I read and reviewed “The Whisperer in Darkness” by H. P. Lovecraft in preparation for the graphic novel “The Miskatonic Project: The Whisperer in Darkness” by Mark Ellis, and I’m very glad that I did. Just like reading the source material for a movie before seeing, having the original story fresh in my mind allowed me to fully appreciate the adaptation.Ellis’ adaptation of Lovecraft’s “The Whisperer in Darkness” is a faithful one that I think Lovecraft would have enjoyed. The graphic novel begins with Wilmarth relating his experience to the members of The Miskatonic Project after they rescued him from the alien clutches of the Mi-Go and The Project’s arch nemesis, Noyes. In the original story, Wilmarth escapes on his own and records his dreadful experience in his journal, but his re-telling of the events leading up to his rescue were straight out of the original story. A fan, like myself, could ask for nothing more.
Ellis’ graphic novel does not stop with Wilmarth’s experiences but expands on the story that began with the unnatural floods in Vermont. In parts, two and three, The Miskatonic Project goes on the offensive, seeking out the Mi-go to put an end to the harvesting of human brains. During their investigations, one of their own, Detective Legrasse falls pray to a drive and the loose spray of a Tommy Gun.
Pushing forward, The Miskatonic Project travels back to the hills of Vermont where they must face Noyes and the Mi-Go in web-like caverns filled with horrors beyond words. In true Lovecraft fashion Ellis’ characters only succeed in deepening their understanding of a larger more notorious plot that if aloud to unfold will threaten the very foundation of human civilization.
“The Miskatonic Project: The Whisperer in Darkness” is a must have. I’m already looking forward to the next installment: “Bride of Dagon.”
Ellis, Mark. “The Miskatonic Project: The Whisperer in Darkness.” Transfuzion Publishing, 2008
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