Adults Become the Ultimate Monsters in the Vernon Smith's Hide

"Killer kid" stories, stories where one or more children become bloodthirsty murders, has long been a popular subgenre in horror. A few of my favorite killer kid horror movies include Village of the Damned (1960), Who Can Kill a Child? (1976), and The Children (2008). Yet for a many killer kid novels, short stories and movies that there are, there are very, very few that reverse the roles in this subgenre. In other words, while there are plenty of stories about previously normal children becoming relentless and remorseless killers of adults, few dare to depict a situation where previously normal adults become relentless and remorseless killers of children. Not so with Hide, a new comic book series that's written and drawn by Vernon Smith and published by El MacFearsome Comic Squares.

The plot behind Hide is as simple as it is scary: One day, people over the age of 18 decide to go on a killing spree against everyone who is under the age of 18. (By everyone under 18, I mean everyone--no child is spared.) No clear reason is given in the comic (at least not yet) as to why this is happening; even creepier is that the adults still behave normally around each other and only become consumed by a violent rage whenever they see a teenager or a child.

The first issue of Hide is currently available at comic stores, and you can read it online at the El MacFearsome Comic Squares site. According to the site, Hide should total at 140 pages in length when it is finished; judging by what I've seen in the first 22 pages, this is going to be a wildly terrifying ride.