Mongrel: Son of a Bitch

Mongrel: Son of a Bitch

Review by : Daniel Kraevyn

Issue #2 cover

Created By: Edward Dunphy and Michael Kudelka
Story By: Edward Dunphy (here is his website: www.labbratz.com)
Art: Andrew Mitchell Kudelka (and his website: www.amkudelka.com)

To Donate to the Kickstarter: click here

Werewolf stories are very hit or miss, mostly belonging in the latter category. In all honesty, most of them suck, which is an unfortunate thing, as one would think that the mythos would be rife with stories that would write themselves. I guess one of the traps that practically every werewolf story falls into is that they all struggle to capture the feelings of the original Wolf Man film. Many movies, books, and comics have tried to craft a good werewolf story, and most have failed, although there have been some exceptions (notably, the first Howling film, and the Werewolf television series). Perhaps trying to capture this ubiquitous “feeling” is the very thing that leads most lycanthrope stories to vapid response.
Enter Mongrel: Son of Bitch, an indy comic by Edward Dunphy and Andrew Mitchell Kudelka. According the preface, Mongrel was originally written in the early 90’s but due to complications (read: long story of company troubles) the other two issues never saw the light of day. Now, it has been revised, colorised, and with the help of kickstarter, the first two issues are out, and the third is currently seeking funding.
This is a 1990’s era detective story, and I must say, one of the better lycanthrope tales to be released. The mood is evocative of a noir tale, the gruff monologue of a protagonist, interspersed with alternative narratives; yet the comic is injected with a modern, gritty, visceral feel. As with comics, pacing can be tedious, but this story overcomes any issues quickly. Of note: the gore. The violence is spectacular, and witholds nothing, and Kudelka shows his artistic prowess by how he is able to pose his characters, along with a very artistic and original of showing the blood splatter outside of the panels. While “nothing” is happening (no action), the characters pose normally; then the action sequences shine as Kudelka displays the sequences with precision and dramatic flare. I must also note that the werewolves themselves are awesome. I will say that perhaps the greatest challenge to werewolf movies has been to have truly scary, realistic werewolves, and Mongrel does just as the movie Dog Soldiers and the T.V. series Werewolf did for the Lycanthropes, they are fantastic.
Mongrel is a three-issue digital comic, with two issues out, and the third in it’s funding stage on Kickstarter. I recommend this read, and even to support these guys. Indy comics need all the help they can get, because there are some gems out there. I will include links below should you wish to get involved. At least read them, and enjoy a good werewolf story. As I prefaced this review, good werewolf stories are tough to come by, so be sure to experience the good ones.

To Donate to the Kickstarter: click here
Mongrel Website
Mongrel on Facebook
Mongrel on Twitter

Unearthed and Untold – The Path to Pet Semetary

A preview by Daniel Kraevyn

One of the creepiest movies of my childhood was Pet Semetary. One of the greatest elements attributed to the movie is the setting, which is integral to the story – a Maine town, with an Indian burial ground that has mysterious, nefarious qualities. Unearthed and Untold – The Path to Pet Semetary is a documentary that delves into the movie, the mythos, and the production that went into making the film. John Campopiano and Justin White (independent filmmakers with Ocean’s Light Productions) are crafting the definitive film companion to Pet Semetary. Our filmmakers will be delving into the making of the film from two perspectives, but will address many subjects, including the memories of the local communities, and archived footage from local press and media during the films productions; as well as interviewing those who participated in the film, and their devotion and pride in crafting one of Stephen King’s most memorable tales.

Pet Semetary has the distinction of being the first book authored by Stephen King that I read, as well as the first Stephen King movie that I saw, and while no specific date has been set for its 2013 release, I am looking forward to watching this film, just to get new perspectives on one of the creepiest horror films from the 80’s.

Throne of Anguish

Reviewed by Phil

 

Before I post this review I would like to make a quick apology, not only for the delay in getting it uploaded, but for not making time to write it! I’ve got a lot of shit going on with work, home life as well as the band (which has now had to fall back to one session a fortnight due to various issues) But enough about the excuses. It’s time you read my review of Dan Kraevyn’s project Throne of Anguish! The majority of you will probably know that Dan has recently joined our team and you will be able to read his first feature shortly.

However, despite him being a member of the team, you can rest assured that I won’t be writing a biased review just because he is one of us. So when I say that his music is absolutely brilliant! Don’t judge me, just listen to an example below and you’ll understand.

I was given the task of writing a review for a few reasons. One being that I’m a fellow musician myself so can probably relate to it better. The second being that out of me, Richard and Siobhan, I probably knew the least about this guy. Once again down to me not being around much. But I took the feature willingly expecting to hear a random metal band with a hint of horror, the likes of which  we’d seen quite a few times over.

The first song I listened to was Patrem et Filium. And to be honest, as soon as it finished I HAD to play it again. You see I’m a big fan of the instrumental stuff. Soundtracks to movies and that kinda thing. So when I heard this I just thought – YES! It had suspense, a great melody throughout, the gothic synth and great choral parts. I’m easy to please it seems. But if you’re not the same as me, let me continue.

So now I was in high spirits and expected a lot from Dan the Man. So the next song I listened to was A Dead Day Will Dawn. Once again I wasn’t disappointed. This song had a more techno feel to it at the beginning until the introduction of heavy guitar half way through. It was about the same time that the vocals started. Now personally I’m not a fan of screaming/roaring, indecipherable vocals, except in certain circumstances when it seems to work well with the music. Well I’m happy to report that the distorted vox in this song DO seem to work well with the overall piece and it gets another thumbs up from yours truly.

If you’re a fan of anything melodic, dark/gothic, techno, metal or all of the above, check out Throne of Anguish. From what I’ve heard so far it sounds brilliant and has definitely made a fan out of me.

http://throneofanguish.com