Tales from the Crypt #23
In "Reflection of Death!", a chilling tale from Tales from the Crypt #23 (1951), Al’s desperate journey down a desolate road unfolds in a haunting spiral of dread and unease. Written by Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein, with art and inks by Feldstein and lettering by Jim Wroten, the story blurs the line between nightmare and reality as a single, terrifying sequence repeats—each time more real than the last. The cover, also by Al Feldstein, captures the story’s eerie tension with its stark, shadowed imagery.
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Carl and Al are driving down a dark, lonely road when suddenly headlights appear in front of them, and there is a crash. Al awakens with torn clothes and a smell, asking a driver on the road for a lift to town, but the man screams and drives off. A similar reaction comes from a hobo and a woman, whose car he takes to his home, which has been foreclosed upon. Then he walks to his friend's house, but sees Carl without eyes and blind. Al walks to a mirror and sees his rotten and decomposed face, then is awakened...it has been a dream. Then car lights appear and there is a crash....for real!
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).