Spooky Stories for Friday The 13th!
13th September 2019
Grab your crosses, stock up on garlic and sharpen those stakes, because it’s Friday the 13th, and you never know what might crawl out of the woodwork…
If, like us, you’ve boarded the doors shut, nailed the windows closed and hunkered down at home, you’ve got a lot of time on your hands, so we thought it only appropriate to give you our recommendations for the spookiest 2000 AD stories that you need to read, ranging from ghosts to zombies to the just plain bizarre!
1. Cradlegrave
After serving eight months at a Young Offenders Institution for arson, Shane Holt returns to his home on the Ravenglade Estate during a long, hot summer. Plagued by the ASBO generation, the estate has seen its fair share of problems but nothing comes close to the horror that lurks within Ted and Mary’s council home…
From the extraordinary mind of John Smith (Devlin Waugh, Indigo Prime) with art by Edmund Bagwell (Tharg’s Future Shocks), this contemporary urban horror is guaranteed to deliver the chills!
2. Hope
In an alternate post-war 1940s Los Angeles, where occult forces are a fact of life, Mallory Hope is a private detective haunted by his past… and by the demon he works with.
When a new case involving a missing boy reminds him of his own lost child, Hope is determined to find him. But he soon discovers all is not what it seems, with dark powers lurking behind the lights of Hollywood…
In the 21st century, however, it has long outlived its usefulness and its funding is scrapped. Enter reclusive millionaire rock star Ethan Kostabi, who has brought up its employees and, together with a handful of freelance ghosthunters, constructed a brand new outfit – Caballistics, Inc.
But the forces of the supernatural are not the only enemies that this disparate group have to tackle, for within the heart of Caballistics Inc. are dangerous secrets that threaten to tear the organisation apart…
Written by Gordon Rennie (Absalom) and illustrated by Dom Reardon, this twisted tale of supernatural horror has finally been collected in a single complete volume, ready to disturb readers old and new alike.
Maxwell Tower is a state-of-the art tower block: a bold, experimental council tenement, run by an A.I. called Max. As building superintendent, Max’s primary function is the welfare of his tenants, a duty which he takes very very seriously. If anyone threatens his precious residents or the building itself, they can expect a visit to the thirteenth floor… A place where nightmare and reality become one!
The iconic series from classic British anthologies Scream! and The Eagle returns in this terrifying collection!
Ever wondered what makes the Wolfman wail, or the Undead to jump back into their graves? Here in this masterpiece of the macabre, the all-powerful alien editor of 2000 AD, Tharg the Mighty, presents a selection of stories that are so scary, they should come with a health warning!
This spine-tingling treat features the artistic talents of ‘Fearsome’ Frazer Irving, ‘Gruesome’ Greg Staples and ‘Cadaverous’ Chris Weston, with stories from the paranoia-packed minds of ‘Menacing’ Mark Millar, ‘Evil’ Al Ewing and ‘Grizzly’ Gordon Rennie, amongst others.
The 10th March 1973 saw the first issue of Shiver and Shake released on the newsstands in Great Britain. Like its stablemate Whizzer and Chips, it was two comics in one, with Shiver mainly consisting of horror-themed comedy strips. On the back page of the comic, readers were treated to ‘A crazy “Monster Piece” for you to cut out and collect!’, and thus the Creepy Creations were born!
That first gloriously gruesome entry from Ken Reid was titled ‘The One-Eyed Wonk of Wigan’. Readers were invited to send in their sketches for further instalments. Winners would receive a pound note for their work and see their creation brought to full-colour life by various Shiver and Shake artists (mainly by Reid).
The Creepy Creations were a grand triumph. Seventy-nine appeared in total, with further entries appearing in annuals and specials. The success of this feature led to both the Wanted posters and WorldWide Weirdies being created for Whoopee!
7. Absalom
Modern-day London. Veteran copper, Detective Inspector Harry Absalom, heads a special squad that enforces The Accord – a diplomatic treaty made in the sixteenth century between the throne of England and Hell. If any demonic entities step out of line Harry and his team will track the infernal offenders down and sort them out for good. A miserable old bastard with a knack for finding trouble, Harry is the perfect man for the job!
Written by Gordon Rennie (Necronauts) with stunning artwork from new talent Tiernen Trevallion, Absalom is a thrill-packed mixture of cops and horrors!
8. The Dark Judges: Fall of Deadworld Book 1
Deadworld was once a planet similar to Earth, until Judge Death and his lieutenants Fear, Fire and Mortis deemed that as only the living could break the law, life itself should be a crime. As the Dark Judges set out to bring extinction to their world, Judge Fairfax and a family of farmers attempt to escape the chaos. Is it possible for the living to evade to cold, icy grasp of Death? This chilling collection also features the Dreams of Deadworld strips, giving an extraordinary insight into the undead psyches of the internationally famous super-fiends.