Halloween Warm-up: The Mad Doctor

The Mad Doctor (1933)
Starring: Walt Disney (voice of Mickey Mouse)
Director: David Hand
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

After his dog is kidnapped, Mickey Mouse must brave the dangers of a mad doctor's haunted castle to save him.

"The Mad Doctor" is another one of those early 1930s cartoons that's equal parts comedy, surreal weirdness, and horror--and it ranks among the greatest of them. It moves at a lightning pace, is full great music and even greater animation, and the Mad Doctor may well be one of the greatest Disney villains ever! This six-minute film is a prime example of what made 1930s Disney so spectacular.

Sadly, the film falters at the end. While the ending may be sweet, it's also weak and something of a cop-out. It knocked this otherwise fun film from a high Nine to a low (and perhaps too generous) Eight on my ten-star rating scale.

Saturday Serial: My Father's Brain

"My Father's Brain" by Richard Sala originally appeared in Blab #8 (1994) and today, it reaches its surprising conclusion. Click on the strips for larger versions. Please come back next Saturday when we'll present a complete Sala story!

MY FATHER'S BRAIN: PART THREE, THE CONCLUSION

By Richard Sala

Meanwhile, in the Shadows!

By Richard Sala

Firearms Friday with Pamela Sue Martin

Born in 1953, Pamela Sue Martin is an actress and model who is best known for portraying Nancy Drew in 14 episodes of "The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries" television series (1977-1978) and as Fallon Carrington during the first few seasons of the night-time soap opera "Dynasty (1981-1984). She also had numerous guest-starring parts on a variety of series, as well as roles in features and made-for-TV movies, all through the 1970s and into the 1990s. 

In 1994, Martin took a break from screen acting to focus on raising her son, as well as building a career in the theatre. Since 2002, she has sporadically appeared in television series or films, but most her time has been devoted to the theatre company she owns and manages (the Interplanetary Theatre Group) and to work with a variety of charities.

'House of Horror' contains both good and bad

House of Horrors (1946)

Starring: Martin Kosleck, Rondo Hatton, Virginia Grey, Robert Lowery, Bill, Goodwin, Alan Napier, and Joan Fulton

Director: Jean Yarbrough

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

Marcel (Kosleck), a sculptor of meager talent, manipulates a psychopathic killer known as The Creeper (Hatton) into murdering critics he feel ruined his career as an artist.

"House of Horrors" is a well-acted, fairly well-written film that is elevated by stylish camera-work  stylishly shot with sets and camera angles and lighting that takes full advantage of the black-and-white medium. Like most the Universal horror films from the 1940s and 1950s, it's a film that's worth watching for the quality cinematography alone. It makes this already briskly paced film go by even faster. The chilling scenes where Rondo Hatton's character is preparing to kill Virginia Grey and Joan Fulton respectively are also definite highlights of not only this movie, but horror films of the 1940s in general.

Among other highlights are Alan Napier (perhaps best remembered as Bruce Wayne's butler in the 1960s "Batman" television series) as an art critic you'll want to see murdered; fine performances by Martin Kosleck and Rondo Hatton as a pair of very different maniacs; and Robert Lowery and Virginia Grey who have a sort-of lowkey on-screen chemistry that make them very believable as a couple in a steady relationship.

So why did I only give "House of Horrors" a Six of Ten rating? 

Well, for one, the script moves a little too briskly. While I got that the psychopath was so grateful to the artist for saving his life that OF COURSE he's willing to kill those who have done harm to his new (and only) friend. What I want to know is how did Marcel know that the psychotic killer he fished from the harbor would be willing to kill for him?

Second, while I like the fact the film has a sort of in media res feeling vis-a-vis Rondo Hatton's serial killer character, I still think the film would have stronger if they'd filled in a little more of his backstory. It might have given an opportunity to explain why Marcel knew he would "weaponize" him successfully. (On the other hand, it allowed me to fill in the blanks with something  far more interesting than what the writers probably would have provided. Still, there is such a think as leaving too much to the imagination, and I think this is an example of that.)

Finally, although generally well-written, I found some of the actions taken by the film's heroine, played by Virginia Grey, to be so annoyingly stupid they almost ruined the character entirely. I can't get specific, but they fall squarely in the Stupid Character Syndrome (SCS) that's caused by writers who are either too sloppy or lazy to make their plot flow , so one or more characters has to do monumentally stupid things to make sure the story keeps movie toward the resolution. When Grey's character does the first stupid thing, you may think she's just hungry for a scoop to fill her weekly arts column, but when she does the next stupid thing, you'll see the full-blown case of SCS for what it is. It's a shame more care wasn't spent on those parts of the plot, because it drags the whole movie down. 

Although not perfect, "House of Horrors" is still well worth our time, especially if you're looking for some light viewing to get ready for Halloween.

Halloween is Coming...

 ... and Vampirella is here at Shades of Gray HQ. She's getting ready to spend the week in meditation, so she becomes more attuned to the Spirit of Halloween. Wish her luck, everyone!

Goth Chick Appreciation Day

October 13th is Goth Chick Appreciation Day. In celebration, here are some goth chicks for you to appreciated.

The Mysterious Mose Meets Betty Boop

Mysterious Mose (1930)
Starring: Margie Hines (voice of "Betty Boop"/The Girl) and Bill Murray (voice of Bimbo/The Mysterious Mose)

Director: Dave Fleischer

Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

After she is harassed by the ghosts haunting her home, Betty Boop's sleepless night may  be about to go from bad to worse when the notorious night-creeper known as the Mose invades her home.

There are some films that need to be experienced with as little advanced warning and spoilers from reviewers like me. "Mysterious Mose" is one such film. It's opens with with some risque weirdness brought on by a frisky ghost-- clearly establishes that the Bimbo and Betty cartoons were made for an adult audience--and it just keeps getting stranger as it goes. I guarantee that you will have a hard time predicting what's coming from one moment to the next, and you will certainly not be able to predict the film's ending. And that is what makes this bit of gothic-flavored weirdness so much fun to watch. The catchy music helps, too.

One thing I do have to mention specifically is that I've been referring to the female main character in this cartoon as "Betty Boop" for ease of reference more than anything else--like everyone else, I presume. When this cartoon was made, "Betty Boop" had yet to sport that name; her iconic look had likewise yet to be fully established. This was her fourth appearance and her design changed from film to film--as did that of Bimbo, actually--but this was the point where the "Betty" everyone recognizes began to take form. That said, she is still an anthropomorphic dog with droopy ears at this point, and she has darker skin that she would be portrayed with (for the most part) going forward. Still, this is the first time the future "Betty Boop" is clearly recognizable as Betty Boop.

But enough from me. Why don't you take a few minutes out of your day to check out this classic cartoon? It's guaranteed to entertain, as well as stir the Halloween Spirit!

 

Musical Monday with Sheena Easton

We continue our Halloween-themed music videos with a great tribute to the classic Universal monster movies that has little to no connection with the subject matter of the song. Nonetheless, it's fun to watch Sheena Easton sing her heart out while squaring off against (or being absolutely unphased by)  Frankenstein's Monster, Dracula, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and even King Kong! (Although... one does have to wonder if she's brave, doesn't have anymore more damns to give, or is stone-deaf when it comes to her reaction to the Frankstein's Monster!

I hope you enjoy this classic music video, which was directed by the Steve Barron, who helmed some of the greatest music videos of the 1980s... and this neat little gothic romance in the style of great horror movie classics is certainly counted among those!


Telefone (Long Distance Love Affair) (1983)
Starring: Sheena Easton and the Universal Monsters
Director: Steve Barron
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

Halloween Warm-Up: The Apparition

Pioneering filmmaker Georges Méliès was making special-effects laden fantasy films and horror comedies when most of his contemporaries could barely conceive of using film for anything but documentary purposes. The film I'm offering as Halloween warm-up viewing today sees him deploying nearly his entire bag of tricks in a three-minute supernatural romp.


The Apparition (aka "The Ghost and the Candle") (1903)

Starring: Georges Méliès 

Director: Georges Méliès

Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

A lecherous old man (Méliès) gropes a maid and is subsequently haunted by a vengeful female ghost.

This is another one of those Méliès films where too much blather from me will ruin the fun of watching it, so all I'll say is that the early 20th century must have been a very different time than today, since the main character in this short film isn't phased by a candle that moves on its own, nor seems to find a woman solidifying from a cloud of smoke strange at all.  

But why don't you take a few minutes to watch "The Apparition"? It's bound to put a smile on your face while getting you ready for the tricks and treats that are coming our way later this month! 

Saturday Serial: My Father's Brain

"My Father's Brain" by Richard Sala originally appeared in Blab #8 (1994). We're serializing it as part of our annual effort to spread the encourage the Halloween Spirit. Click on the strips for larger versions. Please come back next Saturday for the shocking finale to this ninja-laden tale of stolen-brain intrigue.

MY FATHER'S BRAIN: PART TWO

By Richard Sala

To Be Continued...

Meanwhile, in the Shadows!

In Observence...

... of the day when one of the worst criminal-minded, murdering bigots to ever walk the Earth got what he deserved.

If you like old vampire movies and great comics, you're going to love this book!

Peculia and the Groon Grove Vampires (2005. Fantagraphics)
Story and Art: Richard Sala
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

When a member of the Baby Sitters Club mysteriously disappears, Peculia is recruited by the remaining three girls to help with a special assignment that required all four members: The new family in Groon Grove have needs that require special attention... 

Richard Sala's reluctant monster-fighter returns for a full-length adventure in "Peculia and the Groon Grove Vampires", and she once again find herself under threat when all she wanted to do was hang out with other teen girls and do some babysitting/caregiving. While Peculia may not have the fun experience she was hoping for, I think readers of this book who enjoy classic horror films and well-crafted comics will have a great time reading it. Sala once again delivers a deftly told tale that delivers chills and chuckles in equal measure.

"Peculia and the Groon Grove Vampires" is a fun tribute to classic horror and vampire films, with nods to the greats from Universal Pictures during the 1940s and Hammer Films during the 1960s, as well as some familiar elements from 1980s slasher flicks. Sala had a love of and respect for these films, and it shows in his work. He was also one of an ever-diminishing crop of writers/artists who understood and had fully mastered the art of the comic book medium, knowing how to lay out a page to keep the reader's eye moving to what's important; knowing when to use a long shot, medium shot, or close up; and knowing how to pace a story one page at a time to encourage the reader to keep turning them to see what happens next. I feel like Sala did some of his best work on the Peculia stories in general and this book in particular. He uses a starker style than in many of his other works, with lots of contrasting solid whites and blacks that sometimes feel like woodcuts; and his scripts are more economical and done in style that harkens back to old-time newspaper comic strips where, supported by traditional visual cues that were also originated in the newspaper strips. While this is true of much of Sala's work from the early 1990s onward, it is most evident in the Peculia stories, I feel.

This approach--of letting the art speak for itself--heightens both the humor and horror in this book, making its best moments even better. And there are some really good moments in this book. 

Sala has some wonderful, wordless scenes featuring George, a young boy who is being baby-sat by one of the soon-to-be-vampire-victims. George fills the role of a comic relief character who spends the story running from horror scene to horror scene, but, who in the end plays a pivotal role in the success of the hero--a kind of character that was a mainstay of the 1940s horror films that served as part of Sala's inspiration here. Sala, however, does a much better job with George than many of the screenwriters did with such characters Back in the Day; George is cute and funny where the old-time comic relief characters were oftentimes more annoying than anything else.

Other highlights are Peculia's mostly silent fights against the vampires; she's always been a girl of few words, but this is more true here than in almost any of her previous appearances. Her silence alternatively makes the horror and humor of her various scenes far greater than it would have been if Sala had caused a quip or a cry to issue forth from her.

Few books are perfect, but the only major flaw I find with this the presentation of how Peculia dispatches two of the vampires. Sala plays a similar gag back-to-back, and I would have preferred a little more variety, or at least a little more distance between the two. (The first time he plays it, it unfolds over what are two of the very best pages in the book.. which could also be why it doesn't work as well the second time around.)

In balance, however, "Peculia and the Groon Grove Vampires" is an excellent read that I highly recommend to anyone who enjoys classic vampire movies and well-done graphic novels/comic books.

How can you tell Halloween is coming?

The air is turning cold... the shadows are deepening... and Vampirella is dropping by Shades of Gray for her annual visits!

Meanwhile, Wonder Woman will continue her bi-weekly appearances as well, since her latest movie has been postponed again. Although, since she was expecting to be off because of her movie coming out, all she's doing is showing the costume she'll be wearing for Halloween: She'll be going as the goddess Diana.

'The Strange Case of Dr. Rx' is worth investigating

The Strange Case of Doctor Rx (1942)

Starring: Patric Knowles, Anne Gwynne, Mantan Moreland, Edmund McDonald, Shemp Howard, Samuel S. Hinds, and Lionel Atwill

Director: William Nigh

Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A successful private detective (Knowles) puts off early retirement at the behest of both a friend in the police department (McDonald) and a high-powered attorney to mob (Hinds) whose clients are being murdered by a seemingly invisible, intangible assassin.

"The Strange Case of Doctor Rx" is a fast-paced comedy-thriller starring a solid cast of mostly under-appreciated B-movie actors who are working with a script full of snappy dialogue and an intriguing murder mystery that deepens and becomes more convoluted as the film unfolds. In fact, everything about this film becomes more convoluted as it unfolds.

By the time "Strange Case" came to an end, I had the amusing thought that someone had challenged writer Clarence Upton Young to include every single mystery B-movie mainstay into one script... and he accepted. As this film unfolds, we get a charming gentleman detective and his befuddled manservant; a go-to-any-lengths-to-get-the-story lady reporter; cops who are tough but not bright; a rich, possibly crooked lawyer with a possibly even more crooked wife and family; gangsters and a gun moll; a suspicious mystery man who may or may not be the killer; a mad scientist; and a guy in a gorilla suit. In the end, nothing makes a whole lot of sense--and it feels a little like Young was hard-pressed to even formulate a satisfactory resolution to the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink mess he'd created. (I was left with one major question at the end, a question that was obviously left unanswered on purpose as it gave Mantan Moreland an opportunity to give us one final, mildly disturbing laugh.

Speaking of Mantan Moreland, this is another one of those films where he's more of a hero than any of the other characters give him credit for; his character isn't as smart as the one he portrayed in 1941's "King of the Zombies", but he absolutely key to the main hero's success and he makes a great personal sacrifice in the process. So, Moreland is perfectly cast here, as is everyone else. Most of the players in the film are at their best, with Moreland, Anne Gwynne, and Shemp Howard (of Three Stooges fame) are particularly fun to watch, even if Gwynne's performance is undermined a bit by the disjointed manner in which her character drifts through the story. Lionel Atwill plays a small but crucial role in the film, and the presence he lends is more a result of brilliant casting than anything Atwill does on screen. (Although, given his ability to slather on the villanous attitude, perhaps the harmless air he  air he has about him in the few scenes he's in is remarkable. At any rate, Atwill just being there brings with it certain expectations that help drive the story along and make it that much more entertaining.

"The Strange Case of Doctor Rx" is one of five movies included in the "Universal Cult Horror Classics" collection, despite the fact even the most creatve marketing executive or inventive critic could come with a good reason for why it should be considered a horror film. Nonetheless, it's fun flick, and it's presence is one of the many reasons why the set is worth owning if you enjoy old-time B-movies.

Every Day is Halloween!

This has been true every October for the past several years at Terror Titans where we celebrate 31 Nights of Halloween. Here at Shades of Gray... we're never quite sure what is going on, only that it needs to be in black and white!

Like the video for this fantastic version that Ministry recorded last year of their classic song "(Every Day is) Halloween". And while we're we fully aware the song is not about Halloween, we're presenting it here as part of our warm-up to the night of ghosties and ghoulies on October 31!





And here's the original version from the 1980s, set to clips from early Walt Disney cartoons!



(The cartoons featured in the video above are "Hell's Bells" and "The Skeleton Dance". Click on the links if you want to see the originals.)

Halloween Warm-up: Magic Mummy

Magic Mummy (1933)
Starring: Margie Hines (as the voice of the Mummy)
Directors: John Foster and George Stallings
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

Tom and Jerry are police officers working the graveyard shift when they get a call about a stolen mummy. While working the case, they find their way to an underground theatre where a lich puts on performances for the undead.

"The Magic Mummy" is one of those 1930s animated romps that's a wild mix of visual puns, crazy humor, and horror that add up to a dreamlike, borderline nightmarish flight of fancy. From a playful opening scene with the heroes of our story patrolling the city streets in a literal radio car; to the portrayal of the jazziest, most laid-back jail in all of cartoon land; through the heroes invading the villains lair and discovering his plans for the mummy and ultimately disrupting them, this is a bit of animation that needs to be seen to be experienced. Any details I could describe here will ruin the surprising visuals and quirky little twists that will unfold before your eyes as you watch. I feel the ending could have been stronger, but getting to it was such a trip that I am mostly able to forgive the stumble at the finish.

I encourage you to take a few minutes and watch this great little cartoon right now. It's a perfect warm-up for Halloween, and it may also be the most fun you'll have today!

Trivia: Margie Hines also did the voices of Betty Boop and Olive Oyle during the late 1930s and early 1940s in some 50 cartoons.. She was, in fact, also the very first voice of Betty Boop in 1930, but was replaced for a number of years by Mae Questel.

Saturday Serial: My Father's Brain

"My Father's Brain" by Richard Sala originally appeared in Blab #8 (1994). We're featuring it here over the next few Saturdays (along with other stray samples of Sala's wild and spooky work) as part of our annual effort to spread the encourage the Halloween Spirit in the young and the old. Click on the strips for larger versions. Please come back next Saturday for Part Two.

MY FATHER'S BRAIN: PART ONE

By Richard Sala

To Be Continued...

Meanwhile, in the Shadows!

Richard Sala's creations is a stew of all the things that get covered by this blog. We should have done more to spotlight his work than just feature a couple stray cartoons during 2009 and 2010. But... the Saturday Serials give us the perfect opportunity to put him front and center!

Firearms Friday with Dorothy Sebastian

Born in 1903 in Birmingham, Alabama, Dorothy Sebastian was a Zigfield Girl who turned to screen acting. When she wasn't militantly enforcing safe driving practices around the MGM lot (we kid... maybe), she portrayed femme fatales and other "tough" female characters, both villainous and heroic, in a range of genres.

Sebastian's first film was "Half a Hero" in 1925, and she stayed busy playing supporting roles of varying sizes through the end of the Silent Era. Stardom, however, eluded her, and with the arrival of sound, her career entered a steep decline. By the mid-1930s, she was mostly taking small parts in Poverty Row B-movies, and even those became fewer and farther between as the 1940s arrived. (Highly public scandals involving tax evasion, multiple divorces, and drunk driving didn't help either.)

Sebastian's final film roles were uncredited bit-parts, with the last one in 1948's "The Miracle of Bells". She passed away in 1957 after battling cancer for several years.

Halloween is coming...

... and here's a little treat of a film to start getting you in the spirit for the season where ghouls and goblins are lurking in every shadow... even in the laundry room!

The Midnight Cycle (2016)
Starring: Lauren Calhoun
Director: David Westphal
Rating: Six of Ten Stars



For more a differen mini-fright film every day this month, visit our sister blog Terror Titans!

The 31 Nights of Halloween are Almost Here

Starting tomorrow, you (and monsters all around the world) will be able to enjoy a mini horror film each and every night at 4:44PM (Pacific Time) at the Terror Titans blog until Halloween.

The Autumn chill will be felt here at Shades of Gray, as we will be offering a variety of posts to help you get in the mood for Halloween. You'll find spooky music videos, comics, reviews, and the annual visits from Vampirella, so be sure to check back frequently.

The Milla Jovovich Quarterly

Halloween is several weeks away, but we are wondering if Milla Jovovich is dressing up like a devil, or if a devil is dressing up like Milla Jovovich?

Musical Monday with Depeche Mode

Depeche Mode's greatest album was, arguably "Music for the Masses", and, it was released on date--September 28--exactly 33 years ago. Here's a video released in support of the album to celebrate. It tells the tale of a crippled man whose car breaks down, and he is miraculously healed by a sexy chick on a moped. He then roams the countryside with her.


Depeche Mode: Behind the Wheel (1987)
Starring: Dave Gahan and Ippolita Santarelli
Director: Anton Corbijn
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

School kids get creepy with "What Lies Beneath"

In 2014, Middle School teacher Candace Craig taught an intensive four-day course on silent movies, with an emphasis on horror films. At the end of it, her students made a rather remarkable little film. With the Halloween festivities starting next week at this blog, as well as the return of the 31 Nights of Halloween over at Terror Titans, this nicely done little film will serve as a warm-up for the things to come.

I'm going to refrain from my usual critical comments--this film WAS made by Middle Schoolers!--aside from observing that while the ending they gave this film was in perfect keeping with the films they were emulating, but I still it had ended a moment earlier, as the angry ghosts are closing in on our hapless teenaged trespassers.

If you like silent movies, I think you'll love this. I hope the kids who were the main drivers behind this film continued to be creative and perhaps even found a way to make a living in the film business.

(Also, check out the "Making Of "What Lies Beneath" here.)

Saturday Serial: Jenna of the Jungle

Today, we conclude Don Hudson's excellent "Jenna of the Jungle" series. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. Click on any panel for a larger version..


JENNA OF THE JUNGLE: PART NINETEEN, THE CONCLUSION
By Don Hudson

There's a new (briefer) comics serial starting next Saturday, as we're change gears and start to set the mood for Halloween. Come on back and share a bit of creepy fun from Richard Sala with us! 

The hero we need for the Covid-19 age

Grampy's Indoor Outing (1936)

Starring: Mae Questel (as the voices of Betty Boop and Junior) and Jack Mercer (voice of Grampy)

Directors: Dave Fleischer and Dave Tendlar

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

After a promised outing to a traveling carnival is cancelled, Junior throws a temper tantrum. It's Professor Grampy  to the rescue, as he applies his mechanical genius to turn his home into an indoor carnival.

"Grampy's Indoor Outing" is a fast-paced, fun bit of fluff. There's not a whole lot to say about it beyond the summary above and the sentence I began this paragraph with. It's one of those things you just sit back and watch with a smile. Parents of young children may find themselves watching and wishing the had Grampy as a neighbor, what with all the lockdowns and shut-downs of the amusement parks and just plain old parks, and even the schools. It's been a year for many parents, and these next few months are probably going to feel even longer. Grampy is both the hero they need AND deserve.

Take a few minutes to enjoy "Grampy's Indoor Outing" right now. It will almost certainly brighten your day!

(One thing I observed that I found interesting is that the character design of Junior is almost identical to that of Little Jimmy, a licensed character that starred along side Betty Boop in a cartoon released earlier in 1936. I don't know if that means anything other than Fleischer was going to spend the effort to come up with an entirely new character design for a series that was sinking in popularity, or if it was something else.)

'Witching Hour' is a fun collection of horror shorts by great writers and artists

Showcase Presents: The Witching Hour, Vol. 1 (2011, DC Comics)
Writers: Steve Skeates, Mike Friedrich, Sergio Argones, Maury Boltinoff, and more 

Artists: Alex Toth, Nick Cardy, Don, Heck, Tony DeZuniga, Dick Giordano, and more

Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

"The Witching Hour" was one of DC Comics' long-running horror anthology titles. This massive, low-cost volume reprints more than 500 pages of content and covers from the first 21 issues, showcasing artwork from some of the comic book mediums true masters in glorious black-and-white.

As a kid, I loved DC Comics' horror anthologies, what few of them I ever gained access to. I'm not sure what my reaction would have been to "Witching Hour" if I had come across back in those days, but as an adult and a lover of anthology films, I thought the majority of this book was an exceptionally fun read. The early issues of this title should be counted among the best horror anthology comics ever published.

A standard for a comic book horror anthology has always been a host character giving a little introduction and epilogue to the stories, and some titles would take it further and start the issue with a page or two establishing the host with a couple of puns and a gag situation. It's also typical for the host to make some joke or ironic comment at the end of each story.

But with "The Witching Hour," editor Dick Giordano took this convention a little further and brought it in line with produced a title that followed the standard set by horror anthology films, placing the titles' hosts in a wrap-around story that sometimes tied all the stories together thematically, but that always provided a prologue, epilogue, and amusing interludes in each issue.

"The Witching Hour" was hosted by three witches, which appear to be loosely based on the Weird Sisters from "MacBeth" and which also had fun with the notion that the younger generation never has any respect for the older generation and visa-versa. Two of them are the stereotypical slovenly hags with warts and pointed hats while the third one is a sexy, swinging, college educated chick who keeps her wardrobe and rooms as fashionable and clean as her older sisters keep theirs tattered, run-down, and vermin infested. And while her sisters boil their witch's brew in the traditional large iron pot over a live flame with ingredients gathered from the swamp surrounding their home, their younger (adopted, they are quick to point out) sister happily lets hers simmer in a pan on an electric range using frozen ingredients from the grocery store.

The framing stories featuring the sisters often involve amusing arguments over modernity and tradition as it relates to witchcraft, and over what makes better stories... old school fairy tales and twist-ending chillers, or more modern and futuristic stories with sci-fi angles. The generation gap jokes are full of 1960s and 1970s slang and outdated technology, but they're still amusing, especially with the recently passed "Okay Boomer" craze.

Unfortunately, after Dick Giordano was replaced as the title's editor, the framing sequences are reduced and eventually phased out. The stories remain interesting--and a few of the best ones in the entire book can be found in the back half--but I still missed the side stories with the sisters, as well as the subplot involving their hideous servant. (The promise of readers getting to see his face, and the payoff of that promise, is one of the funnier running bits I have come across. It's too bad the editors at DC Comics didn't keep that approach going.)

Artwise, the quality is universally top-notch, with a virtual whos-who of comic book greats providing it. The black-and-white presentation and superior printing and paper quality makes it even easier to admire the line-work. Of particular note is the many pages by Alex Toth, who drew many of the framing sequences, and even the majority of the short tales in some issues as well. The art on those Nick Cardy covers especially benefit from being in black-and-white.

"DC Showcase Presents: The Witching Hour" is an anthology of anthologies, and it's a book I highly recommend if you like well-done comics and horror short stories. With Halloween coming up in a few weeks, it even be the book to get you in the proper mood.