EC Epitaphs from the Abyss, Vol. 1

The legendary EC Comics brand returns with a collection of 13 all-new macabre morality tales that deliver EC’s signature unsettling atmosphere, unforgettably grotesque imagery, and gut-punch twist endings while embracing modern sensibilities and modernizing the execution for today’s horror audiences. Azzarello (Faithless Deluxe Edition) and illustrator Vlad Legostaev’s “Us vs. Us” begins as a riff on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre before twisting on an ideological clash torn from the headlines of the past five years. Writer Stephanie Phillips (Phoenix, Vol. 1) and illustrator Phil Hester (Gotham City: Year One) depict four seconds over which a family man must make a chilling choice in “Family Values.” Jason Aaron (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Vol. 1: Return to New York) and Jorge Fornés’s (Danger Street) contribution, “Sound and Haptics,” in which a young man injured in a high-speed collision awakens under the watchful eye of a doctor who may not have his best interests at heart, delivers unsettling body horror and poetic justice. While the aforementioned tales serve as standouts, this is the rare collection in which not a single entry falls flat.