Frankenstein Alive, Alive by Steve Niles

The comic might be called Frankenstein Alive, Alive! but in many ways this is more of a living death for the poor creature, desperate for oblivion but unable to achieve it. That gothic horror is alive and well here, with Frankenstein yearning for death even as he continues to live on well beyond his creator.

More importantly, Frankenstein Alive, Alive! #1 captures that dark, melancholic tone that I remember from the later chapters of Shelley’s novel. Frankenstein’s monster (who in accordance with pop culture goes by just Frankenstein himself now) is trapped in a corner in terms of surviving in any other way, and the entire set-up makes perfect sense. It’s a neat little twist for a sequel, a strange sort of mixture of our world and that of Frankenstein itself. By this point the novel Frankenstein has passed into the public awareness, but believing it as a piece of fiction rather than a true story. Set a century after the original novel, Niles and Wrightson cast Frankenstein’s monster as a member of a carnival sideshow, appearing day in and out to scare bystanders that have paid to see… himself. Frankenstein Alive, Alive! #1 is in many ways a spiritual heir to that project, operating as a direct sequel to Shelley’s novel with a story written by Steve Niles. I remember looking at the beautiful illustrations back in the mid-’80s and being entranced by the gorgeous drawings of Frankenstein, the monster, and the situations that Mary Shelley had come up with back in 1831. Outside of comics, though, it might be his illustrated edition of Frankenstein. In comics, Bernie Wrightson is probably best known for co-creating Swamp Thing.

Frankenstein Alive, Alive by Steve Niles