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OgrishMag #1 and #2 |
 OgrishMag is a the print version of
ogrish.com, which is
devoted to photos and video footage of uncensored gruesome images – car
accidents, autopsy photos, and the like. If you’re a fan of the site,
you’ll probably like the mag, as it doesn’t staunch the blood flow between
its pages – offered in its first two issues are a wealth of images of
train wrecks, human limbs removed from the gullets of alligators, the
aftermath of a plane crash, crime scene photos, and so on, all in full
color and on glossy stock. The photo spreads are buffeted by a variety of
articles, which range in tone and coverage from the coolly clinical
(essays on the science and politics behind beheading) to the personal (the
serialized recollections of an EMT). The articles are the real surprise in
OgrishMag – these could have been cheap gorehound comedy (an attitude
suggested by Issue #2’s cover tag: “Taking Out the Trash: A Detailed Look
at the Fine Art of Body Disposal”), but instead, they’re professional,
well-thought-out pieces that back up the anonymous editors’ desire to
present the mag as an unfiltered news organ and not just the English
language version of the infamous Mexican crime scene rags like Panicos!
Time will tell which side wins over more readers – the articles or layouts
like "Newlyweds Trapped in Burning Car” – but the first issues seem to
have struck as even a balance as can be expected.
Oh, and if you’re
wondering what sort of person would lay down their hard-earned cash for
such a publication, the answer is: probably someone you know. About
200,000 people a day check into ogrish.com, and even more when a
particularly horrifying video becomes available (like the beheading of
Nick Berg in Iraq), so it’s not a fringe market. But then again, human
misery has always been a big ticket item, so why not give the people what
they want? To that end, Ogrish plans at least eight more issues, plus a
video magazine on DVD for the summer. For more info, visit
Ogrish.com or
OgrishMag.com. |
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-Paul Gaita |