HALLOWEEN – ONE GOOD SCARE



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Halloween: One Good Scare
Halloween 25 Year Anniversary Limited Edition
Story: Stefan Hutchinson
Art: Peter Fielding
Lettering: Amanda Hartman

Published in 2003 to coincide with the 25th anniversary since the original Halloween film by John Carpenter and Debra Hill was released, One Good Scare follows the son of Dr Sam Loomis, who decides to follow the career path of his father in a bid to rekindle all of that was good and profound about his work. It isn’t long before the past starts to haunt Dr Loomis Jr as a figure connected to both his father and ‘The Boogeyman’ turns up at the Smith’s Grove Sanitarium and the young man is thrust into the nightmare which tore his father’s world apart.

Unlike Halloween: 30 Years of Terror, the previous Halloween comic I reviewed which was a collection of short Halloween themed stories, One Good Scare is a 24 page single story that continues the distinct tension and fear that the Halloween film so gladly embraced. Stefan Hutchinson’s grasp of the boogeyman concept, that kept the film viewers hooked and terrfied at the same time, is clearly visable in both this and 30 Years of Terror. As the celluloid sequels were churned out, they lost the fear that was created in the original – but now the slate can be wiped clean as we indulge in a universe that exists in the same world as the 1978 film.

The artwork in Halloween: One Good Scare embraces shadow and is bleak with its use of greys, browns and blacks. The lack of vibrant colour may or may not intentionally represent the lack of hope or goodness in a world where Michael Myers exists. This unstoppable shadow in the night is stalking Dr Loomis’ patient and soon the fear captures him too as he is exposed to the ‘myth’ first hand.

The comic isn’t as bloody or gory as one would expect. It successfully builds tension with an interesting story, just like the 1978 film, and delivers it’s punches when necessary without being gratuitous. The use of the colour black for blood lets the reader focus on the fear itself; the fear of being caught by Michael or becoming a name on his ‘list’. A comic like this shows you it’s not all about blood, guts and gore. It’s what you don’t see and imagine that is inifinitely scarier.

Read a 5 page preview of One Good Scare

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About Bat 4368 Articles
I love practical effects, stop-motion animation and gore, but most of all I love a good story! I adore B-movies and exploitation films in many of their guises and also have a soft spot for creature features. I review a wide range of media including movies, TV series, books and videogames. I'm a massive fan of author Hunter S. Thompson and I enjoy various genre of videogames with Kingdom Hearts and Harvest Moon two of my all time favs. Currently playing: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Yakuza Zero and Mafia III.

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