EC Cruel Universe Vol. 1
Big thanks to Oni Press and NetGalley for providing me with
an advanced copy of their second EC relaunch Cruel Universe Vol. 1. I
read a version in the NetGalley reader, and was primarily reading them on my iPad,
which provided a great viewing experience, since I was able to see larger
panels in vibrant color. I am really enjoying these reboots. Although sometimes
I feel like these reboots and updated versions lack creativity or imagination,
I think the stories in both EC Collections (Epitaphs from the Abyss is
the horror themed, Tales from the Crypt version) are unique and present some
modern takes on horror and technology, while also maintaining the ironic twists
of fate that are a part of the original EC comics. While the Epitaphs from the Abyss was more of a horror themed set of stories, this collection was
focused on science fiction and a kind of dystopia. I initially thought this would
be strictly sci-fi, but there are stories that are horror themed and also
feature the kind of cosmic horror that is in the vein of H.P. Lovecraft. Throughout
all the stories, the artwork is great. I noticed in a few stories, there are
some common themes in some of the outcomes to individuals in the stories, and I
was surprised at the level of gore for a sci-fi collection. However, as the
title indicates, these tales are part of a Cruel Universe, where people
are subject to violence and brutality, as well as the whims of fate. In really
enjoyed the space themed stories and those with aliens. I thought the artwork
for these stories was particularly striking and original. Many of the aliens
captured the kind of Lovecraftian image of Cthulhu, with tentacles and octopus-like
appearances. One of the earliest stories, “Solo Shift”, features an interesting
image of a black hole with really great colors. I also liked the kind of socio-economic
themes that ran throughout stories like “Priceless” , “Organic”, “And the
Profit Said…”, and “Paring Knife”, which all deal with people on the fringes of
society or who are subject to a lower social ranking than others. In these
stories, there is some kind of ironic twist at the end where we see how those
with power maybe are not as powerful as they once seemed or their arrogance
brings about a downfall, akin to hamartia in Greek tragedy. Other stories tell
of the dark side of technology, and some are particularly relevant today. “Drink
Up” was a unique and short tale about a rich man’s quest for immortality, as was
“Billionaire Trust”, which had a particularly interesting ending. “Automated”
was the story of a tech titan and car designer who brings about the destruction
of society with his overreliance on automation (sound familiar?). I also really
enjoyed “The Deleted Man”, which shows the lengths that people may go to in
order to have their online histories “altered”. Two other favorites were “We
Drown on Earth” and “The Ink Spot Test” for their creativity and illustrations.
“We Drown on Earth” was especially Lovecraftian, but also focuses on the kinds
of risks and problems that corporations exert on their workers. The creatures
in the story are particularly creepy and well-drawn. I loved the background art
in “The Ink Spot Test”, and the story is somewhat similar to a book I just
finished on MKULTRA. I also really enjoyed the covers presented at the back of
the book. There were some awesome illustrations there as well.
Overall, this was a great collection. I really enjoyed these
stories, and most of them were great with unique and innovative twists and
timely stories that are relevant to our current climate, and yet still maintain
an element of that classic EC twist of fate. Highly recommended!
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