Here there be dragons … but never on this scale! In 1974, Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson introduced us to a fantastic realm of dragons, magic, adventure and nearly everything else the imagination could fathom. While Dungeons & Dragons wasn’t the first invention of a table-top role-playing game (RPG), it became the most successful, as well as the predominant representation of RPGs in both the gaming community and in pop culture. This popular game sparked an interest in all things fantasy-related, not the least of which was J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” books (all published prior to 1955). What these works had in common was their world setting – medieval kingdoms and vast unexplored territories, and their heroes – knights, dwarves, elves and other adventurers who left simple lives behind to seek glory, treasure and evil forces which must be defeated. In 1977, Marvel Comics dipped their toes into this realm of fantasy (separate from the fantasy stories they’d told before, such as Conan the Barbarian) by creating Weirdworld.
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Happy Friday the 13th!!! I’m super excited, because not only is it a Friday AND the 13th, BUT it’s also HORROR on the 13th! Woo hoo! Yay me! Wow, that may have been far too much cheering for the beginning of this article. Let’s start over.Hello and welcome to a Friday the 13 edition of Horror on the 13th! I, of course, am Susan, your “Horror Girl” (which we all learned is very different from being the “Whore Girl”). The topic of this month’s article is one that is very near and dear to my heart. Since I know that you all watch my videos and listen to my podcasts, I don’t think I have to repeat this. However, for those who might be brand spanking new to Comic Impact, I will let you in on what’s going on with Susan (me): I’m obsessed with werewolves.
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With Halloween right around the corner and all the spooky connotations that come with it hanging in the air it seemed like a good time to scour the shelves of my favorite comic book store for some seasonally appropriate material. The store in question is Comics Factory in Pasadena, CA where, if you’re an indie reader like me, you’re in luck as their selection of independents is so wide it almost rivals all the stock of the Big Two put together.
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