[3][4] While not accepted at the time, the story was later published in issue #202 of Famous Monsters of Filmland in spring 1994 with an introduction by Ackerman.

[7] Rocky Wood describes "The Killer" as "derivative of pulp fiction" but "fairly well written for a probably 13 or 14 year old".

[1] Stephen Spignesi describes the story as "an early example of King's frequent motif of out-of-control technology", comparing it to works such as "Trucks", "The Mangler", and "Obits".

[7] Spignesi also states that, "in tone and technique it comes across as something that was probably written a short time after that eclectic potpourri of juvenilia".

[8] Reflecting on the story, King wrote "I was still in the Ro-Man phase of my development, and this particular tale undoubtedly owed a great deal to the killer ape with the goldfish bowl on his head.