Greetings! ScoreKeeper here rising from subterranean sepulchers to shed torchlight on a new Frankenstein monster which has stormed bookshelves in recent months. For the first time the worlds of comic books and film scoring have been fused together to create a media amalgam of literature, art, and music to tantalize the most impassioned geeks on the planet. SPOOKS, a new comic book published by Devil’s Due Publishing [HERE], chronicles the U.S. Department of Supernatural Defense in their fight to protect humanity “from things that go bump in the night. When the king of all vampires forms an alliance with the deadliest of witches to launch an invasion of classic monsters on Washington D.C., the Spooks find themselves in an all-out battle for the fate of the planet!” The mad scientists behind this multi-sensory experience are R.A. Salvatore, Larry Hama, Ryan Schifrin, and Adam Archer. SPOOKS, which is currently being adapted into a feature film, has actually been written about more than once on this site so why bother to bring it up again? A couple of months ago a ten track, twenty-plus minute original score for the book was released on CD and on iTunes [HERE] marking the first comic book soundtrack ever mass-produced. Composed by Lalo Schifrin and Andy Garfield, this soundtrack is NOT some chintzy gimmick set to make an extra buck on the book. The music is as good as any movie soundtrack that I’ve come across which greatly enhances the reading experience. If it’s successful, SPOOKS could trigger a firestorm of new original music written for comic books and graphic novels. Here is the track listing of the soundtrack:

“The Forces of Darkness” – Lalo Schifrin (1:59) “The Department of Supernatural Defense” – Andy Garfield (2:27) “Omega Team” – Lalo Schifrin (3:07) “Zach and Felicia” – Lalo Schifrin (2:04) “The Graveyard” – Andy Garfield (4:07) “The Witch’s Manor” – Andy Garfield (2:04) “Headless Jack” – Andy Garfield (1:31) “The Final Battle” – Lalo Schifrin (3:09)

To celebrate this new release, I’ve got five copies of the Vol. 1, Jun 2008, edition of SPOOKS, and five copies of the soundtrack on CD which I’ve been tasked to find new homes. The books are autographed by writers Ryan Schifrin and Larry Hama and the soundtracks are autographed by Lalo Schifrin. If you would like to become the new owner of one of these books and accompanying CDs, you’ll have to prove your worth by passing a series of basic tests. These tests, in the form of written questions, will match your wits against your intellect while evaluating the extent of your geek worth. To enter you must answer the following questions:

1). If you were a member of the U.S. Department of Supernatural Defense and a gargantuan army of classic monsters were invading Washington, D.C., which single person would you rescue and why? 2). Which classic monster would you find the most difficult to destroy? Please explain. 3). Should more comic books come with original scores aimed at enhancing the reading experience? Why? Answer all three questions to the best of your ability and email your responses to scorekeeper@aintitcool.com with the subject I WANT SPOOKS. Be sure to also include your name, mailing address, and a valid email address. Only one entry per person. All others will be discarded. International entries accepted but they must be written in English.

The top five entries who display the greatest range of skill, intellect and geek worth will earn themselves an autographed copy of Vol. 1 of SPOOKS and an autographed copy of the CD soundtrack. The contest starts immediately and will end on October 18th, 2008 at 11:59PM EST. For more information about the comic and the accompanying score, check out http://www.spooksthecomic.com/main.htm. Now go get ‘em!

ScoreKeeper!!!