This weekend’s light-hearted, escapist superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog looks at Cassie Hack, the horror superheroine who battles a long line of slashers as stylishly as Buffy fought vampires.
In Hack/ Slash stories, slashers are their own breed of monsters just like werewolves, vampires, etc. Tim Seeley created the series, which has been published by various indie outfits over the years.
HACK/ SLASH Vol 1 #1 (Apr 2004)
Title: Euthanized
Villain: Bobby Brunswick
Synopsis: This very first appearance of Cassie Hack starts off with a few-page synopsis of her origin story. In school, Cassie was often bullied by the other students. This caused her mother to snap and become a slasher called the Lunch Lady, who took to carving up the teens who had bullied Cassie and mixing their remains in with food at the school cafeteria. Our heroine was forced to take action, saving her mother’s last victim. The Lunch Lady killed herself but rose again as a slasher. This time Cassie had to destroy her personally.
Readers are now dropped into the main story, set years later when Cassie Hack has established herself as a roving heroine who battles living and undead slashers alongside her African American sidekick – the hulking, gasmask-wearing Vlad. He views Cassie like a daughter and wields meat cleavers and butcher’s knives in battle.
In this adventure, Cassie and Vlad clashed with Bobby Brunswick, a veterinary assistant killed by the boyfriend of the female vet he worked for. Bobby came back from the dead for revenge and also preyed on the city with the army of dead animals that he controlled. Continue reading
NUMBER TWO ROLLS – The 2nd ranked team in NCAA Division 2 football – the HARDING UNIVERSITY BISON – traveled to face the SOUTHEASTERN OKLAHOMA STATE SAVAGE STORM. A 14-0 1st Quarter lead for the Bison became 21-7 by Halftime. Harding U. shut out the Savage Storm from there as they won the game by a final score of 35-7.
KNOCKING OFF NUMBER NINE – Last night the JONES COLLEGE BOBCATS played host to the nation’s 9th ranked HINDS COLLEGE EAGLES. A 7-7 tie in the opening Quarter morphed into a 24-14 Bobcats advantage at the Half. After the break, the two teams wound up exchanging Touchdowns in a 31-21 Upset victory for Jones College. 
POSSESSION (1981) – Halloween Month continues here at Balladeer’s Blog with a review of the thoroughly bizarre cult film Possession, from Polish director Andrzej Zulawksi. Because I review everything from mild horror films to extreme works, I’m offering my usual COURTESY WARNING for readers who prefer less transgressive movies. 
I’m far from alone in praising Possession to the Heavens, so my take on it may seem like a mere rehashing for those who are already passionate fans. However, in my opinion only the full 2 hour and 4-minute version is worth watching, not the trimmed-down versions. 
Balladeer’s Blog takes another look at an ancient Greek comedy. Most of my previous examinations of these verse plays dealt with Attic Old Comedy or on what little is known about Susarion, a revered pioneer of stage comedy.
The chorus, so important to Attic Old Comedy, was not yet present on stage in Epicharmus’ time, but musical accompaniment was. Like so many other ancient Greek comedies, the plays of Epicharmus have survived only in very fragmentary form. 
Halloween Month rolls along with this look at a very old British series of telefilms that presented some classic horror tales during Christmas Season. The tales themselves were NOT set around Christmas, so they make for nice Halloween Season viewing, too. 
THE STALLS OF BARCHESTER (Dec 24th, 1971) – Dr. Black (Clive Swift), a scholar cataloguing the book collection at Barchester Cathedral, comes across the diary of a former Archdeacon who murdered his predecessor so he could rise to the position. The killer was then haunted by ghostly figures in the form of the carvings on the cathedral’s choir stalls. Also starring Robert Hardy, Thelma Barlow and Will Leighton. 
NUMBER FOUR TAKES A FALL – In NCAA Division 3, the number 12 BETHEL (MN) ROYALS welcomed the nation’s 4th ranked ST. JOHN’S UNIVERSITY JOHNNIES in this game. A 3-0 Royals edge to end the 1st Quarter became a 10-10 tie at the midpoint. After a scoreless 3rd Quarter, the 4th saw Bethel University dispatch the Johnnies 17-10. 
KNOCKING OFF NUMBER SIX – NCAA Division 2’s 7th ranked UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT THE PERMIAN BASIN FALCONS were on the road against the number 6 team in the nation – the ANGELO STATE RAMS. By Halftime the Falcons were on top 21-7 before Angelo State cut that to 21-14 in the 3rd Quarter. UT-Permian Basin consummated the mild Upset 28-14 in the 4th. 
DOWN GOES NUMBER TEN – In the NAIA, the FLORIDA MEMORIAL UNIVERSITY LIONS paid a visit to the 10th ranked team in the country – the SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY FIRE. A 10-0 1st Quarter lead for the Fire was cut to a mere 17-14 edge over their opponents by the Half. The 3rd Quarter ended with the Lions up 21-20 and the 4th in a 28-23 FMU win. 
MAN-SIZE IN MARBLE (1887) – One of the iconic Edith Nesbit’s short horror stories. This was first published in the December of 1887 issue of the magazine Home Chimes. Nesbit later included it in her collection of short stories titled Grim Tales (1893). For modern readers – and possibly Victorian Age readers, too – it’s always clear where the story is headed but it’s still worth checking out. 
MYSTIC COMICS Vol 1 #1 (Mar 1940) 
B. Dynamic Man – Scientist Dr. Simon Goettler creates 
