That was Dr Destiny (who, with the death of his mother, was able to go back to his real name (Dr Dee).), an old Justice League villain with the ability to manipulate dreams - because he had possession of Dream’s jewel, it turned out.
That story (24 Hours) was the one that cemented my love of Sandman - and it remains my favourite.
The Corinthian wasn’t introduced until the Doll’s House story arc - which ties into 24 Hours, because one of the victims of the massacre was a friend of the main character in The Doll’s House.
I believe that was Dr. Destiny. Doubly chilling because he was a fairly standard villain for the guys-in-tights before Gaiman got his hands on him. What got me was the scene where he carjacks a woman to get away from Arkham. They spend the drive talking to each other, he comes across as pretty sympathetic and almost likable, and then he shoots her. That really got to me.
Well, that and the girl in the diner with the skewers. “I can see! Sweet lord, I can see the glory!” Gah!
That wasn’t Preacher, that was Hellblazer. Same writer and artist, though. I loved that scene. Not just because I like the idea of a Kennedy getting skull-fucked, but because its John Constantine who tells the story… and he’s telling it to the ghost of John F. Kennedy, who’s standing there with his hand on the back of his head to keep his brains from falling out. I thought it was hilarious. Then again, my “line” is pretty far out there. (Although, they didn’t actually show LBJ porking the presidential brain pan, which probably would have been a bit much, even for me.)
You got that title wrong, the book was Feast. Highly recommended, but not for the faint of heart. I thought the kitchen scene near the end exceed the finger scene for over-the-top grossness.
I squirmed all the way through the movie adaptation of Jane Austen’s * Persuasion *. Does that count?
King has already topped that – he wrote a short story (forget the title) where a corrupt surgeon is shipwrecked in a desert island – and when I say “island,” I mean just a volcanic outcropping in the sea, with nothing growing on it. He has nothing but the heroin he was smuggling when the ship went down. He breaks his leg trying to catch a seagull, gangrene sets in and he knows going to lose the leg anyway – so he dopes himself up with the heroin, amputates it with a jagged plank of wood, and eats it. It starts there . . .
I often surprise myself with the depths of gore and depravity I am willing to subject myself to in the name of “entertainment”. Every now and then I’ll shudder a bit, and I’ve been known to yell “Ewwww!” at a book sometimes, but I rarely get thoroughly freaked out.
But every time I watch Sleepaway Camp, the scene with the boiling pot of corn freaks me the hell out. It’s not terribly graphic–in fact, at this moment I can’t even recall if we even see anything happen. Maybe it’s the fact that while it’s unlikely someone’s going to bury me up to my neck in a garbage pile and then take a lawnmower to my head, it’s entirely possible that I’m going to spill a giant pot of boiling water on myself while making corn.
Nope, I’m sure it’s Ritual. Maybe it was released under different titles–I know some of Masterton’s stuff has different titles in the UK and the US. Maybe one or the other was the original title. Must go hunt that up now for my own knowledge (I’m a big Masterton fan).
Yeah, good point about the kitchen scene. Thanks for reminding me. :eek:
Yeah, I’ve read that one, and yeah, it was pretty awful. I think Ritual was worse, though. I’d blocked out the kitchen scene Pyrrhonist mentioned. :eek:
There are a few scenes in the movie Dead Alive, but none so turning as when the zombie mother bleeds out in the pudding, and the fat man is just slurping it up. I could retch just thinking about it.
In print form there was a collection of zombie stories out a few years ago called “Book of the Dead”. It was my first introduction to David Schow. His story is called “Jerry’s Kids meet Wormboy” and his descriptions of Wormboy eating the guts of recently dispatched zombies it just as horrid an idea as can be described.
Okay, different US and UK titles. Look here for a complete list; other books by Masterton have different titles as well.
As long as we’re on the savory subject of cannibalism, Off Season by Jack Ketchum has some gory servings on the menu. The BBQ scene and inside the cave were rough.
All though I’ve never read it, yet, Bighead by Edward Lee is supposedly one of the grossest books ever written.
I think I read somewhere that Stephen King once said he tries to scare the bejesus out of people, and if that doesn’t work, he will try to gross you out.
Anyone notice the creepiest things seems to be violence against eyes and against children? The vignettes in Insomnia or The Stand, where children are either murdered or dying, get to me every time.
For that reason, I’ve only been able to read Cujo once.
Jacob’s Ladder - Various scenes are too freaky for words, particularly when Tim Robbins is being wheeled around corridors.
The Hitcher - When the girl gets pulled apart by 2 semis. I wasn’t really watching the film up to that point & have never seen the remainder.
A Clockwork Orange - Saw the first part of this film & couldn’t take any more after the rape scene started. The way they slapped the woman, as if she was just an inanimate object, was scarier than anything they could’ve said.
:eek: