Halloween Man Kicks Off Scary Season With a Midnight Treat

Horror is having a moment this year, with dark/twisted versions of well-known characters like Spider-Man, X-Men, Ninja Turtles, and hell, even Hello Kitty, lining the shelves for October. While those mashups will eventually fade from public memory, indie comics superhero Halloween Man only gets more memorable.

For the uninitiated, Halloween Man is a cult small press and webcomic character that first debuted 26 years ago. It follows ethical zombie protagonist Solomon Hitch, who was imbued with super powers from a cranky wizard following a fatal encounter with a vampire. As Halloween Man, Solomon now wields his voracious hunger for flesh to devour all manner of unsavory beasts. He's joined by science hero love interest Dr. Lucy Chaplin, mentor necromancer Morlack, occultist Nickodemis, and demigod offspring Ron the Man-Goat. Together they protect the residents of fictional Texas locale Solar City, which is fitting considering how the state's most attractive cities have also turned into horror mashups, courtesy of irresponsible billionaires and podcaster bro kings.

This week also sees the debut of Halloween Man: Devil's Night, a brand new 58-page comic from creator and author Drew Edwards, with art from Jason Wilson, John Gholson, Andrea Montano and a dead gorgeous cover by Nicola Scott (Black Magick, Wonder Woman). Other than being a visual feast, the new comic sets the correct tone for transitioning from general scary to October scary using more than just jack-o-lanterns, black cats, and crowds of costumed children roaming neighborhoods. This year it feels more necessary, given how many more scary-leaning stories are gaining attention at the moment.

"I think the reason why you're sort of seeing horror overtake superheroes, or at least nip at its heels a little bit right now, is that we are living in particularly anxious times," Edwards told me in an interview during a recent book signing. "And when anxiety is high, horror is always right behind."