Jack Oleck

This is the last of the "House" volumes thus far released in DC's Showcase Presents reprint series. I'm not sure if there's more House of Mystery to reprint after this, but it's easy to see that the series ought to be ending if it did continue to limp on after this. The last three of the sixteen issues included here are 100-page super spectaculars, the majority of which are reprints. (Well, they're all reprints-- what I mean is that even in 1973-74, these were reprints.) Boo. Especially when they're reprints of material available in other Showcase Presents volumes.

Still, there's some decent material here, especially the completely creepy "Oh, Mom! Oh, Dad! You've Sent me Away To Summer Camp... and I'm So Sad!" (written by Michael Fleisher and Maxene Fabe, art by Alex N. Nino), about camp counselors and campers attempting to murder one another(!) and "The Night of the Teddy Bear!" (written by Michael Fleisher, art by Alfredo Alcala), about a creepy-faced serial killer and a weedy man. But unfortunately, this once-strong title could have done even better.

(Interestingly, a number of stories credit Russell Carley with "art continuity"; this Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed article explains what that means, but it baffles me that these credits are omitted from the book's table of contents, since Carley's role is far from incidental.)

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Like all the titles in the DC horror renaissance of the late 1960s and 1970s, House of Secrets has its individuality drained out of it by the slow diminishing of its frames; what were once multi-page stories are now panels (or rarely a whole page) in an issue. It's disappointing, especially as the reason I am reading this is the presence of Abel, our stuttering, terrified host.

What are particularly charming are the recurrent "Cain & Abel" pages, single pages of three panels by Sergio Aragonés, each panel showing Abel and his murderous brother doing something different together. Sometimes these are simply Cain belittling or pranking Abel, but others give us something more-- Abel getting something good because he is good, Cain causing his own comeuppance, or at their best, a brief glimpse of the true affection the brothers share. In one, they stroll through a crowd of people horrified by a triple-bill of horror films they have just scene, the only ones smiling; I love the idea that they spend their time popping from the Dreaming over to Earth to see horror films. My favorite is one where they are playing what looks like "Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots," only their two boxers are hugging, embarrassing them. It's all a warped but endearing depiction of brotherly love.

Individual stories still manage to do some good work, though. There's some child creepiness at work in "Goodbye, Nancy" (written by John Albano, art by Vic Catan, Frank Redondo, and Abe Ocampo), about a kid's odd new playmate.  "Small Invasion" (written by Sheldon Mayer, art by Alex Niño), about an alien who means to conquer the Earth but ends up working in a logging camp, is oddly charming, and has some amazingly grotesque art. "A Lonely Monstrosity" (written by John Albano, art by Nestor Redondo) is a cruel tale about a couple who scheme to deprive a grotesque-looking man of his own fortune. I really liked "Skin Deep" (written by Jack Oleck, art by Alfredo Alcala), about an ugly man who commits murder and disguises himself to marry an attractive woman under false pretenses, as well as "Act III Eternity" (written by George Kashdan, art by Jess Jodloman).

There are many more-- despite its lack of the frames I enjoy so much, this is probably one of the better Showcase Presents volumes of vintage DC horror. Much of that is due to the dual artistic talents of Alex Niño and (especially) Alfredo Alcala, whose luscious, grotesque, beautiful art enlivens even the most stale of narratives. Even their lettering is a cut above the rest!

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