More Cthulhu and Camelot in Shadows Over Avalon (Volume Two)

SHADOWS OVER AVALON (VOLUME 2)

Now available as an ebook (for $5.99 USD) from 18th Wall Productions at this link.

CATEGORIES: Arthurian, Cthulhu Mythos, Fantasy, Horror

AWARD-WINNING CURATOR NICOLE PETIT PRESENTS THE SECOND VOLUME OF THE DARK FANTASY COLLISION BETWEEN THE CTHULHU MYTHOS AND ARTHURIAN LEGEND.

When King Arthur pulled the sword from the stone, he established more than a nation. He established an ideal. Where righteousness and learning could thrive. Where valiant knights battled evil. Camelot, the incorruptible dream.

From beyond the stars and before time, something stirs. Spoken of in the Necronomicon, eldritch gods make their influence known. Awakened by loathsome constellations, they arise from sea-locked tombs and turn men’s minds from outer spheres. The Mythos, the corrupting nightmare.

Tonight, the stars are right. As Uther Pendragon’s Britain is scorched by the unrelenting sun, the waking world’s salvation must be found in the Dreamlands. A Roman Yog Sothoth cult holds secret sway, and if it can be solved, Merlin’s riddle is the key to their defeat. Relics from Carcosa are brought to Camelot, bleeding the line between the world that is and the world that could be. How knights such as Pellinore, Galahad, and Calogrenant respond will save or damn all things.

Shadows Over Avalon: Volume Two features a novella by Jon Black and stories by Lukasz Furmaniak, Georgia Cook, C.L. Werner, Kara Dennison, and Sophie Iles.

PURCHASERS ON 18THWALL.COM RECEIVE THE BOOK IN PDF, MOBI/KINDLE, & EPUB.
ALSO AVAILABLE FROM AMAZON (US), AMAZON (UK), AMAZON (JP), AND A VARIETY OF OTHER INTERNATIONAL INCARNATIONS OF AMAZON.

Armitage Handout on Lovecraftian Arthuriana

Here is the text of my handout for my paper at this week's Armitage Symposium at NecronomiCon Providence. Details at http://necronomicon-providence.com/.



Shadows over Camelot: Lovecraftian Motifs in Arthurian Fiction

A Preliminary Bibliography

Compiled by Michael A. Torregrossa (monstrous.matter.of.britain@gmail.com)



Works by Lovecraft:

Lovecraft, H. P. “Supernatural in Horror Literature” (1927). [Reference to Malory paraphrased from Edith Birkhead’s The Tale of Terror: A Study of the Gothic Romance (1921).]



Scholarship on Lovecraft:

Blake, Ian. “Lovecraft and the Dark Grail.” Lovecraft Studies No. 26 (Spring 1992), pp. 16-18. [Not seen.]



Arcane Tomes at Camelot:

Mantlo, Bill. Marvel Chillers Nos. 1-2 (1975).

Michelinie. David. The Avengers No. 187 (September 1979).

Raimi, Sam. Army of Darkness (1992) (and multiple adaptations and continuations).

Van Lente, Fred. Marvel Zombies 5 (2010).



Cthulhuan Menaces at Camelot:

Abnett, Dan, and John Tomlinson. Knights of Pendragon (1990-1991) and Knights of Pendragon II (1992-1993). [see Jason Tondro’s Superheroes of the Round Table, p. 182]

Bunn, Cullen, and Mirko Colak. Unholy Grail comic book series (2017). [In progress.]

DeGuerre, Phillip. Dr. Strange (1978).

Gillis, Peter. Final arc of Marvel’s The Defenders (1984-86) and opening arc of Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme (1989).

Mignola, Mike. Hellboy: The Wild Hunt (2008-2009), Hellboy: The Storm (2010), and Hellboy: The Fury (2011). (Possibly the upcoming feature film set for a 2018 release.)

Mills, Pat. Sláine: Time Killer (1984-1985), Sláine: Treasures of Britain (1996-1997), and more (?).

Ritchie, Guy. King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017).

Thomas, Roy. “The Black Knight Reborn,” Marvel Super-Heroes No. 17 (November 1968).

Vaughn, Carrie. “The Lady of Shalott,” Swords v. Cthulhu (2016), pp. 41-52.



The Once and Future King vs. Cthulhuan Menaces:

Abnett, Dan, and John Tomlinson. Knights of Pendragon (1990-1991) and Knights of Pendragon II (1992-1993). [see Jason Tondro’s Superheroes of the Round Table, p. 182]

Aniolowski, Scott, Garrie Hall, Steve Hatherley, Alan Smithee, John T. Snyder, and John Tynes. The Golden Dawn: A Sourcebook of Victorian Occult Intrigue for Call of Cthulhu (1996). [Not seen; referenced in Ann F. Howey and Stephen R. Reimer’s A Bibliography of Modern Arthuriana (1500-2000), item E-21.]

Charrette, Robert N. The Strange World of John Reddy trilogy (1994-95).

DeGuerre, Phillip. Dr. Strange (1978).

Gillis, Peter. Final arc of Marvel’s The Defenders (1984-86) and opening arc of Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme (1989).

Glut, Donald F. “Knights and Demons,” Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends (1981).

Hawke, Simon. Wizard of 4th Street novel series (1987-1997).

Mignola, Mike. Hellboy: The Wild Hunt (2008-2009), Hellboy: The Storm (2010), and Hellboy: The Fury (2011). (Possibly the upcoming feature film set for a 2018 release.)

Parkhouse, Steve. “The Black Knight” serial, Hulk Comics Nos. 1-63 (1979-1980).

Riot, James. The Path webcomic (2007-?). [No longer available?]

Straczynski, J. Michael. “A Late Delivery from Avalon,” Babylon 5 (1996).

Stargate SG-1. Season 9 (2005-2006) and 10 (2006-2007) and Stargate: The Ark of Truth (2008).

Thomas, G. W. “Merlin’s Bane,” Pseudopod 77 (2008).

Thomas, Roy. “The Black Knight Reborn,” Marvel Super-Heroes No. 17 (November 1968).



Of related interest:

Munn, H. Warner. King of the World’s Edge (serialized in Weird Tales through 1939 and published in book form in 1966), Ship from Atlantis (1967), and Merlin’s Ring (1974), and Merlin’s Godson (1976), which collects King of the World’s Edge and Ship from Atlantis.

Unholy Grail No 3 Solicitation

Last one for the night:

Unholy Grail #3

Available on September 20 2017

You've heard the story of Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot—a tale of love both courtly and true. Now envision that love unfolding in a version of Camelot crawling with demonic receivers and unnatural horrors! Love itself takes a dark turn as jealousies unfold and grim thoughts of murder and betrayal take root in the minds of kings.

From writer Cullen Bunn (X-Men Blue, Deadpool, Venom) and artist Mirko Colak (Punisher) comes a Lovecraftian take on the Arthurian legend that HAD to be told at AfterShock Comics.

 

Preorder at https://www.comixology.com/Unholy-Grail-3/digital-comic/540699. 

 

Unholy Grail No 2 Solicitation

I'm in the midst of a Lovecraft project, so I thought I'd get the information about the remaining issues of Unholy Grail into the blog.

Unholy Grail #2

Available on August 9 2017

The horrific legend of King Arthur continues to unfold. The demon known as Merlin leaves a trail of carnage and curses as he searches for the boy who would be king. Arthur wages war against those who would oppose his sovereignty. The haunted walls of Camelot are raised. And Arthur meets the woman who will become his dark queen.

From writer Cullen Bunn (Uncanny X-Men, Deadpool) and artist Mirko Colak (Punisher) comes a Lovecraftian take on the Arthurian legend that HAD to be told at AfterShock Comics.

Preorder at: https://www.comixology.com/Unholy-Grail-2/digital-comic/526809.

Unholy Grail Comic Info

Writer Cullen Bunn and artist Mirko Colak have recently released the first issue of Unholy Grail, a comic book series (published by AfterShock Comics) that mashes the Arthurian legend with motifs from the writings of H. P. Lovecraft. 

The series premise (and solicitation for issue one) is as follows: 

Arthur Pendragon was the king of all Britain. His story is legendary. Merlin. The Lady of the Lake. Excalibur. Camelot. The Knights of the Round Table. But these stories are bright lies painted over the truth. Here is presented the gospel of Arthur's bloody rise to power and his unholy reign. The legend of King Arthur is not the stuff of legends, but the fuel of nightmares.

As Arthur descends into darkness, is there any lingering hope that he still might do something good? From writer Cullen Bunn (Uncanny X-Men, Deadpool) and artist Mirko Colak (Punisher) comes a Lovecraftian take on the Arthurian legend that HAD to be told at AfterShock Comics.

Issue one is out so far. Merlin is a true demon here, but the Lovecraftian elements are not yet made clear. Issue two is due in August, and issue three comes out in September. No word yet on further issues or if the three solicited so far will complete the series. 

 Full details and ordering information (linked to comiXology) at http://aftershockcomics.com/unholygrail/. 

 

 

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead

I know I've posted on this to (at least) one of the other blogs, but it is most appropriate here. The recent film Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead by Jordan Galland is a skillful reworking of a mass of traditions--including Arthurian and Shakespearean--that creates an innovative take on undead Arthuriana. First up is the official trailer, and then an in-film video devoted to the film's unique spin on Grail lore (see the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahe0x41ktqU for Hamlet's back story in the film).

The Mini-Monsters!

Besides Blazing Dragons, Arthurian figures feature prominently with Universal-Studio-styled monsters in the animated series The Mini-Monsters, which aired as part of The Comic Strip. Melvin, the young magician, is Merlin's son, and the master mage often functions as deus ex machina in the series.

Blazing Dragons Clip

The Monstrous Matter of Britain is not all bad, as this clip from the animated series Blazing Dragons, created by Terry Jones and Gavin Scott, illustrates. The series is not unavailable on home video but can be viewed from instant video providers and file-sharing sites, like YouTube.

Munster Masquerade

Frankensteinian Arthuriana (a variant of Undead Arthuriana) seems a relatively rare and underdeveloped sub tradition of Monstrous Arthuriana, yet it has some gems, including the premiere episode of television's The Munsters. In "Munster Masquerade," Herman Munster (a version of Frankenstein's monster) attends a Halloween party in the guise of King Arthur and much comedy ensues. The episode can be viewed on Amazon and from iTunes, and a number of images (including the one accompanying this post) are available from SitcomsOnline.com at http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=141243.