It’s incredible to consider the evolution of the comics industry and how the pulpy stories have grown into the inspiration for some of the biggest cinematic blockbuster adventures of this generation. Comics are fortunate enough to often function as another medium in which properties can continue to tell their stories. It used to be common practice for each movie to receive a novelization, but comics have gone even further with this premise as they adapt and continue classic TV series, movies, or video games.
There’s been a healthy relationship between comic books and the horror genre of cinema. Many of the most influential horror icons have made their way into comics. Sometimes these comic experiments can come across as empty, but there are others that manage to expand on these beloved horror series in unique ways.
10 Halloween: NightDance Capitalizes On The Intense Terror Of Michael Myers
The majority of the horror genre's heaviest hitters have received copious comic adaptations and Halloween's Michael Myers is no exception. Comics have explored Michael Myers' mythos in unique ways, but one of the most successful endeavors in this arena is 2008's Halloween: NightDance.
The four-issue miniseries brings Michael Myers back to Haddonfield and shifts its focus away from Laurie Strode or Jamie Lloyd and introduces a new beleaguered heroine named Lisa. Lisa's past makes the fear of the Shape even more palpable. It takes the best elements from the movies and pushes them to challenging places.
9 William Gibson’s Alien 3 Brings To Life The Series’ Abandoned Plans
Pop culture has entered a phase where unreleased director’s cuts can find their way into the public and there’s been more of a push than ever for the original vision of creators to be restored where it’s been lost. Alien 3 pushes the sci-fi/horror hybrid series in a bleak and gritty direction that radically differs from William Gibson’s original screenplay.
This rejected blueprint for Ellen Ripley gets a chance to come to life in a five-issue comic adaptation of Gibson’s original script. It’s a fascinating look into what could have been and why Gibson’s direction both works, and doesn’t.
8 The Puppet Master Comics Lovingly Expand On The Complex Lore Of Toulon’s Puppets
The horror movies from Full Moon Features often leave a lot to be desired and often operate more as low-budget fascinations than underappreciated horror gems. However, the ongoing Puppet Master series marks some of Full Moon’s most successful and absurd horror offerings.
Action Lab Comics pulls together a 23-issue epic that ran for several years that’s the ultimate love letter for fans of the schlocky horror franchise. The Puppet Master comics connect the series’ disparate dots and loose chronology together in a way that’s more satisfying than the movies.
7 The True Horror Of Pumpkinhead Is On Full Display In Comic Form
Stan Winston is a legendary effects master who is responsible for some of the most striking creatures in horror. Pumpkinhead marks one of Winston’s few directorial efforts and he guarantees that his haunted fairy tale’s central beast is as visually intimidating as possible.
A technical masterpiece like Pumpkinhead may seem like it falls flat in a comic where it’s no longer in motion, but this exploration of the creature is deeply fulfilling. Pumpkinhead is a creature with fascinating lore that the movies only hint at, yet these comics can fully dive into and better explain the legacy behind this sinful aberration.
6 The Thing From Another World Digs Deeper Into The Extraterrestrial’s Twisted World
The Thing is a legendary horror movie from John Carpenter that's still regarded as a practical effects triumph. Carpenter's film is in fact a remake, but it helps the story evolve in fundamental ways. Dark Horse's The Thing From Another World series recreates the events from the movie as well as continues the story with gorgeous panels that depict the cosmically gruesome devastation that's on display.
The Thing feels like another property that's ideal for the format of film, but these Dark Horse comics are not beautiful to look at, but they're also legitimately frightening.
5 Friday The 13th: Abuser And The Abused Tells A Stark Story About Trauma
The Friday the 13th slasher franchise and its villain, Jason Voorhees, remain incredibly popular. There are a wealth of Friday the 13th comics that retell entries in the series, craft completely original tales, or engage in bizarre crossovers like “Jason Vs. Jason X.”
Arguably, the deepest and most visually impressive of these comics is the one-shot, Friday the 13th: Abuser and the Abused. The comic details the abusive relationship of Maggie, who takes matters into her own hands. Maggie’s journey parallels Jason’s in a compelling manner and it says something deep about shared trauma that’s absent in the movies.
4 Child's Play 2 In Comic Form Is Just As Satisfying As The Movie Version
Child's Play has had such an interesting trajectory as a horror series. It's embraced comedy a lot more than other franchises, undergone a modern reboot, and yet it's still going strong and there's a canonical TV series follow-up that's on the way. Several comic iterations of the Child's Play series exist, with most of them taking straight adaptation approaches.
Much like with the movies, it's Innovation's three-issue adaptation of Child's Play 2 that holds up the strongest. It's a great retelling of the movie and it even uses the movie's original storyboards to create many of its panels.
3 The Gruesome Decadence Of Hellraiser Gets A Chance To Breathe In Its Comics
There are over a dozen unique comic series from different publishers that dig into the gruesome hedonism of Clive Barker's Hellraiser world. Pinhead and the other Cenobites in Hellraiser have such disturbing designs and the comics are able to amplify this horror in a way where the film's are often restricted.
These Hellraiser comics excel when they focus on the Cenobite lore and engage in despondent and depressing storytelling. The art is frequently a highlight, but the Hellraiser III adaptation by Epic Comics is especially inspired and adds to one of the best entries in the series.
2 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Allows Leatherface & Jason Voorhees To Go Toe-To-Toe
When it comes to horror genre crossover showdowns, it’s Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees who routinely generate the most excitement. There are plenty of comic versions of this pairing and even more traditional Texas Chainsaw Massacre comics that explore the traumatic origins of the Sawyer family.
Jason Vs. Leatherface is a three-issue crossover from 1995 that brilliantly finds common ground between these two largely mute, lumbering killers. Both characters are properly explored and the extended segments within Jason’s subconscious are fantastic. It’s a crossover that plays better and makes more sense than Freddy Vs. Jason.
1 Freddy Krueger’s A Nightmare On Elm Street Doesn’t Shy Away From The Villain’s Brutality
A Nightmare on Elm Street has been receiving comic stories since the late 1980s, but it's quite a shock that the classic horror character started in Marvel Comics.
The comics from Innovation that cover the events of the later Elm Street sequels and even function as a continuation after the concluding Freddy's Dead are fun, but Marvel's original Freddy Krueger's A Nightmare on Elm Street still stands out as the gem of the lot. The series only lasts for two issues, but it uses bold, beautiful black-and-white artwork that makes this fantasy horror hit even harder.