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Cthulhu Tales #1-2
Cthulhu Tales Omnibus: Delirium
A wide-ranging anthology based on the horror universe of H.P. Lovecraft by today's top talent!
Lovecraft lives! All new original tales of twisted darkness and the macabre based on Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythology. Featuring some of today's hottest talents, including comic book superstars Mark Waid, Keith Giffen, Steve Niles, William Messner-Loebs, and Michael Alan Nelson, screenwriters John Rogers (Leverage), Andrew Cosby (Eureka), Johanna Stokes (Eureka), and Henry Alonso Meyers (Chuck), and webcomics sensation Kevin Church among others. With grab-you-by-the-tentacles art by Chee (TRANSFORMERS), Ben Roman (THE CRYPTICS), Shane Oakley (CHANNEL EVIL), Andrew Ritchie (NECRONOMICON), Andy Kuhn (FIREBREATHER), Lee Carter (THE DARKNESS), Filip Sablik (ARTIFACTS), Chris Lie (DRAFTED) and Joe Abraham (HERO SQUARED). Don't miss this primal journey into a dark arena of horror. Featuring a cover from 100 BULLETS cover artist Dave Johnson!
Lovecraft lives! All new original tales of twisted darkness and the macabre based on Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythology. Featuring some of today's hottest talents, including comic book superstars Mark Waid, Keith Giffen, Steve Niles, William Messner-Loebs, and Michael Alan Nelson, screenwriters John Rogers (Leverage), Andrew Cosby (Eureka), Johanna Stokes (Eureka), and Henry Alonso Meyers (Chuck), and webcomics sensation Kevin Church among others. With grab-you-by-the-tentacles art by Chee (TRANSFORMERS), Ben Roman (THE CRYPTICS), Shane Oakley (CHANNEL EVIL), Andrew Ritchie (NECRONOMICON), Andy Kuhn (FIREBREATHER), Lee Carter (THE DARKNESS), Filip Sablik (ARTIFACTS), Chris Lie (DRAFTED) and Joe Abraham (HERO SQUARED). Don't miss this primal journey into a dark arena of horror. Featuring a cover from 100 BULLETS cover artist Dave Johnson!
224 pages, Paperback
First published September 6, 2011
9 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Mark Waid
3,192 books1,274 followersMark Waid (born March 21, 1962 in Hueytown, Alabama) is an American comic book writer. He is best known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
July 29, 2019
This is a graphic novel of short stories from a variety of different writers: Mark Waid, Keith Giffen, Steve Niles, John Rogers, Andy Kuhn & others. These stories are dark & in the spirit of Lovecraft, but there were a few that didn’t make sense to me or just didn’t care for the artist’s work. Still highly worth reading if a fan of the writers.
October 20, 2021
3.5 Stars
This wasn't bad but didn't stand out either. It's a collection of unrelated tales that all feature the Cthulhu Mythos in some form. Ironically, the humor stories stand out more than the horror stories. There's an eclectic mix of stories and art.
Overall a nice read for Lovecraft fans.
This wasn't bad but didn't stand out either. It's a collection of unrelated tales that all feature the Cthulhu Mythos in some form. Ironically, the humor stories stand out more than the horror stories. There's an eclectic mix of stories and art.
Overall a nice read for Lovecraft fans.
May 25, 2017
Great stories with some really great artwork and while not all of the stories are scary as some are actually kind of funny but still they all show their love for the genre and the universe Lovecraft created. My favorites ones are Cthulhu Calls, The Beach, Quality Time, and Witch Hunter.
April 23, 2024
Naw, not for me
June 14, 2017
The stories (and art) in this range from 1-4 stars in quality. It's worth checking out if you're a fan of Lovecraftian fiction. If not, you should probably skip it.
Read
July 11, 2012Cthulhu Tales was an on-going anthology comic book of Lovecraftian fiction published by Boom! Studios in 2006 and from 2008-2009. From ComicVine, it looks like each issue had two-to-four stories, while the Delirium Omnibus has 26 stories. (The Madness Omnibus has 23 stories.)
As a big comic anthology, this book has a wide range of art style, which is a lot of fun; and it also has a range of writing, though not as much as you might expect. Unless, of course, you know Lovecraftiana, which tends to circle around the same tropes. So, if you want lots of narration from protagonists who are going mad, this is the book for you.
But even if these stories do tend towards the repetitive (man finds something beyond understanding, goes mad), each has at least one interesting scene or image. So, the narrator of "In the Pi of the Beholder" pulls back from madness in an oddly uplifting story; "The Beach" has an arresting image of whales and dolphins beaching themselves to get away from Cthulhu; "Witch Hunter" presents a nice heroic-style Cthulhu story; "The Pull of Insanity" makes a cute play towards meta-horror, like Lovecraft/Derleth's own "Lamp of Alhrazed"; and I could go on.
One notable trend in Lovecraftiana is the comic take on cosmic horror, which I suspect comes from the same impulse that gives us plush Cthulhus; but there are some standout works that flirt with comedy, like "Are You There Cthulhu? It's Me, Margaret," "Waiting for Cthulhu," and "Alimentary, My Dear Cthulhu."
But as all anthologies, this one is a little hit-or-miss, with some twist endings not entirely working. It seems like ending Lovecraftian stories on a high note is hard since they tend to end the same way (terror, madness, or death). What's the best way to end a Cthulhu tale? Hmmm...
As a big comic anthology, this book has a wide range of art style, which is a lot of fun; and it also has a range of writing, though not as much as you might expect. Unless, of course, you know Lovecraftiana, which tends to circle around the same tropes. So, if you want lots of narration from protagonists who are going mad, this is the book for you.
But even if these stories do tend towards the repetitive (man finds something beyond understanding, goes mad), each has at least one interesting scene or image. So, the narrator of "In the Pi of the Beholder" pulls back from madness in an oddly uplifting story; "The Beach" has an arresting image of whales and dolphins beaching themselves to get away from Cthulhu; "Witch Hunter" presents a nice heroic-style Cthulhu story; "The Pull of Insanity" makes a cute play towards meta-horror, like Lovecraft/Derleth's own "Lamp of Alhrazed"; and I could go on.
One notable trend in Lovecraftiana is the comic take on cosmic horror, which I suspect comes from the same impulse that gives us plush Cthulhus; but there are some standout works that flirt with comedy, like "Are You There Cthulhu? It's Me, Margaret," "Waiting for Cthulhu," and "Alimentary, My Dear Cthulhu."
But as all anthologies, this one is a little hit-or-miss, with some twist endings not entirely working. It seems like ending Lovecraftian stories on a high note is hard since they tend to end the same way (terror, madness, or death). What's the best way to end a Cthulhu tale? Hmmm...
September 4, 2019
Love. Loved. Loving. Have loved. Will to be loved. Loved.
So good. So weird and trippy and scary and dark and funny. So Cthulhu. It took me back to the autumns of my boyhood, when I would read my Lovecraft, H. P. on the screened-in porch while leaves fell from the trees and the air smelled like smoke. The moon was full, and a thin glaze of ice would appear in puddles over night. There were pumpkins, and scarecrows, and apples. It was fall in New England, and I was reading Lovecraft. Simpler times, simpler times...
Anywho...great stories and some amazing artwork (especially by Andrew Ritchie). Really hit my Lovecraft button. Weird and scary and gross and beautiful and cosmic.
So good. So weird and trippy and scary and dark and funny. So Cthulhu. It took me back to the autumns of my boyhood, when I would read my Lovecraft, H. P. on the screened-in porch while leaves fell from the trees and the air smelled like smoke. The moon was full, and a thin glaze of ice would appear in puddles over night. There were pumpkins, and scarecrows, and apples. It was fall in New England, and I was reading Lovecraft. Simpler times, simpler times...
Anywho...great stories and some amazing artwork (especially by Andrew Ritchie). Really hit my Lovecraft button. Weird and scary and gross and beautiful and cosmic.
October 2, 2015
This was an interesting way to begin The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Within these covers, we learn that Cthulhu apparently is a fan of the movie High Fidelity and some girls just can't get a break, no matter what. We also learn that sometimes those elementary school plays really can be hell and why it isn't a good idea to sneak into the Body Farm.
I am not usually a fan of Lovecraft in this format or in movies. However, this was a fun read. I may have to check out the others (if there's more than one) in this series.
I am not usually a fan of Lovecraft in this format or in movies. However, this was a fun read. I may have to check out the others (if there's more than one) in this series.
July 4, 2013
Great stuff! I picked this up on a whim, unfamiliar with the title, but generally liking the concept of comics based on the Cthulhu mythos. Considering the usual spotty quality of anthology titles, this is top notch. Having good talent like Mark Said, Keith Giffen, Mark Badger and William Messner-Loebs helps. Some stories are funny, some are chilling; most are worth your time. There's at least one more volume of these that I'll have to see about getting my hands on ...
October 18, 2014
This book contains a few gems, but you have to dig for them. The rest of these tales are mostly superficial, show little understanding of Lovecraft or horror fiction, and function more as vignettes than fully realized works of fiction. The whole book feels mostly cursory and surprisingly repetitive.
February 28, 2012
A great collection of mini-stories, many of which deserve five stars. However, some where weaker, but even so, I don't think there was a single story in this omnibus I didn't like.
January 30, 2013
A collection of different stories, of different authors, of different styles, with a Cthulu theme. Some stories echo other Lovercraftian themes, faint echo.
July 13, 2013
The tales were too short and choppy and the art was inconsistent.
December 30, 2013
Terribly inconsistent.
November 20, 2015
A nice little omnibus graphic novel of shorts based in the Lovecraft mythos. If you like Lovecraft and Cthulhu mythos stories, then this is your thing.
April 18, 2015
not as good as "madness" omnibus
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews