Oltretomba #21

Oltretomba was a long-running Italian horror comic series published by Edizioni ErreGì starting in the early 1970s. These 'fumetti neri' were part of a post-war cultural wave in Italy that embraced dark, transgressive themes, often featuring gruesome covers and stories centered on the supernatural or the macabre. The series was designed to compete in the crowded market of small-format, pocket-sized horror comics that were popular at newsstands across the country.

Issue #21 follows the established aesthetic of the series, which prioritized sensationalist illustrations intended to shock and intrigue the reader. Like many titles from this era, the creative teams were often anonymous or utilized pseudonyms, as the publishers prioritized rapid production cycles and high-volume output over individual artistic branding. While these comics were often dismissed by contemporary critics as low-brow pulp, they have since gained recognition from historians for their raw graphic design and reflection of the anxieties present in 1970s Italian pop culture.