I’m generally a fan of Edgar Allan Poe adaptations; I think the Simpsons’ had one of the best retellings of The Raven. And I like the idea of using comics as a medium to revive classic literature. However, this just felt like a cheap attempt. I was hoping that it could be comparable to something like Sandman and be just as creepy. I mean Poe specifically wrote Premature Burial to play on the fears of being buried alive and honestly, I didn’t feel any of that in Richard Corben’s remake. Also note that the first short story featured in this issue doesn’t follow Poe’s writing very well. It does play on the general plot of a man being buried alive and the paralyzing fear that comes along with it. Corben’s retelling doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of the horror that Poe tried to instill in his writings. The original was so much more haunting and had a lot more revenge than Corben’s recreation. I know it’s probably not easy to take lengthy prose and turn into a twenty something page comic but I think I just envisioned something completely different when I read the Poe’s version. I also found that Corben’s version had problematic elements that was unnecessary and just could have been done better.

The second short story Corben remakes in this issue is, Cask of Amontillado. I don’t have as many reservations about this version, but again I didn’t feel the horror. The characters just didn’t convince me of their fear. Maybe it was a combination of the storytelling and illustrations that just didn’t do it for me.

Score: 2/5

Adaption/Art: Richard Corben Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Price:$3.99 Release Date: 4/2/2014 Format: One-Shot - Print/Digital