Grimm Tales of Terror​​

(Volume 2, Issue 8)

​"The Monkey's Paw"
By Anne Toole, et. al.

Reviewed on July 19, 2016

The Grimm Tales ​series originated by retelling classic fairy tales through a modern lens, so it feels appropriate that the Tales of Terror ​offshoot series would revisit a classic story like "The Monkey's Paw." While the Grimm ​version of this story is far, far less compelling than the original version, it excites me to think of what other classics they might reframe. Overall, this issue was kind of a fail for me. I wasn't that into the direction they took the monkey's paw idea, although I applaud their attempt at doing something new with it. The original incarnation of the story is so haunting and good—and let's not forget the ending, which involves what is really an early incarnation of today's version of the zombie, if you think about—but I acknowledge that the original take on the cursed paw has become such a cliché that you can't really tell that story anymore without seeming uninspired. So maybe the answer is to just not touch that particular story, to leave the original, which still holds up fine, alone. In general, I say go for it, Grimm​, to reboots, but perhaps I should take a lesson from "The Monkey's Paw" and be careful what I wish for.

Grimm Tales of Terror​​

(Volume 2, Issue 9)

​"The Bogeyman"
By Troy Brownfield, et. al.

Reviewed on July 19, 2016

This one was a lot of fun. It reminded me a little of one of my favorite issues of Nightmares and Fairy Tales, ​which involved an unusual approach to the monsters in the closet idea. Although you can definitely see this particular twist coming, it makes for a very satisfying ending. There's also a nice exploration in here of what it really means to be a monster--who's the more dangerous monster: the bogeyman in the child's closet or the child's abusive father? The art in this issue is really spectacular, too. As I was reading this issue, my daughter came downstairs, and I had to hide it from her because I knew the pictures were so vivid and real they would scare the crap out of her. Truly creepy, gorgeous images.

​Note: I'm shamefully behind on my reviews, so here's a whole bunch of overdue ones of some recent Grimm Tales of Terror comics. I'll keep these brief 'cause I'm behind on more than just these (and I read these so long ago, my memory of some of them isn't as sharp as it could be).

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Grimm Tales of Terror​​

(Volume 2, Issue 7)

​"Briefcase Killer"
By Pat Shand, et. al.

Reviewed on July 19, 2016

This was another one where I didn't see the twist coming, which I always appreciate. I'm not super snooty about twist endings in these comics—they're supposed to be kitschy, so a cheeseball twist ending is part of the fun—but I do appreciate it when the ending rises above my expectations. I'm not saying the ending to this one isn't goofy, but it caught me off guard, so goofy or not, I was impressed with it. However, I do have to admit that I didn't even remember "Briefcase Killer" when I went to write this review. I read it probably three months ago, and it didn't stand out in my memory the way some of the issues in the series (like "Black Cat") did, so I had to refresh my memory by skimming back through it. That's not necessarily a sign that it was terrible—I'm busy, sure, and I'm probably not going to remember every single issue of every comic I ever read—but I do tend to have a pretty good memory of the things I read that I really like, so the fact that I didn't remember this one at all may reflect it's quality.

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Grimm Tales of Terror​​

(Volume 2, Issue 6)

​"Black Cat"
By LaToya Morgan, et. al.

Reviewed on July 19, 2016

This has definitely been my favorite of the series so far. This story is about strong, badass women being strong badasses, but it's too complicated to boil down so simply. I was really into the revenge narrative (if you don't already know, I'm a sucker for a good revenge story. It's why my daughter's middle name is Beatrix—not after Potter; after Beatrix Kiddo from the Kill Bill ​series). Then it takes a totally unexpected twist (well, yeah, it's a Grimm Tales ​comic; of course it has a twist) that I suppose I should have seen coming but didn't. I was so excited about this story, I looked the author, LaToya Morgan, up—something I almost never bother with for comics, since comic book authors often have such varied and difficult to track down oeuvres. I'm hoping to have the chance to read some of her other comics.