Hyde Street Number Four Hits the Stands with a Hollywood Horror Tale

If you’ve ever watched Dark Shadows and felt for the tortured vampire Barnabas Collins (Johnathan Frid), who longs to regain his human form, you’ll probably love the fourth issue of Hyde Street. The latest issue of the new comic book series from Ghost Machine examines the mental anguish and remaining humanity of what others view as a monster.

An Unwitting Actor Heads Down Hyde Street

Writer Geoff Johns partners with artists Ivan Reis, Brad Anderson, and Danny Miki to create a nuanced story of a typecast character actor, Oscar Oddman, who dreams of serious roles and stardom. Oddman’s height and appearance cause him to land roles playing monsters in movies, explains AIPT Comics. When he meets The Scorekeeper, he’s relegated to becoming a horror of Hyde Street, a real-life version of the characters he plays. Although transformed into the Matinée Monster, his humanity remains intact, and like Barnabas Collins, he longs for acceptance and a return to his days as a human.

Hyde Street Offers Standalone Stories

The story doesn’t tie in with other Hyde Street happenings. That’s the beauty of Hyde Street. It provides the comic book version of the “Twilight Zone,” with every issue presenting its own story. You won’t find Mr. X-Ray prowling in Tinseltown, although Pranky makes an appearance. The Scorekeeper calls Hollywood’s Hyde Street home. If this becomes the first issue of Hyde Street you read, you won’t find yourself lost, trying to figure out the backstory of the various characters. While some comics take a serialized, soap opera approach that requires dedicated reading, lest you become completely lost, Hyde Street skips that and uses a much more accessible format, something its creators intended from the start.

“Although Hyde Street is in many ways an anthology, it’s also like Green Lantern in that it’s building a bigger story, a bigger world,” Johns told Games Radar in an interview in October 2024. “It’s a monthly book that’s going to take us on a pretty unique and frightening journey through the choices we make in life.”

Hyde Street Shows No Mercy

What each issue does share includes a cruel twist of fictional fate that makes the reader think twice about what they might wish for or want. It also discourages detours, shortcuts, and going out late at night. Of course, on Hyde Street, the worst can happen in broad daylight, as the one-off “Devour” showed. In it, the victim’s mother encourages her to pursue the perfect body with Ms. Goodbody.

Comic Book Creators Combine the Old and New in Series

For those who’ve yet to read an issue of this comic, it combines the storytelling style of the old “Tales from the Crypt” scenarios with modern drawing and inking styles. Of course, like many other offerings from Ghost Machine Pro, this issue of the comic hits the stands with three cover variants. Some readers choose a favorite, while collectors buy all three. Like all of the publisher’s other comics, readers can grab Hyde Street in print or digital format. It hit the stands on March 5, 2025, so pick your copy up today.