Paranormal Day, squeezed between Star Wars Day (May 4th) and National Life Insurance Day (May 2nd), is a perfect excuse to dive into some horror comics. There’s this idea that paranormal only applies to ghosts and phantoms, probably due to the avalanche of ghost hunting shows that came out in the 2010s that, for the most part, featured the word in their titles one way or another. For others, the blame lies solely on 2017’s massive found footage hit Paranormal Activity, a movie that to this day still has the capacity to scare anyone into sleeping with the light on.
Whatever the reason, the word is largely reserved for spirits and demons in the same way that ‘unexplained phenomena’ tends to be roped in with talk of aliens and UFOs (shout out to The X-Files for that one).
Keeping with the popular use of the term, but more as an excuse to recommend comics about ghosts, here’s 5 comics you should seek out to celebrate Paranormal Day the way it was meant to: huddled up near a fireplace, under a blanket, and dead certain a hungry ghost is just hyping itself up to possess you.
- Dead Sea, by Cavan Scott and Nick Brokenshire, IDW
Ghosts are real and they are being mined for resources on a ship run by a giant corporation that employs prisoners to do its dirty work. Dead Sea’s been described as The Poseidon Adventure meets The Haunting of Hill House, and it fits it well. Cavan Scott and Nick Brokenshire create a world that’s every bit as vicious and scary as it is complex. Brokenshire’s ghost designs, in particular, which find some correspondence with the ones from the 2001 remake of Thirteen Ghosts (but taken to even more sinister heights), are the stuff nightmares should look to for inspiration. You’ll want to get a close look at the horrors in this book. It’s not just one devil in the details here. It’s many.
- Sacrament, by Peter Milligan and Marcelo Frusin, AWA Studios
The Exorcist in space is a good way to describe Sacrament – about a priest that’s forced to take on a case of possession that threatens to disrupt order in the cosmos – but it’s also so much more. Peter Milligan and Marcelo Frusin craft a meticulously haunted story here that is unafraid to tackle religion head-on, diving into discussions on the universality of sin and the systems that attempt to curve it. Frusin digs deep into the ugliness of the story’s subject matter to create some truly cursed imagery that lives up to the movie it’s compared to the most (The Exorcist). It’s a smart book that’ll make you want to have a bucket of holy water nearby just in case.
- A Guest in the House, by Emily Carroll, FirstSecond
Emily Carroll is a unique talent in horror comics. Their approach to color and fairy tale-like imagery that evoke dreams and nightmares alike make for some of the most haunting reading experiences in the medium. A Guest in the House continues Carroll’s hold on horror imagination, and it might be their best. Abby marries a recently widowed dentist that might be hiding bloodstained secrets regarding the death of his first wife. Suspicions arise thanks to ghostly apparitions and other strange happenings that plant seeds of doubt in Abby. Caroll is in top form with pages that look like they’re about to melt into ectoplasm in your hands. It’s heart-wrenching but impossible to look away from. This one deserves your attention.
- Dark Ride, by Joshua Williamson and Andrei Bressan, Image Comics
A haunted theme park where the guests disappear under mysterious circumstances is what people might think Dark Ride is about at a surface level. Wade deeper into its waters and you find a story about a family that carries as much darkness as the infernal powers that bring the park to life. Joshua Williamson and Andrei Bressan essentially turn the figure of Walt Disney into a hell priest that only accepts souls as the price of admission. The book looks at theme park culture and the challenges of staying relevant in a progressively distracted world while investing a lot of time into how greed and clashing creative visions can drive rifts in family businesses. The rides are devilish and the tiny creatures that haunt the park after it closes for the day will keep you coming back for more. There’s a ton of fun to be had here, but also a chance to appreciate the magic of good old theme parks.
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