Creepshow [2023] #5 - Image Comics

CREEPSHOW No. 5, January 2024

Described by its Portland-based publisher as “the freaky finale of Creepshow, Volume Two”, this terrifying tome certainly seems to get off to a strong start, courtesy of Saladin Ahmed tapping into the increasing public concern of America during the early Fifties, over the gratuitous violence and artwork depicted in comics. Of course, in “Burning Ambition”, the Hugo Award-nominee brings the wave of political hysteria bang up-to-date in the guise of modern-day Governor Hurley. But essentially the hard-nosed statesman is a caricature of infamous Los Angeles councilman Ernest Debs, whose no-nonsense criticisms and concerns swiftly lead to the creation of the Comics Code Authority in 1954. 

Cleverly however, this ten-page tale soon steers away from grand speeches in front of the cheering masses, and uses Artyom Topilin’s layouts to quite chillingly show the obsessive elected official just how deadly a gutter or three can be, when an upset librarian transports him inside an actual book. Indeed, the lion’s share of this “hair-raising” yarn’s success rests upon the illustrator’s shoulders as he mercilessly pencils the poor politician being physically dissected panel by panel via various breaks in his artwork and numerous onomatopoeia; “Those White lines! They’re razor sharp!”

Sticking with the theme of comics is the equally enjoyable “Keep It Fed!” by DB Andry and Tim Daniel. Essentially a reworking of every eight-year-old’s belief that there’s an ever-hungry monster living under their bed who will mercilessly eat them alive as soon as their parents turn off the light, this reasonably straightforward story quite heavily leans into the trope of the boy’s overbearing father being the true antagonist, rather than the ferociously fanged creature stalking poor Ernest and gobbling up the kid's favourite titles.

Phenomenally pencilled by “murderous Matthew Roberts”, the child’s initial sadness at giving up his beloved best issues to the always-hungry fiend in his bedroom is genuinely touching, and later only overshadowed by the fast-growing teenager’s evident distress at his dad totally destroying his remaining collection by burning them all in a large garden fire. Like all successful conclusions though, this tale has a good twist at the end, which sees the adolescent intriguingly following in the actual footsteps of his grotesque “friend” rather than being consumed himself.

Writers: Saladin Ahmed, and David Andry & Tim Daniel, and Artists: Artyom Topilin and Matthew Roberts