Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Blood #1
Ahoy! Comics (October 2020)
32 pages; $4.99
Reviewed by Danica Davidson
Following their Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Terror line of comics, Ahoy Comics is releasing Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Blood. These are all anthology comics, so people can start reading them anywhere in the series.
The first issue of Snifter of Blood contains the stories “The Black Dog,” “Atlas Shrugged,” “Werewolf Hangover,” “Finally,” and “Deep Cover.” The first two are comics with sequential art, and the last three are flash fiction with an introductory illustration. While each story has something of its own tone, they all similarly have twist endings and moments of humor in the midst of horror. Edgar Allan Poe, like the Crypt Keeper for Tales from the Crypt, gives some commentary and introductions to stories.
The first story, “The Black Dog,” is adapted from Poe’s “The Black Cat.” The gist of the story is the same, but it’s not as brutal as the original and the eponymous cat is replaced by a dog.
In fact, the dog narrates, and the dog is completely oblivious to how awful and delusional his master is. The dog, Pluto (so named because the cat was called Pluto, and not a reference to Disney), thinks his master is trying to take him on a walk and play a game with him, when actually his master is attempting to lynch him. The dog doesn’t suffer physically as much as the cat, and his happy attitude contrasts with what’s going on.
The second story, “Atlas Shrugged,” is darker and has a bigger twist at the end. It opens with Edgar Allan Poe meeting with his friend, paleontologist Samuel Atlas. Atlas has discovered the lower mandible of a humanlike hominid at Galt’s Gulch, and this puts him at odds with both paleontologists and religious leaders. The paleontologists don’t like it because it contradicts known science, and the religious leaders don’t like it because it makes it clear the earth is older than 6,000 years. Atlas will be pushed to the limit for his discoveries.
The three remaining short stories area about a page long each. “Werewolf Hangover” is the amusing story of a man waking up in the woods after being a werewolf the night before, and how he has to get back to civilization. “Finally” is about two people with a very strange thing in common, but it brings them together. “Deep Cover” is about the consequences a man faces for lying about recruitments.
Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Blood’s first issue is a quick, enjoyable read. It never really gets scary, but it’s not trying to. Instead, it gives a quirky take on horror that’s unique, fun and interesting.
