EC Epitaphs from the Abyss
Many horror fans are aware of EC Comics simply because of the company’s reputation. EC Comics not only produced gut-churning 
content whose influence can still be seen across different media but were also on the front lines of censorship battles over what the illustrated page can show. With EC Comics resting on such a high pedestal, any attempt to revitalize the property can seem daunting, but with the success of Creepshow, both the television series reboot and the new collected editions featuring today’s top comic creators, Oni Press takes a stab at it (a joke the book’s Grave-Digger might approve) with EC Epitaphs from the Abyss, an anthology of comic stories featuring a host of talented comic book writers and artist while also evoking EC’s bloody, twisted magic.
Those who have watched or read Creepshow or Tales from the Crypt should be quite familiar with the book’s format of a spooky host, possibly undead or at least appearing to decompose before the readers’ eyes, talks directly to the reader, makes a few jokes that give new meaning to gallow’s humor, and introduces tales that show humanity at their worst and paying for it with their lives. This comeuppance is usually delivered in a twist ending that typically leaves readers somehow both satisfied and horrified. Though this format is familiar, the creators involved do give all the stories a modern twist.
The stories in this book all take place in their own self-contained universes. Lasting only a few pages, they quickly set up the plot and conflict and all end with a gruesome twist that hits the reader like a corkscrew to the eye. These stories also feature the writing talents of some of today’s top comic writers. Some standouts that demonstrate the EC story structure blended with modern sensibilities include a cautionary tale from Jason Aaron (Scalped and Thor: God of Thunder) that shows why you shouldn’t text and drive, along with an exercise in tension from Stephanie Phillips (Grim and Eight Limbs) that shows how tenuous family bonds can be.
Of course, a book can’t really evoke the sacred, bloody cow of EC Comics without including some very gory content and the artists here provide plenty. Gorehounds will be pleased to note that there are plenty of examples of grisly death and human bodies coming apart in violent fashion. Leomacs, particularly in Jay Stephen’s story “A Hand In It,” illustrates with a hyper-realistic approach that looks the most like EC’s signature look while many of the other artists in this collection have artwork that looks more at home in a DC’s Vertigo comic, which is in no way a slight.
Critics might call this collection a futile attempt to recapture how EC Comics caught lighting in a bottle or simply a blatant cash grab, but librarians in charge of adult graphic novel collections, particularly those with patrons who are horror fans, should give this collection a try. At the very least, the nostalgia this book could create might get those same readers to explore other horror titles in your collection.
EC Epitaphs from the Abyss
ByBrian Azzarello, Chris Condon, J. Holtham & Stephanie Phillips
Art by Jorge Fornes, Phil Hester, Peter Krause, et al
Oni Press, 2025
ISBN: 9781637157534
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+)
