Welcome to the third installment of this anthology round-up for this year! There’s horror! Folklore from Wales! Black people! Writing tips! What? Just scroll down and see what I’ve read!
If you missed Part 2, click here to read it: https://thepointofclicking.com/crowdfund-comic-anthologies-ive-read-in-2025-part-2/
Zona Del Male
Zona Del Male is a horror anthology with stories based on folklore from around the world. Most take place Europe, some are in America, and others are from who knows where. These tales tend to be dark in tone though a few can be a bit more comedic and lighthearted. The main subgenres here are drama, mystery, slice-of-life, and thriller. There are many strange and notable creatures like unicorns, ghosts, zombie-like creatures, and plenty of demonic/supernatural beings. The main characters are usually unaware humans that are dealing with terrifying situations thought sometimes they can be the cause of it. There are a couple of violent moments that can be very bloody with some heavy gruesomeness. The art styles go from the rough and cartoonish to the realistic and serious. The split between black-and-white and color comics is about even.
“Which story was your favorite?”
The Nyx, Rattenfanger, and Epilogue.
“Which story had your favorite art?”
Dirty Bathroom.
“How many stories are there?”
Eleven, ranging from 2-8 pages each, most of them are above six.
“All those stories, can I get one quote?”
“I felt drawn to it, as if compelled…”
“You know of any cryptids in your area?”
The White Thang?
Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dgw-zonadelmale1/zona-del-male-a-folk-horror-anthology/description
The Dark Chronicles of Cymru Volume 2
The Dark Chronicles of Cymru Volume 2 is a collection of three horror-leaning stories about creatures and legends of Welsh folklore. The first story “Y Cyhyraeth” is about a girl in secondary school who keeps seeing spirit-like beings in her dreams and in real life. The art here is cartoonish with comic strip vibes and switches back and forth between grayscale and brownscale. The second story “Legend of Llyn y Fan Fach” is a retelling of a legend where a man falls in love with a woman who emerges from a lake. This has a roughish and slightly cartoonish style with an above-average range of colors. The backgrounds here can be very expressive. The final tale is “Cobylnau” and is about a miner that comes across creatures in the caves. This has the same kind of art as the first story but this is all brownscale. Violence is physical but there isn’t much of it. There isn’t any blood or gore.
“Which story was your favorite?”
Legend of Llyn y Fan Fach.
“Which story had your favorite art?”
Y Cyhyraeth.
“How many stories are there?”
Three, The first and third are six pages each while the second is twelve.
“All those stories, can I get one quote?”
“Hardly anybody who thinks they’re going mad actually is.”
“Have you read about any of these Welsh folktales before?”
I know a little about the lady of the lake but besides that, nope.
Physical Link: https://www.afterlightcomics.com/product-page/the-dark-chronicles-of-cymru-volume-2
Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ghostislandcomic/the-dark-chronicles-of-cymru-2-a-horror-comic-anthology/description
Archetypes #2
Archetypes #2 is an “Independent Geek Culture Magazine” that has informative articles, comics, and short stories. There are interviews with well-known creators like Jonathan Hedrick and Madeleine Holly-Rosing, writing tips that can get specific, and some historical-like features. Most of the comics are standalone with hints at future installments and there is an excerpt from Charms #4. Horror/thriller is the most prominent genre here but there are some fantasy and mystery tales. There appears to be a theme of “transformation” and this is shown in a variety of ways. The violence here can get incredibly gruesome and bloody as well as showing stomach-turning gore. The art styles go from serious to comedic with color palette going from the bright and colorful to black-and-white.
“Which story was your favorite?”
A Serpent in Our Midst, Howl of the West, Madam Shadow, and The Highway Phantom.
“Which story had your favorite art?”
A Serpent in Our Midst and Madam Shadow.
“How many stories are there?”
There are ten comics from 4-1 pages each, nine articles that are 2-3 pages in length, and four one-page advertisements.
“All those stories, can I get one quote?”
“Oh, that’s a wolf alright. It smells your fear.”
“If you could transform into an animal which would you pick?”
A tiger, I need to be cold-resistant.
Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/joeygalvez1984/archetypes-issue-2-an-independent-geek-culture-magazine/description
Noir Is The New Black: Expanded Edition
Noir Is The New Black: Expanded Edition is a collection of noir stories that are created by and star Black people. This is the expansion to the original edition and while the original was crowdfunded, this was not. Most of these are mysteries but there are also organized crime, romance, and action-heavy tales; a number of these have heavy dramatic elements. There are a number of different time periods shown here from the 1920’s to the high-tech future. The setting changes frequently from Florida to Michigan and from D.C. to Alabama; a couple of the non-US locations are Jamaica and France. You will see historical figures like Josephine Baker and tragic events like the Tulsa Race Massacre. Some of these comics are parts of larger issues but most of them are not. Most of the stories here are violent with pools of blood and gruesome moments leading to gore. The art styles are serious and tend to be in full color with heavy noir-like shading.
“Which story was your favorite?”
The Winterfields, Vera’s List, Southern Hospitality, and C.A.N.O.P.Y..
“Which story had your favorite art?”
Ousley and Entanglement.
“How many stories are there?”
Eighteen, all except one being 6-8 pages each, and one of those is a short story.
“All those stories, can I get one quote?”
“You seem to be looking after a lot of his things.”
“When are you gonna write a noir story?”
I keep saying I’ll do it soon but life’s been getting in the way.
Digital Link: https://fairsquaregraphics.com/product/noir-is-the-new-black-expanded-edition-digital/
Superheresies
Superheresies is an anthology featuring three stories starring public domain heroes from the 1940’s. These comics are very much in the style of the era they came from in every aspect from the writing to the art. All of these stories have varying levels of drama and action. Some of these characters feature in multiple tales and have classic looks, names, and powers. The first story “How the West Was Won” features the bulk of the heroes dealing with a new and unknown threat, “Lords of Night” has two heroes with darkness themes battling the Queen of Night, and “Fatherland” gives us a look into a spy’s past. The violence here can be hard-hitting but it isn’t bloody or gory. The art has the same thick outlines, coloring practices, and methods used from that time period like Ben Day dots and halftone dotting.
“Which story was your favorite?”
How the West Was Won.
“Which story had your favorite art?”
All the art is very similar due to the style so I can’t say any comic stands outs when compared to each other.
“How many stories are there?”
Three, 12, 9, and 5 pages each.
“All those stories, can I get one quote?”
“Sometimes ya gotta do things and ya ain’t even sure why.”
“Have you ever read a comic from the 40’s?”
A whole comic? I don’t think so.
Purchase Link: https://www.heresystudiosllc.com/product-page/superheresies-preorder-cover-a
Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/josephduis/superheresies-golden-age-superheroes-get-existential/description
