RIGOR MORTIS -- READ IT BEFORE THEY COME FOR YOU

It would be hard to say that there is a more vigorous genre fan base than that for vampires. Zombie fans would disagree. The popularity of the walking dead has grown to nearly apocalyptic proportions.

The downside of any pop culture phenomenon is that burnout is inevitable. We’ve seen it before and we’ll see it again, I’m sure. What usually happens in these cases is that a core fan base continues to keep the home fires burning – or in this case, the body bags filled.

After taking a look at the first few issues of RIGOR MORTIS, it is quite evident that this talented group of creators will be raising the zombie freak flag for some time to come.

What immediately struck me when I first looked at the mags was their resemblance to the underground comix of the 1960’s. Mind you, that was only in appearance – the content is wholly contemporary, albeit with just a hint of nostalgia for the good ol’ zombie days.

The first issue of RIGOR MORTIS carries – of all things – a mission statement, which reads: “When we weren’t having panic attacks (and even when we were) we thought about zombies a lot. This is the result.” And so, the self-proclaimed team of “necromancers”, writers Dread Sockett, Deadvida, Grim Pickens, and artist Bojan, launch into their unrepentant zombie love-fest. The results are totally enjoyable.

I was also struck by the quality of writing. I may be wrong, but I sense a touch of journalism school showing here. If not, then writing must be a natural gift for the contributors. For such a (Heh! Heh!) dead subject, the writing is always lively, with humor that stops short of parody. In other words, these guys are having fun doing what they’re doing on a subject that they take very seriously.

The magazines are dirt cheap, so I suggest you lay the few bucks down and enjoy an hour or two of articles, book, movie, and graphic novels reviews, and more mayhem within the first issue’s 54 pages.

I have told you before that I’m not a huge fan of zombies. The enthusiastic staff at RIGOR MORTIS magazine are helping to make me a believer.