One Man’s Poison

Wait a sec... did some of you think the previous post was the big 'n weird Thanksgiving wind-up? Not blood-drainingly likely! No sir, that was just the 'ol un-appetizer-- because today we have something much more deadlicious planned for you! And guess what? Like the previous two posts, this tantalizing turkey of a tale is also from the December 1953 issue of Mysterious Adventures #17 (you HH Heads might even remember it from when we reprinted it in Haunted Horror #3 way back in 2013!) I really do hope you can stomach this story though, cuz the ending might leave ya feelin' stuffed --for allllll eternity...

Happy Thanksgiving!

My Brother's Keeper

In the comments of our previous post, JMR mentioned "EC lifts", and yeah, I guess you could say that Story Comics was quite a bit guilty of lifting some of EC's signature moves and what nots. And this here is a savagely good Bill Savage illustrated example, (also from the same issue as our last post), and without adding spoilers to the introduction, I'll just let you find 'em all for your lil 'ol selves. It's a tasty dish served up extra raw 'n bloody, and with Thanksgiving on everyone's minds this week, bon appetite --a few days early!

Paralyzed

If you enjoyed the removable mannequin limbs in our previous post, you may get a similarly weird kick out of this gory 'n brutal Goldfarb 'n Baer story as well, --as THOIA's Awful Wedded Bliss 2025 Fest continues! From the December 1953 issue of Mysterious Adventures #17. 

The Manikins of Death!

I'm always surprised to find a precode horror story that hasn't already made its way into the THOIA Archive at this point. Especially considering I collect vintage department store mannequins, and why looky here-- a good one on that exact subject, no less! From the August 1951 issue of Mysterious Adventures #3, and from the glorious 'ol Golden age era of when people apparently had no idea how to even spell the word "mannequin!" I'm sure some of you will find a wee bit of pleasure knowing that Mr. Karswell is seated here at the computer and indeed surrounded by multiple mannequins, blankly staring at me, errr him, as these scans are eerily edited and meticulously put together for todays post... piece by piece... limb by limb... ohh, careful not to slip now!

Revenge!

One of us! One of us! Yes, it's time to get freaky cuz the circus just pulled into town-- and there's trouble brewin' with the sideshow! This is another one that'll bring to mind a certain EC vibe, though continually saying so is a bit unfair as this superbly sickening Story Comics series definitely had a vicious vibe all its own! Okay now, someone at GCD has taken a wild guess at the art here and believes it's by Jay Disbrow! I cannot even begin to tell you how much I disagree with that absolutely terrible guess. So who does it looks like to you? From the August 1953 issue of Mysterious Adventures #15, 

No Noose is Good Noose

After presenting "The Choker" post (HERE!) the other day, we at THOIA have re-evaulated our gallows stance and decided there actually just wasn't enough hanging around these parts lately to satisfy our terrible tastes! Enter our next story from the June 1954 issue of Mysterious Adventures #20. Charles Nicholas delivers some real swingin' artwork on this (*choke!) classic about a hangman who justifiably, gets no respect... though oddly enough, he does get the last laugh!

Blood Thirsty

If you were intrigued by the "Do You Dare Read Blood Thirsty?" blurb (see previous post) featured on the cover of the August 1954 issue of Mysterious Adventures #21, --well now's your chance to take that dreaded dare! Yep, it's time for one more terrorific tale from this gory great issue, and this time around it's Dick Beck's turn to switch off the lights and really get your blood a'pumpin'! AIEEEEEEE!

The Coward & The Choker

And the midnight toker! Just jokin'-- it's "Super Blood-Soaked Saturday Shocker" time again, with a deadly double header of gagging gore and blood thirsty, brutal betrayals! Yes, just in case anyone thought THOIA was turnin' soft over our expansive 18-year run here on the 'ol interwebs, well, --think again! Two terror-packed tales full of dismemberment, dickish dames, and dumb dudes a'danglin', and despite some less than stellar scan quality here, both are from the rather awesome August 1954 issue of Mysterious Adventures #21. The savage illustrations in the first story are by bad boy Bill Savage himself, and followed by the always radical Ross Andru on our rockin' second tale. Plus! A real crowd-pleaser of a cover by Hy Fleishman! Have a gory great weekend everyone, with lots lots morgue to come-- so stay tombed!