Monster Construction

Komiks : The Horror Genre : The Source of Terror

Horror will only work if the source of terror is clearly defined. In this genre, the source of terror is often encapsulated in a single supernatural being that defies death. It is not really the question of immortality, but more of a function of eluding death as a natural progression in the human cycle. Thus, when supernatural beings constantly survive our desire to end their terror, fear sets in. And we asked ourselves, is this really happening to us?

In Komiks, we are confronted with supernatural beings whose main objective is to scare us. Well, scaring people and inducing fear are two different undertakings. When we simply scare people, we just rely upon the physical horror and not on the emotional horror. As a result, we see scary character designs that are empty shells. We see them but we do not feel them.

Inducing fear is a tricky dynamic in Komiks storytelling. It involves the balance and parallel development and management of both the emotional and physical fears. Thus, if we borrow a character from a popular horror film, when we see Jason from Friday the 13th we know that someone will encounter a horrible death. In this case, the character induces fear because the character is complete as a source of terror. If Jason is just a cardboard and lifeless monster, then he remains to be a forgettable scary monster.

Cardboard monsters are the usual ingredients in Horror Komiks. Probably this is the reason why it is unable to capture the imagination of a wider public. Perhaps before it worked, but considering the advancement in the reading public in general, things need to change for the better.

Zuma, a popular horror character in Komiks, is a good example of a cardboard monster. For one thing, the character does not have a personality. We really do not why he hates humans and why he wants to kill them. He looks scary because he has two snakes over his shoulders and obviously he is green. But in the end, the scare tactics implode when he kills his first victim. So what's next?

Let us make a parallel study. The Mummy, as a character, was initially a cardboard monster. The Mummy's main objective is to scare the archeologists who, for the sake of argument, are just doing their job. The Mummy did not have any personality. We do not know why his pyramid is so important to him and why in Osiris' name he is grunting and choking people to death. Until an inventive filmmaker re-worked the whole Mummy angle and gave it a personality. What if the Mummy is a desperate lover who wants to revive his long lost love? What if the Mummy wants to avenge the injustice that he believes took the life of his lover? What if this is the only chance that he has to continue a forbidden love affair? What if he is trying to challenge destiny itself?

The more question we ask, the more real the Mummy becomes. Until we slowly discover that the Mummy needed to learn that the end does not justify the means and that no matter how much he wanted to be with his love, it won't happen. Why? Because he does not want to face the fact that they are not destined to be together. And that is his angst as a character. So powerful but in the end destiny always kicks his ass.

When we begin to put "human emotions" on the source of terror, the monster becomes a three dimensional character. Going back to the Mummy, such undertaking yielded success in the market. As we watch the Mummy Returns, we begin to understand the gravity of the Mummy's obsession or desire that somehow the rational of his power in killing people is able to induce fear. When he looks at you, you feel fear because you know that the Mummy will kill for the sake of his lover.. Therefore, the want compels him to kill and the need stops him from killing.

This is the on and off switch in the monster's psychology. Once the character chooses want over the need or need over the want, we either see compassion that is poignant or violence that is macabre. Whatever the choice is, the fact remains, the monster subscribes to a simple dogma. I think, therefore I am. Monsters are not contraptions that are mechanical in nature like Zuma, the Mananangal and the Vampira. Monsters are thinking killing machines. They know their target because they know themselves.

When a monster exclusively kills virgins, it is not just a freak of nature. There is a rational behind it. Often, the target and the weapon of choice are deeply rooted in the monster's emotional baggage. If killing someone for nourishment is a need. So, what is the want? We now begin to explore. A want is more of a desire. If love is a desire then a virgin with a nice body is a good counter point for nourishment. I mean, killing someone for nourishment is a natural biological physical need. So when this someone is beyond the physical, the problem begins.

A monster as a character needs characteristics, characterization and emotional baggage. His emotional baggage often revolves around the inherent conflict between the need and the want. As an equation, characteristics plus characterization over emotional baggage will yield the most important concept in "monster construction" and that is Personality.

What if a Vampira leaves her safe haven in order to look for his missing son? What if a Vampira is out to kill the president in order to avenge the death of a love one? What if a Vampira falls in love for the first time with a human being? Now we begin to explore. The Vampira begins to feel beyond hunger. She begins to imbibe human emotions. And in the end, the monster will choose between her need or her want. Will she sacrifice her nature for the sake of love? Will she overcome revenge for the sake of forgiveness? Will she understand that nurture is far more powerful than nature.

We have a heap load of monsters in our culture, monsters that we often see in Komiks. But the said monsters fail to capture our imagination. It is unable to induce fear. Given the problem, perhaps we need to study the core principles behind monster construction as the source of fear. Let us reinvent the process and give our monsters personalities for a change.