Meet the Sundae Edition, then – a chance to reprint the first twelve episodes, ie the first three books, in this series of semi-linked short stories. I gave the first book three and a half stars, and wished how the arc of the whole series had not been introduced to what seemed like a perfectly reasonable bundle of dark, Twilight Zone-styled one-shots. But let's face it, a story where a failed has-been has a fantasia in his mind about using a second hit single to save the world from splodges of brightly-coloured goop is not exactly going to get us far, is it? And the fourth story was seemingly going nowhere until a protagonist turned up and alerted us to what might be a-coming. Bad: The middle of the book suffers from being "okay". Not bad stories by any means but never anything all that enthralling. I also thought the third story was the worst. Lord of The Flies meets vampires in the first volume of a bold new ongoing series from JEFF LEMIRE & DUSTIN NGUYEN, the Eisner-winning creative team behind the bestselling DESCENDER and ASCENDER series.

The Ice Cream Man series is a modern day version of “The Twilight Zone”, with macabre stories, all of them thought-provoking. Ice Cream Man #36 is another great tale, this time focusing on a sailor named Winslow who lost his daughter when she was swallowed whole by a whale. Winslow becomes obsessed with finding the whale, convinced his daughter is still alive, but he’s not prepared for what he finds at the end of his journey. However, some plots weren't always home runs. This is a thought provoking book and one that you must experience and read... But, not all stories were equally well written as their narrations and lessons.

Ram V unleashes ‘The Vigil’ onto the DCU

After inheriting a farm house, Trudy and Gabby are ready to start the next chapter of their lives together…except it’s already home to a mysterious force that’s attracted ghosts, aliens, and all kinds of supernatural beings for decades. The only reason I didn't rate this 5 stars is because some of these stories could have been better or longer. In some of them, the creators had a specific lesson or message in mind. In others, they wanted to make the reader to think for themselves. In this, they 100% delivered!

It was never boring but I was never truly enthralled either. One high point is a chapter that begins entirely in Spanish with no translations - I read/speak enough Spanish to have enjoyed it but it may be off-putting for non-speakers. The events of the chapter are essentially the song El Paso by Marty Robbins if it was rebooted by Robert Rodriguez. If you are a fan of episodic horror like Tales from the Darkside, Tales from the Crypt, Creepshow, etc. then this is the graphic novel for you! Probably best described as an anthology series. The first few issues follow the events of a town, but by the middle of the book each issue is an unrelated vignette held loosely together by the titular character. I actually tend to like that style of storytelling - Gaiman's Sandman does it very well. This book does it okay.Meet Atticus Sloane: misanthropic criminal, avid vinyl collector, and member of the aristocratic Vampire cabal the First Borns. For the right price, he’ll turn you into a Vampire, too. After all—immortality isn’t cheap. In the summer of 1994, a haunted house walks across California. Inside is Ami, lead singer of a high school punk band—who’s been missing for weeks. How did she get there? What do these ghosts want? And does this mean the band has to break up?Expect three-chord songs and big bloody action as Power Rangers meets The Shining (yes really), and as writer DAN WATTERS ( Lucifer, COFFIN BOUND) and artist CASPAR WIJNGAARD (LIMBO, Star Wars, Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt) delve into the horrors of misspent youth. As always, Martin Morazzo’s art is gorgeous and fits the dark, unsettling tone of the Ice Cream Man anthology perfectly, with Chris O’Halloran’s muted but effective use of color deepening the dank environment that Jacob finds himself writing in. Plus, the illustrated depictions of each of the “necessary monsters” by Morazzo are perfect, evocative of simple pointillism tattoos, or art you would find illustrating the margins of ancient bestiaries. Morazzo’s cover for the book is terrifying in its homage to classic bestiary art, plus the variant covers by Trish Forstner and Andrew Blucha are simply amazing, gorgeous additions to anyone’s short box.

Shout-Out: Issue 17 reads like one big love letter to famous comics, particularly Superman. Even the cover is a reference to Action Comics first issue. Martin Morazzo’s art is quite good. He nails the horror scenes when he needs to and he shows versatility in drawing both stark realism and fantastical dream sequences with equal confidence. I don’t love his style but I don’t dislike it either. Anthology Comic: Aside from a few recurring characters each issue is episodic and follows different protagonists and their encounters with the titular ice cream man. From the acclaimed creative team behind GIDEON FALLS, PRIMORDIAL, and THE PASSAGEWAY comes a new series in the bold and ambitious shared horror universe of THE BONE ORCHARD MYTHOS.

This Comic Book provides examples of:

My favourite flavour was the first, about a weird kid whose best friend is a spider – but where are his parents? I liked the blend of dark humour and twisty storytelling – it’s a very imaginative and fun read. The second story is an unoriginal and predictable episode on the opioid epidemic currently gripping America as a pair of heroin addicts struggle to maintain their habits. It’s a well-written/told piece but not nearly as creative as the first and, if you’ve read enough stories about heroin addicts as I have, it’s as generic as you can get with this kind of tale.

Male Frontal Nudity: The creepy little gremlin that appears in issue 18 is fully nude... including his penis. The artwork was okay. Definitely not my favorite. Not that I could do better, but I wasn’t “wowed” by what I was seeing. Story 7: I'm starting to see the connections between the ice cream man and some of these characters now. This one hit home though. Watching a child grieve for her best friend who'd just passed away from cancer... I think we all probably know someone in our lives whom cancer has touched. I know I definitely do. The ending was bittersweet, but fitting. I think there was closure somewhere in there. ☆☆☆☆☆Body Horror: All over the place, the comic usually has at least one nasty example of this per issue. I guess the truth is hard and sad sometimes. But that’s why we have stories...to help us forget the truth for a little while. Stories make the world a beautiful place. Even when they end...” Two detectives investigate the Wishing Well, which is unregulated and free-for-all; the unstable patients roam freely and cause chaos, while the doctors and administrators are insane. Escaping, the police now believe the children, and prepare to search for Roger and Small Paul. Gregory kidnaps Tuna, and Heather enlists the help of Tuna's older brother Jacob to investigate, but Gregory kills Jacob and Jacob's girlfriend. Small Paul baits Gregory by holding a photo of the Ice Cream King over his face, and leads him into the main mixer, where Gregory is dismembered.