Summary
With the release of Duskmourn: House of Horror,Magic: The Gatheringhas dedicated the set to referencing late and early horror films ranging from obscure to among the most popular. Although some references are only noticeable to avid horror fans, most are immediately recognizable for their roles in pop culture.
House of Horror doesn’t just stop at movies, either, pulling from works by Junji Ito and shows like The X-Files, even referencing non-horror films like Toy Story. However, the best and most iconic horror films from the 80s to early 2000s are found all over the set.
10Irreverent Gremlin - Gremlins (1984)
Irreverent Gremlin is a creature card vaguely reminiscent of the Gremlins franchise in more ways than one. Gremlins focuses on adorable creatures called mogwai, which, when fed after midnight, become mischievous gremlin creatures bound for chaos.
This makes perfect sense for Irreverent Gremlin to be in red, and the card art displays the chaotic nature of gremlins as it is seen eating a candle. The menace keyword and ability that relies on other small creatures also ties in with the original Gremlins movie and captures the essence of what makes a gremlin a gremlin.
9Let’s Play A Game - Saw (2004)
Let’s Play A Game is a reference to the Saw franchise, in which the main antagonist, Jigsaw, frequently makes use of the phrase before subjecting his victims to dubiously moral torture. The card art displays the Lord of Pain watching over his victim with the use of screens, similar to Jigsaw’s iconic videos featuring his creepy puppet persona.
Let’s Play A Game makes perfect sense in black, and the effects are reflective of the various torture methods used in the Saw franchise, which slowly chip away at the main protagonists. Saw (the card) and Trial of Agony are also Saw references, displaying watchful screens and iconic torture methods used throughout the movies.
8Threats Around Every Corner - Thirteen Ghosts (2001)
Threats Around Every Corner shows a character using special glasses to view spectral threats, much like the movie Thirteen Ghosts starring Matthew Lillard, one of the more obscure and wacky horror movies from the early 2000s.
Trapped in a house that also acts as a maze and ghost prison, the protagonists of Thirteen Ghosts use special ghost-detecting goggles to navigate the trap set up to power a sort of time machine. The wildly convoluted nature of the movie is captured in Threats Around Every Corner, and is a great tribute to a perfect film.
The character in the card art also wears a red lapelled shirt, the same as Lillard’s character, Rafkin, in the film.
7Found Footage - The Blair Witch Project (1999)
One of the first movies to popularize the found footage movie trope, Found Footage pays tribute to The Blair Witch Project, in which the camera footage by young filmmakers reveals the witch they were looking for that stalks and kills each one.
The card art, name, and even subtype are more than enough to identify the reference, and the ability to surveil is a nod to the idea that the movie is just an edited montage of actual found footage. The ability to look at face-down creatures could be a reference to the iconic shot of the character with his back turned to the camera.
6Dashing Bloodsucker - Blade (1998)
One of the most recognizable vampire characters in modern history, other than Dracula, Dashing Bloodsucker is a reference to the Blade franchise starring Wesley Snipes. The character in the card art even has the same haircut and dark sunglasses that make Blade identifiable.
The flavor text is also almost a direct quote from the original Blade film and makes Dashing Bloodsucker one of the most obvious movie references of the House of Horror cards. Although, it’s almost disrespectful for Dashing Bloodsucker to havesuch low power.
While widely known for the films, Blade as a character was originally conceived as a Marvel Comics character, explaininghis guest appearance in the Deadpool & Wolverine film.
5Omnivorous Flytrap - Little Shop Of Horrors (1986)
Omnivorous Flytrap is a familiar-looking sentient plant to those who have seen Little Shop of Horrors, which appears eerily similar to Audrey II, the giant, singing plant that requires human blood to survive. The tongue, teeth, small pot, and even torn fabric in the jaws make Omnivorous Flytrap a clear reference.
The card’s abilities also reflect the events of the musical and film, in which the plant’s owner, Seymour, is given fame and wealth in return for feeding humans to Audrey II. The open mouths of the various plants could even be a reference to the musical nature of Little Shop of Horrors.
Come Back Wrong features a crawling zombie with red eyes, gray skin, and a scarred face that looks almost identical to the deadites featured in the Evil Dead franchise, especially from the original 1981 film. The other character in the card art even wears the same black pants and white shoes as Ash.
The card’s abilities are pretty self-explanatory, as characters are possessed by demons and are eventually killed by the main cast. The art style, card color, and name all feel reminiscent of early 80s horror.Even the flavor textcaptures the neutral witticism of Ash.
3Unsettling Twins - The Shining (1980)
Unsettling Twins is one of two cards that are overt references to Stephen King’s The Shining, with a pair of creepy twins standing in a decorated hallway in front of a draped window. The flavor text is also a direct quote from the two characters, which are spoken in unison and enough to never put the card in any deck ever.
However, there is an interesting choice tomake the card in whitewith the creature type being Human, despite their obviously supernatural nature and doubtful lack of guiding morals. Although, the card’s ability is a direct reference to how the twins make the character of Daniel, and all of us, feel.
The other card, Break Down the Door, references the iconic scene where Jack Nicholson’s character peaks his head through the axed door.
2Ghost Vacuum - Ghostbusters (1984)
Those vaguely familiar with the Ghostbusters franchise will immediately notice the connection, even with just the name Ghost Vacuum. The card art is very similar to the proton packs used by Ghostbusters to neutralize ghosts to contain and eventually capture them.
The card itself works very similarly, exiling cards from the graveyard, which can technically be considered ghosts. By sacrificing Ghost Vacuum, all the exiled cards are placed on the battlefield as Spirit creatures, a direct reference to when the containment unit breaks in the first Ghostbusters movie.
1Orphans Of The Wheat - Children Of The Corn (1984)
Orphans of the Wheat is another reference to a Stephen King film, Children of the Corn, with the obvious play on words in the title referencing the cult of children that has taken over their rural town. The blaze of light in the card art even references the end of the film.
However, the ghostly glow, flavor text, and even card abilities are more vague and don’t make any direct references except potentially the main antagonist, He Who Walks Behind the Rows. The card itself is even pretty weak, but then again, so are actual children.
