Click the picture to read the strip…

It is said that if Bloody Mary is summoned, she would proceed to kill the summoner in an extremely violent way, such as ripping the face off, scratching the eyes out, cutting the head off, driving them insane, dragging them into the mirror with her or causing serious injury or death. Alternatively, if she doesn’t kill the one who summoned her then she will haunt them for the rest of their life.

While this urban myth is just a bit of fun, and ideal for proving how brave you are in front of college girls wearing nothing but tight t-shirts and knickers, there lurks a small element of truth in the story! Stare in to a mirror, and after a short time, you will begin to see an unfamilar face staring back. Go on try it. I dare you!

A recent report from the Department of Psychology at the University of Urbino has just published a paper on this optical illusion. Giovanni B Caputo’s Strange-face-in-the-mirror illusion study asked 50 unsuspecting volunteers to stare in to a mirror for 10 minutes. When questioned after many of the test subjects reported seeing…

huge deformations of one’s own face (reported by 66% of the fifty participants); a parent’s face with traits changed (18%), of whom 8% were still alive and 10% were deceased; an unknown person (28%); an archetypal face, such as that of an old woman, a child, or a portrait of an ancestor (28%); an animal face such as that of a cat, pig, or lion (18%); fantastical and monstrous beings (48%).

However, the paper also found:

…the frequent apparition of fantastical and monstrous beings, and of animal faces cannot, in our opinion, be explained by any actual theory of face processing. Neither constructive approaches nor top down accounts seem to provide adequate explanations.

it continues…

The participants reported that apparition of new faces in the mirror caused sensations of otherness when the new face appeared to be that of another, unknown person or strange `other’ looking at him/her from within or beyond the mirror. All fifty participants experienced some form of this dissociative identity effect.

Spooky, huh?

Did you try it yourself? If you did, you will likely have experienced one of the strange visions listed above. This, sadly, has nothing to do with the supernatural. Caputo attributes these visions as a variation on something known as the Troxler Effect. Discovered by Ignaz Paul Vital Troxler, back in 1804, it is part of the general principle in sensory systems that an unvarying stimulus soon disappears from our awareness. In otherwords, if you stare at something for long enough, your brain gets bored and begins to fill in the information for you. Have a look at the image below or visit Moillusions for more optical illusions.

Regardless of the cause, these illusions can be pretty creepy. If you want to give yourself a scare this Halloween, you can try it out and see for yourself. The best method is to use a 25 watt incandescent light, placed behind you so that you can’t see the light directly or it’s reflection, and five to ten minutes of staring at yourself in the mirror (from about 1.5 – 2 feet away). The low-level lighting that makes colour perception difficult and should increase the likelyhood of a trippy visual.

Bloody Mary Recipe
A quick recipe to mix one up and try it for yourself. Add dashes of Worcestershire Sauce, Tabasco, salt and pepper into highball glass, then pour all ingredients into highball with ice cubes. Stir gently. Garnish with celery stalk and lemon wedge (optional). Served On the rocks; poured over ice.

Ingredients:

• 45ml (3 parts) Vodka
• 90ml (6 parts) Tomato juice
• 15ml (1 part) Lemon juice

Drink 13 of these and we guarantee you’ll be seeing all sorts of weird!

The Etcetera Theatre, Camden will play host to this year’s Festival, which welcomes a broad range of horror theatre, comedy, magic and performance art, from psychological spine-chillers to all-out splatter, improvised ghost stories to grotesque stand-up and séance magic to body horror, and almost anything else imaginable. The purpose is to foster new talent as well as nurturing the already burgeoning live horror scene within the UK.

Applications are now open for this year’s festival, and they’re happy to accept submissions from performers or companies regardless of whether they have explored the horror genre before. If you like a bit of performing arts then they’re looking for exciting and committed groups looking to push the boundaries of live entertainment.

Visit http://www.londonhorrorfestival.com/ for more details.

We at Back From The Depths are once again looking for contributors for our free, annual pdf horror comic, HALLOWSCREAM…

…but…

we’re also looking for contributors for something else.

That’s right. This year we’re doing not one but two creepy comics, and we need all the scares we can get. What is this second scare-filled tome? I’ll tell you what it is – it’s a Christmas special.

HALLOWSCREAM GUIDELINES

Ideal submissions should be horror orientated and must be weird or spooky to make the final cut. We are mainly looking for completed comic strips between 1-7 pages in length. Script submissions should also preferably be around 1-7 pages in length. Eerie illustrations and artwork along with interesting horror/comic articles, scary short stories, petrifying poems or anything just plain creepy will also be considered.

XMAS SPECIAL GUIDELINES

Identical to the Hallowscream guidelines, but submissions must have either a Christmas or winter theme. Anything which doesn’t meet that criteria will be more likely to end up in Hallowscream.

GENERAL GUIDELINES

If you’re looking to illustrate something, get in contact and we’ll give you details of available scripts.

We’ll also consider material previously published elsewhere, as long as the contributors own the copyright.

Completed artwork can be either colour or black and white, and should preferably be A4 (21cm x 29.7cm) 300 dpi jpegs.

Submissions can be sent to merjeagles@yahoo.co.uk or ghastlymcnasty@backfromthedepths.co.uk

As this is a non-profit, small press publication, contributors will not be paid but they will retain copyright on any material submitted.

DEADLINES

Deadlines for the Hallowe’en and Christmas editions are identical. There’s no need to point out which issue your story is meant for, as it should be obvious from the story’s content.

• Scripts, articles and text submissions : Sunday 22nd July
• Artwork : Sunday 7th October
• Completed strips : Sunday 21st October.

The finished issue of Hallowscream will be available online for FREE on October 31st. The finished issue of the Christmas special will likely be available online for FREE mid-December.

You will also be able to purchase print version via the online publishing site Lulu.

The year is 793 AD. Savage, heathen armies from the north invade Northumberland, for today is the day of the viking, but the night… The night belongs to something else.

Now available as a free pdf download, Blackfriars is a tale of vampires versus vikings by Michael Crouch.

The first episode appeared in the 2010 edition of Hallowscream, with further episodes appearing on Michael’s blog in weekly instalments. The story is drawn in the style of a serial from the classic British “Scream!” comic.

The cover is by John Caliber and there’s a short image gallery at the back of the collection with artwork by Andrew Milne, David Blankley, and Grant Perkins (with Mike Bunt inking and Owen Watts colouring).

Download now from CLICKWHEEL, MEDIAFIRE or view online at MYEBOOK.

A download link will probably also appear on the homepage of BACK FROM THE DEPTHS in the near future.

File size = 30MB.

OTHER LINKS

Michael Crouch’s website

Michael Crouch’s blog

AN ANNOUNCEMENT TO SINISTER SCRIBES AND OTHER VARIOUS FIENDS

Do you crave classic horror stories? Do you love the musty smell of a paperback anthology containing vintage horror? Stories about creepy old houses, aristocratic vampires, Lovecraftian creatures, and tales of psychological spooks?

We wanted to send a shout out to all interested parties who would want to submit pieces in this vein to MAD HOUSE, new digital magazine that’s eager to hear the terrifying tales that all you storytellers have to share. In addition to fiction, we’re open for nonfiction, poetry, and artwork.

If you pine after the Universal and Hammer horror films and worship authors like Poe, M.R. James, Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, and many others, than MAD HOUSE is the monster mag for you!

The official deadline for any and all submissions for our premiere issue is MAY 5TH, 2012. We are planning on releasing the anthology in time for the Halloween season and need to have all materials at the ready by the above timeline. Don’t miss out on your chance!

At this time we cannot offer payment to our contributors. We’re putting this magazine together for the pure fun of it and out of our love for all that is classic horror. We hope to someday offer monetary compensation for the great work that we’re provided with. In the meantime it is our desire to simply put together a loving publication that we can all share with other terror-loving friends.

• We prefer that your submission is in Word document format, 12 point Times New Roman, single-spaced.
• Stories can reach up to a 7,000 word maximum. Maximum word count for articles is 5,000 words.
• Attach it to your email and make sure you include the piece’s title and your name in the subject line.
• We will request short bios upon acceptance of your piece(s).

Address all submissions to madhousemag [at] yahoo [dot] com.

MAD HOUSE will require the non-exclusive right to use submissions in our free online edition and any possible PDF editions. First world electronic rights revert back to the creators three months after publication in MAD HOUSE. Reprints are more than welcome. We only ask that creators notify us of previous appearances of their work and credit MAD HOUSE for future publication of their accepted piece.

Check out our blog for more information. Be careful as you traverse through MAD HOUSE and always keep your hands at the level of your eyes! You never know who you may run into.

MAD HOUSE MAGAZINE: http://madhousemag.blogspot.com/

From wikipedia…

Krampus is a mythical creature recognized in Alpine countries. According to legend, Krampus accompanies St. Nicholas (Santa Claus) during the Christmas season, warning and punishing bad children, in contrast to St. Nicholas, who gives gifts to good children. When the Krampus finds a particularly naughty child, it stuffs the child in its sack and carries the frightened thing away to its lair, presumably to devour for its Christmas dinner.

In the Alpine regions, Krampus is represented as a beast like creature, generally demonic in appearance. Traditionally young men dress up as the Krampus in Austria, southern Bavaria and South Tyrol during the first week of December, particularly on the evening of 5 December, and roam the streets frightening children with rusty chains and bells.

This was filmed last year in Graz, Austria…

Speed Kills, (the original title was already taken), is adapted from Dirk Van Dom’s original comic strip by Alan Rogers, who also produces, directs and stars as the depraved protagonist, Tucker.

You can show your support and find out about further screenings, and all the other information you’d care to know, on the official Facebook page HERE.

The tenth issue of HAUNTED magazine, (Nov/Dec 2011), is now on sale at selected branches of WH Smith and newsagents across the UK.

For just £3.99, it contains over a hundred pages of cool eclectic stuff covering all things paranormal and includes the like of interviews with James Randi and Warwick Davis, articles and features on the Pendle Witches, Oakley Court Hotel, Alton Towers, British horror toys, loads of mediumistic, ghosthunting and spiritual stuff, and lots, lots, (lots), more. Scream! comic even gets a brief mention.

…and in among all this is an exclusive single-page promotional Hallowscream comic strip by yours truly, (with a couple of teensy panels by Matthew Soffe and Liam Matthew Byrne).

Sound interesting? Go buy the thing then.

Turf is a five-issue comic series from Image Comics written by Jonathan Ross and illustrated by Tommy Lee Edwards. I was slightly dubious about Turf mostly because of my pre-conceptions about writer Jonathon Ross. Generally, I think the guy is a legend, despite his well publicised mistakes, as he wears his geekiness on his sleeve and has a genuine love for comics which rare to see from a celebrity. However, I recently read an interview in Bizarre magazine where Ross was his typical over-confident self, spouting simple ideas like he believed he was a creative genius when really he just sounded like a bit of a knob. The premise for Turf feels fairly haphazard itself – Vampires, Aliens and Gangsters in 1920s prohibition-era New York. It almost sounds like the author threw a load of nouns in to a tombola, gave it a quick spin, and choose 4 at random to create the storyline.

The first 20,000 copies of issue 1 sold out on pre-orders alone and that is probably testament to Ross’s likeable personality and fame. When I picked up the first issue I was fairly unimpressed by the cover art and as i began to read through the pages was filled with dread by the vast amount of text that filled huge sections of the pages. The text itself also seemed to lack any of Ross’s humour, which I initially felt was a huge loss to the potential of the comic. Very little seemed to happen in the first issue as well leaving me feeling a little cold as I had to put in a lot of work reading for very little reward. At least it takes a while to finish unlike most comics which I can finish in minutes.

I’m not the sort to quit after just one issue so continued to plow on through the remaining 4 issues. I’m pleased to report I emerged from the experience with a different outlook to Turf which I now regard as a jolly good read filled with interesting ideas seamlessly blended together to create a strong and fascinating tale. Sure the whole thing feels oddly paced in places and occasionally Tommy Lee Edwards’s artwork feels a little rushed but for a chat show host’s debut comic it’s pretty darn good.

Anti-hero thug and all round bad-guy Eddie Falco is the series’ main protagonist, amongst a cast of very strong characters, and his journey from malicious thug to righteous hero helps to ground the sometimes bonkers plot. There are plenty of fresh ideas which I throughly enjoyed. Falco’s relationship with the alien Squeed, The Orchard, the slow lead up to the final battle and its climax, Tommy Lee Edwards representaion of the flying Vampires. This comic has a lot to offer. Occasionally the scheming vampires and ‘Nooo York’ gangsters seem a little cliche but when rolled together with a splash of alien they make a unique and intoxicating blend.

There was talk of a movie adaptation to be directed by Matthew Vaughan (Kick Ass, X-Men: First Class) but it’s all gone quiet at the moment. There’s certainly room for a second series of Turf which is hinted at the end of the final issue. Can Ross and Edwards deliver again? I certainly hope so.

Turf Cover Gallery

You can find out more on the Turf website www.turfcomic.co.uk

Artist Joe Simko has lovingly created these fantastic images which will delight horror fans. Joe also works on the modern series of Garbage Pail Kids so he has a full pedigree when it comes to designing trading cards.

Other catchy names include Village of the Grahamed, The Weatful Dead, Shredded Feet, Fiber the 13th and many more…

You can purchase these great cards from the Wax Eye site and they’ve proved so popular in the States that you can even find them in Toys’R'Us. The 3-Pack Mini Cereal Box Set contains:

• 20 cards per cereal box, 60 total cards per 3-Pack
• 1 eyeball gum per cereal box
• 1 random premium gift per cereal box

You can see more of artist Joe Simko’s amazing skills at http://www.sweetrot.com

Dante’s Inferno is a seriously dark and disturbing story filled with twisted horrors, classic mythology and easily recognisable fables still used within culture, art and literature today. It’s an ancient horror story depicting all the horrible things that happen to the sinners of the world shared with us by the author as he travels through the 9 circles of Hell. Upper Hell (the first 5 Circles) is set aside for the self-indulgent sinners; Circles 6 and 7 for the violent sinners; and Circles 8 and 9 for the really evil malicious sinners.

It’s a complex tale but nicely set out in this diagram below. Us comic fans appreciate a picture to go with a story.

Listed in depth below are the Nine Circles of Hell. Which one are you going to?

First circle (Limbo)
In Limbo reside the unbaptized and the virtuous pagans, who, though not sinful, did not accept Christ. They are not punished in an active sense, but rather grieve only because of their separation from God, without hope of reconciliation.

Second circle (Lust)
In the second circle of Hell are those overcome by lust. Dante condemns these ‘carnal malefactors’ for letting their appetites sway their reason. They are the first ones to be truly punished in Hell. These souls are blown about to and fro by the terrible winds of a violent storm, without hope of rest. This symbolizes the power of lust to blow one about needlessly and aimlessly.

Third circle (Gluttony)
The ‘Great Worm’ Cerberus guards the gluttons, forced to lie in a vile slush produced by ceaseless foul, icy rain. The gluttons lie here sightless and heedless of their neighbours, symbolising the cold, selfish, and empty sensuality of their lives. Just as lust has revealed its true nature in the winds of the previous circle, here the slush reveals the true nature of sensuality, which includes not only overindulgence in food and drink, but also other kinds of addiction.

Fourth circle (Greed)
Those whose attitude toward material goods deviated from the appropriate mean are punished in the fourth circle. They include the avaricious or miserly (including many ‘clergymen, and popes and cardinals’), who hoarded possessions, and the prodigal, who squandered them.The condemned souls are tortured by being sheared in money presses, boiled in melted gold and buried in heavy gold coins.

Fifth circle (Wrath/Sullenness)
In the swamp-like water of the river Styx, the wrathful fight each other on the surface, and the sullen lie gurgling beneath the water, withdrawn ‘into a black sulkiness which can find no joy in God or man or the universe.

Sixth circle (Heresy)
In the sixth circle, Heretics, such as Epicurians (who say ‘the soul dies with the body’) are trapped in flaming tombs, people who have gone against the teaching of their churches, halls of men and women who forever burn in fire and are forever tortured by various implements.

Seventh circle (Violence)
Outer ring: This ring houses the violent against people and property, who are immersed in Phlegethon, a river of boiling blood and fire, to a level commensurate with their sins.
Middle ring: In this ring are the suicides (the violent against self), who are transformed into gnarled thorny bushes and trees, which are fed on by the Harpies. Unique among the dead, the suicides will not be bodily resurrected after the final judgement, having given their bodies away through suicide. Instead they will maintain their bushy form, with their own corpses hanging from the limbs.
Inner ring: Here the violent against God (blasphemers) and the violent against nature (sodomites and, as explained in the sixth circle, usurers) all reside in a desert of flaming sand with fiery flakes raining from the sky (a similar fate to Sodom and Gomorrah). The blasphemers lie on the sand, the usurers sit, and the sodomites wander about in groups.

Eighth circle (Fraud)
The last two circles of Hell punish sins that involve conscious fraud or treachery.The fraudulent, “those guilty of deliberate, knowing evil, are located in a circle named Malebolge (‘Evil Pockets’), divided into ten Bolgie, or ditches of stone, with bridges spanning the ditches:

• Bolgia 1: Panderers (pimps) and seducers march in separate lines in opposite directions, whipped by demons
• Bolgia 2: Flatterers also exploited other people, this time using language. They are steeped in human excrement, which represents the words they produced.
• Bolgia 3:those who committed simony. These are placed head-first in holes in the rock (resembling baptismal fonts), with flames burning on the soles of their feet.
• Bolgia 4: Sorcerers, astrologers, and false prophets here have their heads twisted around on their bodies backward, so that they ‘found it necessary to walk backward, / because they could not see ahead of them.’
• Bolgia 5: Corrupt politicians (barrators) are immersed in a lake of boiling pitch, which represents the sticky fingers and dark secrets of their corrupt deals
• Bolgia 6: the hypocrites listlessly walking along wearing gilded lead cloaks, which represent the falsity behind the surface appearance of their actions falsity that weighs them down and makes spiritual progress impossible for them.
• Bolgia 7: Two cantos are devoted to the thieves, who are guarded by the centaur Cacus, who has a fire-breathing dragon on his shouldersThe thieves are pursued and bitten by snakes and lizards. The full horror of the thieves’ punishment is revealed gradually: just as they stole other people’s substance in life, their very identity becomes subject to theft here,and the snake bites make them undergo various transformations.
• Bolgia 8: the fraudulent advisers or evil councillors, who are concealed within individual flames. These are not people who gave false advice, but people who used their position to advise others to engage in fraud.
• Bolgia 9: In the ninth Bolgia, a sword-wielding demon hacks at the sowers of discord, dividing parts of their bodies as in life they divided others.[49] As they make their rounds the wounds heal, only to have the demon tear apart their bodies again.
• Bolgia 10: In the final Bolgia, various sorts of falsifiers (alchemists, counterfeiters, perjurers, and impersonators), who are a ‘disease’ on society, are themselves afflicted with different types of diseases.

Ninth circle (Treachery)
The traitors are distinguished from the ‘merely’ fraudulent in that their acts involve betraying a special relationship of some kind. There are four concentric zones (or ’rounds’) of traitors, corresponding, in order of seriousness, to betrayal of family ties, betrayal of community ties, betrayal of guests, and betrayal of liege lords. In contrast to the popular image of Hell as fiery, the traitors are frozen in a lake of ice known as Cocytus, with each group encased in ice to progressively greater depths.

• Round 1 is named Cana, after Cain, who killed his brother. Traitors to kindred are here immersed in the ice up to their faces ‘the place / where shame can show itself’
• Round 2 is named Antenora, after Antenor of Troy, who according to medieval tradition, betrayed his city to the Greeks. Traitors to political entities, such as party, city, or country, are located here.
• Round 3 is named Ptolomaea, probably after Ptolemy, son of Abubus, who invited Simon Maccabaeus and his sons to a banquet and then killed them. Traitors to their guests are punished here, lying supine in the ice, which covers them, except for their faces. They are punished more severely than the previous traitors, since the relationship to guests is an entirely voluntary one.
• Round 4 is named Judecca, after Judas Iscariot, Biblical betrayer of Christ. Here are the traitors to their lords and benefactors. All of the sinners punished within are completely encapsulated in ice, distorted in all conceivable positions. With no one to talk to here

In the very centre of Hell, condemned for committing the ultimate sin (personal treachery against God), is Satan. Satan is described as a giant, terrifying beast with three faces, one red, one black, and one a pale yellow. Satan is waist deep in ice, weeping tears from his six eyes, and beating his six wings as if trying to escape, although the icy wind that emanates only further ensures his imprisonment (as well as that of the others in the ring). Each face has a mouth that chews on a prominent traitor, with Brutus and Cassius feet-first in the left and right mouths respectively.

In the central, most vicious mouth is Judas Iscariot, the namesake of Judecca and the betrayer of Jesus. Judas is being administered the most horrifying torture of the three traitors, his head gnawed by Satan’s mouth, and his back being forever skinned by Satan’s claws. What is seen here is a perverted trinity: Satan is impotent, ignorant, and full of hate, in contrast to the all-powerful, all-knowing, and loving nature of God.

Lucifer in Hell by Gustave Doré

A slice of anti-horror comic propaganda from 1955, the year after the Comics Code Authority was formed. More details on YouTube. Running time is 25 and a half minutes.

These horrific laws are listed below. Tremble in terror at the wonderful things that were no longer allowed to grace the pages of comics. Cower in fear as you imagine the sickening world these laws could lead to. Children with nothing to read but comics about puppies and (shudder) talking bears.

CODE OF THE COMICS MAGAZINE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, INC.

Adopted October 26, 1954

PREAMBLE

The comic-book medium, having come of age on the American cultural scene, must measure up to its responsibilities.

Constantly improving techniques and higher standards go hand in hand with these responsibilities.

To make a positive contribution to contemporary life, the industry must seek new areas for developing sound, wholesome entertainment. The people responsible for writing, drawing, printing, publishing, and selling comic books have done a commendable job in the past, and have been striving toward this goal.

Their record of progress and continuing improvement compares favorably with other media in the communications industry. An outstanding example is the development of comic books as a unique and effective tool for instruction and education. Comic books have also made their contribution in the field of letters and criticism of contemporary life.

In keeping with the American tradition, the members of this industry will and must continue to work together in the future.

In the same tradition, members of the industry must see to it that gains made in this medium are not lost and that violations of standards of good taste, which might tend toward corruption of the comic book as an instructive and wholesome form of entertainment, will be eliminated.

Therefore, the Comics Magazine Association of America, Inc. has adopted this code, and placed strong powers of enforcement in the hands of an independent code authority.

Further, members of the association have endorsed the purpose and spirit of this code as a vital instrument to the growth of the industry.

To this end, they have pledged themselves to conscientiously adhere to its principles and to abide by all decisions based on the code made by the administrator.

They are confident that this positive and forthright statement will provide an effective bulwark for the protection and enhancement of the American reading public, and that it will become a landmark in the history of self-regulation for the entire communications industry.

CODE FOR EDITORIAL MATTER

General standards—Part A

1. Crimes shall never be presented in such a way as to create sympathy for the criminal, to promote distrust of the forces of law and justice, or to inspire others with a desire to imitate criminals.
2. No comics shall explicitly present the unique details and methods of a crime.
3. Policemen, judges, Government officials and respected institutions shall never be presented in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority.
4. If crime is depicted it shall be as a sordid and unpleasant activity.
5. Criminals shall not be presented so as to be rendered glamorous or to occupy a position which creates a desire for emulation.
6. In every instance good shall triumph over evil and the criminal punished for his misdeeds.
7. Scenes of excessive violence shall be prohibited. Scenes of brutal torture, excessive and unnecessary knife and gunplay, physical agony, gory and gruesome crime shall be eliminated.
8. No unique or unusual methods of concealing weapons shall be shown.
9. Instances of law-enforcement officers dying as a result of a criminal’s activities should be discouraged.
10. The crime of kidnapping shall never be portrayed in any detail, nor shall any profit accrue to the abductor or kidnaper. The criminal or the kidnaper must be punished in every case.
11. The letters of the word “crime” on a comics-magazine cover shall never be appreciably greater in dimension than the other words contained in the title. The word “crime” shall never appear alone on a cover.
12. Restraint in the use of the word “crime” in titles or subtitles shall be exercised.

General standards—Part B

1. No comic magazine shall use the word horror or terror in its title.
2. All scenes of horror, excessive bloodshed, gory or gruesome crimes, depravity, lust, sadism, masochism shall not be permitted.
3. All lurid, unsavory, gruesome illustrations shall be eliminated.
4. Inclusion of stories dealing with evil shall be used or shall be published only where the intent is to illustrate a moral issue and in no case shall evil be presented alluringly, nor so as to injure the sensibilities of the reader.
5. Scenes dealing with, or instruments associated with walking dead, torture, vampires and vampirism, ghouls, cannibalism, and werewolfism are prohibited.

General standards—Part C

All elements or techniques not specifically mentioned herein, but which are contrary to the spirit and intent of the code, and are considered violations of good taste or decency, shall be prohibited.

Dialogue

1. Profanity, obscenity, smut, vulgarity, or words or symbols which have acquired undesirable meanings are forbidden.
2. Special precautions to avoid references to physical afflictions or deformities shall be taken.
3. Although slang and colloquialisms are acceptable, excessive use should be discouraged and, wherever possible, good grammar shall be employed.

Religion

1. Ridicule or attack on any religious or racial group is never permissible.

Costume

1. Nudity in any form is prohibited, as is indecent or undue exposure.
2. Suggestive and salacious illustration or suggestive posture is unacceptable.
3. All characters shall be depicted in dress reasonably acceptable to society.
4. Females shall be drawn realistically without exaggeration of any physical qualities.

NOTE.—It should be recognized that all prohibitions dealing with costume, dialog, or artwork applies as specifically to the cover of a comic magazine as they do to the contents.

Marriage and sex

1. Divorce shall not be treated humorously nor represented as desirable.
2. Illicit sex relations are neither to be hinted at nor portrayed. Violent love scenes as well as sexual abnormalities are unacceptable.
3. Respect for parents, the moral code, and for honorable behavior shall be fostered. A sympathetic understanding of the problems of love is not a license for morbid distortion.
4. The treatment of live-romance stories shall emphasize the value of the home and the sanctity of marriage.
5. Passion or romantic interest shall never be treated in such a way as to stimulate the lower and baser emotions.
6. Seduction and rape shall never be shown or suggested.
7. Sex perversion or any inference to same is strictly forbidden.

CODE FOR ADVERTISING MATTER

These regulations are applicable to all magazines published by members of the Comics Magazine Association of America, Inc. Good taste shall be the guiding principle in the acceptance of advertising.

1. Liquor and tobacco advertising is not acceptable.
2. Advertisement of sex or sex instruction books are unacceptable.
3. The sale of picture postcards, “pinups,” “art studies,” or any other reproduction of nude or seminude figures is prohibited.
4. Advertising for the sale of knives or realistic gun facsimiles is prohibited.
5. Advertising for the sale of fireworks is prohibited.
6. Advertising dealing with the sale of gambling equipment or printed matter dealing with gambling shall not be accepted.
7. Nudity with meretricious purpose and salacious postures shall not be permitted in the advertising of any product; clothed figures shall never be presented in such a way as to be offensive or contrary to good taste or morals.
8. To the best of his ability, each publisher shall ascertain that all statements made in advertisements conform to fact and avoid misrepresentation.
9. Advertisement of medical, health, or toiletry products of questionable nature are to be rejected. Advertisements for medical, health, or toiletry products endorsed by the American Medical Association, or the American Dental Association, shall be deemed acceptable if they conform with all other conditions of the Advertising Code.

Amazingly enough it was not until January 2011 that the last surviving members of the original pact, DC Comics and Archie Comics, decided to drop the Comics Code from their products. Thankfully, the code is now officially dead!

Ghosts and ghouls, this is a call to arms. The boundaries that prevented the spread of evil through comics have been lifted. The young are no longer protected by these terrible laws. It’s our duty as horror comic readers, writers, artists, and fans to create even more evil on an grander scale. If horror comics are to remain an important outlet for gruesome terror we must infect new readers and corrupt young minds. To find out more and to join me on this imperative mission visit Hallowscream.net

Robert Kirkman’s Skybound Entertainment and publisher Z-Man Games have created a board game that allows you to become the legend that is Rick Grimes or one of his fellow survivors and battle off hordes of zombies while scavenging for supplies. Who wouldn’t want to do that?

“The Walking Dead” board game will arrive late summer 2011. You can find out more by pressing your mouse button twice here.

British horror author and director Clive Barker has given the degree his backing and hopes to take a class. According to Dr Jason Lee (no relation to Christopher Lee), the university’s head of film and media, this is the only MA in the world of its kind.

The new MA Humanities – Horror and Transgression is an innovative postgraduate course in film, literature and cultural studies offering the opportunity to work both critically and creatively. Drawing on the expertise of internationally renowned practicing writers and critics, the themes of Horror and Transgression explores what our limits consist of and the boundaries of culture and society. Through the analysis of culture we understand what defines us collectively and individually as humans and what is beyond the human. The course has the support of horror writer Clive Barker who is planning to be involved, saying “Thank you for Raising Hell in Derby!”

A marvelous course for those interested in the macarbe. Who wouldn’t want to be a real life Master of Horror!

Course Details.

Creators C Michael Hall, Matt Upson and Dustin Evans have made a 23 page PDF horror comic story based in the College’s library. As slobbering zombies are attacking from all sides the comic book’s heroes attempt to solve the problems using the resources available to them in the library. It’s a great way of making a dull subject interesting, as well as educating it’s members on various methods of zombie disposal.

This gripping zombie adventure has been downloaded over six hundred and fifty thousand times! Wan’t to see what all the fuss is about. You can download the zombie packed action adventure by clicking right here.

I once knew a ghoul who dated a zombie for a while. She said he was perfectly stiff for a few days but he got so rotten that she had to break it off! Then she dumped him. After that…he just fell apart. Very sad.

If you’re a necrophyliac who likes their love interest to moan then take a look at Zombie Harmony. It’s only a fun page but i’m loving the concept.

Back from the Depths has been without a forum for a while now so it gives me great pleasure to announce the new Scream forum can now be found on www.horrorcomics.org

HorrorComics.org is a brand new and exciting venture that will hopefully one day grow to become the No.1 place to talk horror comics on the web. From pre-code horror comics, such as EC Classics like Tales from the Crypt and The Haunt of Fear, all the way up to modern horror comics, such as The Walking Dead and Locke & Key, this new site will cater for every ghoul’s horror needs.

In the mean time Scream fans have the place to themselves so if you’re looking for a place to talk about IPC’s ghastly horror comic Scream! then head on over to www.horrorcomics.org