By Martin Powell & Seppo Makinen (Moonstone)
ISBN13: 978-0-97216-686-7
Writers and fans alike share an oddly perverse and seemingly overwhelming desire to “mix and match†their favourite literary figures, especially from the Victorian Era; that birthplace of so many facets of popular culture. Sherlock Holmes is so much a household name that his inclusion in any venture is a virtual guarantee of commercial success, but often no guarantee of quality.
Mercifully that’s not the case in this instance. This volume collects two intriguing cases originally released as comic-book miniseries published by Eternity Comics and collected as petite graphic novels at the end of the 1980s. This more conventionally sized tome bundles them together and I must admit they’ve lasted rather well.
Scarlet in Gaslight: An Adventure in Terror is an intriguing if workmanlike battle of wits between the Great Detective and Bram Stoker’s Lord of the Undead. The teaming of Holmes and Abraham Van Helsing is a delight and the uneasy alliance of Count Dracula and the more truly evil Professor Moriarty, as much as its dramatic severance, delivers a memorable thrill for neophytes and purists alike.
A Case of Blind Fear returns the Great Detective to his mystery-solving roots when Scotland Yard enlists his aid to explain a series of bizarre occurrences that have left London gripped in terror. When the incidents lead to impossible murders and all logical solutions have been exhausted, Holmes can only conclude that the culprit must be an Invisible Man! H.G. Well’s scientific romances are a perfect playground for Conan Doyle’s ultimate rationalist and this moody thriller is engaging in concept and effective in delivery.
Nearly twenty years before The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (ISBN: 1-56389-858-6) these tales gripped and enchanted comic readers, and whilst not quite matching the impressive standard of Moore and O’Neill’s graphic masterpiece, they are infinitely superior to the truly appalling film it inspired.
Great fun, honestly crafted and well worthy of your attention.
™ & © 1988, 1989, 2003 Martin Powell and Seppo Makinen. All Rights Reserved.