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This ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s TV Spot Does a Spot-on Impression of the 80’s
The 80’s were a glorious time of hairspray, colorful costumes and music we’re forced to label as “classics” just because they’re old. I was born in time to catch the final two years of the decade, and they must’ve been crazy, because I don’t remember any of it.
I suppose I could relive that era by enduring an 80’s movie marathon, but I’d almost definitely just end up re-watching The Thing, A Nightmare On Elm Street, Evil Dead, because if there’s one truth about that decade, it’s that it was an amazing time to be a horror fan.
Thankfully, the folks at Iron Horse Cinema Productions have created a glorious tribute to the Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise that also doubles as a crash course in Understanding the 80’s.
In the grim darkness of the far future there is only war, but it was a cheerful illustrator from England who helped to define the terrifying war-torn imagery that inspired what we now know as Grimdark (a hybrid genre combining horror with sci-fi/fantasy).
Unfortunately for fans of Warhammer 40,000, Trench Crusade and countless other sources of Grimdark thrills, veteran artist John Blanche passed away this week after struggling with health issues for the past few years.
While the artist retired back in 2023, he leaves us with an enormous legacy of iconic artwork that continues to inspire gamers and storytellers around the world to this very day.
The news is especially gloomy as it was only last year that Daniel Lowman and Napoleon Dynamite himself Jon Heder released The Grim & the Dark: The Search for John Blanche, a documentary following Heder’s exploration of the Grimdark genre culminating in a heartwarming encounter with Blanche in his own home.
Below is one of my favorite pieces by Blanche, his highly influential depiction of Warhammer 40k’s God-Emperor of Mankind on his Golden Throne.
We send our deepest condolences to John Blanche’s family, friends, and fans.
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