Retro Comic Reviews 1992: Brian Lumley’s Necroscope #1

Article by FisterRoboto of lefthandhorror.com

Synopsis: In the Balkan mountains of Rumania, a terrible evil is growing. Long buried in hallowed ground, bound by earth and silver, the master vampire schemes and plots. Trapped in unlife, neither dead nor living, Thibor Ferenczy hungers for freedom and revenge.

The vampire’s human tool is Boris Dragosani, part of a super-secret Soviet spy agency. Dragosani is an avid pupil, eager to plumb the depthless evil of the vampire’s mind. Ferenczy teaches Dragosani the awful skills of the necromancer, gives him the ability to rip secrets from the mind and bodies of the dead.

Dragosani works not for Ferenczy’s freedom but world domination. he will rule the world with knowledge raped from the dead.

His only opponent: Harry Koegh, champion of the dead and the living.

To protect Harry, the dead will do anything–even rise from their graves!

The Necroscope series put me on my ass when I first read them. To this day, I’m sure the correct people could make Necroscope into one of the most bad ass horror movies of all time. Lumley is a master at his craft. This ex British military writer completely retooled the entire vampire mythology and left us shocked and wanting more.

I recently snagged the six issue comic run from eBay, and I proudly give you my first retro comic review. Instead of writing a too-long-didn’t-read overview of all six issues, I’m breaking this down to one issue at a time. I hope you enjoy the review.

Necroscope Issue 1

Malibu Comics

Adapted by Martin Powell

Painted by Daerick Gross

Special Agent Alec Kyle is having a bad morning. His boss, Sir Keenan Gormley is dead, and Alec is reporting to the branch. Alec is greeted by a glowing, wispy figure floating inside the branch. Alec quickly sees the thing is a telepath and it claims to have a lot of info to share.

Moscow 1971. A naked man is standing over a body in a Russian lab and plunges a knife into the corpse. He removes the heart and rubs the organs over his body. “Something is trying to hide…” he murmurs. A group of suited Russians watch on the other side of the glass, discussing his unique abilities as a Necromancer.

Boris gains the dead man’s secrets and explodes into a fury when he claims to have been poisoned. He hasn’t been injured but is, in fact, tapping deeply into the dead man’s secrets since he died by poisoning.

Harry Keogh, our hero and protagonist, is a young boy in an English school. He’s picked on and bullied. Not a big surprise for a kid that is an orphan living with his aunt and uncle. His mother was a professional fortune teller who died after drowning in an icy lake. He’s recently received the attention of his head master as well as other more secretive men due to his promise of future greatness.

Harry lost one of his favorite teachers, a math teacher, and Harry has taken to sitting around his grave while he does his homework. For a slow student, it is very surprising when he begins turning in correct and advanced mathematical papers. Harry himself might not know it yet, but he can communicate with the dead. For something as mundane as math homework even.

Harry has earned a spot in the “exams” and the powers around him expect a chance of success. No one could predict the eventual level of success he has.

This issue ends with Boris back in his homeland, telepathically speaking to someone….something. It answers.

We see a tomb surrounded by fog and winding vines. “Dragosani…it is you. Are you returned to my solitude? Dragosani…my son.”