It’s that time again, and as the world turns a little creepier for the countdown to Halloween, the ISB would like to offer a bit of advice for surviving the horrors of Spooktoberfest:
…Remember to Aim For the Head.
At least, that’s the tactic that always works out for Akiba in Housui Yamazaki’s amazing and genuinely terrifying Mail v.1
Not The Face!
On an unrelated note: Chris, do you think you’ll be picking up Detective Comics again anytime soon? I heard Dini’s back on writing, and the last preview I saw had the Riddler and Harley running around getting up to trouble. And I know I personally can’t say no to that.
When confronted by anything dead interfering with the world of the living, my first course of action is “aim for the head”. Thanks, George Romero.
Sadly, I don’t have anything as cool as a psychic Mauser. Yet!
I think it’s nice of the ghost to provide a face so large even I wouldn’t be able to miss it. Thanks Spook!
Yeah, his choices there seem to either be shooting it in the head, or trying to club its arms with the gun. That’s really the more important lesson. Use all of your guns bullets before trying to club anything, zombies have killed many-a-person who thought it was cooler to go up close and personal.
Through the head and not the chest!
Head shots are the very best!
The Lucio Fulci film The Beyond presents the scientific method for shooting zombies in the head. Dr. McCabe (played by David Warbeck!) and Liza (Catriona MacColl!) are trapped in a morgue with the living dead when the doctor picks up a gun. He takes aim at the first zombie, fires into the body twice, then the head, putting it down. Thus a hypothesis is formed. He repeats this action with a second zombie, with similar results. The hypothesis proven, he reloads, and proceeds to fire 6 head shots in a row. (Of course, that doesn’t stop him from firing a ton of shots in the body of the main zombie Schwieck, but he’s the equivalent of a zombie PC.)
Psychic Mauser is one of the coolest things I’ve ever heard of. Definitely going on the Christmas list.
(Great name for a band, too.)
If Nintendo has taught me anything, it’s that the proper way to beat a giant immobile head-and-arms monster is to wait for it to throw a rock, shoot a fireball, or hurl a piece of scenery, and then deflect it back at them. They are immune to everything else.
Actually, recent studies indicate hitting the hands with secondary weapons often stuns the head, allowing a primary weapon attack. Of course, that’s usually when the hands move. Your milage may vary.
This Friday: Naked Faith opening for Psychic Mauser! Tickets are 5 in advance, 7 at the door, and no kids or old people allowed!
Use all of your guns bullets before trying to club anything, zombies have killed many-a-person who thought it was cooler to go up close and personal.
Unless of course you’re Hellboy, in which case hitting things with your gun is probably your first, last and only technique.
Also unless the gun is also a lightsaber, a la Ulysses 31. I wanted one of those sooo much when I was a kid.
I just read American Born Chinese. Thanks so much for recommending it. Took me a while to find, but it’s awesome.
The Ace of Winchesters, a lever-action shotgun of great mystic power that turned up in Hitman and Hellblazer, also works well. Plus it has that cool-ass cocking noise: ker-CHAK!
In the interests of public safety, I feel I should add to Mr. Sims’ advice. Yes, shoot ghosts and zombies in the face. However, the rules change with the creature. Werewolves and vampires are best shot in the chest. When confronting goblins, ghouls, wights, or other strange creatures, always go for the nuts. Yes, wights have nuts.
That panel looks pretty similar to most of the arguments between my 7-year-old niece and her older brother. (If there was a psychic Mauser in their house, they’d be fighting over it.)
Wait a second, there’s already a comic out there with a guy shooting evil Ju-On-like spirits through the face with guns (admittedly, my idea was with a shotgun, but still…)? Bah, there really are no original ideas…
If only Tangina had given a Psychic Mauser to Steve Freeling…
That would have been the best movie scene ever.
Yeah, Akiba’s pretty cool, but his little undead, Frankenstein girlfriend is pretty creepy.
That picture is awesome. I may have to break my temporary manga-buying ban (Yotsuba&! excepted) to pick it up…
Great blog, by the way. You’re an inspiration!
Mail and Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service–which released a new volume this week co-starring Akiba–were the two series that got me back into reading manga, which quickly led to Yotsuba&!, Azumanga Daioh, and so on. It’s well worth it.