Cemetery Plots #1

Though I was searching for lighter fare to read this Halloween, I didn't stay 100% in the shallow end of the pool. I found this autographed copy of the debut issue in September and as I am friends with the editor of this series, I know for a fact that it's all done in fun. Dan Johnson is a devotee of the old horror anthologies from E.C. Comics, just as I am. So if something was gory or macabre, I know that there's no sinister intent behind it. 

In this 2015 book there are several shorts, all presented by your host D.O. Mann. Stories included a perverse husband whose wife suggests a threesome with a call girl, a werewolf seeking revenge against his wife for cheating on him, and comedic one-pager with a mad scientist and his Igor.

 I really loved the opening story. It's told from the perspective of man who gets bitten by a zombie. You witness the internal struggle of the narrator because while his been infected by whatever virus the zombie carried, the transition is far from instantaneous. There's been dozens of stories about people succumbing to the infection of a zombie attack. But I think this might be the first time that you really see that the mind and the body doesn't transform into the walking dead at the same speed. 

Another story of note involves a man who wakes up to find his severed head still alive in a laboratory. There's hints of Re-animator, Mars Attacks and Return of the Living Dead in this bizarre love triangle story. 

The art was all over the place. There's really high-quality professional looking stuff. There's art that looks like something I would do. While the artwork wasn't always polished, the storytelling was fantastic. I didn't feel like I had read any of these tales before. While I 'reviewed' the first 3 issues of this Indy title years ago, I had only read #3. I was entertained then and I was entertained now. 

But could someone explain to me the joke behind the Cemetery Plots host's name, D.O. Mann? 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Star Trek Holo-ween II #4

The Defiant returns to find DS9 under siege. A pair of Maquis war ships have blockaded the space station while most of the senior crew have been thrown into the brig under armed Maquis guard. Well, most of the crew are being held hostage. Worf, Dax and O'Brien are stuck in the Holosuites, forced to fight for their lives in the guise of a Victorian era murder mystery. 

This was a good story. But to call it a Halloween story would be a huge misnomer. Would it have been too difficult to have the events of this tale set during Halloween? Or even the Bajorian, Klingon or Ferengi version of Halloween? Surely Samhain isn't just for humans!

I think if it wasn't for the Holosuites being involved in the plot, this wouldn't have been classified as a 'Holo-ween' tale. Honestly, the parts that took place in the Holosuites were the weakest parts of this tale. There's the dead/alive nature of the random crew member who was attacked outside of the Holosuites. There's the sudden amnesia as to the identity of the murderer of said crew member. Now there's this whole game that Worf, Dax and O'Brien have to solve in order to save their lives. Everything was so choppy.  Did writer Alex Segura not really want to write about the Holosuites and just didn't give as much attention to detail? As great as this story started off and as awesome as the firefight between the Defiant and the Maquis ships was, the more and more time spent in the Holosuites was just awful.

I wouldn't mind another Star Trek Holo-ween. One set on Voyager inside the Fair Haven holodeck program DURING Halloween would actually be a cool plot. I'd buy all 4 issues of that miniseries. But you gotta have it during All Hallows Eve or else it's just a Star Trek Holo story and I didn't spend my hard saved money on that type of tale; big fan of Deep Space Nine or not. Do better IDW!

Rating: 5 out of 10 stars.

Star Trek Holo-ween II #3

The entity that attacked Chief O'Brien in the Holosuites has been revealed. I'm happy to say that the culprit is NOT Redjac. I'm kinda slapping myself for not figuring out who it was ahead of time as the clues were right in front of me. 

The truth about who killed the Captain on that Federation starship has also been revealed. I'm happy to say that it is NOT Jadzia Dax. There's no slapping myself in the head about this one because that culprit was first encountered in an episode of DS9 that I haven't seen. Hey, I was busy with college and being engaged during those last 3 seasons. But not having that knowledge kinda hurts my full appreciation of this aspect of the plot.

There's also a gigantic continuity error. Or 'nit' as fans call such mistakes. It involves that crew member who was attacked outside of the Holosuites. In the last issue O'Brien makes it clear that the crew member is dead. But at the beginning of this issue, he's revealed to be clinging to life. So far I am on board. O'Brien isn't a doctor and the pulse could have been way low. But then a couple of pages later, O'Brien, Worf and Dax are all shocked that this guy is dead. So was this a mistake made by the author of this story or were a couple of pages in my issue printed out of order? It kinda feels that way. But if that's the case, why isn't the correlating pages towards the back of the book out of order as well? 

You might think that this is a minor issue to be confused about and to complain about. But the killer, was revealed at the exact same time that the crewman is found clinging to life. But when the crewman is now officially deceased, it's a big surprise about the killer. Everyone's like 'Who are you?'  The same killer who introduced themselves just a few moments earlier! 

Aaaaaaaagh! I hate it when this kind of stuff happens. I never know whether to blame my developing cognitive shortcomings or find the writing and editing teams at fault. Or maybe the printers really are responsible. Regardless, I did not enjoy this book as much as I could have. It's still a good story. But the quantity really did dip.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars. 

Star Trek: Holo-ween II #2

The spooky mystery vibe continues in issue #2. With Sisko and Kira away on the USS Defiant on a secret mission and Chief O'Brien missing, Deep Space Nine is operating with a skeleton crew during a very tense situation. Already, the space station is swarming with ambassadors and diplomats who have come to DS9 for a vital peace summit. Now an unexpected Federation starship has docked claiming that the ship's captain was assassinated by Lt. Commander Dax!

With 2 mysteries now to solve, plus a peace summit to oversee and a sick bay full of injured crew from the newly arrived starship, it will take every bit of resolve Worf has to keep the powder keg that is Deep Space Nine from ignitng!

Another great chapter. It's got a Victorian murder mystery feel that reminds me a lot of the board game Clue. I like it. I've not yet figured out who kidnapped O'Brien and killed the other crew member. I have zero idea why Sisko and Kira needed to be sent away from the space station. Plus, a dignitary has been murdered! It's very complex. But for now, I'm able to follow everything. Here's hoping things stay that way.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars. 

Star Trek: Holo-ween II #1

In 2023, Star Trek debuted it's Halloween spirit with the 4-issue miniseries Star Trek: Holo-ween. Set on the holodeck of the Enterprise-D, the Next Generation tale tapped into the original series with having the murderous entity Redjac involved. While I enjoyed the sentiment, 'The Wolf in the Fold' is perhaps my least favorite original Trek episode. If a sequel was to be forthcoming, I just hoped that it would leave Redjac in the past. 

Well 2 years passed. I figured that the franchise's Halloween experiment was over. But then by absolute surprise, I learned that IDW was coming out with another Holo-ween mini. This one set aboard Deep Space Nine! I was thrilled. As much as I love The Next Generation, DS9 is my favorite Star Trek series. Just, please... PLEASE, no Redjac.

Here's the setup, which is rather complex. 1) The Federation has sent Sisko and the USS Defiant into the gamma quadrant in search of a mythical Bajorian weapon that could end the current hostilities with both the Dominion and the Klingon Empire. 2) Worf has been made acting Captain of DS9 in Sisko's absence. With a major peace summit bringing dozens of dignitaries from across the galaxy, it's up to the Klingon to maintain peace and diplomacy. 3) With one of the Holosuites on the fritz, Chief O'Brien goes to repair it and ends up being attacked by an unseen adversary. 4) Another crew member is attacked outside of the Holosuites. He appears to be killed. 5) All communication from DS9 to the outside universe has been cut off. 6) A Federation starship supposedly light years away on a mission suddenly appears at the space station with a damning accusation against one of the space station's crew

So this Holo-ween story isn't set during Halloween. But it's creepy as all get out. It's like a Victorian era murder mystery. The surprise cliffhanger ending was so shocking. I just had to read issue #2 immediately even though sequential art seems to tire me out more these days. Fingers crossed that Redjac isn't going to be revealed as the baddie.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Halloween Spectacular #1 (2026)

Halloween night and my wait was over. Archie's Halloween Spectacular is what I look forward to the most. It's fun. It's slightly spooky. And it's safe. Halloween 2026 really seemed to be my year of Archie what with my crippling bone pain, cognitive function decline and bouts of extreme exhaustion. I stayed mostly away from the really scary stuff as I was already low in spirit. But despite my limitations, I did my very best to embrace the fun and frights of the season. 

The Archie Halloween Spectaculars always start with an all-new story. And they're usually way too short. A blast from the Little Archie past returns with the daughter of Mad Doctor Doom creating a massive robot out of a haunted house in order to terrorize Riverdale. It's run by stolen Halloween candy, and when the robot captures Betty and Veronica, it up to 2 unlikely heroes to save the day! 

Pairing Cosmo, the formerly Merry, Martian and Fly Girl from the Crusaders, they team up to rescue the girls and put an end to the Doom Family's reign of terror!

The cool thing was that this was a longer story. Usually the all-new adventures are no more than 6 pages. A couple have been as short as 3! This story was chopped into 2 stories for about 12 pages. It makes me wonder if Archie Comics has been listening to my requests for longer original frights. I have said in past reviews that I would be willing to pay more for more original material. But going from $4.99 last year to $7.99 in 2026 seems a bit steep. Plus I am pretty sure I said that I would be willing to pay more if all the material was new. 

Reprint tales include a Betty and Veronica adventure where they investigate sightings of a ghost at an abandoned theater owned by Mr. Lodge, a new costume shop turns the Archie gang into actual monsters and there's a one-pager in which Veronica scolds Reggie for not coming to her Halloween party in costume.

The Betty and Veronica mystery was a classic that I remember reading when it first dropped decades ago. The costume story seemed familiar to me as well. I think it was edited because in the scene where Dilton texts Archie that he will be late to the costume shop, the art for that sequence just didn't match the rest of the page. The punchline to the one-pager with Reggie was a hoot.

Speaking of Reggie, what's up with him wearing a fish bowl over his head with him dressed as a vampire? Is this a reference to a classic Archie Comics character back in the 60s when they were known for their horror parodies?

A great way to finish up my Halloween reads of 2026. One of the rare times where I am kinda bummed that I didn't get the variant cover. Bill Galvan's homage to the Ben Cooper costumes of my childhood, this one bearing Fly Girl, is something I would have loved to add to my holiday comic collections. It would have made the extra cost worth it. 

Inflation. It seems to be the scariest monster of this book! Until next year (God willing)...

Worth Consuming!

Rating 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie x Army of Darkness #5

The epic 2026 crossover between Archie Andrews and Ash Williams comes to an end. A bloody end. There's a splash page scene where Betty, Veronica and Reggie have guns and they're blowing Deadites to pieces. I'm not normally one for overly gory violence. But it's done in that campy Bruce Campbell way that I spent several minutes just marveling at its insane imagery. Fantastic fun by artist Bill Galvan. 

When it comes to miniseries, I've gotten to where unless something really changes in terms of plot, originality or just does something totally different, I'm not going to spend my hard earned money for it. Plus I don't have that much room in my house and collection. I've got to be really picky these days and understand that I just can't possibly own it all. But if Archie Comics and Dynamite Entertainment decide to pair up again, I have the perfect idea: Sabrina the Teenage Witch x Army of Darkness x, wait for it: Josie and the Pussycats! Have it take place in Greendale. Have the Pussycats performing a Halloween night concert. A new S-Marts has just opened in the Riverdale sister city. Deadites abound! It could happen. It should happen. I'd be first in line for it.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars. By the way, I rated every issue a perfect 10. I don't think I have ever done that before for any miniseries longer than 2 issues. It's a testament to how awesome this story was. If you missed it for this Halloween, do yourself a favor and gets your hands on these 5 issues from your local comic shop and be ready to be blown away by the horror, humor and depravity of it all!