• A Call to Cthulhu by Norm Konyu (Titan Nova, 2023)

By Warner Holme: This is an interesting spin on a few old pieces of art and artists that manages to entertain those who are either very and slightly familiar with the properties. It is a slim volume released by a comics publisher, though it is at least as much a picture book.

The basic narrative has the titular entity picking up his phone and getting verbally attacked with an entire narrative’s worth of earful about how the individual calling hates pretty much. Everything relating to Lovecraft and the fiction that the man produced. It does so step by step, not quite in order of writing but still burning up many of the man’s more famous works.

Almost all of the book is in verse, but the exceptions are rather notable. These include humorous quotations on the back from fictional creatures and individuals, as well as a full page biography of Lovecraft, quick summaries of a number of the man’s stories, and an even shorter piece on the author of this particular book.  They are all well written and work extremely well in context.

The book is told in carefully measured poetry of a sort that will be familiar to fans of Doctor Seuss. The rhyming scheme isn’t identical to that used by Theodor Geisel, but it is close enough to evoke him and that is a clear deliberate choice. Further while reminiscent in style, the content is obviously and noticeably different. This first becomes clear thanks to the simple subject matter however it continues on throughout in some detail with “You Suck Cthulhu!” on one of the last narrative pages.

The art, on the other hand doesn’t even begin to compare to that of the man, in no small part because the style is so radically different as to avoid comparison in the interest of accurate reporting. Instead it uses deep color contrast as much as shape to make the scenes and creatures stand out clearly on the page. Such contrasting images start on the cover where windows and stars are in white but the other imagery is in reds, blacks, grays and greens. The use of white as a contrast in particular is strong throughout with even the final page describing the notable flaws and influence of H.P. Lovecraft sporting a stylized portrait of him with pure white pupils and deliberate color runs and in a surprisingly accurate image relating to the man’s unfortunate weaknesses without breaking from the style.

And arguably, that’s a bit of a point. While Lovecraft was a deeply flawed human being even factoring in his times, the fact is that his work is hugely influential and known this volume illustrates the inescapability of the work of the man to fans of horror in particular and general fiction in general. For a small man who died young he had a long reach, and a late one.

Lovecraft fans are sure to enjoy this comic particularly, if they understand the man in question had flaws. While formatted like a children’s book in many ways. It’s not really recommended for the youngest and indeed, even if it wouldn’t offend, many of the elements would be less likely to entertain until one reaches an older and more experienced mindset.