STAR-STUDDED COMICS "Ghost Woman"

She returned from the dead to save her husband from werewolves...

...in her one-and-only appearance in Cambridge House's Star-Studded Comics #1 (1945)

If this series continued, we would have learned more about Ghost Woman's abilities and limitations and her husband John would come to the realization that she was serving as his "guardian angel".
Presumably, she'd eventually lead him to his presumed-dead daughter...who was still alive!

Unfortunately, publisher Cambridge House produced only one issue each of three anthology titles featuring a number of potentially-interesting series...and then went out of business.
None of the strips and characters were picked up by other publishers.
I'm surprised something similar to Ghost Woman hasn't come along since 1945!
Considering the ongoing popularity of both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the Twilight Saga, a concept like Ghost Woman seems like a sure hit!
We hope you've enjoyed our month-long look at our idea of "weird love" comics.

Next Week
The Finale of our Annual Halloween Horror Blogathon!
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!
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Weird Love

Vol 1

Dark Shadows: the Movie

It's not a comedy or a spoof...

 ...though it does have a lot of humor!

We're doing a slightly-different entry this week.
No comic book story, instead, a spoiler-free review of the new Dark Shadows film by Tim Burton.
I watched the original series during it's 1980s late-night re-run on NBC and enjoyed it tremendously.
And while I liked House of Dark Shadows (1970), I  didn't care for the Barnabas-less Night of Dark Shadows (1971).
I liked the 1991 prime-time reboot and the way it condensed the original series' plotline up to the first time-travel sequence into it's too-short 1/2 season run.
And I haven't seen the 2004 WB unsold pilot, so I can't comment on it.
I went to a screening on Monday, and was pleasantly-surprised to see how close they did hew to the original show's concepts.

Consider Burton's new flick in the same vein (pun intended) as the recent Star Trek reboot by JJ Abrams.

It takes a helluva lot of plot elements from the original soap (and first feature film), tweaks them a bit, and plays up the fish-out-of water aspect of Barnabas' adjusting to a world almost two hundred years after his own time that they never really dealt with on the soap*.

But, the core story is still the Angelique-Barnabas-Josette/Maggie romantic triangle.
(There's a kool reason you haven't seen a Maggie Evans poster among the individual character posters all over billboards and the Net, but she is in the movie...)

Besides Barnabas the vampire and Angelique the witch, there's a Collins family werewolf (but not who you think) and a Collins family ghost!

In terms of performances, Johnny Depp as Barnabas and Helena Bonham Carter as Dr Hoffman manage to evoke Jonathan Frid and Grayson Hall without being mere imitations of the originals.

The rest of the cast are good as new incarnations of the characters, and there's a cool cameo scene featuring Frid, David Selby, Lara Parker, and Kathryn Leigh Scott with Depp.

If you liked the original show, approach this with an open mind and you'll probably enjoy it.
I did.
*Right before Dark Shadows debuted on ABC, there was a BBC series called Adam Adamant Lives! about an Edwardian-era crimefighter frozen by his nemesis in 1902 and thawed out in the late 1960s.
The show featured lots of culture-shock involving the repressed Adamant adjusting to the Swinging '60s.
While it's still unavailable on American VHS or DVD/Blu-Ray, there are British releases you can get on Amazon and play if you have a region-free DVD player (like me).

DARK MANSION OF FORBIDDEN LOVE "Kiss of Death" Conclusion

We Have Already Seen...Anne Mason lying in a coffin after being attacked by strange beings...

...and now, the astounding conclusion to this tale from Dark Mansion of Forbidden Love #3 by Jack Oleck and Don Heck!

Ah, a happy ending...

But not for Gothic Romances in comic book form!

This title, DC Comics' Dark Mansions of Forbidden Love, only lasted four issues before becoming Forbidden Tales of the Dark Mansion, a standard horror comic that ran ten more issues.

Its sister title, Sinister House of Secret Love suffered a similar fate, turning into Secrets of Sinister House, also after four issues.

Marvel Comics' attempt at a similar title was not a comic, but a b/w magazine with prose stories and spot illustrations called Gothic Tales of Love.

It died after three issues.

Charlton Comics' Haunted Love was the second-longest running series with ten titanic issues of weird love. 
We've presented a couple of stories from it HERE and HERE.

But the longest-lasting gothic romance comic book series was one based on a tv series.

Guess which one?

Next week:

More Gothic Romance 
as we present a multi-part, book-length tale of...
Dark Shadows!

 Barnabas Collins!
Victoria Winters!
Josette duPres!
Angelique Bouchard!
Willie Loomis!
Dr. Hoffmann!
and all the rest...
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!

(Oh, you've heard that, eh?)

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DARK MANSION OF FORBIDDEN LOVE "Kiss of Death" Part 3

We Have Already Seen
Anne Mason attacked by a caped figure who might be a vampire, and now...

Is the caped figure a vampire?
Why did the wolf (or werewolf) attack Anne?
What other as-yet undiscovered secrets lurk in Castle Dravko?

..or is she...undead?

Be here tomorrow for the astounding conclusion...

Mystery of the Locket!

You'll cry your eyes out if you miss it!

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DARK MANSION OF FORBIDDEN LOVE "Kiss of Death" Part 2

We have already seen...
Something stalks Anne Mason through the somber halls of Castle Dravko...

...but, what?

Werewolf?
There, wolf!
Be here tomorrow for...
The Body in the Coffin!
You'll cry your eyes out if you miss it!

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DARK MANSION OF FORBIDDEN LOVE "Kiss of Death" Part 1

Vampires!

Werewolves!

A stormy night!

A spooky old castle!

A beautiful woman in a nightgown!

It's almost Halloween!

Perfect time for a Gothic romance!

Who (or what) is the "dark and ominous figure"?
Vampire?
Werewolf?
What is the secret of the Baron's son?
Be here tomorrow for...
The Secret of Baron Dravko!
You'll cry your eyes out if you miss it!

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