Tales from the Crypt #31

"Survival... or Death!" is a chilling, character-driven tale from Tales from the Crypt #31 (1952), a standout issue written by Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein and brought to life with sharp, dynamic art by Jack Davis, whose bold pencils and inks define the story’s tense atmosphere. The cover, also by Davis, captures the story’s grim tone with a striking image that hints at the dark irony within. This issue, a 10-cent comic from 1952, presents a stark, self-contained parable of human nature, where two men on a cargo ship test their own instincts through a cruel game of survival—only to find the line between man and beast is far thinner than they imagined.