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The Thing From Another World Omnibus
This omnibus contains the entire collection of "The Thing From Another World" comics.
It contains the following series:
The Thing from Another World
The Thing from Another World: Climate of Fear
The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows
The Thing from Another World: Questionable Research
isbn: 9781593079
It contains the following series:
The Thing from Another World
The Thing from Another World: Climate of Fear
The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows
The Thing from Another World: Questionable Research
isbn: 9781593079
308 pages, Paperback
Published August 1, 2008
About the author
Chuck Pfarrer
13 books19 followersChuck Pfarrer is a former assault element commander of SEAL Team Six. He has written op-eds for The New York Times and the Knight Ridder syndicate, and appeared as an author and counterterrorism expert on C-SPAN2, NPR, Alhurra, IPR, Voice of America, Fox News, and America Tonight. Pfarrer serves presently as an associate editor of The Counter Terrorist, the American Journal of Counterterrorism. Pfarrer is the author of the bestsellers SEAL Target Geronimo: The Inside Story of the Mission to Kill Osama bin Laden and Warrior Soul: The Memoir of a Navy SEAL. His Hollywood credits include writing and producing work for Navy Seals, Darkman, Hard Target, The Jackal, Virus, and Red Planet. He lives in Michigan.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/chuckp...
http://us.macmillan.com/author/chuckp...
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 13, 2021
I went into this graphic novel as a major fan of the film. Unfortunately, I think that this misses most of what makes the film so great. Part of the beauty of the film is the isolation and the fact that the only life that the Thing can replicate is in the research station, but these graphic novels go to various places and have various animals become the Thing. If that were the case, then there's no chance of isolating it again; so I felt that the stories in this omnibus became a little unbelievable and pointless.
June 4, 2020
The art from the two issues of ‘The Thing From Another World” were stunning and pleasing, reminiscent of the film in a way. The story wasn’t too bad, actually picking up straight from where the film let off and it feels somewhat coherent and methodical save for the ending with the submarine. I’d give the first two issues a 6/10 for at least following up on the movie and presenting similar issues.
‘Climate Fear’….
The comics spiral down into repeating scenes from the film… Only this time the monster seems to only get bigger…
And the creature escapes unscathed in the same methods constantly... twice....
A lot of the plot has many holes in it and it feels incoherent. I was confused a bit on how certain individuals were infected. The comic derails. The ending feels like something of a 1950s B Rated horror film. I’d rate that individual piece a 5/10.
With ‘Eternal Vows’ MacReady is back! This time though he plays a more serious Rambo type persona as he did in ‘Climate Fear’ but once again this plot derails similar to that of ‘Climate Change’. For once, MacReady actual goes full blown badass on the creature.
What screws over this comic is how the function of the creature now is changed to allowing self-autonomy to the humans that are infected in the story. The humans then have the possibility to infect other humans or eat off the humans but not infecting them. There’s a love element to it which is creepy and interesting at the same time and the complete turn to this new element is just bad. The comic also doesn’t even have good coloring in some areas. The ending is of course a cliff hanger. I’d give it a 5/10
‘Questionable Research’ was a questionable comic to make in the first place. It doesn’t revolve around MacReady and feels like a rehash of the film. It’s much shorter and dry and the ending provides a conflicting narrative with that of ‘Eternal Vows’. I’d give it near a 3/10 or a 4/10, the later being generous.
The Omnibus at least holds together all the comics that follow up on the film but the contents of the comic weren’t as thrilling.
Update 7 June 2019
With the adoption of my new rating system, a two star rating is befitting. The original review highlights elements from the comics that I liked and disliked, and though the dislikes outweigh the likes in terms of word in the review, I considered the comics to be mediocre, an indicator of a two star rating.
September 8, 2019
Update
Were it not for the sections on MacReady and their connection to the film, this omnibus would have received one star for how ridiculous some segments were. The continuation of what occurs after the film, and the satisfaction from learning what occurs allows this omnibus to be somewhat valuable. A two star-rating is a healthy balance between the valuable and invaluable segments.
February 22, 2020
Update
To correct the previous rating, I am not certain if the original reading of the book would have resulted in a one star-rating without the film connection and sections on MacReady.
Moreover, I currently have felt a nostalgic liking for this book, akin to a four star-rating. I must ignore this and recognize that I originally rated this book at two stars and my original review warns of the mediocrity of the book; "the Omnibus at least holds together all the comics that follow up on the film but the contents of the comic weren’t as thrilling".
June 4, 2020
Update
I have changed the 2.5IIII rating type to more accurately reflect this book. In changing the 2.5IIII rating, I have decided to create an entirely new rating but still part of the 2.5IIII line: 2.5IIIIA. Here was the previous description of the 2.5IIII rating type: "Like the 2.5I type: “Good idea. Nice atmosphere upon reflection. Long boring scenes. Bored to death and the story leads to mediocrity”. Also, there are some technical issues that I eventually find annoying after repeated offenses". Here is the description of the 2.5IIIIA rating type: "Like the 2.5IIII type rating: ““Good idea [as in the book follows up on previous content outside the book in a good way].Nice atmosphere upon reflection. Long boring scenes. Bored to death and the story leads to mediocrity”. Also, there are some narrative issues that I eventually find hurt the book, but not enough to a one star-rating at certain points. There is also good artwork at times”. There are multiple stories in this book. Few follow the good idea of building on previous content, while the rest are boring and riddled with narrative issues. The entire book containing books is mediocre". I have had to create this subordinate rating because the addition of "multiple stories" is distinct from the 2.5IIII rating type.
The information provided in the previous updates and the original review allow for the two star-rating to be colored green.
‘Climate Fear’….
The comics spiral down into repeating scenes from the film… Only this time the monster seems to only get bigger…
And the creature escapes unscathed in the same methods constantly... twice....
A lot of the plot has many holes in it and it feels incoherent. I was confused a bit on how certain individuals were infected. The comic derails. The ending feels like something of a 1950s B Rated horror film. I’d rate that individual piece a 5/10.
With ‘Eternal Vows’ MacReady is back! This time though he plays a more serious Rambo type persona as he did in ‘Climate Fear’ but once again this plot derails similar to that of ‘Climate Change’. For once, MacReady actual goes full blown badass on the creature.
What screws over this comic is how the function of the creature now is changed to allowing self-autonomy to the humans that are infected in the story. The humans then have the possibility to infect other humans or eat off the humans but not infecting them. There’s a love element to it which is creepy and interesting at the same time and the complete turn to this new element is just bad. The comic also doesn’t even have good coloring in some areas. The ending is of course a cliff hanger. I’d give it a 5/10
‘Questionable Research’ was a questionable comic to make in the first place. It doesn’t revolve around MacReady and feels like a rehash of the film. It’s much shorter and dry and the ending provides a conflicting narrative with that of ‘Eternal Vows’. I’d give it near a 3/10 or a 4/10, the later being generous.
The Omnibus at least holds together all the comics that follow up on the film but the contents of the comic weren’t as thrilling.
Update 7 June 2019
With the adoption of my new rating system, a two star rating is befitting. The original review highlights elements from the comics that I liked and disliked, and though the dislikes outweigh the likes in terms of word in the review, I considered the comics to be mediocre, an indicator of a two star rating.
September 8, 2019
Update
Were it not for the sections on MacReady and their connection to the film, this omnibus would have received one star for how ridiculous some segments were. The continuation of what occurs after the film, and the satisfaction from learning what occurs allows this omnibus to be somewhat valuable. A two star-rating is a healthy balance between the valuable and invaluable segments.
February 22, 2020
Update
To correct the previous rating, I am not certain if the original reading of the book would have resulted in a one star-rating without the film connection and sections on MacReady.
Moreover, I currently have felt a nostalgic liking for this book, akin to a four star-rating. I must ignore this and recognize that I originally rated this book at two stars and my original review warns of the mediocrity of the book; "the Omnibus at least holds together all the comics that follow up on the film but the contents of the comic weren’t as thrilling".
June 4, 2020
Update
I have changed the 2.5IIII rating type to more accurately reflect this book. In changing the 2.5IIII rating, I have decided to create an entirely new rating but still part of the 2.5IIII line: 2.5IIIIA. Here was the previous description of the 2.5IIII rating type: "Like the 2.5I type: “Good idea. Nice atmosphere upon reflection. Long boring scenes. Bored to death and the story leads to mediocrity”. Also, there are some technical issues that I eventually find annoying after repeated offenses". Here is the description of the 2.5IIIIA rating type: "Like the 2.5IIII type rating: ““Good idea [as in the book follows up on previous content outside the book in a good way].
The information provided in the previous updates and the original review allow for the two star-rating to be colored green.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 17, 2022
John Carpenter's The Thing is a classic remake of a mediocre black-and-white creature feature based on a novella by John W. Campbell.
The plot of the Carpenter film is simple but effective: 12 men are stranded in an Antarctic blizzard with an alien lifeform that can absorb and duplicate the people and animals around it. As members of the group are picked off by the thing, the survivors become distrustful of their fellows, paranoia eventually causing all hell to break loose.
The Thing From Another World Omnibus is a collection of 4 mini-series that act as direct sequels to the events of John Carpenter's film. Each arc has its strength and weaknesses, but the overall quality is basic and disappointing.
First, a brief synopsis of each arc:
In Arc #01 (The Thing From Another World), MacReady is dragged out onto the ice floe by Childs, where he is rescued by a passing fishing boat. Distraught to discover that Childs has returned to Outpost 31, MacReady steals a helicopter to follow him. Upon arrival, Mac meets up with a Navy Seal unit that has come to investigate what's going on at Outpost 31... and then all hell breaks loose.
In Arc #02 (Climate of Fear), MacReady and Childs find themselves in military outpost in South America, where the thing once again runs amok, causing paranoia and chaos wherever it goes.
In Arc #03 (Eternal Vows), a single Thing organism has made its way to New Zealand and has decided that it doesn't want to assimilate the world, but rather wants to create a singular mate for itself and live a quiet -- if murderous -- life. Unfortunately for the Thing, R.J. MacReady has other plans.
In Arc #04 (Questionable Research), a group of scientists scavenge the remains of Outpost 31 for files and data about what happened. Along the way they discover the frozen corpse of a Thing monster, which they take back to their ocean liner. As is usual, all hell breaks loose.
So, here's the thing about these various arcs: most of what you get is a near beat-for-beat retelling of the original film, and when it isn't mimicking the film it's going so far out of its way to be nothing like the source material that it almost feels like you're reading a story that was slightly re-written to include elements from the film.
The first arc is the best in terms of art. It has a painted look that is deep and rich, and the likenesses of MacReady and Childs are really good. The script is weak, there are plot holes within the continuity of how it ties to the film, and it drastically changes how assimilation works (a change that carries through all of the arcs). Rather than absorbing a victim and spitting out a duplicate, it acts more like a virus: if so much as a single cell of the organism comes into contact with a person, they are infected. One man gets infected simply by touching a frozen Thing corpse... with thick winter gloves on.
Given how the spread of the Thing works in these comics, you basically have to assume that MacReady is somehow immune, because that's the only explanation as to why he's never been assimilated.
The most unique arc is Eternal Vows, which feels more like a sequel to something like SPECIES than it does The Thing. This is the one that focuses on a Thing monster that simply wants to find a mate and not assimilate everything it kills. This story further muddies the waters of what the Thing is and why it does what it does, and it comes across like a script for a completely different sci-fi monster story that was quickly re-written to add MacReady and turn the monster into The Thing. It isn't a terrible story, but it isn't particularly good either, and it doesn't really feel like The Thing.
Overall, this omnibus is a really mixed bag. If you can find it for cheap I'd suggest reading it, if for no other reason than to see the art for the first arc. But don't break the bank trying to get your hands on it, it isn't worth it.
The plot of the Carpenter film is simple but effective: 12 men are stranded in an Antarctic blizzard with an alien lifeform that can absorb and duplicate the people and animals around it. As members of the group are picked off by the thing, the survivors become distrustful of their fellows, paranoia eventually causing all hell to break loose.
The Thing From Another World Omnibus is a collection of 4 mini-series that act as direct sequels to the events of John Carpenter's film. Each arc has its strength and weaknesses, but the overall quality is basic and disappointing.
First, a brief synopsis of each arc:
In Arc #01 (The Thing From Another World), MacReady is dragged out onto the ice floe by Childs, where he is rescued by a passing fishing boat. Distraught to discover that Childs has returned to Outpost 31, MacReady steals a helicopter to follow him. Upon arrival, Mac meets up with a Navy Seal unit that has come to investigate what's going on at Outpost 31... and then all hell breaks loose.
In Arc #02 (Climate of Fear), MacReady and Childs find themselves in military outpost in South America, where the thing once again runs amok, causing paranoia and chaos wherever it goes.
In Arc #03 (Eternal Vows), a single Thing organism has made its way to New Zealand and has decided that it doesn't want to assimilate the world, but rather wants to create a singular mate for itself and live a quiet -- if murderous -- life. Unfortunately for the Thing, R.J. MacReady has other plans.
In Arc #04 (Questionable Research), a group of scientists scavenge the remains of Outpost 31 for files and data about what happened. Along the way they discover the frozen corpse of a Thing monster, which they take back to their ocean liner. As is usual, all hell breaks loose.
So, here's the thing about these various arcs: most of what you get is a near beat-for-beat retelling of the original film, and when it isn't mimicking the film it's going so far out of its way to be nothing like the source material that it almost feels like you're reading a story that was slightly re-written to include elements from the film.
The first arc is the best in terms of art. It has a painted look that is deep and rich, and the likenesses of MacReady and Childs are really good. The script is weak, there are plot holes within the continuity of how it ties to the film, and it drastically changes how assimilation works (a change that carries through all of the arcs). Rather than absorbing a victim and spitting out a duplicate, it acts more like a virus: if so much as a single cell of the organism comes into contact with a person, they are infected. One man gets infected simply by touching a frozen Thing corpse... with thick winter gloves on.
Given how the spread of the Thing works in these comics, you basically have to assume that MacReady is somehow immune, because that's the only explanation as to why he's never been assimilated.
The most unique arc is Eternal Vows, which feels more like a sequel to something like SPECIES than it does The Thing. This is the one that focuses on a Thing monster that simply wants to find a mate and not assimilate everything it kills. This story further muddies the waters of what the Thing is and why it does what it does, and it comes across like a script for a completely different sci-fi monster story that was quickly re-written to add MacReady and turn the monster into The Thing. It isn't a terrible story, but it isn't particularly good either, and it doesn't really feel like The Thing.
Overall, this omnibus is a really mixed bag. If you can find it for cheap I'd suggest reading it, if for no other reason than to see the art for the first arc. But don't break the bank trying to get your hands on it, it isn't worth it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 2, 2021
Aside from Sonic the Comic as a kid, I hadn't read any comics until I began reading them at the age of 35. What have I found in the dozen or so that I've read?
Frankly, not a lot. Mostly these comics seem to be a poor pastiche of themselves, aping the parts people love, and turning them at best into cliché, and worse, tedium.
This fares no better.
The first one does have some great artwork, with lush images that portray an inhospitable and alien landscape of the arctic with a sort of pastel infused diffusion that is beautifully atmospheric yet ferocious and stark; a lovely contrast to the often hard-lined style seen in a typical comic. The sophomore comic and beyond paint the images without any panache. I wondered whether I was reading the right comic, but ten pages in a monstrous spider head thing with tentacles emerged.
Irrespective of the artwork, delicious and detailed, or plain and typical, as a narrative it is dull. Take any three panels and you'll likely see deus ex Macready, fire and blood, and a Thing; copy-paste ad nauseum for the comics.
And that it really, a few hundred pages of testing blood, Macready dodging tentacles, and a once clandestine Thing that is now all to happy to become a monstrous, gangly warped 'thing' that attacks all too eagerly.
I feel this comic book journey of mine floundering already. It is time to raise the bar higher I think.
Frankly, not a lot. Mostly these comics seem to be a poor pastiche of themselves, aping the parts people love, and turning them at best into cliché, and worse, tedium.
This fares no better.
The first one does have some great artwork, with lush images that portray an inhospitable and alien landscape of the arctic with a sort of pastel infused diffusion that is beautifully atmospheric yet ferocious and stark; a lovely contrast to the often hard-lined style seen in a typical comic. The sophomore comic and beyond paint the images without any panache. I wondered whether I was reading the right comic, but ten pages in a monstrous spider head thing with tentacles emerged.
Irrespective of the artwork, delicious and detailed, or plain and typical, as a narrative it is dull. Take any three panels and you'll likely see deus ex Macready, fire and blood, and a Thing; copy-paste ad nauseum for the comics.
And that it really, a few hundred pages of testing blood, Macready dodging tentacles, and a once clandestine Thing that is now all to happy to become a monstrous, gangly warped 'thing' that attacks all too eagerly.
I feel this comic book journey of mine floundering already. It is time to raise the bar higher I think.
February 19, 2021
Dark Horse adds John Carpenter's The Thing (1982) to its stable of licensed film flicks. Though not enjoying the same success as their Aliens or Predator series, this features many of the same talents - and in the early 90s Dark Horse was the place to be for horror comics. This omnibus collects the four mini-series that were produced with the property, the only one absent is a 2011 Steve Niels tie-in for the late to the party sequel. Here we see the further adventures of Macready & Childs - with venues for our shape stealing monstrosity including a submarine, jungle and small fishing village. The first of the set is written by Chuck Pfarrer, whose Virus would break the trend - published by Dark Horse before hitting the big screen. Each of the different creative teams bring unique sensibilities to horror, but regardless of which direction each takes, fans of scary sequential art will want all of this.
April 23, 2020
no vale la pena leerlo si quieres extender el universo de la película. Es entretenido, a ratos un poco cutre.
January 31, 2021
A pretty significant example of why not everything should be a franchise.
September 28, 2021
At 300 pages, covering 4 story arcs of which three follow the events right after where the movie ended and one related storyline, this is a quite pacy read...
September 17, 2022
Its so shit i cant even say how shit it is its like a transformers cartoon given an aesthetic facelift
March 9, 2018
PL
W miarę sensowna i spójna seria, która doczekała się jednotomowego wydania dawno, dawno temu. Bardzo przyjemne i czytelne rysunki, ciekawe choć trochę już archaiczne przedstawienie nowych stworów i zagrożenia ze strony obcej formy życia i dużo akcji.
EN
A reasonably consistent series that has been published in a single-volume edition long, long time ago. Very nice and clear drawings, interesting yet a bit archaic presentation of new creatures and threats from the alien life form with story full of actions.
W miarę sensowna i spójna seria, która doczekała się jednotomowego wydania dawno, dawno temu. Bardzo przyjemne i czytelne rysunki, ciekawe choć trochę już archaiczne przedstawienie nowych stworów i zagrożenia ze strony obcej formy życia i dużo akcji.
EN
A reasonably consistent series that has been published in a single-volume edition long, long time ago. Very nice and clear drawings, interesting yet a bit archaic presentation of new creatures and threats from the alien life form with story full of actions.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews