Comics
Review: Hellraiser #12
The battle between Kirsty and Elliot Spencer rages on in the new issue of Hellraiser. Spencer and his comrades have returned to the place where he left his former human life, in order to destroy the box that took him. However, while Spencer is trying to destroy the box on earth, Kirsty is trying to understand it in Hell. And if the two worlds collide, chaos is sure to ensue. Another great issue from the genius mind of Barker and the gang. Read on for the skinny…
WRITTEN BY: Clive Barker, Robb Humphreys, Mark Miller
ART BY: Janusz Ordon, Stephen Thompson
PUBLISHER: BOOM!
RELEASE: Out Now
In Hellraiser #12, both Kirsty and Spencer are sucked into alternate realities. Kirsty is taken to a shattered room, where she is forced to battle her inner beast and control her reactions. Spencer, however, is destined for bigger and better things, and humanity is holding him back, as it has in the past. In order to let go of his mortality and become truly invincible, he must experience a stomach-turning initiation. Once both of them make their choices, something happens that allows a new evil to be unleashed on earth.
This series continues to establish itself as a staple for any fan of the Hellraiser franchise. Clive Barker and Mark Miller continue to construct a stirring tale, with a perfect balance of action, suspense, drama, and gore. Stephen Thompson and Janusz Ordon are working perfectly with Barker and Miller in bringing the story to life. Hopefully they will stick around for a while, so we don’t have to continue dealing with artist changes.
This issue, in particular, used a striking rainbow of colors; for instance, the beginning scenes seemed to integrate more abstract art with psychedelic color patterns, perfectly achieving a chaotic, otherworldly effect. Throughout the rest of the issue, the colors are mixed with heavy blacks, to show the impending evil about to be set free. Thompson is doing a bang up job, and it captures Barker’s universe perfectly.
Once again, Barker, Miller, Ordon, and Thompson are a dream team. BOOM! Studios has definitely released a masterpiece. This series never fails to disappoint, and it’s definitely destined to be a classic horror comic. Lucky #13 of Hellraiser drops on April 25th.
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
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