SotW: Black Annis

Hi guys,

today's witch is a legend in the UK that goes back in centuries and centuries...

BLACK ANNIS


She took the form of a one eyed wizened crone, immensely strong with sharp tearing teeth, long black claws and a blue face. She was said to hide in a giant oak, long since felled, that was once the remnants of a great forest, which covered the area. From this lofty perch she would leap out and eviscerate unwary travellers.

Although partial to all human flesh she took particular delight in eating young children, whom she flayed alive. She then hung their skins like a grisly trophy upon the walls of a cave known as Black Annis' Bower. She is said to have created the cave with her bare hands tearing through the rock with her iron claws.
(from Mysterious Britain and Ireland)

Have a great and safe Halloween, everyone :D

Cheers,
Francesco

"Sisterhood of the Witches" © 2008 Francesco Francavilla

SotW: La ianara

Hi guys,

today's witch is well known in the areas where I was born, in the South of Italy...

LA IANARA


Able to fly and to generate severe storms, to kill pregnancies in women and animals, to shape-shift in animals, and to make kids lose their mind, the ianara, after completing the ritual of covering her body with oils, was used to clebrate the nights with her "witch-friends" and the devils, dancing and feasting on front of Belzebuth, prince of the demons.
As you can see, a pretty mean one in the Sisterhood of the Witches.

Make sure to be back tomorrow for the Halloween finale :)

Cheers,
Francesco

"Sisterhood of the Witches" © 2008 Francesco Francavilla

SotW: The Witch of Wookey

Hi guys,

today we go in Somerset, UK, to meet a local, very famous legend...

THE WITCH OF WOOKEY


Deep in the dark caverns of Wookey Hole dwelt at one time the Witch of Wookey - and dwells there still, if the gossips are to be trusted, though she, her pots and pans and horrid "familiars" (as her goat) are all turned to stone.

A chagrined and disappointed woman, she used her merciless arts to blight girls' lives and keep them from the joys denied to herself. But she reckoned without a certain Holy Clerk of Glastonbury! With his Good Book he exorcised the Witch, and turned her to stone; he then cleansed from all evil the dreadful cavern.

Make sure to be back tomorrow for a new witch and have some true pulp scares everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

"Sisterhood of the Witches" © 2008 Francesco Francavilla

SotW: Baba Yaga

Hi guys,

today's witch is easily one of the most famous and most evil witches known in the world and one of the oldest legend too.

BABA YAGA


Baba Yaga, originally from Russian folklore, has been through a recent revival thanks to MIke MIgnola, who has used her in his Hellboy stories.
Maybe many of you are already familiar with her, but for those who aren't, Baba Yaga is known to be quite mean and to be a baby eater. She also lives in a house that has chicken feet and rides a mortar (even if she carries the classic broom as well).

Below, some detail of the illo.


More witches to follow. Make sure to be back tomorrow for a new witch and have some true pulp scares everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

"Sisterhood of the Witches" © 2008 Francesco Francavilla

SotW: The Bell Witch

Hi guys,

today's witch is a little less fictional than yesterday's. As matter of fact this one might be so "real" that she is believed to be the cause of John Bell's death.

THE BELL WITCH


John Bell moved in Tennessee with his family in 1803 looking for a better land. He found it and for several years things were going great and the family grew in number, until that day (or should I say night) in 1817 when John saw a weird animal, like a dog with a rabbit head, in his fields and tried to shoot it. Right after that, weird and creepy things started to happen: voices, noises, things moving, in and around the house, like an evil presence was haunting the place. And the legend of the Bell witch was born.
The witch was believed to be living in a cave on the Bells property and she seemed to have something personal with the capo familia. John started to get sick and sicker without no apparent reason and the day he died (Dec 19, 1820) they found a little bottle with dark liquid close to his bed. When they put a few drops on the mouth of the family cat, the cat instantly died.
I tried to put as many elements of this story in the image, trying to tell the legend with this illo. I hope I succeded a little bit.

Make sure to be back tomorrow for a new witch and have some true pulp scares everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

"Sisterhood of the Witches" © 2008 Francesco Francavilla

SotW: Asa Vajda

THE SISTERHOOD OF THE WITCHES.

Hi guys,

Halloween is just a few days away so I decided to start a countdown, here on Pulp Sunday, featuring every day a different Witch: what better than this to celebrate the night of Ognissanti? This way I will also make up for the lack of my posts in here in the last couple of weeks ;)
Anyhow, I hope you enjoy the new feature called: The Sisterhood of the Witches!


SO to start the countdown, and being today Sunday, and being this Pulp Sunday ;), the choice was an easy one: Black Sunday (or La Maschera del Demonio, in its original title). Directed by Mario Bava, features the evil witch Asa Vayda and a creepy variation of the Iron Maiden (the mask in the title). Pretty scary movie, shot in a wonderful gothic style :)
Make sure to be back tomorrow for a new witch and have some true pulp scares everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

"Sisterhood of the Witches" © 2008 Francesco Francavilla

Zorro - Chapter 8

Hi guys,

Sorry for the long pause, but due to a sudden opening in my wife's schedule, we went to Italy to visit my family for a couple of weeks and just got back (still feeling the jet-leg effects).
And it seems I got back just in time for the early release of the final chapter of my arc on the origins of The Fox. As some of you will know by now, I am not drawing the next 6 issue arc (art duties will be given to Cesar Razek), but I will be providing the front covers for the whole second arc and should be back drawing the interior pages as well with the third arc. Meanwhile I will be busy, in the next few months, working on a mini for Wildstorm (details to follow).

Getting back on topic, here's some preview pages from Zorro #8 on sale today. Hope you guys have enjoyed the arc and thank you all for the always kind words and support.

Cheers,
Francesco