Hello Lifeline Comics readers!
We've got an exciting newsletter in store for you this week. We'll be announcing all of our upcoming Kickstarter projects for the remainder of 2023!
And if that's not exciting enough, we're also ringing in the Spooky Season by talking about one of our favorite subjects - HORROR MOVIES! Read on to hear our top 10 personal favorite horror films of all time!
Let's get into it!
Moving to Substack
Before we get into the project rundown, we have an announcement about the newsletter itself. We're moving to Substack with our future newsletter posts!
All the content will remain the same but will be delivered by Substack rather than Zestworld. And no action is required from you. We'll be importing our audience from Zestworld into Substack, so you'll receive our updates as you normally have.
Kickstarter Announcements
Following the Lifeline Comics' census, we heard a ton of feedback that you wanted to see more announcements and inside commentary about our projects in our newsletters. So we thought we'd take this time to announce not only our upcoming Kickstarter, but THE REST OF THE KICKSTARTERS for the year.
Slice of Life - Anime Action Adventure #1 (October 30th)
You may recall the announcement of "Slice of Life: Anime Adventure" from an earlier newsletter. We're finally bringing the one-shot to Kickstarter in just a couple of weeks!
"Anime Adventure" is a spin-off of our Reverse-Isekai "Slice of Life" that sees the cast of the main series enter the worlds of their favorite (and least favorite) anime. So, a Reverse-Reverse Isekai, if you will.
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The book is honestly one of our favorite stories we've ever written. It's filled to the brim with jokes and references, and really flexed a lot of our writing muscles that we don't usually get to play with as much (especially comedy)!
The one-shot is also completely new-reader friendly and is meant to satisfy both fans of "Slice of Life" and anime/manga fans who have never read the series before.
Follow The Project Here to be notified when we launch: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/comicuno/sol-anime-adventure?ref=eqd74u
Haunting, Like Father, Like Daughter, and The Beast & Snow Enamel Pin Set (November 6th)
Following the success of our queer enamel pin sets, we thought it was time to introduce enamel pins for our most popular IPs, which include: HAUNTING (Horror), Like Father, Like Daughter (Superhero), and The Beast & Snow (NSFW Supernatural).
This will be a brand new six pin set with two pins from each series. Be sure to keep an eye out on our upcoming newsletters for the reveal of the other three pins in the set!
Haunting/Like Father, Like Daughter Crossover Exclusive Pride Cover (December 11th)
We're reprinting the HAUNTING/Like Father, Like Daughter Crossover with an EXTREMELY limited run variant cover!
This run will feature an exciting new Pride-themed cover from the interior artist on the crossover, Rafi de Sousa, spotlighting the queer characters of both titles.
This is an EXCLUSIVE cover for our 2024 Summer Comic Cons and Pride events. Following this short Kickstarter, the cover will only be sold at our Summer 2024 in-person events. So if you're interested in extremely limited items, you don't want to miss this Kickstarter!
Cover art will be revealed in a future Newsletter!
What have we been up to?
For my birthday, Phil and the gang took me to Gordon Ramsay's Hell Kitchen in Atlantic City. As a HUGE Hell's Kitchen fan this was such a big treat.
I've been to a few Ramsay restaurants, especially when I went to London, but this was the most familiar to the show. It's a very similar menu (scallops, beef wellington, and all), and the last winner of the show is even the head chef. I felt like I was a VIP with how the booths were shaped. It was a great time with friends, and by the end I even grabbed myself some Hell's Kitchen merch.
Speaking of food...October was a food filled month. My brother and I also went to Food Network's Food & Wine Festival. It's always around the same time as NYCC, and since Lifeline Comics had to skip this year (don't worry we'll be back next year with a vengeance) I actually had the chance to embrace my second love - FOOD!
We went to Brooke Williamson and Antonia Lofaso's event where there were plenty of different types of drinks and food from local vendors to celebrate New York's restaurant scene. The two hosts made a big effort to talk to all the guests, and really gave a classy vibe to the whole experience. There were times where the venue felt a bit too crowded, but overall I had a good time and if the stars aligned, I'd do a similar event.
Top 10 Horror Movies of All Time
With Halloween just around the corner, we thought it was the perfect time to discuss one of our favorite topics: HORROR MOVIES.
Learn our personal favorite horror films and what we love about them!
10. Kat's Pick: Get Out (2017)
Kat: Horror is all about timing, so it didn't come as a surprise to me that a comedian like Jordan Peele would become a master of the genre. And all these years later, Get Out is still my favorite Monkeypaw Production! I love horror movies that build tension, and there are very few that have met the heights of Get Out. Horror has always been very...white, and Get Out uses that historical context to tell a subtly eerie story that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
10. Phil's Pick: Bride of Chucky (1998)
Phil: Is Bride of Chucky a great horror movie? Well, that's debatable.
But is it a FUN movie? YES!
Child’s Play / Chucky is one of my absolute favorite horror franchises. I knew that it needed some sort of representation on my top ten list. But oddly enough, I don’t think that any one movie in the series is the “perfect” Chucky movie. Part of the beauty of this franchise is how wildly it veers in different directions.
The first three Child’s Play films that preceded Bride are all more straightforward horror movies – with Chucky getting steadily quippier with each installment.
But Bride is a hard turn towards camp and comedy and ends up becoming an absolutely hilarious road trip movie. The introduction of Tiffany Valentine as Chucky's titular Bride breathes new life into the franchise. Jennifer Tilly is a scene stealer, in both human and doll form. She effortlessly keeps up with and elevates Brad Dourif's Chucky, and the interplay between the characters is nothing short of hysterical.
I went back-and-forth between Bride of Chucky and the sixth installment of the franchise, Curse of Chucky, (a return to the more suspenseful and horrific roots of the series), but in the end I just had to go with Bride. It's maybe my favorite example of a franchise going off-the-rails and having the time of its life doing it.
9. Kat's Pick: The Menu (2022)
Kat: This is a recent addition to my list! Leaning more into thriller than your classic horror films, The Menu is still every bit horrifying. I love a movie that sells you on its eeriness. Everything seems normal, except this one guy is acting kind of weird. It grounds you into reality. It makes you think, "could this happen in real life?".
The Menu heavily leans into the eerie! It's a commentary on how our modern culture treats food, and has an even deeper analysis of food's connection to money and status. And from a character point of view, it paints an intriguing villain that forewarns the viewer of the terrors of perfectionism. Grab a hamburger and don't let this movie pass you by!
9. Phil's Pick: Scream 6 (2023)
Phil: I was a little hesitant to put this movie on the list. It’s a sequel to another film that just might be represented later in this Top 10. And it’s a (relatively) recent movie, having been released in January 2023.
But dammit, this is MY top 10 and I really love Scream 6. It came out less than ten months ago and I’ve already seen it six or seven times. After finding myself unimpressed by the fifth film in the Scream franchise, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this latest installment.
The news that Neve Cambell wouldn't be returning as Sidney Prescott had a lot of people (myself included) skeptical. I was just hoping it would be a decent enough movie. Every film in the Scream franchise to that point had been solid. Even my least favorite installments (Screams 3 and 5) had things I liked about them. I just hoped the same would be true for this 2023 release.
What I didn't expect was just how perfectly this movie breathed new life into the franchise. Scream 6 is one of my favorite examples of "passing the torch" that we've seen in franchise films. I was pretty neutral on the "Core Four" cast returning from Scream 5. But every single one of them absolutely blew me away in this movie - especially Sam, who was actually my least favorite part of the preceding film. But she really comes into her own in this movie and rises to become a final girl who I hope to see for many more films to come.
I love the cast, love the suspense, love the chase scenes (the ladder scene KILLS). If I'm being critical, I think the only weak spot of Scream 6 is its reluctance to have a death stick. There are a laughable number of instances of characters being (apparently) mortally wounded only to have miraculously survived. And while this isn't exactly a new occurrence in the franchise, having it happen four or five times in one movie stretches believability.
But that nitpick aside, I think Scream 6 is the perfect horror sequel. It pays homage to what came before it, but carves its own path. And while I absolutely love Sidney Prescott (and hope to see her again), it was actually nice to focus almost exclusively on the newer cast this time around.
In a franchise full of strong sequels, Scream 6 manages to become the best installment since the original.
8. Kat's Pick: The Shining (1980)
Kat: 40+ years later, and the film community is still trying to digest The Shining. What are the hidden meanings? What was the movie REALLY trying to say?
I first saw The Shining a few years ago when visiting my brother in South Carolina. We went to a little local theater where the film was showing, and my mind was completely blown. I didn't know what to expect from a movie that was so present in pop culture's zeitgeist. I already knew the ending, would that affect the ride? The answer: HELL NO. The ride is truly what makes this movie stand the test of time.
8. Phil's Pick: The Shining (1980)
Phil: The Shining isn't just one of the best horror movies ever made - it's one of the best movies. Period.
A chilling and suspenseful story with one of the most iconic settings in media. There are so many iconic lines and shots from this movie. Some of them have been parodied to death, but that doesn't make them any less impactful.
All anchored by four amazing starring performances, with special shout out to Jack Nicholson and Shelly Duvall. Anyone who hasn't seen The Shining should rectify that ASAP.
7. Kat's Pick: Halloween (1978)
Kat: TOTALLY!
Kat's horror origins: my Mom hates horror movies. As a kid, she'd hype them up to be the SCARIEST thing. On the flip side, my best friend (still one of my best friends) was a horror fanatic. His family loved Halloween and all things slashers, and one Friday night in eighth grade he showed me Rob Zombie's Halloween.
And I was like....that was it? That wasn't scary at all. Show me more! That opened up the floodgates.
My friend suggested we watch the original Halloween, and damn this movie is a masterpiece. There is something so kitschy about it while concurrently brilliant. It was one of the huge stepping stones to the slashers we see today. It created the rules for not only the scripting, but the LOOK of a slasher film. The eeriness of someone watching just around the corner....or, you know, driving a car down a well-lit street with a William Shatner mask on.
7. Phil's Pick: Train to Busan (2016)
Phil: Train to Busan came out during a time when we were inundated with "zombie virus" media. When I heard the buzz for the movie, I remember rolling my eyes a little bit at the idea of another zombie virus outbreak movie. It had been done to death.
But Train to Busan reminded me why we love a good zombie movie in the first place. It's an incredibly human story, anchored on a small cast of characters and confined to a small (but familiar and interesting) setting. It had me laughing, recoiling, sitting at the edge of my seat, and even shedding a tear by the end of its run time.
There are plenty of great zombie virus movies (28 Days/Weeks Later, REC, #ALIVE). But Train to Busan hits all of the notes that I care about the most and delivers tons of memorable scenes and characters.
6. Kat's Pick: Barbarian (2022)
Kat: I love going into a movie with no expectations. We saw Barbarian opening weekend. There was absolutely no buzz at the time for the flick, and damn what a ride.
A woman goes into an Airbnb, and finds a stranger booked for the same night. I mean this is scary enough...this has to be the movie, right? No! The amount of twists & turns this film takes you on is unmeasurable. It literally becomes a new movie by the end!
Tess is the definition of the girl that you yell at your screen to NOT GO IN THERE. She's frustrating in all the right ways. She's TOO GOOD of a person! You want her to live, but then you're like GIRL why did you just do that? GET OUT OF THERE!
6. Phil's Pick: Get Out (2017)
Phil: Not a single moment is wasted in Get Out. Every scene is brimming with tension, either setting up the horror to come or delivering on said set-up.
Get Out is an uncomfortable viewing experience, by design. It lingers on tense, unnerving situations and forces us to sit there with Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) as he experiences varying degrees of horror. It's incredibly effective and makes for A++ horror.
And the final scene of this movie is one of the most brilliant subversions in film. (Spoilers to follow) I will never forget the feeling of sitting in the theater when the police sirens began blaring. Regardless of which ending you go with (the theatrical ending, or the much darker original ending), the moment when you first hear the sirens is an absolute gut-punch and the perfect punctuation for this amazing film.
5. Kat's Pick: 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
Kat: 10 Cloverfield Lane blurs the line between horror and thriller as the weird cousin of the Cloverfield franchise. As you could probably put together with my other picks, tension sells horror movies for me, and GOD is there tension in this one. Mary Elizabeth Winstead's character is trapped in a basement. John Goodman is a total creep. You'll never trust him...until you do.
Winstead starts to explore the rest of the bunker, and becomes friendly with her found family. But she's never completely comfortable, always on edge, which gives the audience the same "on the edge of your seat" feeling. I've heard criticism for the end of the movie, but in my humble opinion, the ending is what makes this movie stand apart from other thrillers.
5. Phil's Pick: Barbarian (2022)
Phil: If it isn't clear enough yet from this list, my favorite horror is suspenseful horror. And Barbarian is one of the most suspenseful horror movies I've ever seen. I was on the edge of my seat for most of the movie - but especially as Tess (Georgina Campbell) descends the stairs into the darkness. I will never forget the tension of that moment.
Like most great horror movies, Barbarian is also incredibly funny in addition to being scary. Justin Long brings some laugh-out-loud funny levity to one scene, but then follows it up with infuriating action the next scene.
Barbarian cultivates a feeling of unease that we've all felt before in our lives. Any fan of horror should see it - and should do their best to go in completely spoiler-free. It's a wild ride that goes in some bizarre directions. But somehow, it all comes together.
4. Kat's Pick: Final Destination 3 (2006)
Kat: A decade earlier, Mary Elizabeth Winstead starred in another horror movie franchise, Final Destination. Besides the traumatizing log scene, I'll always have a special place in my heart for this franchise. As mentioned in my Halloween submission, I got into horror because of a friend. He showed me all the best slashers, but Final Destination was the first horror franchise I found on my own.
Slashers ride or die on their kill scenes, and Final Destination takes kill scenes to a whole new level. They are so methodically thought out, all while being gruesomely poetic. So why Final Destination 3? This is actually the first installment (but not the last) where a female character gets the visions, and Winstead (like all her characters) makes you care. I want her to survive! I even want some of her friends to live on...and some I want to see meet their bloody demise. This sequel has a good balance of both heart and terror, which is a sign of a great Final Destination installment.
4. Phil's Pick: It Follows (2014)
Phil: It Follows absolutely drips with style throughout. It's another one of those movies that just reveals more and more of itself to you the more you rewatch it.
While the premise of a "sexually transmitted demon" sounds ridiculous on paper, It Follows plays it straight throughout. It's a somber, quiet, and bleak movie - one that manages to be horrific in broad daylight. One of my favorite things about this movie is how intentionally disorienting it can be. It's intentionally anachronistic, with technology varying from huge box TVs and older car models to modern furnishing and Kindle-adjacent seashell phones. One scene will see the cast wearing winter clothes while the next will see them swimming in a pool. It's subtle, never calling attention to itself (much like the monster the film centers around). But it creates this feeling of disorientation and fantasy.
You know a horror film is doing its job when something as simple as an extra slowly walking towards the camera is bone-chillingly terrifying.
3. Kat's Pick: You're Next (2011)
Kat: Why do I like horror movies so much? Why do I like Slashers most of all? Slasher movies were the first set of films I saw women in a leading action role. They were the heroes of their own story. And You're Next does this in stride!
Erin is introduced as your average Australian Next Door. She's visiting her boyfriend's family, and then a pair of animal masked killers go on a murder spree. Well, Erin isn't just your average Australian because she's a trained survivalist. This makes for some amazing "crawling away from the killer" action sequences, with a fully realized final girl and well thought out killer reveal. You're Next deserves more praise as the stepping stone for the next evolution of the final girl that we've seen highlighted in Halloween and the Scream sequels.
3. Phil's Pick: Happy Death Day (2017)
Phil: I'm a sucker for a good Groundhog Day story, and Happy Death Day is my favorite take on that genre. It's the intersection of a perfect script, incredible visual style/direction, and a star-making lead performance.
Jessica Rothe's Tree is genuinely one of my favorite characters in horror. The journey she goes through may not be full of surprises, but it is played so earnestly by Rothe that it is impossible not to fall in love with the character. And the coat of slasher paint on the Groundhog Day story makes things feel fresh and exciting. Even with the PG-13 rating, this movie is full of memorable (and hilarious) kills.
If you're a fan of horror comedy and character-driven stories, then you need to check out Happy Death Day.
2. Kat's Pick: Happy Death Day (2017)
Kat: As a SOCIETY, we don't talk about this movie enough. Tree is such an easy final girl to get behind! Happy Death Day is really the first slasher film I've ever seen where the final girl is more recognizable than its slasher. (Plus: it's a college setting, instead of your standard high school suburban town, which gives it some added points for originality) The twist & turns will keep you on the edge of your seat, but aren't the only selling point. Tree carries this movie as you root for her to get out of this Groundhog's Day nightmare, win the fight, and, of course, become a better person along the way.
2. Phil's Pick: The Thing (1982)
Phil: A more recent discovery for me, but one that has quickly climbed the ranks of my Top 10. John Carpenter's The Thing leaves a lot open to the viewer's interpretation. Much like The Shining and It Follows, it doesn't spoon feed information to its audience. There are some questions that are never answered. And much of the film is left open-ended.
It's also BLEAK. It's the kind of movie where the audience realizes pretty quickly that the characters are likely not going to make it out of this alive. And the characters themselves don't take too long to realize it themselves.
There are so many interesting characters and relationships in The Thing. And the Sci-fi horror is used sparingly, but very, very effectively.
1. Kat's Pick: Scream (1996)
Kat: I mean, how can we not have the king of slashers on our horror movie list? It's the strongest slasher franchise with genuinely great sequels (a foreign concept for the genre) that builds on what has come before without too much convolution. In a previous newsletter, we even ranked all the Ghostfaces to prep for the movie's sixth installment.
Scream succeeds as a commentary for slashers throughout the decades. It evolves as horror evolves. And sure the twist & turns is an important element of the franchise, but what makes Scream one of my favorites is its ensemble: the new characters who get killed off, the mainstays that ebb and flow throughout the sequels, or even iconic cult characters like Kirby that only the magic of horror could create with such endearment.
1. Phil's Pick: Scream (1996)
Phil: If you know Kat and me, then you know that we absolutely love Scream. For me, it was my gateway to horror. Even not having seen the slasher films that inspired it, I could feel the culmination of everything that came before Scream during my first viewing of Wes Craven's masterpiece.
In a world where we are now surrounded by meta commentary, Scream still remains one of the most sincere and effective examples of effective meta. It comments on the tropes of the genre, but doesn't resist them. Scream loves the slashers that came before it, but still seeks to carve its own path. It's surprising but familiar, and anchored by TONS of iconic characters.
Parking the monumental influence of Scream aside, it's also just an incredibly tight and rewatchable movie. Expertly paced and filled with quotable lines. While I love every movie in the Scream franchise, there's no other horror movie that is quite as perfect as the first Scream.
Comics
Let's discuss some comics we've enjoyed recently!
As usual, we'll spotlight a Direct Market Indie Book, a DC or Marvel book, a Kickstarter book, and a Webcomic!
Indie Comic: The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich (Little, Brown and Company)
Kat: Switching it up by adding an OGN as a rec. If you're a fan of WEBTOON, and looking for that style of storytelling in the direct market then this book is for you. The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich is a cute love story about a princess that needs to pretend to be a man as part of her father's dying wish. It's a Mulan-esque love story that side steps queer subtext for a full on romance. It's a nice change of pace to get a wholesome queer story in such a concise format like a graphic novel.
DC Comics: Tales of Titans
Kat: Tales of Titans is a group of one-shots that spotlight a handful of the Titans members. As I write this, Starfire, Raven, and Donna Troy's issues have all hit the shelves, and, let me tell you, these books know the assignment and hit it out of the ballpark. The title does a wonderful job at being new reader friendly, while still exploring new stories for the characters. It celebrates who they were by telling us what they're going to become.
WEBTOON: Kiss It Goodbye
"A slice of life, coming of age WLW webcomic about two girls in Japan, Aruka and Yukimi."
Phil: Kiss It Goodbye is one of our favorite Webtoons and has been a huge influence on us. One of our favorite examples of queer romance comics. KIG feels like a Shōjo manga in all the best ways. The characters are realistic and compelling. The supporting cast is fun and fleshed out. The art is fantastic. And the romance takes its time, but also actually lets us see Aruka and Yukimi together as a couple.
Read Kiss It Goodbye on Webtoon: https://www.webtoons.com/en/canvas/kiss-it-goodbye/list?title_no=443703
Kickstarter: Roseblood Manor #4: a sexy, NSFW horror anthology series
"A possessed mansion is the main attraction of this sexy, horror anthology comic series by Bad Bug Media."
"Tales of the enigmatic Roseblood Manor have been whispered around campfires for centuries. The only thing that's certain is that Roseblood Manor is real! The evil it possesses is immeasurable...its ominous presence transcends time and space!"
Phil: This is a combination of so many things that we love. Anthology storytelling, horror, and Bad Bug Media - who always produce incredibly great comics. This one is a must-buy for us!
Back it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/williamtener/roseblood-manor-4-a-horror-anthology-series
Next Kickstarter: Slice of Life - Anime Action Adventure #1
Next Conventions/Events:
- October 28th: South Jersey Geekfest
- November 3rd-5th: Rhode Island Comic Con
Anthology Accepting Submissions: Transphoria: A Trans & Non-binary Anthology