Introduction

Tales from the Crypt #24

This readers advisory guide revolves around horror and supernatural comic books.  Horror comics have been around for quite some time and have an interesting history because of it.  During the congressional hearings that led to the Comics Code Authority, horror comics were one of those attacked for their content.  Horror, as a genre, is defined by suspense, eerie atmosphere, and the ability to cause fear in the reader.  The supernatural is anything that is not bound by the natural laws of the world, such as ghosts, demons, and other such creatures.

The target audience for this guide is primarily older teens to adults, sixteen years old and older.  Horror comics have the possibility of having a certain amount of gore and violence that would not be recommended for a younger audience.  Also, certain themes that occur within the horror genre may not be suitable for many under the age of sixteen.  But, there are a few titles, which shall be marked on the list, that are all right for an audience as young as twelve years old. 

In looking for these books, a number of different kinds of books were considered.  Anthologies were chosen due to the fact that some of the most famous titles, such as Tales from the Crypt, were this type of book.  They also give the reader a chance to have various types of stories without having to have an ongoing plot.  The superhero genre is very pervasive in American comics, therefore, many heroes that have horror and supernatural themes or origins were chosen to be included in this list.  Examples from the list include Hellboy and Spawn.  Some titles were also chosen due to their ability to cross multiple ages, like Ghostopolis and Anya’s Ghost.  Finally, anything else that followed traditional horror conventions or played around with the typical horror and supernatural formulas were a must for the list.  That is why 30 Days of Night and Boneyard are on the list.

Image from Ghostopolis by Doug TenNapel

      All of the above books were chosen by searching through the GoodReads website and by personal knowledge.  GoodReads is an online community dedicated to reviewing books.  During my search, I looked through lists that pertained to horror comics and supernatural comics.  These lists proved helpful in selecting a number of titles on this list.  Some of the choices on the list, such as Hellboy and Swamp Thing, came from personal readings.  Other choices were made based on works that I already knew were popular, but I had never gotten around to reading.