The masthead is in bold capital letters which stand out against the lighter background. The writing is red connoting horror and the crescent moon in-between the words connote the darkness and night-time pathetic fallacy so common in the horror genre. There are also slashes through the writing suggesting the use of a knife or similar murder weapon to emphasis the horror genre. The strapline above the masthead, ‘Horror in culture and entertainment’, shows what the magazine is about. Instead of just focusing on the horror films, it also focuses on the historical context behind the films and how early films such as ‘Psycho’ was good entertainment even under the scrutiny of the Hays Code. The main cover image reveals the main character in ‘Psycho’. It reveals the plot of the film and this particular close-up freeze frame is right at the end of the film. It shows how Norman has merged with the skeleton of his mother who he has now become. If no one had watched ‘Psycho’ before they might think this was what he looked like throughout, so this image is rather misleading to first time viewers. It is in black and white as that is the style of film that it was created in. Norman's eyes are looking directly at the audience of this magazine and returning our voyeuristic gaze. The main cover image is covering up part of the masthead making it stand out more which also means that the magazine is a well known brand as part of the name is concealed.
The left and right justified lines are separated by slash lines too. The use of the black and white writing works well with the main cover image. The important lines are in white as it is clearer to read. The titles of the films are all in white and everything is in capital letters to emphasise the phrases.
The main cover line stands out against the black and white image and the slash through the middle emphasises the murder weapon of choice. It could also illustrate the split personality of Norman in the film which is what the main cover image is trying to portray. The fact that they are celebrating its 50th anniversary shows how popular the film still is as the viewers of this magazine still want to hear about it. The actors’ names are also slashed relating them to the film. The line the main cover line is resting on shows a silhouette of the mansion where Norman lives and where most of the action in the film takes place.