My observations of Fangoria for the most part positive. You can read about my brief history with the magazine here. By looking at the new incarnation you can see the quality is very nice, the pages are thick and it's less like a magazine and more like a coffee table book with large color photos and articles with small print. lol. (Maybe my eyesight is just going.) There's over 100 pages, which makes sense since it's published quarterly now.
The writing is a little uneven. Some articles are near scholarly ~ which I love ~ and some are pretentious. There's writers reminiscing about the history of Fango, and some writers are merely stating ~ in not so many words ~ I know everything about horror and let me tell you about the obscure horror movies I like. As if they are superior to anyone reading the magazine. So some of the articles are not necessarily for the lay person which can make it a little unrelatable. Some of the articles take themselves VERY seriously, not that it's bad, just different from how horror is normally written about. I think the reason for the differences are that some articles are written by fans, writers, actors, and people involved with making the movies they are referencing. It's a bit all over the place.
Many of the articles are different takes on the same topic, and about 1/4 is dedicated to the new Halloween movie. I'm not surprised in the least bit. Halloween took first place opening weekend, it's the second largest horror opening of all time right behind Stephen King's It (2017), it's also the biggest movie opening with a female lead over 55! (You go Jamie Lee!) The Halloween articles touch on Michael Myers mask design, some of the movies the Halloween franchise has influenced, the blatant disregard in the new movie for the previous story lines, and one fan's strong obsession with the Myers house. Spoiler: he replicated the house and lives in it!
Teenie weenie print.
Great illustrations.
As an aside, I saw Halloween ~ the new one. In preparation, Andrew and I re-watched the original 40 year old Halloween. Many things in the new movie are predictable because they replicate some events in the first one. Michael gets out, steals a car, goes on a killing spree, he creeps in plain sight, there's a person wearing a sheet as a ghost, his heavy breathing, and he stabs a person and mounts them to a wall. (How does the weight of the body hanging on a knife not split the person in half? I asked that when I first saw the first movie and I still ask that.) I was hoping for a little more back story on Michael. We find out the mask is a character unto itself with power. Laurie played by Jamie Lee Curtis is excellent. She's vulnerable, strong, and paranoid. John Carpenter's updated musical score is the same with a sped up / updated sound. Overall the new movie feels like an homage to the original. A warning: If a killer ever comes after me I plan to chop off their head, kick it away from the body, and start it on fire.
Back to the magazine...in classic Fangoria tradition, there's step-by-step instructions on how to make your throat look slashed and spurt blood. An ad for special effect / movie school. It also goes behind the scenes with current horror movies i.e. The Nun, Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich, A House with a Clock in it's Walls and more.
It has a few other random background stories of what could have happened in Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, attending the Dawn of the Dead convention, and how Betty Gabriel from Get Out is a rising star. There's a write up on the ideas behind horror, not necessarily just slashers and a great piece on horror actors and directors and the potential to make movies about them. So I'd say a little something for everyone.
It has a few other random background stories of what could have happened in Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, attending the Dawn of the Dead convention, and how Betty Gabriel from Get Out is a rising star. There's a write up on the ideas behind horror, not necessarily just slashers and a great piece on horror actors and directors and the potential to make movies about them. So I'd say a little something for everyone.
Personally, I still like Rue Morgue better, but I look forward to seeing where they take it.
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