Tales From the Crypt Comic Back From the Dead!

Tales From the Crypt #1 cover by Jolyon Yates

I’m tempted to make a zombie joke here, since Tales From the Crypt is best known as a 1950s E.C. horror comic, one of the key exhibits in the notorious Congressional hearings about how “comics are making kids into juvenile delinquents!” You may have also heard of it due to the 1990s HBO TV series with a puppet Crypt Keeper.

Papercutz’s Super Genius imprint is now releasing an all-new bi-monthly comic book, inspired by the “spirit and style” of the original series, with the first issue out this week. It includes “classic EC horror host the Crypt-Keeper” with “plenty of shocks and thrills but also a lot of dark humor”.

Editor-in-Chief Jim Salicrup will be assisted by rotating guest editors. Publisher Terry Nantier said, “Each guest editor will bring their own interpretation of this classic franchise to the series as well as their own unique set of artists and writers. We think it’s a great way to work in many of the writers, artists, and editors that are, if you’ll forgive the phrase, dying to work on Tales From the Crypt. Eventually, when we collect these comics in to graphic novel format, each volume will feature the vision of a different guest editor.” (Each collection will be made up of three issues.)

“I’m very excited that Larry Hama has agreed to be our first guest editor,” added Salicrup. “Larry’s probably best know for being the guiding vision behind the GI Joe comics. But he’s written and edited everything from Savage Sword of Conan to Crazy magazine. And he started his career working as an assistant to legendary EC artist Wally Wood. So he’s definitely got a connection to the material.”

The first issue is available with four covers, as shown here.

Tales From the Crypt #1 cover by Jolyon Yates

Tales From the Crypt #1 cover by Dean Haspiel

Tales From the Crypt #1 cover by Bob Camp

Tales From the Crypt #1 cover by Russ Heath

Issues are priced at $3.99 for 32 color pages. The first issue contains three stories:

* “Die-Vestment”, written by Stefan Petrucha, art by Jolyon Yates
* “Zombie Bank”, written by David Anthony Kraft & Onrie Kompan, art by Miran Kim
* “The Werewolf of Wall Street”, written by Scott Lobdell, art by John McCrea

All are about taking revenge on rich fat cats, a timely topic, although I didn’t find any of the story twists particularly clever or surprising. But look! The table of contents is historically minded, with the comic’s original title (“The Crypt of Terror”) and that funky Leroy lettering. That seems to be the audience aimed for here, the nostalgia crowd already familiar with the brand name and the Old Witch and the Vault-Keeper, who also appear.

Tales From the Crypt table of contents



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