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Main > Features > Random Encounter > Dark Dungeons: Between the Panels
February 2nd, 2009 DARK DUNGEONS: BETWEEN THE PANELS This year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of Chick Publications' Dark Dungeons, a tragic tale of a fatal game and the players involved in it. Since its release in 1984, tract readers around the world have been captivated by the story of Debbie, her descent into a dark world of occultism, and her subsequent rebirth into a new life filled with hope. Recently, the Escapist caught up with some of the characters of Dark Dungeons - Miss Frost, Debbie, Marcie, Mike, and coven member Pathos Feralwolf - to get the real story Between the Panels!
E: Good evening. In tonight's installment of Between the Panels, we will be taking a look at the story behind Dark Dungeons, a comic tract produced by Jack T. Chick on the dangers of role-playing games. With us are five of the characters from that book. Thanks for joining us tonight. As I'm sure all of you are aware, Dark Dungeons is pushing the ripe old age of twenty five. How much has changed since the comic came out back in 1984? Debbie: I can't get any of those radical Members Only jackets anymore, unless I scan the thrift stores for them. And even then, the ones I do find smell like old people. It's a bummer. Marcie: I'll never get the hang of Attacks of Opportunity. And now they've gotten rid of half-orcs and most of the alignments... I really wish I hadn't unloaded all of my old first edition hardcovers on eBay. E: So, it looks like you're still involved in gaming, Marcie. How about the rest of you? Mike: I never got into those stupid Dweebs & Dorks games. I'd rather play World of Warcraft any day.
Pathos Feralwolf: I, too, continue to participate in the dark art of roleplaying. My clan has converted many to the ways of the lycanthrope. I find it to be an excellent tool in judging the personalities of promising man-beasts. Debbie: Not me. I've learned that those games are a one-way ticket to eternal hellfire. Everything about them is wrong. Even the dice are an abomination. The Bible says it clearly: "God does not play dice with the universe."
E: Do any of you ever see the other cast members anymore? Have there been any Dark Dungeons reunions? Miss Frost: I still see most of the members of the coven, though we have lost a few members to Eckankar and Scientology recently. After the comic was done, Pathos left the coven and got involved with some Satanic cult that he found out about in the back of an issue of Metal Edge magazine. That's when he changed his name. Before that, I knew him as Josh Greenbaum. I see him every now and then, despite the restraining order.
Marcie, one of the biggest misconceptions that many have about the events of Dark Dungeons is that you actually killed yourself after the death of your character. But since you're standing before us right now, we know that can't be the story. What really happened? Marcie: I was practicing for my role in the Halloween Hell House that our church was holding that year. Debbie walked in while I was testing the strength of the noose I had made. Boy, did she scare the heck out of my mom! She wasn't allowed over our house for like a year after that.
Debbie: To be honest, the comic really doesn't tell the whole story of what happened. There are a lot of parts that were left out. Like Ryan, for example.
Miss Frost: Two mysterious, bearded men from a Christian publishing company came to my home one afternoon, asking if I was an actual game master, and posing all sorts of questions. They wanted to know if the game we played matched their concept of a potentially lethal hobby that was an excellent recruitment tool for witches covens and Satan worshippers. For the most part, it is. Debbie: I got a message through my MySpace page.
Marcie: The noose chafed really bad. I had a rash on my neck for a month. Debbie: My biggest challenge was fighting that darned Zombie. Son of a gun must have had like a billion hit points. I swear Miss Frost was fudging her die rolls. Miss Frost: Filing the restraining order on Mr. Feralwolf over there. After the work on the comic was over, he kept stalking me. Every morning I'd look out my window to see his rusty old Pacer parked out front.
Debbie: Oh, and the fumes from the bonfire scene were heinous. All that burning lead, plastic, and ink... I passed out for a little while, and when I woke up, I couldn't remember my own name. Really, you should just stick to burning books. Or hand out breathing masks, or something...
I was also having trouble with my lines. I just didn't know what my motivation should be. Was I in love with Debbie? Did I see her as just a friend? Was there some other ulterior motive for getting her to go to my church? What sort of tone should I take when saying my lines? I couldn't get any positive direction. It was very unprofessional, and the next time I work with any sort of comic outfit, I'm going to...
Miss Frost: Or, you can take my advice: the next time some meddling little brat interferes with your designs on a particular man, you should take her whiny little Black Leaf butt out with an Eternal Acne spell - that is, if it would even be noticable with all the acne she already has... Marcie: Ooooh, NO YOU DIDN'T! Debbie: I don't think that anyone should play roleplaying games. They're dangerous and can lead to gnarly occultic rituals. If you have any roleplaying books in your home, you should put them into a big pile and burn them, then dance around the fire while chanting. E: Okay. Ahhh... Pathos? Mike? Any parting words? Pathos Feralwolf: The return of the Tentacle Lord is imminent. You may serve him or perish. It is your choice. Oh, and if you're in the Muncie area and looking for a good Werewolf group, we meet at the Kiwanis Club on Beech Street every Wednesday night at 7. Bring your own dice. Mike: This fasting thing is the pits. I'm starving. You guys got anything to eat?
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Miss Frost: I've
had a World of Darkness chronicle going on for
nearly ten years now. Our group was chosen five years ago to playtest
one of their new lines, Mermaid: The Splashing,
but I think Ron Howard might have sent some lawyers around to axe it,
because it never saw print.
Debbie: I bump into
Mike and Marcie all the time. Mike is a salesman at Aural Experience
Stereo. I bought a CD changer from him a couple years ago. Marcie's
doing great as a scrapbooking instructor over at the community college.
And of course, I see Pastor Jake every Sunday. I'm helping him organize
a Harry Potter burning this weekend. We've got
about five hundred copies of the books piled up behind the church now,
plus a few hundred DVDs that we're going to run over with a bulldozer.
You should come!
Pathos Feralwolf:
The Dark Lord of a Thousand Tentacles whispered obscenely into my ear,
telling me that my services were required. I then sacrificed six small
birds to show him my allegiance.
Mike: It was tough
keeping my part straight. It was really windy during my scene. I'd
asked them if we could shoot on another day, because my hairdresser had
just spent over an hour trying to get my hair just right, and the wind
was undoing all of his hard work. The director just didn't understand. 
Marcie: Just a
little advice for everyone - if you find yourself in a gaming group
with a Dungeon Master who has the hots for one of the players, who in
turn has the hots for you, just collect your books and dice and find
someone else to play with. It's just not worth all of the frustration
and misunderstanding that will come with it.
