"Only the End of the World Again" is a short Cthulhu Mythos story by British author and comic book creator Neil Gaiman, featuring the character Lawrence Talbot from the 1941 film The Wolf Man. First published in the thematic anthology Shadows Over Innsmouth in 1994, it has been reprinted many times, and has even been translated into Dutch, French, Portuguese and German.
Synopsis[]
The story concerns a man named Lawrence Talbot, an "adjustor" [sic] who also happens to be a lycanthrope. Intended to be a blood sacrifice to allow the Deep Ones and their gods to rise and reclaim the Earth, his would-be murderers do not count on the ferocity of his canine nature, giving him the opportunity to kill them, and thus preventing the titular "End of the World".
Characters[]
- Lawrence Talbot, a shapeshifter in an unknown but shady-sounding profession.
- Madame Ezekiel, an avatar of the racial will of the Deep Ones, destroyed by Talbot.
- The Bartender, a member of the Esoteric Order of Dagon, killed by Talbot.
- The Fat Man, another member of the Order, one whose agenda seems to run contrary to the others.