Review: Nightmare Magazine, Issue 125

Nightmare Magazine, Issue 125 by Wendy N. Wagner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another issue of Nightmare Magazine I bought to read and discuss with the wife. I bought it thinking she’d prefer Who The Final Girl Becomes (having only read the synopsis), but our favorite ended up being Home.

Who the final girl becomes - an interesting examination of the trauma of being a sole survivor. Obviously, horror stories wouldn’t be the same if we always examples the aftereffects, but it can be illuminating to explore it occasionally. As they state in the author interview, the story becomes (at least partially) a critique of the true crime genre. The trans aspect of the story is interesting. At first I thought maybe it was giving the wrong message that there was a transition that took place in the face of trauma. But the author also presented a more traditional transition, so perhaps it’s even better because it presents how complicated real life is.

Home - This story was like a slowly unfurling mystery. The twists take their time in truly showing up rather than as a singular moment. The result was awesome. Great last line.

A girl defines herself - This bit of flash fiction really takes you on a journey. The author doesn’t have a huge word count, so they make every word count.

When at last he was empty - a disturbing and visceral poem.

The H Word: A Jaded Eye on Good Girls Gone Bad in Asian Cinema - An essay about tired tropes in Asian cinema which mirror some tropes we’ve had in American cinema where women often exist as catalysts to action or as cautionary tales. Also has examples of movies that break the mold.

Interview: Eric J. Guignard - I don’t know this person, but the work they do seemed to be very important in preserving Horror history, especially with some of the more niche names.

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