Creepy Comics Cavalcade: Monsters Hunt Monsters In ‘Werewolf By Night’

It’s that time of year, when there’s a bite in the air, and creepy ghoulies are on the rise. To celebrate, we’re going to take a look at some overlooked or classic horror comics in the lead-up to the Halloween holiday. And to start we’re going to look at a VERY recent entry.

Last year, Disney Plus’s Werewolf By Night special took everyone by surprise. An homage to classic black and white horror movies, the special was also firmly entrenched in the Marvel Universe, giving viewers not just an introduction to Jack Russell, but also to Ulysses Bloodstone, Elsa Bloodstone and Ted Sallis, the Man-Thing. Now, the special is returning in color, and this time, Marvel Comics was ready.

From Derek Landy, Fran Galan and Joe Sabino, Marvel’s Werewolf by Night one-shot, released in September 2023, tells a dual story of Jack Russell and Elsa Bloodstone. The duo find themselves on parallel paths to rescue a young woman kidnapped by a mad scientist to unleash Hell on Earth. As the two fight through the castle of Doktor Nekromantik, they soon find themselves united to fight an even greater threat than they anticipated.

This is a fairly simple story. Both heroes approach the castle. They fight some monsters. The Doktor draws a demon into our realm. Chaos ensues. Where this excels is the dialogue and narration.

Where the TV special was an homage to black and white horror movies, this issue is an homage to pulps and black and white horror magazines. The narration is incredibly verbose and purple, but here, it works because of the nature of the story. If you’ve ever read anything like Eerie, Tomb of Dracula or Vampirella, it evokes that feeling, pairing with the art to create a creeping sense of dread and building horror.

Galan gets to cut loose though. She colors the entire one-shot over her own pencils. Most of the Werewolf half of the story is drawn in a style that looks like a mixture of charcoal and inkwash, and it’s mostly in black and white, with some spot colors for emphasis (the red eyes!). Meanwhile, Elsa’s half is slightly more traditional style, with full color. I imagine the colors are digital, but she makes them look painted, making Elsa’s red hair in particular pop on the page.

To go with that, she has a fantastic sense of motion. Elsa’s introduction is on a private jet full of vampires. Even though the sequence is only a page and a half, she makes it feel like a full fight sequence, with Elsa both taking hits and dishing out vengeance. The latter half of the one-shot is full of both characters battling through monsters and demons, and it’s all visceral and satisfying, with great pacing and layouts.

This one-shot flew completely under my radar when it released a few weeks ago, but I picked it up on a whim and knew I’d start this month’s festivities with it. It’s probably still on shelves, and definitely is available digitally. Any horror fan, especially of the type of stories this is homaging, should check it out.

Werewolf By Night is available now from Marvel Comics.