The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows #1-4 is a four-issue comic book limited miniseries published by Dark Horse Comics from December 1993 to March 1994. Written by David de Vries and illustrated with stylized, moody art by Paul Gulacy (with inks by Dan Davis), this series acts as a direct canonical sequel to John Carpenter’s legendary 1982 horror film The Thing.
It serves as the third entry in Dark Horse's overarching The Thing comic book continuum, directly following the Climate of Fear miniseries.
Plot Overview
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The New Beachhead: Moving away from the frozen isolation of Antarctica, the shape-shifting alien entity manages to escape the continent and makes landfall on isolated Stewart Island, located off the mainland of New Zealand.
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The Investigation: Police Sergeant Rowan arrives at Wallace Harbour to investigate a baffling and horrific series of mutilated bodies. He quickly realizes that a biological nightmare has penetrated the threshold of the civilized world.
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The Return of MacReady: Film protagonist R.J. MacReady returns to hunt his extraterrestrial nemesis down once and for all. The trail leads MacReady to the Gettysburg, an American ship docked nearby in the harbor. Convinced that the creature has assimilated a crew member, a battle-hardened MacReady prepares to torch anyone who stands in his way.
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The Psychological War: Concurrently, a local woman named Jennifer undergoes a terrifying psychological battle. She struggles against both the alien entity and her infected lover, Powell, as they violently wrestle for control over her memories, identity, and desires.
Key Features & Style
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Paul Gulacy's Aesthetic: The series is highly praised for Gulacy's gritty, cinematic visual storytelling and heavy shadow work, which perfectly channels the paranoid, claustrophobic atmosphere established by the 1982 film.
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Expanding the Threat: The narrative explores the existential dread of what happens when the shape-shifting entity leaves unpopulated research stations and integrates itself into a functional human town. []
