The Complete Web of Horror

by Bernie Wrightson (Artist), Michael Kaluta (Artist), Ralph Reese (Artist)

The legendary, creator-controlled horror magazine from 1969 collected at last! In 1969, a feisty new comics magazine emerged to rival the popular horror magazines Creepy and Eerie : Web of Horror . Conceived by a plucky, independent publisher, Web of Horror showcased instant classics of horror and science fiction by such rising stars of comic art as Bernie Wrightson, Michael Kaluta, Bruce Jones, Ralph Reese, Frank Brunner, Roger Brand, and Wayne Howard, as well as seasoned veterans such as Syd Shores and Norman Nodel, illustrating stories written by Otto Binder, Nicola Cuti, and others. Now, over 50 years later, Fantagraphics presents the complete Web of Horror in one expertly edited and designed volume. In addition to all three published issues, this collection includes over a dozen stories intended for subsequent issues that have been rarely or never-before published, several long thought to be lost and recently unearthed. Among these “lost” stories is Wrightson’s “The Monster Jar,” lovingly restored by Frederic Manzano. The Complete Web of Horror also features a wealth of historical and contextual essays, including the Foreword by original Web of Horror editor and science fiction novelist Terry Bisson; an account of the magazine’s origin by the late Clark Dimond; the history of the magazine’s rise and baffling demise by collection editor Dana Marie Andra; reminiscences by fanzine publishers Robert Lewis and Robert Gerson; and an Afterword by Richard J. Arndt. Black-and-white and color illustrations

Genres: Comics, Horror, Graphic Novels

296 pages, Hardcover

Published June 4, 2024

About the author

Artist known for his horror illustrations and comic books.

Reviews

[Drew Canole · Rating 3 out of 5]

A forgotten EC style Creepy/Eerie competitor. Short horror comics in a B+W magazine. I think the most interesting thing is the artwork, none of the stories did much for me. Some really cool pieces by Wrightson that I've not seen before. In fact, I don't think I've ever heard of Web of Horror before and I've done some deep dives in Wrightson's career in the past.

There's also a Wrightson story The Monster Jar that no one knew about until the artwork for it went up for auction.

Also some work by notables Frank Brunner and Michael Kaluta.

I'd say this is a fans only release. Either you want to seek out work by these artists like me or you really like short form horror comics.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is great. Web of Horror was a short lived black and white horror comic magazine (similar to Creepy and Eerie) published in 1969-1970. The series only lasted 3 issues, but this volume include previously unpublished stories that would have eventually been published in issues 4, 5 and possibly 6. These issues are as good or better than anything in the Warren magazines, and the Warren magazines were great.

The list of talent is amazing. Artists such as Syd Shores, Michael Kaluta, Frank Brunner, Bruce Jones, Tom Sutton, and many stories from my personal favorite comic artist, Berni Wrightson. Some of the writers include Nicola Cuti, Otto Binder, Marv Wolfman, Mike Friedrich, Len Wein, and Gerry Conway. And this isn't a complete list of writers and artists, just the more well known names. An amazing array of talent to appear in such a short lived series.

Overall I give this the highest possible recommendation for horror comic fans. This is a true hidden gem the likes of which we may never see again.

[Rick Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Web of Horror was a short-lived black-and-white horror magazine that existed to serve as a competitor to the more established Warren Publishing magazines - Creepy and Eerie. Forgotten entirely by most, Fantagraphics collects the only three published issues but also adds in many of the previously unpublished short stories that would have been featured in subsequent issues. Like any anthology, the stories have a bit of variance in their quality, but these are more or less consistent with that of its Warren rivals. A large reason towards the general shared quality across these horror mags comes from the fact that the artistic talent behind Web of Horror was genuinely great. There are some early Bernie Wrightson and Jeff Jones (both of whom would also contribute to Eerie and Creepy) work here, along with Michael Kaluta, Bruce Jones, Ralph Reese, Frank Brunner, Tom Sutton and more.

For Wrightson fans, this collection won't disappoint. Wrightson pencils a story in each of the three issues, all fantastic looking. Other artists like Wayne Howard, Mike Kaluta, Syd Shores, etc. all deliver in their few pages. The visual style of these stories are pretty much what you'd expect from the Warren magazines, so fans of those types of horror stories (tons of ink washes, rigid figures, grotesque monsters, etc.) will be pleased. I'm admittedly not someone who really enjoys the sensibilities of "classic horror", since the campiness often outweighs the actual horror. These are visually great stories, but hardly riveting. This is perhaps just for the more ardent fans of Wrightson and/or '70s horror comics.

[Gary Sassaman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember finding Web of Horror #2 on my local newsstand back in 1969 or so and immediately wondering if there was an issue #1, or like Warren Publications’ similarly-themed Eerie magazine, if the numbering just started with #2. I also found #3, and a little while later—probably at a comic convention—issue #1. The art in all three issues was a bit amateurish, but it was exciting to see all these new artists—Berni (nee Bernie) Wrightson, Jeff Jones, Frank Brunner, Ralph Reese, Michael Wm. Kaluta, and Wayne Howard—suddenly appearing on the scene or “graduating” from fanzines. And then, just as suddenly as it appeared, it was gone. No issue #4 … until now. Dana Marie Andra has done a great job in this hardcover collection of telling the history of Web of Horror, and including reprints of not only all three issues, but also a first-ever look at the contents of #4, and enough other finished stories for issues 5 and 6, probably, plus a look at fanzines that contained possible WoH art, like Scream Door and Reality. Publisher Fantagraphics Books has done another beautiful job in the design and production of this book, a worthy addition to stand side-by-side with their great EC Comics artists compilations and their Atlas Comics Library editions.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 4.0 of 5

1969 was just a hair early for me to be reading comic books - especially those that were of a darker nature, like Creepy, Eerie, and Web of Horror. Even when I was reading comics in the 70's, I didn't read anything darker than Savage Sword of Conan.
Which is really too bad.

My interest in comics was primarily with the artwork (as the budding young artist I was) and the artwork in a comic like this, now collected as a book, is just phenomenal. Artists such as Bernie Wrightson, Michael Kaluta, Bruce Jones, and Frank Brunner (collected here, along with others) are artists whose work I came to really seek out in the 70's. My preference has always been B&W fine line art and in many cases, every page is a work of art here.

The stories are less interesting to me. Despite some familiar names penning the stories (such as stalwart Otto Binder) these stories ranged from cheesy schlock (that's an official category people) to moderately interesting.

The power of this collection is not just in the reprinting of the collection but in the additional material - from Terry Bison's Foreword to an essay on the magazine's rise and fall and a reminiscence by some fanzine publishers. For someone like me who didn't read the magazine when it was first published, it was nice to see this look back from people who had a strong interest.

Looking for a good book? If you have an interest in comics, the history of comics, pop culture history, or just some solid comic art, The Complete Web of Horror, edited by Dana Marie Andra is well worth adding to your collection.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

[Bill Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This long-awaited collection of a short-lived but important horror comic magazine has finally arrived. WEB OF HORROR was a competitor to Warren's CREEPY and EERIE magazines, which had deteriorated at this point into reprints. WEB showcased the art of a generation of new artists influenced by EC comics and the rising popularity of Frank Frazetta's paintings. Bernie Wrightson, Mike Kaluta, and Ralph Reese are all well-represented here and the best of their contributions are still terrific. The historical and editorial material around the reprints makes good reading too.

Unfortunately the comic stories themselves are mostly awful, fanzine quality or worse. In the case of the stories illustrated by some of the lesser artists, one wonders why anyone even thought to reprint these. Completeness is a virtue, I suppose.

Also, as much admiration as I usually have for Fantagraphics books, the binding on this one cracked the first time I opened it and one of the pages was ragged at the bottom from a printing problem. If I'd noticed it sooner, I would have returned it.

[Michael Norwitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lovingly produced package (with some minor editorial glitches - the table of contents and introductory essays interrupt the flow of the first issue, and there is an included story which is not listed on the contents page), and represents the early work of some of the Studio artists (Jones, Kaluta, Wrightson) as well as some others who were later to become significant names (although the most well-produced art in the volume is by Ralph Reese). It includes not only the three published issues, but also material planned for the fourth issue which was never published, instead being farmed out to other magazines, as well as additional material for future issues which had long been thought lost. The writing for the stories is for the most part serviceable to good, but overall nonetheless irresistible to the collector!

[Greg L Goldstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delighted that this compilation has finally seen print. Although the stories were better in my memory than they were in actuality, seeing these early efforts by Berni Wrightson, Frank Brunner, Ralph Reese, et al, is a wonderful reminder of the talent that broke into comics in the late 60s/early 70s.
Book also features stories that had never previously seen the light of day.

[Jill · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't read half of what was written on the page due to the font chosen and the size. This is not inclusive and I think that the font for the entire book should be changed. Reading this was like an eye test at the ophthalmologist.

[Brian Clopper · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great glimpse at early horror comics!

[Egghead · Rating 4 out of 5]

EC-esque mag
brief horror anthology
great artists starting

[Sam Goyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a huge fan of EC horror comics, I found a lot to enjoy in this collection. The stories weren’t always great, but the art, especially by Berni Wrightson and Ralph Reese, was stellar.