Comics
[Comic Review] “Grindhouse Drive In, Bleed Out” #3 Dissapoints
Grindhouse’s second series, now titled ‘Grindhouse Drive In, Bleed Out’ started off quite strong with Slay Ride. A horrific twist on your good old fashioned yuletide tale, with a totally rad and original First Nations slant. For her next two-parter, ‘Blood Lagoon’ Alex De Campi is returning to the gruesome world of Deputy Garcia. She was the protagonist of ‘Bee Vixens from Mars’, De Campi’s first story in the first volume of Grindhouse. Garcia’s first adventure is still firmly ingrained in my mind and most likely will be forever. It’s exemplary of what grindhouse is all about; extreme violence, sex appeal and the utterly bizarre. Sadly, Blood Lagoon doesn’t live up to the high standards Grindhouse has already set.
WRITTEN BY: Alex De Campi
ART BY: Christopher Peterson
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: March 25, 2015
Blood Lagoon starts out promising enough, Garcia is set to accompany Wayne (one half of the gay couple from Bee Vixens from Mars) to visit his estranged father. Sergei (Wayne’s other half) sees them off and their journey begins. Wayne’s whole quest to give his father one last chance is interesting and something you don’t see all too often in comics, or any media for that matter. If anything it’s the solid foundation, the backbone of the story. It’s what keeps you engaged while the other aspects fall flat, such as the dull monsters.
Deputy Garcia and the ragtag crew she accumulates must face off against what looks like giant pubic lice, giant public that have crawled out of the Blood Lagoon. They basically amount to giant crabs with aardvark like tongues. After the glorious Bee Vixens these crabs come off pretty damn lame, they barely cause any carnage and come off as cartoonish more than horrific. I don’t want to be too harsh because this is only the first part and De Campi’s grindhouse tales always ramp way up in the second issue. Still, this is a poor opening threat and the tamest grindhouse issue to date.
While it is super rad to see Deputy Garcia on the page again it’s ultimately a disappointment. I could definitely see Blood Lagoon improving in part 2 but as it currently stands I cannot recommend it. I’d still recommend Grindhouse itself, outside of this one issue it’s all been fabulous. Even if Blood Lagoon turns out to be a dud it’ll be followed with an entirely new 2-part story that I’ll be wholeheartedly looking forward to, whatever it may be.
Comics
‘Curse of the Where Wolf’ Bites Into August Release With Trio of Werewolf Theatrical Screenings [Exclusive Preview]
Larry Chaney‘s hairy misadventures are continuing in the sequel graphic novel Curse of the Where Wolf from creative team Rob Saucedo, Debora Lancianese, and Jack Morelli, and its author is celebrating with a trio of horror’s greatest werewolf films.
The Curse of the Where Wolf hits shelves on August 7 from Encyclopocalypse Publications.
That coincides with the launch of a theatrical screening event in Houston, Texas, featuring a trio of seminal werewolf flicks turning 45 this year: The Howling on August 7, Wolfen on August 14, and An American Werewolf in London on August 21.
Each screening features a “werewolf in film” presentation as well as a book signing from Where Wolf author and River Oaks Theatre artistic director Rob Saucedo.
In the new graphic novel, “Being a werewolf sucks. Reporter Larry Chaney wanted to be a hero. Instead, he became a werewolf. Now, caught between incredible new powers and a desire to eat everything (and everyone) in sight, Larry must find a cure for his curse. Or die trying.”
“With Where Wolf, I wanted to tell a whodunit set in a furry convention, so the story was pretty contained within a very specific setting and genre. With Curse of the Where Wolf, I wanted to celebrate everything I love about the possibility of comic books. Curse of the Where Wolf is a funny book, in every sense of the phrase, but it’s also an earnest look at a person’s struggle to become a better version of themselves, especially when the alternative is to become a literal monster,” Saucedo says of Curse.
The original graphic novel was previously serialized as the first webcomic hosted on Fangoria before being collected by Encyclopocalypse Publications in 2023 and has already been optioned for film, podcast, and television development ahead of launch by producers James Fino (“The Freak Brothers” for Tubi, “Rick and Morty” for Adult Swim) and Charles Horak (First Date for Magnolia Pictures).
Expect Larry to find himself in even weirder situations in the 362-page full color sequel; Saucedo has provided Bloody Disgusting with exclusive art pages from the upcoming graphic novel that showcase lupine humor.
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