Bsides 46 – The Hodag

[Algernon Sydney is Dead]

Feature: The Hodag by Trent Hergenrader
Genres: Horror



Thursday, May 15th, 2014
I still remember that cold October afternoon in 1936 when Whitey McFarland’s old coonhound Maggie dragged herself out of the forest, whimpering and yowling. Her skin hung off her sides in red flaps and her eyes rolled wildly. She collapsed on the ground and howled.

All us kids loved Maggie, but not one of us dared go near her, not while she was baring her teeth and snarling. Benny Carper dropped the bat and ran off; Ira Schmidt just stood there staring at the half-dead animal as it pawed the frozen dirt. I tugged on Whitey’s sleeve and told him to stay with Maggie while I got my dad—Whitey’s dad was a drunk and never easy to find. When he finally nodded in understanding, I took off running.

Episode Art: Richard K. Green
First appeared in Black Static 7, October 2008.

[JarodKAnderson]

I liked this one so much I had to send the author a fan note (and he sent me a nice reply and had good things to say about the Drabblecast). What a cool story.

[Algernon Sydney is Dead]

Cool!

[Algernon Sydney is Dead]

Entertaining story. Gripping narrative and good control of suspense and pathos (poor dog and poor Whitey (and least for a little bit) ).
I also like how the dog had more sense than the boys and how the gore and angst did not seem gratuitous.

This was Lovecraftian but done in a more honest, sensible way than Lovecraft, IMO.

[Benbi]

Great story.

It somehow adds to the suspense when told from the childs perspective.

[bounceswoosh]

A+.

[El Barto]

This story was great and was made even better by Norm's intro. Ordinarily I'm not a fan of any spoilers/hints but in this case I went in thinking that this would be a far out tale about a mythical/magical monster but it turned into a credible narrative by an old man who was recalling something that really could have happened.

The whole story makes you stop and think about other tales we hear that we dismiss as ridiculous but perhaps they are simply stretched versions of the truth.

Mostly I am glad I did not listen to this right before bedtime. I would really not like to dream about being chased by a Hodag.

[tbaker2500]

Well, I did listen to it right before bedtime. I kept nodding off, and would wake up and curse missing a part. Rewind, listen, fall asleep, dammit!
Really good story. It avoided the common overuse of pathos describing the children's situation. Solid, entertaining, and incredible atmosphere.