Razorblades Volume 1

by James Tynion IV, Steve Foxe, Ram V

The self-published terror sensation arrives in a deluxe hardcover collecting the first year! Co-created by James Tynion IV (DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH, SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN) and Steve Foxe, RAZORBLADES: THE HORROR MAGAZINE features nearly 400 pages of horror from some of the most cutting-edge names in the genre. From monsters in the closet to bodies stuffed into washing machines, RAZORBLADES redefines horror comics for the next era. Also includes prose, illustrations, and in-depth interviews with horror icons like Scott Snyder.

Collects RAZORBLADES #1-5

Genres: Horror, Graphic Novels, Comics, Anthologies, Comics Manga, Short Stories, Comic Book

388 pages, Hardcover

First published July 26, 2022

About the author

Prior to his first professional work, Tynion was a student of Scott Snyder's at Sarah Lawrence College. A few years later, he worked as for Vertigo as Fables editor Shelly Bond's intern. In late 2011, with DC deciding to give Batman (written by Snyder) a back up feature, Tynion was brought in by request of Snyder to script the back ups he had plotted. Tynion would later do the same with the Batman Annual #1, which was also co-plotted by Snyder. Beginning in September 2012, with DC's 0 issue month for the New 52, Tynion will be writing Talon, with art by Guillem March. In early 2013 it was announced that he'd take over writing duties for Red Hood and the Outlaws in April.

Tynion is also currently one of the writers in a rotating team in the weekly Batman Eternal series.

Reviews

[Sam Quixote · Rating 1 out of 5]

Razorblades is a horror magazine comprised of short comics, prose short stories, interviews with horror comics creators like Scott Snyder and Gou Tanabe, and standalone pieces of art. The most shocking thing about this first book - featuring work from James Tynion IV, Steve Foxe, Ram V, Marguerite Bennett, Michael Walsh, Lonnie Nadler, Tini Howard, Dan Watters, Steve Orlando, and Alex Paknadel (to name just a few of the contributors), a veritable who’s who of the worst comics writers around at the moment - is that there isn’t a single story in 400 pages that’s worth reading!

A guy kills via washing machine. A witch steals a baby. An autopsied body comes back to life. Tynion’s original character, Killboy, a serial killing vigilante, does just that. A giant spider terrorises a town. Forget scary (which none of them are), these stories aren’t even interesting. It’s usually either monsters popping up to say boo or people killing other people.

I like horror because it’s a genre that encourages wild and dark imaginations but none of these writers or artists take advantage of/have the capacity for that and produce the most limited, obvious, and boring stories instead. Gratuitous gore does not a horror story make - that’s the reserve of hacks.

The only thing horrible about this book is the consistently low quality of its contents. An instantly forgettable anthology and a total waste of time, there’s nothing to Razorblades that’ll appeal to fans of good horror comics.

[Borko Dongo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty shocked by some of the negativity in the reviews already here. No anthology this size is going to be straight bangers or appeal to everyone the whole time through, but Tynion has assembled a ton of exciting horror people from comics and Twitter (Trevor Henderson!) to turn out a bunch of different takes and approaches on creepy comics. I could have done without the prose stories myself (just not into prose in my comics) but the range of art and storytelling is really impressive. I especially loved the two from Ram V and John Pearson, and a bunch of the single page illos from different horror artists.

[Dan · Rating 1 out of 5]

So, so bad. Pointless, amateurish, self-indulgent stories that go nowhere, over and over and over again. I'm giving one star, grudgingly, because there was some good pin-up and cover art, and I enjoyed one (ONE!!!!) story, the giant-spider tale "Diamond Eyes", which I wish had taken up a lot more real estate in this collection. Save your money. I will not be back for volume 2.

[OmniBen · Rating 2 out of 5]

(Zero spoiler review) 1.5/5
What do you get when you put dozens of middling, low talent writers on a horror anthology? A middling, low talent book. I went into this with pretty low expectations, kinda knowing what I was getting myself into, but somehow, it still managed to disappoint me.
This is James Tynion giving another outlet into the comics industry for a number of his low or no talent friends, which in all honesty, is one of the last things we need. I didn't bother reading his introduction to this, although I saw him mention Alan Moore's From Hell as an influence on him. Quite how someone can reference one of the greatest graphic novels of all time in the same breath as this sorry collection is a crime. Maybe I should have called the police.
There is some decent art here, which doesn't deserve to be associated with what is mostly terrible writing across the board. Writing a short comic story that feels complete, and is engaging and interesting is a difficult thing. There were some interesting ideas here, although, I would argue, needed more time to flesh them out to be something more than what they were. The rest should never have been birthed into existence, nor had some decent artists waste their time on them. The only thing scary about this is the money that is now missing from my bank account after buying it. To be avoided. 1.5/5


OmniBen.

[Brian Garthoff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Razorblades collection is five issues of the James Tynion IV horror magazine, each of which contain an interview, a short written story, one page horror art, as well as several small horror themed comics in between. Like any anthology, you’ve got a wide array of quality, that goes from good to bad, but it is all similarly flavored. Altogether, I liked more than I disliked, but there are several forgettable stops along the way. Not knowing what was next kept it very exciting. Occasionally, I would stumble across a single page of art without context that I would take a moment to appreciate and those were actually some of my favorite parts because you can sort of fill in the blanks for what you think the story behind the picture would be. You may not be wowed by any single part of Razorblades, but I do think it will appeal to the average horror fan in general. 3.5 stars

[James DeSantis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tbh one of rhe biggest disappointments ever. Boring, one good story for every 5 bad ones, not worth the money at all. Super sad.

[Nicole Thorn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jeez

[Rick Ray · Rating 1 out of 5]

A completely underwhelming series of uninteresting horror comics. Tynion seeks to reinvigorate the horror anthology magazines that thrived decades ago, but Razorblades is not it. While horror comics have made a steady comeback in recent years, there is something very "sanitized" about most mainstream horror titles - most of which has been perpetuated by the talent in this book. It's not that they can't write good horror - many of them have do have some decent pedigree in this field - but there is something unremarkably unimaginative about their collective approach. Very few of the stories have any weight or memorability to them (the exception may be the John Pearson one), and that really makes this something I regret purchasing overall. There are some decent horror anthologies on the stands today, but I would definitely not qualify this as one of them.

[Matthew Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly okay anthology. Nothing revolutionary. My biggest issue with this was that everything was too short and I didn’t have time to get invested. I know the premise of this magazine is quick, short stories, but that just didn’t hit for me.

[Brooke · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t realize this was the short story collections when I picked it up,I probably wouldn’t have if I had known. I only liked a few, but the rest were stupid and there was some stupid interviews in between some of the stories. I just did not care about this. I think if it sounds interesting or if you like this author, pick it up, but I did not really enjoy it at all. There was a lot of different art styles which I did appreciate and I liked most of them so that was cool to see.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 2 out of 5]

This just wasn't for me. I'm a huge fan of horror anthologies, but this was just too "artsy." There were a few stories that weren't bad, and some of the art, especially the pin up and cover art was pretty cool. But the stories just seemed a little too existential. I'm sure some readers love this type of material, but I prefer my horror a little more traditional.

[Mel Gillman]

I really wanted to like this, but unfortunately didn’t. A similar horror anthology concept with fewer but longer stories and a more diverse slate of artists would probably make for a much more satisfying read.

[Amy Bailey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love this so badly. :( I just could not . It was terrible. Most of the stories basically went no where or didnt make much sense. I likes a few out of the books.

[Lakisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Razorblades Volume 1 is a gripping horror anthology curated by James Tynion IV that delivers a sharp and varied collection of stories and visuals. The mix of short fiction and comics is just right — it keeps the pacing fresh and the mood shifting in the best kind of uneasy way.

What stands out is how deeply some of these stories get under your skin. The horror here isn't just blood and gore — though there's plenty of that too — it's emotional, psychological, and at times uncomfortably close to real-life fears. Some pieces feel like nightmares captured on paper, while others build a quiet tension that lingers long after reading.

The creative range on display is impressive, and the volume feels like a gathering of voices pushing horror in bold, disturbing directions. It’s a must for fans of weird fiction, indie horror, and anyone who loves storytelling that isn't afraid to go dark, strange, or deeply personal.

[Jabir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Razorblades is a horror anthology consisting of creepy stuff in all sorts of mediums. Like any anthology some of the stories hit harder than others (a dream of time was my fav!) but overall the quality was decent, especially the standalone artwork. Some of the pieces were sooo creepy and creative. I even wish some of them had horror movies or at least short films about them, they were really creative!

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't rush to get this when it came out due to terrible reveiws, but whatever, I was entertained! The stories had a variety to their length (esp compared to the 2 other crime anthology comics I just read, where every story was 8 pages)
The art was great.

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

An old school zine layout that has great stuff, middling stuff and some material that wasn't for me, which is expected of a compilation.

[Justin Partridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

SMALL, SHARP THINGS THAT CAN CUT YOU…

In-fuckin-deed y’all. I really really hope there are more of these. It would be a real shame to not continue something as ultra promising and freeing for creatives as this thing is. And even better for being precisely what it says on the tin! Short, punchy, largely off putting tales of terror.

Some of them have recurring characters. Some of them are just a few pages long. Hell, some of them don’t even have endings really! But I’ll be good goddamned if I didn’t love every single page of this. It’s precisely the flavor and tonality I want my horror comics to be at. I somewhat wish a few more of them had more solid throughlines. But every single page of this thing is interesting or scary or evocative of dread in some way. I was way, way into it.

And it’s really goddamn hard not to be when it’s THIS stocked with talent. We’ve got both Team Something is Killing the Children but also Team Nice House on the Lake, Ram V, Paknadel, Nadler & Thompson, Jenna Cha, Becky Cloonan, Jen Bartel, Vita Ayala, Tini Howard, Danny Lore (those last three contributing some truly KILLER prose stories), Trevor Henderson monsters and covers throughout. It’s just an embarrassment of riches (up to and including some tremendous interviews with the likes of Scott Snyder and Gou Tanabe who is about to get a REAL heavy feature spot here at the house. Dude does MANGA LOVECRAFT ADAPTATIONS? Way the fuck in)

But yeah; I’m way into this. For the sicko you love (also please let there be a #6 eventually. I want it real bad)

[Rumi Bossche · Rating 3 out of 5]

Razorblades is a new horror magazine now collected as a beautifull hardcover. Its created by James Tynion lV and Steve Fox out of desire to keep pushing horror anthologies, and give writers and artists full reign on what they want to create. This book of almost 400 pages contains the first 5 issues of the Razorblades magazine and contains many short horror stories by the likes of Tynion, Michael Walsh, Tillie Walden, Becky Cloonan, Jen Bartel, Ram V, Pornsak Pichetshote and Ezra Claytan Daniels to name a few ! A really impressive mix of people,  it doesn't only include comics but also prose, artwork and a couple very extensive interviews by Manga artist Gou Tanabe, and favorites Scott Snyder and Rodney Barnes, who talk about there creator owned stuff,  but also Batman and the state of horror, this are your not your typical interviews but very insightfull and pretty personal aswell. I love the idea of this book but not everything is perfect, some of the short stories really lack some quality,  and most of the anthology stories end rather abrubtly, but i do salute Tynion and co for making this possible, and really hope for a follow up and more horror anthologies are ways welcome.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whew chile this took awhile to read, I kept feeling unsettled and needed a break between issues. Anyways-

Razorblades is an homage and hopefully return to more indie horror, more different stories and art and creators, working in a space not as rigid as mainstream. The hardback collection may be the coolest thing I own.

I really enjoyed these, as cheesy as some were. It just tickles a part of my brain :) My favorite was a short piece about a retirement home built for people born in the 90s-ish timeframe, as well as an interview with Scott Snyder that got me thinking about writing horror. Other favorites were the full-page art pieces. I also found a lot of creators to look into! Wins across the board! Thanks Tynion, et al.

[Brittwilhoit · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of dark and twisted tales with haunting artwork.

This collection of art, stories, and interviews from artist of various levels of fame were mostly wonderful. The interviews gave some very interesting insight into the people who work in this interesting and diverse genre.

My biggest complaint, that unfortunately came up several times, is just how abruptly some of the comics and interviews end. I kept trying to pull pages apart as though they had stuck together when finishing certain segments.
I understand that it is a collective of short comics, but some of them ended right as (or sometimes before) they got really interesting.

[C. Chambers · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh...

I think the effort to put out this 'magazine' in 2023 is commendable, but the output is not at modern standards. I cannot sustain reading 400 pages of one-to-three page stories without any resolution or feeling behind them. There are notable moments of greatness, but they almost exclusively come from Tynion himself, and deserve to be built outside of this drab, flat collection.

A disappointment to say the least, but if you're looking for a quick collection of items to inspire your upcoming reddit short story, this may be the book for you.

2/5 stars.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

the nature of these kinds of experimental/exploratory collections means they can be a bit of a grab bag, but I overall really enjoyed a lot of these! interesting ideas and art styles, with some even just as a single illustration or page of panels to sit with. definitely worth a look if you're interested in up and coming horror comics!

[Xy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOOOOVE, I LOOOOVE. I LOVE. I LOVE. I LOVE.
I'm a horror/thriller fan so I loved this book. Killboy has become a favorite of mine. it introduced me to new ideas. A lot of the issues and short stories left me thinking thoroughly since many were left up to interpretation. This is really unique and original. I also loved the interviews. I love it.

[Ariz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read the whole thing basically so it's getting marked as read. This was a hodgepodge of very short stories that were too short to feel anything about or derive any thoughts from. There were some that caught my attention, but were done just as that interest started. I jumped around reading them, otherwise I never wouldn't gotten very far by going in order. Save your time.

[Allyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was quite an interesting collection of stories and art. A very quick read, as all of the individual stories aren't more than a few pages long, if that. I will definitely be looking out for a Volume 2.

[Chris Charpentier · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty good collection of short stories. It’s a book that allows for a wide variety in art styles and story topics that, even when a story doesn’t resonate with you, it still provides a bit of interest into what that particular author wanted to try out within their work.

[Cailyn Y · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horror in all its possible iterations. With so many different focuses and styles, there’s a little something for every horror fan in this one. Despite all the variety, you can expect the same quality of work and commitment to the genre on every page.

[Noire · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun anthology. I knew what I was getting into. It's a mix of short stories, comics, interviews, etc. Exactly what you'd expect from a magazine. Since this is all previous issues in one book it is quite large, and offers pretty good variety.

[Ernesto Juárez · Rating 2 out of 5]

es una colección de historias muy cortas, entrevistas y relatos, principalmente enfocada en cómics, nada del otro mundo hay cosas buenas otras muy malas. muchos estilos de dibujos. enfocada en el terror. a mi gusto no es la gran cosa, no está mal pero queda un poco por debajo de lo mediocre.