting him…as Brewster tries to get away with Billie he is as well shot and as he is dying he laughs as he knows that this is far from over as Billie is now half ape like he! And it was Agatha Brewster who had tipped off the FBI all along.

This is such a fun and creative take on the 1943 film Ape Man as when you read this issue it comes off more like an alternative universe version of what Dr. James Brewster could have been if he was in Ohio and working for the government to find a cure for polio when he was turned into The Ape Man. The new twists and turns for the story are also lots of fun as we get to see Ape Man and Ape be more of friends who have an idea to make Earth a true to life Planet Of The Apes. We get cameos from such historic figures as J. Edger Hoover and Wilber Wright, who of course is one half of the Wright Brothers who invented flight as we know it. Scott, the madman behind this comic, also takes away the humor and the newspaper reporter hero is traded in for FBI Agents and he adds in a good amount of blood and gore to make horror comic readers very happy. Dr. James Brewster is a madman who has turned himself into a Ape Man and instead of wanting to cure himself would rather stay this way and wants to make Apes smarter in order to run the world, he also enjoys killing and wants to use the fluids he takes from his victims to make his friend Ape smarter. Dr. Brewster is both sinister and smart and all signs of having human feelings are gone as he is truly a monster. Ape is Brewster’s gorilla sidekick and best friend who is super strong, smart and also very brutal as he takes human life with ease and will also die for his friend in order to protect him. Agatha and George are fitting parts who both want to help Brewster find a “cure” but also want to try and stop his killing ways to achieve it. The FBI Agents are brave and charge in to the rescue as the local cops are goofs and botch the capture of The Ape Man as the President wanted him taken alive, but instead he is shot and killed. In this comic as well it’s shown that Dr. Brewster did not start with apes but instead with wolves and one of his past assistants was injected with wolf spinal fluid and was turned into a weird wolf life creature that escaped into the woods, a very cool touch as I like the idea that Brewster tried other animals before the Gorilla and this makes him some what of a Dr. Moreau type mad scientist as we as a Dr. Jekyll as Brewster’s experiment gone wrong turned him into a cruel monster as well. The comic has two different covers both showcasing Ape Man as well as Ape and both are very cool and eye catching for fans of Indie Horror Comics. Scott Scarborough’s interior artwork is really great stuff and I love the way he draws both Ape Man and Ape and his gore is over the top and cartoonish that gives it a charm all of its own and for me that is awesome. Over all The Ape Man from Blood Scream Comics is truly an experience of it’s own and while elements of the film and characters are there it’s a whole new experience that will truly delight readers. Check out the artwork below to see the style used by Scott in this issue.

The Ape Man is a great comic by Scott Scarborough who brings the terror feel of the film more to the front and plays more on the sci-fi horror elements for his comic and that is one of the great skills that Scott as a creator has and that is he can bring out the scary elements but they truly have that b-movie feel that makes them very entertaining reads. And for those who are wondering, you can get a copy of Ape Man # 1 from HERE while supplies last and make sure to check out some of Scott’s other work that includes The Wolf Hunter # 1, The Cool Ghoul # 0 and Captain Scurvy # 1 with that last two being based on TV Horror Hosts and the first being the classic Shot On Video film by director Matt Hoffman. And with that this update has come to an end and before we head our separate ways, I would like to let you know that our next update will continue our countdown to Halloween 2024 and will keep us in the groove of another From Horror Movie To Horror Comic update as we look at Return Of The Living Dead! So until next time, read a horror comic or three, watch a classic horror film or two and as always support your local Horror Host! See you next update as we party with the living dead!

The Undead Files: Original The Walking Dead

Posted on February 14, 2018 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to another Undead File here at Rotten Ink. For this update we are going to dive into a comic series that shares a name with one of the world’s most popular zombie horror comics turned highly rated TV Shows ever made, The Walking Dead! Yes, back in the late 1980’s, a comic series was unleashed at comic shops from Aircel Comics that was about the living battling the dead and was a true independent black and white horror comic! I am sure many of you readers are wondering if this series helped inspire the current series, and once I give these issues a read, I will be able to answer that question. So get your zombie repellent ready as it’s time for us to once more walk among the dead as we truly take a deep look at The Walking Dead.

Before we get to deep into the world of the living dead, I want to share a fun event. On January 20, 2018 another Horror Movie Marathon took place as both Juliet and I wanted a day of sitting back and relaxing while watching the horrors of the small screen since the holidays were over and winter was still with us. So I took off that Saturday, and we stocked up on snack food as well as breakfast casserole and made chicken wings for dinner. We started our marathon at 7am with “Teenage Monster,” a horror mixed with western film from 1957 that has a mother whose son is turned into a monster who kills in anger and she must protect his secret. The shot on video film “Death Nurse 2” was next up and followed Nurse Edith and Doctor Gordon once more killing their patients to collect free money from the government for their care. The sleazy America giallo film “The Rain Killer” was next and was about a killer who killed recovering drug addict women on rainy nights. This film has stared Maria Ford in a tiny role. The spooky Universal film “The Old Dark House” was our fourth film and is about travelers on a stormy night having to stay with an odd family in their mansion in order to find safety. “The Return Of The Ape Man” was next and is about a scientist who found a way to return life to people who have been frozen and makes the mistake of bringing back a caveman. This film stars the great Bela Lugosi! “Amityville: The Awakening,” the newest film in the Amityville series, was next on tap and follows a family that move into the house. Things get weird when the brother, who is brain dead, suddenly starts to get better! The 1986 cheesy horror film “Spookies” was next and is about a group of friends who make the mistake of entering the abandon home of a crazed warlock and his creepy monster friends. The next horror film to try and scare us was “Puppet Master Axis Termination,” the newest film in the Full Moon Entertainment series that follows the Puppets and their human friends trying to put a stop to the Nazi’s and their evil puppets. The slasher film “Silo Killer” was next and was about friends on a desert camping trip being stalked and killed by a masked killer. “Metalface,” a modern slasher film with a snuff film twist was next to try and scare us. The newest film in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre series “Leatherface” was next and followed a teenage Leatherface and fellow inmates at a youth mental asylum escaping on a quest to get home. We next watched the 1989 slasher film “Rush Week” about a masked killer on the loose at a college that is targeting young female coeds. And the final film of our main day of the Horror Movie Marathon was the short film “Klagger” about an evil undead killer in an abandon factory stalking a worker who is their to get the building ready to sale.

This was once more a great time that I had with my gal Juliet watching Horror Movies in one of my favorite past times, The Horror Movie Marathon. We had some great snack food like chips, hummus and carrots and for meals we had Breakfast Casserole and Chicken Wings! This time around it was hard for both Juliet and I to choose our best films but was super easy to pick the worst film of the day as we both agreed that Silo Killer was the Golden Turkey of the day as it was filled with unlikable characters, terrible dialogue, lame kills, over use of a terrible yellow filter and was too long and boring. The only good highlights of the film was that the killer looked cool and it had lots of attractive naked women. As for the best films of the day, my order went like this: # 1 Old Dark House – this was hands down the best film of the day and is a great Universal film that is filled with great characters, creepy atmosphere and kept me glued to the screen every second. Plus you can’t go wrong with Boris Karloff playing a disfigured mute drunk butler! # 2 Amityville The Awakening – I picked this film as I found it to be a solid Amityville movie with a likable lead character plus is packed in lots of great jump scares, and it’s also cool to see the Haunted House on Ocean Avenue in a Horror Movie. To choose my # 3, it was very hard as I enjoyed many of the films, but I decided to go with Leatherface as it was great to see a new Texas Chainsaw movie. While the middle of the film felt like a Rob Zombie Devil’s Reject knock off, the opening and end of the film felt like a gritty Chainsaw sequel. I do want to say that Metalface and Puppet Master Axis Termination almost made the spot over Leatherface! Juliet’s top 3 films are a little different as she selected for her #1 Old Dark House, #2 Metalface and #3 Spookies! She and I both also agreed that Klagger was a fantastic short film, and we both can’t wait to see the full-length movie when it’s released. So once done for the night Juliet and I chatted about the movies and prepared for the next day’s after party films! As Juliet went to bed, I decided to stay up a little longer and watched the first Killjoy movie before counting chainsaws myself.

For the After Party, we decided to watch six more films. We started it at 10am with our first film being the newest Horror Flick from my pal Henrique Couto called “Devil’s Trail” about TV Show hosts going the Pine Barrens in New Jersey and come across witches and what could be The Jersey Devil! The second fright flick was “Bloody Drama” that as a smile face masked killer stalking a group of women who are having a pool party. “Day Of The Reaper” the 1984 Super-8 slasher film from Tim Ritter was our third movie and had The Reaper killing and eating people that got in his way. The fourth film was “Camp Blood 7: It Kills” and had the Camp Blood Clown Killer once more stalking and killing a group of friends silly enough to enter his killing grounds. “The Houses October Built 2” was up next and has the group of haunted house thrill seekers back at it again and once more run into and are stalked by The Blue Skeleton extreme group. And the final film of the night was to Todd Sheets film “Bonehill Road” that is about a mother and daughter who get stranded on a back road that is swarmed with werewolves!

This after party was lots of fun, and Juliet and I had a great time watching these films and talking about them after. In fact we enjoyed all of them so it was hard for us to pick our Golden Turkey of the day! But we both had to choose, so I picked Day Of The Reaper as my Turkey, and this film is by no means terrible, it was just the weakest of the lot and was clearly never meant to be a blockbuster horror film. Juliet picked Bloody Drama, and she wanted to stress that it is not a terrible film either, she just felt it was the weakest one on the day’s line up. My # 1 film of the day was The Houses October Built 2 as I found it to be a great sneak peek into haunted attractions and had some great creepy moments plus I dig the character Porcelain. # 2 hands down was Bonehill Road, an amazing werewolf film that had practical effects, great transformations and likable characters…not to mention it has a great plot that also takes place that involves a creepy dude who “loves” women! And my # 3 spot goes to Camp Blood 7: It Kills as it was a solid sequel to the cheesy franchise that had cool kills and along with part 6 helped wash the taste out of my mouth of parts 4-5. Juliet’s picks went as follows #1 The Houses October Built, #2 Bonehill Road and #3 Devil’s Trail! So comes to an end another Horror Movie Marathon that makes me very much look forward to the next! I also want to thank every director, actor, producer, musician and crewmember that made these movies that I got to watch as no matter how great or terrible the movie is, you are doing your part to keep Horror Movies alive for viewers.

Oh I am sure you want to know what master of murder had the top kills from this two day Marathon While many racked up a body count, it was The Camp Blood Clown Masked Killer who took the Golden Massacre Award home with his 11 kills that he won by slashing and stabbing his victims! So here is to you Clown Masked Killer from Camp Blood 7 as your bloodletting was enjoyable and made the Horror Movie Marathon oh so much bloodier.

Back in the early 2000’s while Independent B Movie was hitting its second wind with films like Who Keeps Feeding Grandpa, Razor and Farmer Joe coming out on VHS, we had a slew of films in all stages of production. One that I was working on was to be an epic zombie film that I called “Stairway To Heaven,” and it was going to be the biggest budgeted and goriest film I ever made! The film was one that I had lots of faith in and spent lots of late nights writing the script on my old computer in Independent B Movie Studios while drinking down sodas and pacing the floor with ideas of the plot and kills pouring out of my brain and onto the screen of the glowing monitor. This zombie opus was going to be my shot on video masterpiece, and I had all the faith in it and spent my days off work scouting locations. While all this was going on, we even had students at Fairmont High School design and print us out T-Shirts for our films, and one of the films we choose was Stairway To Heaven and many of the I.B.M family would wear it to help build buzz for this film. I would spend many nights hanging out with my then best friend Andrea Seay and tell her about the ideas for the film, and she was loving it as were other friends like Josh Weinberg, Jason Gilmore and Dave Wean who I would tell about this undead flick. I also had my friend Patrick Neeley willing to score the film that would have also had an official soundtrack CD release that would have been released at the same time as the film on VHS. While I was placing the final touches on the script, I took the old VHS camcorder out to cemeteries at night and filmed around as test footage as well as for possible trailer usage. I even began casting the film with such names as Matt Hoffman, Zach Prater, Sarah Yates, Josh Weinberg, Andy Copp, Rosetta Workman and many others onboard, and my two main leads were to be played by Andrea and a young lady that worked at Blockbuster Video I knew named Leah and she was nice enough to go around and do a photo shoot in a graveyard so that I could promote the movie in one of our many email updates we sent to friends and fans. The buzz around this film was super thick and many people kept asking about its production as I continued to work on the script and raising the budget.

The film’s plot was to follow multiple people in a small town during the start of a massive zombie outbreak, one was a pregnant woman who was alone at home another was a couple who’s car broke down on the out skirts of town plus I throw in a cheerleader, a homeless vet, a preacher and random town folks and this was the cast of characters who had to survive the undead. The gore effects was going to be done by Andy Copp and myself and was going to be over the top with boobs, blood guts and gore and was very much in the same nature of the Italian Zombie films complete with gut munching and baby eating as the film’s most over the top scene had zombies ripping the fetus out of a woman and eating it as well as her as she had to watch her child die as she herself was being murdered. And just when production of this film was about to start, I was silly enough to allow others in Independent B Movie to talk me out of filming it when I wanted as they wanted to move onto Wolf Hunter 2, Long Dead Winter as well as Suicide 3 and Two Seconds Too Late and I agreed as I figured these films would be better for the group, and not shockingly, most of them during this time were filmed and never finished as the directors of those films dragged feet and lost interest in the direction of their films were going. Sadly too much time has past and this shot on video zombie epic is now in the massive pile of scripts and ideas that Independent B Movie nor Bloodline Video ever got to film, and who knows maybe if I could track down the original script maybe one day it will turn into a comic book via Blood Scream Comics. Below are some pictures that I took on a snowy winter day early this year as well as a pic of Leah as her character. Enjoy this look into a film that could have been if I would have only went with my gut and not what others wanted.

So imagine you’re outside taking a hike along a path that is near a creek, the sounds of the water is echoing and you are having a great time just soaking up nature and breathing in the fresh air. You’re a couple of miles away from your car and to avoid interruption you even left your cellphone in the trunk. But while walking you notice a strange man in a distance he is stumbling around and at first you think he might just be drunk but you soon see that his face is rotten and that he is not alive but the walking dead as you turn to run back to your car you soon are faced with a horde of zombies that have infected the woods and you have no hope of escaping! This scenario is one of many if a true Zombie Apocalypse were to break out that you could find yourself in, and the main questions that you would have to ask yourself is would you be ready for the living dead if they were to rise today? I mean many of us think we would be ready as we have watched movies and TV shows about zombies and have read novels and comics about them…but would what we read really help us to survive? Look around your house, apartment, car or place of work and think is this place safe if the zombies were to rise today? Would you be able to secure the doors and windows from the hordes of the dead? Right as you read this who is at your current location with you, would they be able to help you survive a zombie attack? Just wanted to take this part just to make you think about the possibility of a zombie attack and if you think you could survive it. No matter what we say or how we feel about it, I really don’t think any of us would truly be ready for the undead.

So the world of video games much like the world of cinema is a graveyard wasteland of zombie titles that have flooded the market. Some are fantastic and some are terrible, and I am about to play one that many say is the latter and has been the punching bag for reviewers as being one of the worst first person zombie shooters ever made…that game is called Dead Alliancem and I am about to play it for the PS4! The plot is simple to this mostly multiplayer game and has you and fellow survivors fighting each other in a wasteland of zombies that you can use as allies when using the right weapon. The game is mostly a run of the mill shooter that adds the thrill of zombies to the mix and sadly just falls a little short when it comes to being entertaining. Now the game is by no means bottom of the barrel, but it’s repetitive and very limited in area maps and even weapons and when playing the single player mode it even becomes more simple and lackluster. The game is getting trashed by gamers and has not sold well for parent company Maximum Games. While this game is below average, it still was a fun time waster to kill zombies and shoot other players.

So now that the dead are all around us and we have even took a few moments to chat about a Horror Movie Marathon, let’s see if this original Walking Dead inspired the modern Image Comic Walking Dead series. It’s crazy to think that in my youth I never did pick up an issue of this series or if I did, it must not have made that big of an impression on me as I don’t remember it. I want to thank Game Swap Kettering, Ebay, Amazon and Lone Star Comics for having these issues in stock for me to cover for this Undead Files update as these were pretty hard to track down. I also want to remind you all 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 let’s fright our way through the zombie horde and hope that Aircel delivers a scary and well done zombie comic that could possibly be the inspiration for thee Walking Dead.

The Walking Dead # 1 ***
Released in 1989 Cover Price $2.25 Aircel Comics #1 of 4

In space two breed of aliens are at war with each other and when one of them crash lands on Earth while carrying a gas that reanimates the dead, all hell breaks loose as the dead start to rise from the cemeteries, morgues and funeral homes all hungry for human flesh. While some zombies are mindless roaming flesh eaters some are more than that as they also retain their memories and know how to talk and use tools and none are worse than the undead gang called The Kidz From Hell who slaughter their own kind and eat fresh alive victims. They are lead by Jak Krak who has them shooting guns and sharpening their teeth all in the hopes to capture and kill their “meat”, and after a kill and feast the gang of zombies is attacked by ex-cop Joe Barker who kills many of their members before rushing back to his home base were he is greeted by Keith but yelled at by Max and Kris who are mad he went out alone. Our issue ends with Joe telling them he will not stop until he kills Jak and The Kidz From Hell once and for all.

In this story the zombie outbreak is started by a crashed U.F.O that releases gas that makes the dead walk again. This is origin seems like a mix between “Night Of The Living Dead” that states that the outbreak could have been started by a down satellite falling from space with radiation on it and “Return Of The Living Dead” that has it starting from a gas that sweeps around and gets into our air. The plot of this issue is to clearly set up how the outbreak started and mixed in with the different styles of zombies as well as introduces us to the evil Kidz From Hell zombie gang plus their enemy Joe Barker who is our comic’s hero. Joe Barker is a man who is angry at what the world has become as the dead have out numbered the living, he is also clearly brave as he takes on the living dead all by himself! So while all we really know about Joe is that he is fearless and an ex-officer of the law I for one like him and can’t wait to see what he does next to try and kill the undead. The Kidz From Hell are street talking, gun shooting, razor sharped teethed, flesh eating evil zombies who enjoy killing and have no respect for the living or the dead! Jak Krak the gang leader is the most evil of them all and seems like he will not rest until he kills Joe and helps the dead fully take over the Earth. One odd thing about The Kidz From Hell is that while they are dead it seems as if they also still do drugs or so one of them claims after they eat a poor man alive. I also want to see who Max, Keith and Kris are as I wonder if they are also one time cops or just survivors who have created a safe place for the living, I guess only future issue will hold those answers. The comic is somewhat bloody and gore filled, but not even in the same ballpark as The Dead from Arrow Comics with the most brutal kill being a dead husband biting the face off of his widow who is mourning at his casket. The black and white art as well as the story is done by Jim Somerville and is well done with his zombies looking like a mix of classic with punk rock. The Cover is also pretty well done and eye catching as it features a zombie eating the brains out of a skull! This far this original series and the Image Walking Dead series don’t share too much besides zombies and a group of survivors living together and the name. So let’s shuffle our way to issue # 2 and see if Joe can kill even more of the undead punks.

The Walking Dead # 2 **1/2
Released in 1989 Cover Price $2.25 Aircel Comics #2 of 4

Peter is the President of the United States, and he gives a state of the Union address that the American people need to stay strong during this terrible zombie crisis and hints to even using nuclear bombs as the last resort. But while the President is safe behind think concrete walls guarded by armed solider is poor wife is very sick and near death’s door. Meanwhile back at the base of Joe Barker and his friends they breakdown the possibility of the government dropping nuclear bombs in order to kill zombies, when they are attacked by The Kidz From Hell who attack hard and blood thirsty, in other words they want to end the feud now! Joe and friend fight back they best the can but are out gunned and must flee the base or lose their lives, the issue being for them is the wheelchair bound Max gets trapped and they must leave him behind in order for Joe, Kris and Keith to escape the gun firing undead. As they leave and save their own skins it’s Joe who says they are going back for Max and will bring him home alive or dead, as he doesn’t want the zombies to have him either way.

The second issue in this series loses some steam as many pages are taken up with one art panel per said page showing that they were just killing pages to reach their count. The plot has the President trying to build up the spirit of the American people during the zombie outbreak as Joe Barker and his survival group is under attack by the undead Kidz From Hell who want revenge from the attack on them from issue 1. Joe Barker in the issue is still tough as nails but also is smart and knows when to run when the odds are not in his favor. I think one of the cool things about Joe is also the fact he has the no man left behind attitude and wants to go back for their friend who was left at the base during the attack. Max, Kris, Keith and the rest of the survivors as well do what they can and try with all their might to defend their base but figure out that real fast they are no match for the gun shooting zombies. I feel for Max as that poor guy is left to fend for himself once he and his wheelchair get caught in some rubble. The Kidz From Hell and their leader Jak Krak are cold-blooded killers and slaughter any living person that comes in their way. President Peter is a wild card as he has the power to blow up the world and might do so if he loses his sick wife to the zombie curse. While this is a good issue it really is just an action issue with some small plot thrown in to move the story along, and while that’s not a bad thing it still makes the issue not as good as the first that offered a nice build up. The cover is ok but reminds me more of a cheesy late 80’s action comic than a horror comic and the art is once more done by Jim Somerville and is fitting for this undead romp comic. Over all his is a solid middle of the road comic that should be checked out if you enjoyed the first issue.

The Walking Dead # 3 **
Released in 1989 Cover Price $2.25 Aircel Comics #3 of 4

Joe, Keith and Kris go back to their old base with the hopes of saving Max but all they find instead is a note from Jak Krak warning them if they want to see Max again they will meet The Kidz From Hell at the playground! When they get there, they find Max dead crucified with his feet cut off and his eyeballs missing, as Joe breaks down from the loss of his friend a zombie attacks Keith with a knife and kills him as Kris fights back it takes Joe a moment to snap to and they pair enter a building that’s clearly a trap being set. While inside Kris as well is stabbed and Joe is knocked back and as he is about to get up and fight the issue ends.

This third issue seems as if they ran out of ideas as again lots of splash pages and even a back up story to boot fill out this issue padding it out so they can squeeze out one more issue and get zombie fans to spend another $2.25. The brief story is this Joe and crew go to get Max who has been taken to another location, once there it’s a trap and Keith and I would guess Kris are killed easy and Joe now stands alone to face the zombie gang. Oh and throw in a quick small part about the President’s wife now being a zombie. Yeah, it’s that deep of a plot in this issue. Joe shows he has a soft side as he is clearly shaken after the death of his friend Max, but it’s also clear by the end of the issue he is going to stomp some zombie butt. Keith and Kris are just in the issue to be lined up and slaughtered, but only after the shoot some slow moving zombies with machine guns. Jak Krak and The Kidz From Hell are as flesh hungry as ever as they eat the eyes of Max and taunt his friends afterwards. The slow Zombies make an appearance but are just being mowed down at the start of the issue by our heroes. President Peter is pretty much wasted and offers nothing besides the fact his wife is now dead and a zombie that he keeps in a cell. The cover looks great and eye catching for zombie fans, but the art inside done by Jim Somerville is hit and miss as at the start it looks as sloppy as the plot of this issue but as it goes on it looks a lot better. Over all this is the weakest issue in the series this far and while it does have blood, guts and gore it seems so rushed it has no real impact and this while entertaining was a major letdown and I hope the final issue is not this sloppy and brings its A Game to end the series right.

The Walking Dead # 4 *1/2
Released in 1989 Cover Price $2.25 Aircel Comics #4 of 4

Joe is bleeding pretty bad as Jak Krak and what’s left of the Kidz From Hell come circling around, Jak offers Joe a choice to join them as a zombie gang member or to become their dinner! Joe would rather be dinner and just when Jak is about to shoot him Kris with what little life she has left fires her gun and blows Jak’s hand off and then she kills some more Gang Members before herself being blown away. With only Joe and Jak left the pair square off and Joe is armed with an ax and Jak has a switchblade knife! Joe goes crazy with the ax and chops Jak up into pieces and after killing his enemy decides that he himself must die and kills himself with a gunshot to the head.

Splash Page special is what this issue is and that makes me really mad is every page is a single panel with many pages also being one single image filling two pages….this could have been wrapped up with the third issue if they would have dropped the backup story, oh speaking of backup story, this issue has one as well! This issue’s plot is just the showdown between hero Joe Barker and zombie gang leader Jak Krak and what leads to Joe winning and killing himself. This final issue offers a true ending to the series as for some reason they take the route of Joe just ending his own life instead of fighting the fight to take back the world and to be honest he takes down Jak Krak pretty easy and makes me wonder why didn’t the survivors just attack The Kidz From Hell from the start as the whole gang is pretty much wiped out by three people! The Zombie Gang started out as a major threat and for all accounts scary but by the end they seemed like punching bags lined up to be knocked down. Joe Barker was a interesting character to start off but by this issue he becomes nothing more than a man waiting for death who had lead all his friends to the slaughter only to avenge them and then kill himself, the whole suicide thing just didn’t feel right for this character. Kris, Keith and Max in this series once more started off as good side characters but in the end just turned into one sided humans set up to be killed with no personalities shining through. Remember President Peter well writer Jim Somerville didn’t as his storyline goes nowhere and he is not seen at all in this issue and the fact he wants to nuke the world if the zombie outbreak is not under control never comes back up nor does the fact his wife is now a zombie, the character could have had just that character but bad writing and the lack of a follow through story makes him yet another tossed to the side character. The slow Zombies are just around when they need the body count to rise as they only come into play after the first issue to be shot by the two feuding sides. The final issue has lots of blood gunshots and also has some gore when Joe kills Jak with an ax but by this point I was so disappointed with this comic series it took the fun out of what should have been an epic battle and moment. The thing about this zombie series is that it started out really good and the story was drawing me in and wanting me to read more and more but by the end of the second issue on the series took a nose dive as it was clear Jim Somerville had no real idea on where the story was going and just knew he had to fill four issues worth of something. The fact that side stories go nowhere, the art gets more and more sloppy, he does cheap splash pages to pad out the issues makes me not to not track down his other work! The only major plus I can say about this issue is the cover is pretty cool and reminds me of a serial killer comic. For those who think Tony Moore and Robert Kirkman might have been inspired by this comic series when they made their Walking Dead series, I am sure the only thing they took away from this series is what not to do in a zombie comic series! Started out with a big bang but ended on a whisper this could have been the biggest letdown in comics I have read this year. Below is some artwork from this four issue mini series, while I would not say that fans of Independent Horror Comics shouldn’t check this out I would say don’t get your hopes up for an epic zombie bloodbath with a good story.

But wait, there is more Walking Dead from Aircel and Jim Somerville as in 1990 they released “Walking Dead Zombie Special” and I am hoping that this one can redeemed the series by ending with a solid and good issue…here is hoping that they pull it off.

The Walking Dead: Zombie Special # 1 **
Released in 1990 Cover Price $2.25 Aircel Comics #1 of 1

Scav is a young boy in a town alone who acts as the law as he imagines himself as a western sheriff and the zombies in his mind are the outlaws! Billy and his motorcycle gang enter the small town looking for a place to stay for the night, this was a bad decision as Scav thinks that Billy is Billy The Kid! One by one the bikers are shot and killed by Scav until only Billy is left and with his trusty gun Scav takes out the biker and the young man goes back to living in his fantasy world of read comics and pretending this zombie infested world is the old west. The second story follows the fall into madness from a Preacher who by the end rises the dead from the church cemetery.

Well I want to say that this Zombie Special issue has some zombies but not a lot and none of them are seen eating people and only once is it implied. The fist story is the best of the two as the second story is clearly just a backup story to pad out the page count. What works in the first is the fact its from the point of view of a young kid who has lost all his loved ones and his sanity in the zombie crisis and has turned his terrible situation into a fantasy world that mirrors the western comic books he reads. Scav is a cool character who is handy with a gun and machete and has lost touch so much that he can not tell the difference between human and zombie. Biker Billy and his gang seem like nomads who just stopped in the wrong place at the wrong time and are out gunned and outsmarted by the towns “Law”. The second story is well drawn at the last two pages but is pretty much a waste. Jim Somerville once more did the art and it’s pretty good, his story telling in this special issue is average and the cover is cool and very miss leading as nothing like that is in the comic. Not amazing but good is the best way to describe this final issue in the original Walking Dead series. Here is some artwork from this issue.

So as you can see this series is not all that great, while it is entertaining and really does capture a great late 80’s independent horror comic mood it’s clear as day that they creators just ran out of ideas and needed to fill four issues and a special. The bottom line did the Image Walking Dead take anything from this comic series besides it’s name…well maybe a tiny amount, but Robert Kirkman and his guys have done a way better job with making the name into a quality horror comic book series. And now that all the living dead have returned to their graves I think it’s time to wrap up with update. But while I closed this Undead File or next update will be a “From Horror Movie To Horror Comic” update and I will be talking about Killdozer! So until next time make sure to read a horror comic or three, visit a graveyard or two and as always support your local Horror Host! Be ready to come face to blade with Killdozer as this one will be a fun update for sure!