Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 167 i SciFi Now

EVEN BEFORE SUICIDE SQUAD CAME OUT IN 2016, WOMEN AND GIRLS THE WORLD OVER WERE PLANNING THEIR HARLEY QUINN COSTUMES. While purists may have lamented the loss of her harlequin onesie, there was undeniably incredibly something iconic about those tiny sequined hotpants and the ‘daddy’s little monster’ top, teamed with a rough dip-dye ‘do and slipping make-up. Yes, it was oversexualised, but there was something so joyously unhinged about it too. It was the sort of look you don’t normally see in the hyper-serious DCU. No wonder female viewers took to Margot Robbie’s portrayal of Harley – watching her was just too much fun. While Suicide Squad itself failed to set the cinematic world alight, Harley became a sensation. Talk of a Suicide Squad sequel was quickly replaced by speculation…

“WE FEEL LIKE WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR CHRISTMAS FOR A LONG, LONG TIME!” chuckles Carlton Cuse. It’ll be January by the time you read this but the veteran of Lost, Bates Motel and The Strain has good reason to feel festive: Locke & Key is finally coming to TV. Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez’s wonderful comic about a grieving family, a mysterious house and a deadly fantastical secret has been in pretty much every imaginable stage of development hell for a full decade, but after a Comic-Con-screened Fox pilot that became the stuff of internet legend, a movie version that went nowhere and a Hulu pilot that didn’t get picked up either, Netflix stepped in and did the right thing. Locke & Key has finally been adapted, and Cuse and…

An all-powerful villain is destroying worlds. The fate of the universe is at stake. And heroes of all kinds must assemble to stop the ultimate threat… No, this isn’t Avengers: Endgame but ‘Crisis On Infinite Earths’, the highly-anticipated five-episode event that will unite characters from six different superhero series: Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, Legends Of Tomorrow, Black Lightning, and Batwoman. Featuring guest appearances and cameos from non-Arrowverse DC alumni, it’s easily the most ambitious and exciting of the crossover events that have become an annual staple of DC’s popular TV universe. For showrunner, writer, and mastermind behind the curtain, Marc Guggenheim, it’s also understandably daunting: “Crossovers are difficult. The biggest lesson we have yet to adequately learn is not to do them.” And we’re all the better for it. In…

After starting life as a 12-part serialisation in Collier’s weekly magazine in 1898, it may seem quite remarkable that Henry James’ The Turn Of The Screw has become one of the most famous scary stories of all time. But if you’ve read it you can probably see why. Set within the confines of a country estate called Bly, the novella follows an unnamed governess tasked with caring for Miles and Flora, a pair of charming but deeply troubled siblings. Following a series of unexplainable events involving the children and some mysterious figures, the governess begins to grapple with her sanity in a tale that is both chilling and entirely inconclusive. Since The Turn Of The Screw’s publication, the story has spawned many weird and wonderful adaptations, including an opera by…

The next level in comedic brilliance Release Out now Director Jake Kasdan Cast Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Danny Glover, Danny DeVito, Awkwafina Distributor Sony Certificate 12A Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan and Jack Black are all back for this hilarious sequel to 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle. Jumanji: The Next Level is not, however, a simple rehashing of what made the first film work so well. It brings with it plenty of surprises, new faces and twists on what came before. For one thing, though we’re back with the original quartet, they are not back playing the same characters – something that gives the cast, especially Johnson and Hart, so many opportunities to shine with performances that will have audiences in absolute fits of…

Release 13 January Directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett Cast Samara Weaving, Adam Brody, Mark O’Brien, Henry Czerny, Andie MacDowell Distributor 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Certificate 18 Format Following the wedding of Grace (Weaving) and Alex Le Domas (O’Brien), the bride is invited to play a game with the aristocratic Le Domases as part of her family initiation. When she picks a bad card, Grace is suddenly fighting for her life as the Le Domases attempt to hunt her down and kill her before sunrise. For a 95-minute horror with a pretty large ensemble cast, Ready Or Not really knows how to bring its characters to life. There are quite a few relationships to cover in not much time, but each Le Domas is just as intriguing and entertaining as…

Release Out now Showrunners Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby Cast Steven Strait, Dominque Tipper, Wes Chatham, Cas Anvar, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Cara Gee Distributor Amazon Prime Certificate 15 Format It’s a brave new world for The Expanse, both in its fourth season storyline and behind the scenes changes. The Amazon move is apparent in the bigger production value and adult content, and the dangers and opportunities on the newly discovered planet, Ilus (aka New Terra) drive much of the conflict. While the Belter refugees are trying to make a home for themselves there, the planet’s lithium deposits draw Earth’s RCE, which arrives to harvest the bounty and relocate the settlers with a government charter. Avasarala dispatches Holden and the Roci team to keep the peace and find out what’s going on with…

The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes “Right now, it’s The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes! Can’t wait to read it! #BookClub” @MrSteJames Alas, Babylon “Finally got myself a copy of Alas, Babylon. Its next on the list! #BookClub” @TheAtticAttack Tiamat’s Wrath “The Winds Of Winter??? Who am I kidding?! Waiting for the last #TheExpanse book to drop. #BookClub” @Craigsg1 Thorn Of Ember-lain “Thorn Of Emberlain. Really hoping the release date isn’t pushed back. Again. #BookClub” @HannahChapter1 The Southern Book Club’s Guide To Slaying Vampires “Either new @grady_hendrix or @riley_ sager. #BookClub” @bloodyflicks…

What have you been reading this month? “Rereading @ KTScribbles Chronicles Of Breed and loving every single minute of it. #BookClub” @andyangel44 “Re-reading Gene Wolfe’s Book Of The New Sun, and loving it all over again! #BookClub” @NealBunting “Currently reading The Dark Half by Stephen King. Great page turner. #BookClub” @philbooty “The Outsider from Stephen King, very good so far. #BookClub” @bloodyflicks “Lanny by Max Porter. It’s surreal and spooky and beautiful. #BookClub” @PasmineJalmer “Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett. Enjoying it a lot. #BookClub” @philipo81 “The Massacre Of Mankind by Stephen Baxter (official sequel to War Of The Worlds) - just started it this morning on way to work but enjoyed/ intrigued by what I’ve read so far. #BookClub” @AKAPaoloVerdi “Dark Moon by David Gemmell and so far, it may…

Release 4 February Writer Luke Arnold Publisher Orbit Price £8.99 Black Sails fans are likely to recognise Luke Arnold as the show’s younger version of Long John Silver, but The Last Smile In Sunder City sees him move into a new world as a fantasy author. And what a debut. Fetch Phillips is a classic human gumshoe in a broken world, where magic has been lost and communities reliant upon it are suffering the consequences, and Fetch used to be on the wrong side. When a vampire teacher goes missing, Fetch takes on the case, which finds him trekking across the decaying Sunder City. Fetch’s narration is dynamic with creative similes littering the prose, creating a wonderfully noir atmosphere that blends well with the fantastical elements of the story. There’s…

‘THE EXILES’ (1949) Sci-fi great Ray Bradbury took on Poe in this short story. His Poe is a Mars-dwelling entity, kept company by other authors of the uncanny, all of whom are wiped from existence as humans on Earth burn their books. Sensing a theme for the author of Fahrenheit 451 here, actually… THE TELL-TALE HEART (1953) Poe’s uniquely chilling account of the true nature of evil has proved a favourite for a reason. Rediscovered by chance in 2017 by a 16mm film enthusiast clearing his loft, this one-man monologue starring Stanley Baker was one of two adaptations made in the same year. See also… THE TELL-TALE HEART (1953) One of the highlights of the British Library’s 2014/15 exhibition Terror And Wonder: The Gothic Imagination was this mesmerising animated short…

Finally! Well, they sure kept us waiting but the trailer for Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman sequel did not disappoint. Concerns about ‘aren’t the Eighties kind of played out, though?’ were dispelled with an orchestral version of Blue Monday, sneering corporate greed and the sight of Chris Pine in a bum bag. Mostly, though, it was amazing to see Gal Gadot striding back into battle as Diana Prince, riding the lightning and bringing justice to a broken world. Cue the theme music.…

When you’ve been Captain of the USS Enterprise, you could be forgiven for resting on your laurels. For William Shatner – actor, writer, singer and philanthropist – that’s a truly alien concept. This month, he’s back on the small screen with The UnXplained, a one-hour anthology series which explores the many mysteries that both enthral and baffle us. He’s on board as presenter and executive producer, and his profound interest in the subject matter shines through. “As far as my memory goes back, I’ve always been intrigued – like so many other people – by mysteries: the large mysteries. What are the stars? Is there life after death? Is the universe expanding? All those kinds of large questions, but also the minutiae. Why does a crystal vibrate at such a…

BIRDS OF PREY This month, there could be no other winner than this magical Birds Of Prey and Sandro Botticelli’s The Birth Of Venus crossover poster, starring Harley Quinn and her brand-new kickass girl gang. Like Botticelli’s original painting, it’s majestic, it’s over the top, and it’s great to look at. But unlike the original, it also features a host of floating cheeseburgers, a pile of hand grenades and a beaver wearing a tutu and a candy necklace. What’s not to love? WONDER WOMAN 1984 Steve Trevor sporting a bumbag is a firm favourite Wonder Woman 1984 character poster. GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE We love an understated poster that doesn’t give much away. This look at Ecto-1 gives a perfect peek at what’s to come. FREE GUY If you’ve seen the trailer…

FEBRUARY 2008 The first issue of Locke & Key is published, with the first six issues making up ‘Welcome To Lovecraft’. FEBRUARY 2010 Dimension and Dreamworks pick up the film and TV rights. Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are handed the reins. AUGUST 2010 Steven Spielberg signs on to produce what is now a TV series. Fox comes on board and greenlights a pilot. FEBRUARY 2011 Mark Romanek directs the pilot, written by Kurtzman, Orci and Josh Friedman. MAY 2011 Fox doesn’t pick up the pilot. There are many attempts to sell it. No one bites but it’s shown at Comic-Con in June. SEPTEMBER 2013 The final issue, titled ‘The Last Door’, is published. JUNE 2014 A new home for Locke & Key and a new format is announced, as…

According to Carver, the delay between Season One airing and Season Two being greenlit was “frustrating”. He was pretty sure that the second season was going to happen, but had to wait for the merger between Warner Bros and AT&T to complete, leading to the creation of HBO Max, the HBO streaming platform which will be co-streaming Season Two of Doom Patrol along with DC Universe. But don’t worry – a change in broadcaster won’t be affecting the content of the show. “HBO Max has been a terrific partner,” Carver says. “Their words to us have very much been that they are big fans of what we did in Season One and they want us to keep doing more of the same.” To that end, Season Two will be “tackling…

Release 10 February Director Abe Forsythe Cast Lupita Nyong’o, Josh Gad, Alexander England Distributor Altitude Film Distribution Certificate 15 Format When zombie dramas had finally been done to death, the world moved on to zombie comedies, which felt pretty fresh in the Noughties but have been slowly becoming more and more rotten as the years have passed. However, Little Monsters’ premise — a kindergarten teacher must keep her class alive using songs and games when the undead invade a petting zoo while they’re there on a school trip — stands out as original, and Abe Forsythe’s wonderfully funny script and direction have led to a brilliant zombie comedy that has both heart and humour by the tractor-load. The film is perfectly cast. Nyong’o is all-singing, all-caring Miss Caroline, England (who…

Release 27 January Director Curtis Harrington Cast Dennis Hopper, Linda Lawson, Gavin Muir, Luana Anders, Marjorie Eaton Distributor Powerhouse Films Certificate PG Format Having been given a loving restoration by arthouse provocateur/B-movie preservationist Nicolas Winding Refn, Curtis Harrington’s oddball blend of creature horror and freak-out comes to Bluray courtesy of Powerhouse Films. The Blu-ray’s loaded with extras, with the two discs featuring Harrington’s short films, two wonderful archival interviews with the filmmaker, and a 1998 commentary with him and star Dennis Hopper. It’s great to see such attention given to the charming and memorable tribute to Poe via Val Lewton, which stars Hopper as Johnny, a young sailor who falls for the mysterious Mora (Linda Lawson), who plays the mermaid at the local fairground. However, Mora’s past loves have all…

In early 2017 I began slithering into a dreadful ennui. I’d been an SFF fan for years but I couldn’t settle to read anything. I was also rasping away at the second draft of my own book and feeling thwarted. What was the point of all this? Nobody would believe all this made-up stuff! A real book should be dull, heavy and serious, and all the more so if you’ve dared to include a spaceship or wizard. So, when my wife recommended Yoon Ha Lee’s Ninefox Gambit, my first thought was ‘no, I’m bored of ships and swords and soldiers, I hate books, I hate reading, it won’t be fun’. Obviously, I was wrong about all of the above but especially the last bit, because this book is tremendously fun.…

Release 7 January Writer Marc-Uwe Kling Publisher Orion Books Price £18.75 Ever had an uncanny experience where an advert on Facebook (or Instagram, or Google...) offers you something you had just been thinking about? Or maybe something you had mentioned to a friend, but definitely hadn’t typed into a search box yet? Of course you have. The more we use the internet, the more the websites where we spend our time get to know us. Cookies track us across the web and learn all our preferences. Author Marc-Uwe Kling extrapolates on that experience in QualityLand, depicting a frankly terrifying word in which everyone is only ever shown ads, news articles, and even people the algorithm knows they will like. The result is upsettingly like our current reality, just even more…

Release Out now Writer Naomi Ishiguro Publisher Tinder Press Price £14.99 Escape and imprisonment loom large over these stories, many of which sit in a reality which threatens to fold in or explode outwards at a moment’s notice. Punctuated by a story told in three parts (‘The Rat Catcher’), the collection presents people who find themselves lost, forced to question themselves, or look for a way out. That hazy unreality occasionally tips into full-on magical realism, as seen in ‘Shearing Season’, in which a young boy obsessed with going to space manages to draw ‘The Unknown’ and creates a vortex. ‘The Rat Catcher’, which follows the titular character as he heads to the palace on a commission from the king only to find himself in the midst of a strange…

Release 6 February Writer Menna van Praag Publisher Bantam Press Price £14.99 Goldie, Bea, Ana, and Scarlet knew each other as young girls when they visited the mystical Everwhere, connected by a bond of sisterhood and sharing a father who may or may not want to kill them when they turn 18. Now, they are approaching that momentous birthday having forgotten each other. But as the date approaches, the girls begin to rediscover their powers that are integral to their identity as Sisters Grimm. Menna van Praag’s Cambridge-set urban fantasy reconfigures familiar fairy tale characters into four very different heroines. Each girl has their own latent abilities and their arcs see them discovering how strong they are. Given that their destiny is to face down their all-powerful father, they really…

Q. What is your dream superhero movie team-up if studios and publishers were no object? JONATHAN HATFULL EDITOR A. Constantine and Blade It’ll never happen but the idea of JC getting on Blade’s nerves as they face down the forces of evil is just delightful, isn’t it? ABIGAIL CHANDLER DEPUTY EDITOR A. Thor and Wonder Woman A Norse god and a Greek demi-goddess. Mythological competitiveness ensues! POPPY-JAY PALMER NEWS EDITOR A. Ant-Man and Batman Their contrasting approaches to vigilantism would make for a fun but angst-ridden adventure. MARCUS FAINT ART EDITOR A. Thor/GOTG The End Game scenes featuring Thor and The Guardians whetted the appetite for a feature length caper. RACHAEL HARPER SUB EDITOR A. Deadpool and Captain America It may just be a whole…

Sci-fi fans are in for a treat from Glasgow Film Festival in 2020: the annual fest is seeing in the new decade with a special retrospective strand titled ‘Are We There Yet?’ The collection is set to feature a host of dystopian classics that give a look at the future, including Kathryn Bigelow’s compelling mystery Strange Days (1995), Michael Anderson’s adventure Logan’s Run (1976), retro-futurist fantasia Brazil (1985), nuclear apocalypse sci-fi The Day The Earth Caught Fire (1961), foodie nightmare Soylent Green (1973), primate staple The Planet Of The Apes (1968), Alfonso Cuaron’s haunting drama Children Of Men (2006) and more. Festival co-director Allan Hunter said: “The Glasgow Film Festival retrospective for 2020 invites viewers to go back to the future with a collection of dystopian classics that offer bold,…

1 HUMANS VERSUS VAMPIRES Following the deaths of The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, vampire drama junkies can get their fix with V-Wars, now streaming on Netflix. Based on Jonathan Maberry’s comics, the series follows Ian Somerhalder as Dr Luther Swann, a physician-scientist investigating a deadly outbreak that fractures society into a world of humans versus vampires. Laura Vandervoort, recently seen craving blood in the Soska Sisters’ Rabid, stars as vampire Mila Dubov. “In her heart and soul she is entirely human with human needs,” says Vandervoort. “I love that with every breath she takes she is either righting a wrong or some injustice in this new world, or finding her footing.” 2 ONCE BITTEN BeforeV-Wars, Vandervoort starred in Bitten as lead Elena Michaels, a woman who turns into a…

BARBARA GORDON DISTINCTIVE FEATURES: Red hair, sometimes in a wheelchair. Good with computers. WHERE TO SPOT: Likes to hang out at the top of clocktowers. LADY BLACKHAWK/ZINDA BLAKE DISTINCTIVE FEATURES: Forties Blackhawk pilot outfit, bubbly nature. Excellent flyer. WHERE TO SPOT: The airfield by day, your local bar by night. HAWK AND DOVE DISTINCTIVE FEATURES: Always travels in a pair – one sweet natured, one angry. WHERE TO SPOT: Can usually be found patrolling crime-riddled neighbourhoods. MANHUNTER DISTINCTIVE FEATURES: Strongly moral and highly-focused, violent when provoked. WHERE TO SPOT: Usually found around courthouses and the bad part of town. MISFIT DISTINCTIVE FEATURES: Young and peppy. Unusual flight pattern – almost looks like teleportation… WHERE TO SPOT: A fanbird that likes to hang out where superheroes flock.…

HEART-SHAPED BOX (2007) THE PITCH: An aging rocker buys a “haunted” suit on online. But it’s actually haunted. THE CHANCES OF IT BEING A GOOD MOVIE: High. It’s a great pitch, it’s really scary and Judas Coyne would be a plum role for the right actor. THE PRODUCTION HISTORY: It was picked up by Warner Bros in 2007. Neil Jordan reportedly wrote a screenplay, then… nothing. HELL OR HEAVEN: Hell. HORNS (2010) THE PITCH: A town outcast wakes up with horns on his head that compel people to tell him the truth, so he sets out to find his girlfriend’s killer. THE CHANCES OF IT BEING A GOOD MOVIE: Dicey, but in the right hands it’s a very dark, very sad, often very funny black comedy fantasy howl. THE PRODUCTION…

HARDWARE (1990) Stanley’s post-apocalyptic debut tells the story of an artist whose boyfriend brings her the head of a robot, only for the head to reactivate, start to reassemble and murder everything it sees. It’s a stylish punk SF noir with a cast that includes Iggy Pop and Lemmy and was a ‘hard to find’ cult classics for years following legal disputes. DUST DEVIL (1992) This blend of western, occult horror, Jodorowsky-esque trip and serial killer thriller follows a woman on the run from the titular figure across South Africa. Based on a real serial killer case, the film is a strange, deliberately paced trip that’s beautifully shot, but it was cut to ribbons on its release. Stanley was able to restore some footage for DVD releases. THE ISLAND OF…

Like any form of fiction, anime has a number of recognisable tropes, defined by their target audiences. These aren’t necessarily genres, as each might include anime and manga with differing subjects and styles, and traditional definitions have shifted. Many of the shows across the list will be part of these different demographics, but for simplicity’s sake, we won’t be ordering the list in this way – but it’s still handy information to have. SHONEN Perhaps the largest sect of anime and manga, shonen is aimed at a demographic of boys between 12 and around 18. Expect young heroes obsessed with powering up, cute girls, awkward crushes and so on. Representation of women in this demographic hasn’t traditionally been great, but this has notably improved over time. Examples: Dragon Ball,…

Release 10 February Director Joe Begos Cast Dora Madison, Tru Collins, Rhys Wakefield, Jeremy Gardner, Graham Skipper Distributor Eureka Certificate 18 Format Bliss is a huge step forward for Joe Begos (Almost Human, The Mind’s Eye) in terms of craft and ambition. It’s also just as nostalgic as his previous features, drawing on The Hunger and The Addiction, but with its hedonistic vampires transplanted from New York to LA as a struggling artist spirals into mania, hunger and creative nirvana after taking the titular drug. Bliss is an aggressive assault on the senses and is anchored by a ferocious performance by Madison, who convinces as the frustrated artist before ripping the doors off the film as the darkness inside Dezzy is unleashed. Although the escalation keeps going, anyone outside the…

Release 27 January Director Rob Grant Cast Munro Chambers, Emily Tyra, Christopher Gray, Brett Gelman Distributor Arrow Video Certificate 18 Format From its luxury boat setting to the ‘three friends with dark secrets’ set-up to the snarky voice-over (from Fleabag’s Brett Gelman), Rob Grant’s dark comedy Harpoon is none-more-Nineties but it’s also a tightly written, well-directed and well-acted piece of nastiness, not just a prompt to rewatch Suicide Kings. Meet Jonah (Munro Chambers), a nice guy sad-sack, Richard (Christopher Gray), a spoiled rich kid with anger issues, and Sasha (Emily Tyra), Richard’s girlfriend who acts as mediator/ nurse for the pair. After Richard takes them out on his yacht, things quickly go south and now the trio is stranded with no food or water and a lot of secrets to…

Release Out now Showrunners Rafael Parente, Peter Kocyla Cast Christiane Paul, Mark Waschke, Lena Klenke, Luisa-Céline Gaffron Distributor RLJE International Certificate 18 Format The end of the world truly is bleak as hell in this gruelling eight-part German miniseries in which an asteroid named Horus will soon hit and wipe out Europe. The story follows a number of interconnected characters who are all either racing to get across the border to Russia, bargaining to secure flights to the US or securing their doomsday bunkers. The first episode features a mother (Christiane Paul) shooting the teenage boy who tried to rape her teenage daughter and a father (David Striesow) keeping his teenage daughter (Luisa-Céline Gaffron) locked up – so it’s at least up front right from the beginning about how unpleasant…

Release 11 February Writer AK Larkwood Publisher Tor Price £12.99 Life was supposed to turn out differently for Csorwe. Or, to be more specific, she wasn’t supposed to have much of a life at all. Raised in a cult that worshipped a hungry deity, she was supposed to have been a tasty human sacrifice as a 14-year-old priestess, but a visiting mage named Sethennai made an offer she couldn’t refuse. Rather than walk into the jaws of a hungry old god, why not embrace life and work for an enigmatic wizard? This is how AK Larkwood’s debut novel begins, with the choice between following the destiny that’s been given to you and choosing your own. However, while the first 100 or so pages play out with Csorwe growing up, learning…

Release 6 February Writer Andrew Hunter Murray Publisher Hutchinson Price £12.99 How’s the world going to end? The title of Andrew Hunter Murray’s novel, The Last Day turns out to be brilliantly literal: the apocalypse arrives when the world stops turning. Instead of rotating, with night then following day in a predictable and reassuringly stable pattern, Earth slows down and then just suddenly stops. Half the planet faces towards the sun permanently while the other half is plunged into an eternal night. The knock-on effects are explored in some depth in the novel: there’s mass migration, followed by violence; the tides change, destroying the long established eco system; and society… well, society does what society does. It evolves. New power structures also emerge based on who’s been lucky and who…

Release Out now Writer Megan Angelo Publisher HQ Price £8.99 Social media, celebrity and tech addiction are explored with biting wit in Megan Angelo’s fiction debut, with a tale split into two narratives. In 2051, Marlow lives in a reality TV hell, her every move watched by millions and dictated by the network. When she discovers that her next storyline is a pregnancy, she realises that the time has finally come to break free. In 2015, Orla has put her novel-writing dreams on hold to become a successful celebrity blogger, and when her roommate Floss convinces her to use her skills to turn her into a star, she quickly realises just how addictive a little notoriety and influence can be. There’s a fine line between cautionary tale and finger-wagging, and…

Release April 2020 Author Various Artist Various Publisher Rebellion Price £3.75 This vastly clever initiative to break the US market for the UK’s longest-running SF anthology comic is off to a great start. A cherry-picked selection of reprinted classics, this could so easily have been the greatest hits of 2000AD’s past. Instead, it’s a smartly curated mixture of the old and new. The old here comes from the first few instalments of The Ballad Of Halo Jones – Alan Moore, Ian Gibson and co’s all-time classic. They don’t quite have the heft and punch of the full run, inevitably, but they are still one of 2000AD’s finest hours and ring with humour, poignancy and the call to adventure. ‘Terror’, which is the Judge Dredd story that occupies the lion’s share…

The final moments of 1990’s Tremors sees Kevin Bacon’s Val finally profess his feelings for Finn Carter’s Rhonda – however according to Underwood, that wasn’t always the plan. “The ending in the film is not the original ending. We had Val and Earl get into their truck and they were finally going to make it out of town because that was their goal throughout the entire film: to get out of Perfection,” explains the director. “They’re driving down the highway and Val pulls out a cigarette but doesn’t have his lighter. Earl checks his pockets and he doesn’t have one either – and they realise the lighter is back with Rhonda. Val says ‘damn, that was a good lighter’, does a U turn and that was the end of the…

American filmmaker Tom Holland, (not to be confused with a certain Spidey actor of the same name) has been thrilling audiences on both the large and small screen for many years. He began his screenwriting career penning the audicious 1983 sequel to Psycho, which lured Anthony Perkins back as Norman Bates. It became a critical and commerical success and helped launch Holland’s subsequent career as a horror filmmaker; writing and directing the original 1985 vampire classic Fright Night, then the equally iconic killer doll horror Child’s Play. Since then, Holland has directed two Stephen King adaptations and helmed episodes of Tales From The Crypt and notably the ‘We All Scream For Ice Cream’ story from Masters Of Horror. We spoke to the award-winning filmmaker about weaving a Hitchcockian career, which…