Review: ‘A Creepshow Animated Special’ shocks the system -

While we patiently wait for Creepshow‘s second season, Shudder delights us with a 45-minute animated special, featuring two frightful tales, just in time for a quarantined Halloween. With Greg Nicotero at the helm, you can bet your bottom dollar that you’ll get your money’s worth. Each chapter, both adaptations of previous short stories, captivate and chill you to the bone ⏤ gnawing off some delightfully unnerving imagery.

*Key art illustrated by Graham Humphreys*

The first is “Survivor Type,” based on the Stephen King short story, first published in 1982 as part of “Terrors.” Here, Nicotero adapts the story about an accomplished surgeon named Richard (Kiefer Sutherland) trapped on a deserted island. As fear and paranoia seep into his brain, and very real hunger claws at his stomach, he must do what he can in order to survive ⏤ and that just might include amputating his limbs or devouring his long-dead companion for nourishment. Even if you’ve never read a single comic or graphic novel in your life, the grueling, disturbing imagery will surely hypnotize you.

Creepshow, Season 1, each story ranked

The second story is “Twittering from the Circus of the Dead,” based on a story by Joe Hill and adapted by Melanie Dale. A young girl named Blake (Joey King) and her family mount a three-day roadtrip. When her father decides to take a detour, adding another 100 miles to their already agonizing trip, they stumble across a deadly circus and decide to check it out. Emo to her core, Blake literally tweets the entire journey, and when they sit in the shadows beneath the big top tent, she fails to realize that what she’s seeing (your typical circus/carnival acts) is actually something far more macabre. The script laces with biting wit and commentary on our current phone-addicted culture, hooking you and leaving you as lifeless as the army of zombies lurching at the screen.

A Creepshow Animated Special hits Shudder tomorrow (October 29).