Key Collector Comics

Copper Age Horror

This list is courtesy of:  MATRIX COMIX For more on horror comics, foreign comics and memes follow  @matrix_comix on Instagram If you would like to feature a category on Key Collector Comics. Send your idea to [email protected]  

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Twisted Tales #2
Non-Key
Pacific Comics ⋅ 1983
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Twisted Tales #2
 
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$8

Key Facts

đź’€ MATRIX COMIX: Founded in 1971, west coast-based distributor and publisher Pacific Comics worked with industry titans such as Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, while giving up-and-coming artists like Dave Stevens, their big break

In 1982, Pacific Comics published the horror series Twisted Tales with its first issue featuring a Richard Corben cover

The following issue would push the title's limits with a cover by the master of the macabre himself, Bernie Wrightson

When invited to conjure his own theme for the illustration, Wrightson asked, “What are the restrictions?” The publisher answered, “it’s a horror magazine, draw whatever you wish”

Since Pacific Comics was a non-Comics Code Authority publisher, Wrightson was able to unleash what is arguably the grisliest cover of his illustrious career

Twisted Tales, and specifically this Wrightson cover, was a preface to the impending comic gore set to shock the mainstream in the following years and served as a bridge from Silver Age horror to the underground Copper era

If you're unfamiliar with the work of Bernie Wrightson, search Key Collector Comics under ARTIST and toggle on the non-key switch

Cover art by Bernie Wrightson

Gore Shriek #1
FantaCo ⋅ 1986
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Gore Shriek #1
 
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$2
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$8
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$25

Key Facts

đź’€ MATRIX COMIX: Probably the best-known book on this list, I would be remiss not to include this essential issue for those new to the genre

Published by FantaCo in 1986, Gore Shriek ushered in a new age of horror comics with its splatterpunk aesthetic

Featuring a Bruce Spaulding Fuller cover and boasting the first published work of Greg Capullo, this anthology issue is the foundation of Copper Age horror

First interior art by Greg Capullo

Gore Shriek #6.5
FantaCo ⋅ 1989
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Gore Shriek #6.5
 
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$30
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$100
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$300

Key Facts

💀 MATRIX COMIX: Considered a grail for many underground horror collectors, what’s truly special about this issue is that it features the first cover from the notoriously reclusive and influential artist known only as The Gurch

I corresponded with The Gurch last year and regarding Gore Shriek 6 ½ he said: “I've always gotten the jitters thinking strange beings were peering in on me as I sleep, and this image reminds me of my bedroom closet door from years ago”

Inspired by personal experiences and 80s VHS horror movies, The Gurch’s work is a phantasmagoric filth fest that also honors the dark humor he found in EC Comics, the publisher best known for their Tales from the Crypt title

Printed on interior cover: Gore Shriek 6.5 was created exclusively for Gore Shriek fans. This issue was available only from the artists or from FantaCo Enterprises Inc. No copies were available wholesale

In the copyright section: Additional copies of this special issue were available for $2.50 plus $.75 postage per copy

Faust #6
Non-Key
Northstar ⋅ 1989
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Faust #6
 
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Key Facts

đź’€ MATRIX COMIX: This painted cover by outlaw, horror icon Tim Vigil is one of the most gruesome covers in the series featuring the costumed John Jaspers as the titular Faust

This is the last issue printed by Northstar before Vigil and series writer David Quinn founded Rebel Studios, which would publish the remaining issues

With a recent 9.8 of Faust #1 selling for $995 and the imminent release of a Kickstarter funded omnibus, it’s clear that the fanbase for the character is growing, further establishing the title's importance

Gnarly Faust issues such as this one may become harder to find than they already are, especially in high grade

Day Brothers Present #1
Non-Key
Caliber ⋅ 1990
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Day Brothers Present #1
 
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Key Facts

đź’€ MATRIX COMIX: After meeting with the Canadian-based comic artists and brothers, Dan and David Day, Caliber Press published an anthology series to feature some of their more subversive work

The brothers produced a total of four books for Caliber: two Horror and two Sci-Fi themed issues

In this first Horror issue, the Day Brothers' cropped composition induces a sense of panic, as if the torturous image of a man’s face being pulled apart wasn’t enough

The sheer existential terror on this cover caused by an unseen threat encapsulates the visual assault underground indies would continue to publish into the new decade

Dread of Night #1
Non-Key
Hamilton ⋅ 1991
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Dread of Night #1
 
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Key Facts

Final cover illustration by L.B. Cole

đź’€ MATRIX COMIX: Buried in this obscure horror magazine title from Hamilton is the final cover produced by the Golden Age master, Leonard Brandt Cole before his death in 1995

Although not as startling as his earliest work, the ageing artist manages to produce a spooky scene featuring a decomposing zombie escaping his grave

However, Cole’s cover is actually a swipe from artist Mike Roberts (tap cover and swipe to view) found on the obscure horror one-shot/coloring book, Grave Tales, published by Wonderful Publishing Company in 1974 and limited to 1,000 numbered copies

It’s unclear what Cole’s relationship was, if any, to cover artist Roberts who is best known for his work on Death Rattle from Kitchen Sink Comix

What is clear is that Cole worked on his craft for his entire life and in the end, revisited the horror genre which helped to establish his early career and legacy

Evil Ernie Limited Edition #1
Adventure Publications ⋅ 1992
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Evil Ernie Limited Edition #1
 
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$9
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$30

Key Facts

đź’€ MATRIX COMIX: Published in 1991 by Eternity, Evil Ernie #1 features the first appearance of the ghoulish titular character and fan favorite Lady Death

Eric Mache contributed the classic cover for the issue and would go on to provide covers through issue #3 with Tim Vigil supplying the final two covers

However, the interiors of all five issues were drawn by Steven Hughes, the artist responsible for establishing the character designs most associated with Evil Ernie and Lady Death

Simply put, Hughes’ contributions and vision for the pair are the reason why they’ve endured to this day

Published just one month after the final issue of the Eternity run by Adventure Comics, Evil Ernie Special Limited Edition #1 reprints Evil Ernie #1 with bonus behind the scenes sketches and storyboards

Most importantly, the issue features the first cover by Hughes showcasing his deathly duo, finally giving his work the shine it deserves

The image itself is an homage to 1952’s Weird Tales of the Future #3, showing Hughes’ love for Pre-Code Horror

Reprint of Evil Ernie #1, first appearance of Lady Death

Print run: approximately 1,200 copies

Cadaver #1
Non-Key
Boneyard Press ⋅ 1994
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Cadaver #1
 
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Key Facts

đź’€ MATRIX COMIX: Hart D. Fisher obliterated the boundaries of taste with his publishing imprint Boneyard Press, a lightning rod for controversy while Fisher acted as a mouthpiece for artists holding their ground on censorship and their 1st amendment rights

A product of gritty inner city living, Fisher saw Boneyard Press’ output as a reflection of the violent reality he lived in and published stories addressing the underbelly of the human condition

In 1992, Boneyard Press published Cadaver #1 with an introduction by horror Godfather Steve Bissette featuring stories by dark princes Tim Tyler and Brad Moore, as well as a story and cover by the late legendary underground comix artist, S. Clay Wilson who was inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame that same year

This issue showcases perhaps Wilson's most ghoulish work, and his absurdist talent for the aggressively obscene

Collector be warned, this rare issue continues to trigger the faint of heart to this day, with the book’s indicia stating “…the contents are intended for adult audiences with a taste for raw meat.”

Faust / The Crow #0
Rebel Studios ⋅ 2023
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Faust / The Crow #0
 
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$35
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$350

Key Facts

💀 MATRIX COMIX: Given the outlaw horror pedigree of these two Copper Age characters, I had to include this book as a historical artifact and a “What if…?” legacy to Copper Age horror

For years, artist Tim Vigil tried to make a Faust / The Crow crossover happen with Vigil recently sharing concept sketches on his social media

The book was thought to be D.O.A. until rumors of a one-off issue started to spread

A statement from Vigil’s Patreon regarding the issue and its history reads as follows: “Some of you may have seen on Instagram or Facebook that I mentioned this Faust and Crow crossover story. Last year I was having a conversation with a writer about this idea but nothing came of it. He recently brought it up again, so for fun I told him to come up with a 10-page story. A rough draft was created of both the writing and the artwork. I didn't want to put too much time and energy into it if it wasn't going to really happen but I did it as a proof-of-concept to share with James O'Barr (creator of The Crow). I sent him an email with these images, but never heard back from him.”

Vigil would later go on to add, “I did some pin ups and then through another fan, he did layout production cause he wanted to see it in book format. So an extremely limited printing was done and copies were given to James and again no interest. So that's that.”

This month, a Canadian seller listed 4 copies graded 9.8, currently the only graded copies in existence, all signed and sketched by Vigil

Two sold immediately - the first for $255 and the second for $380

Limited print run of 50 copies

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