Welcome to my dark pit of not really that darkness

Costume design by Jessica Rabbit and the Ice Capades.

Because I owe certain people a post, here it is: Wendy Pini's Masque of the Red Death, the first original series (as conceived by Edgar Allen Poe) from Go! Comi. It's a daring "walk on the dark side" kinda like Hot Topic is a walk on the cutting edge of alterna-cool, but hey, it's free to read when you register at the Go! Comi site. Editor Audry Taylor describes it as "what all fans of homoerotic fantasy and horror dream of: a long and involving story line with a cast to die for ... characters who make love, pursue immortality, and suffer from the highest peaks to the lowest depths of human emotion."


"I can see the outline of your fibula and it is totally turning me on.
Also, I've sculpted my own hairdo out of marshmallow fluff."

I describe it as a slow-moving story about boring pro-ana assholes making glassy eyes at each other. There's been none of the promised love-making as of yet, but I imagine it will look pretty much like this when it comes.

As you may have noticed by now, the lead characters are styled, unsuccessfully, in what might be described as a pseudo-Peter Chung, pant-averse future look. People, if you want to draw emaciated yaoi reeds, don't do it halfway! Go all out and invest it with flair, or else your fellas just look repulsively disproportional. Despite Pini's professed interest in manga, her art here is much stronger--and less glaringly Photoshoppy--when it more closely resembles an exaggerated American animation style; no doubt there was a lot of effort put into this, but right now it's not gelling well.

As for the dialogue, well, it exists and it conveys information. So, uh, kudos on that accomplishment--

Bunchh [sic]: A woman's perfect breast... Royess' slinky grace... Steffan's bone structure... you're saying these miracles are just illusions fashioned by whims of the mind?!
Prosper: There's no miracle involved. Royess slinks in black because she wills it. Steffan looks as he does because he wills it.

--wait a minute, dude! This shit is just an infomercial for The Secret!


"I am devoid of all vital organs and muscle mass because I will it.
And now, I will you... to purchase my DVD for $29.95!"