Frankenstein Alive, Alive – The Complete Collection


By Steven Niles & Bernie Wrightson, with Kelley Jones & various (IDW)
ISBN: 978-1-68405-337-7 (HB) eISBN: 978-1-68406-544-8

Win’s Christmas Gift Recommendation: Masterfully Macabre Masterpiece… 9/10

In our house, just as Christmas is all about Disney and Archie and Batman comics, in the days leading up to “Knock! Knock!BOO!! Night”, my thoughts always settle like a murder of crows on one particular artist. Despite his wide range of creations in many genres, and irrepressible sense of fun and whimsy, Bernard Albert Wrightson will always be the king of graphic suspense and macabre imagination.

As the turbulent 1960s closed, a cluster of fresh talent was trying to break into the comics industry at a time when a number of publishers were experimenting with black & white magazines rather than four-colour comic books. Warren Publishing and its many imitators were hiring kids who honed their craft in public – just like their forebears had to.

A respectable number of those Young Turks – such as Bruce Jones, Mike Kaluta, and “Berni” (a young man who soon became a living legend even in that prestigious cabal) – grew into big names by making pastiches of the EC Comics they had loved as kids: paving the way for when the market again turned to shock, mystery and black comedy to sell issues.

Wrightson was born a few days before Halloween (October 27th) 1948 in Dundalk, Maryland and his artistic training came via TV, reading comics and a correspondence course from the Famous Artists School.

His first professional publication was fan art, printed in Creepy #9 (June 1966). Soon after, he was toiling as a junior illustrator for The Baltimore Sun, when he met his EC idol Frank Frazetta at a convention. Gravitating to New York City, he hooked up with those above-cited band of newcomers, and other hopefuls, and was soon crafting short horror tales for National/DC, Marvel and other eager publishers. His top-rank reputation was cemented with the co-creation (beside writer Len Wein) of Swamp Thing.

His first association with DC ended in 1974, as he left to work at Warren on more adult-oriented tales which provided him an opportunity to try different techniques: a bountiful period of experimentation that culminated with his joining Catherine (nee Jeffrey) Jones, Kaluta and Barry Windsor-Smith in arts collective The Studio.

During this period, he also produced commercial commissions, film material and humorous strips for National Lampoon whilst over seven years creating a series of astoundingly complex plates for his signature work: an illustrated rerelease of Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein; 50 breathtaking illustrations authentically capturing the mood and tone of the gothic literary landmark.

In later years he illustrated posters, trading cards and graphic novels such as Creepshow, Cycle of the Werewolf and Freakshow (with Bruce Jones) among other print collectibles, before returning to mainstream comic books. Notable successes include The Weird and Batman: The Cult with Jim Starlin, and Spider-Man: Hooky and The Hulk and the Thing: The Big Change as well as a number of Punisher miniseries and OGNs.

Wrightson died in 2017. At the time he was working with Steve Niles (30 Days of Night) on a new Frankenstein miniseries: a splendid codicil to the character he had nor originated, but – at least visually – had made as much his own as Mary Shelley’s. He almost finished it. The quintessential professional to the last, Bernie even made provision for another artist to complete the job before passing. This is it…

Somewhere in America, sometime between the Wars, Stengler’s Funland Circus & Carnival entertains an endless progression of hicks in a never-ending cycle of short stays and “one night only!”. Undisputed star of the freak tent is ‘Frankenstein’s Monster’, but the jaded thrill-seekers would be astonished to learn that the corpse-like giant is in fact the real deal: an immortal re-assemblage of mortal parts with the mind of a genius and the soul of a poet.

As he enjoys a family life with his fellow outcasts, the Modern Promethean casts his mind back, to confrontations with his mortal flawed creator, hibernation in ice and reawakening in a later time.

Discovered by a team working for avid scholar Dr. Simon Ingles, the monster found a friend and mentor and was made welcome in an environment of peace and learning. In such a world, with knowledge at his fingertips, the beast flourished: his hunger for peace and thirst for intellectual growth satiated by the only friend he had ever known. Of course, horror stories are simply tragedies in deep shadow, and a vile secret in the doctor’s abode soon forces upon the monster a painful, unavoidable moral dilemma…

Frankenstein Alive, Alive! was released as a 4-issue miniseries, and, well aware of his fading health, Wrightson produced extremely detailed sketches and roughs and designated artist Kelley Jones (Batman; Swamp Thing; Deadman, Aliens; The Sandman; Micronauts) – whose own style was heavily influenced by Wrightson – to complete the book if his own time ran out.

The result is not seamless, but more than satisfactorily details how the creature agonisingly weighed companionship and his own happiness against ethical perfection and was not found wanting…

The salutary saga is prefaced by a moving Introduction from Niles and closes with a ‘Bernie Wrightson Gallery’ beautifully revealing the power and work of the artist’s pencilwork, attention to staging and detail and his authorial commentary of the story process.

Wrightson considered this work to be a continuation of his epic labour of love adaptation of the source novel: once again seen through the monster’s eyes, told with his voice and revealing what every booklover has always wanted after finishing a favourite tome – What Happened Next…

Reproduced from the original artwork and resplendent in stark monochrome line with lush painterly tones and shades of grey, this award-winning chronicle is a true landmark of the genre and a fitting bow for the master of comics horror to leave the stage with. Whether you’re a fan of the artist or the novel, this is a book you must see.
Frankenstein Alive, Alive! – The Complete Collection Story © 2018 Steve Niles. Artwork © 2018 Bernie Wrightson. © 2018 Ideas and Design Works, LLC. All Rights Reserved.