RTTP Hellboy & the (related) works of Mike Mignola

[Tizoc]

Michael Joseph Mignola is a comic book artist and writer most famously known for creating the highly overlooked character and series Hellboy.
He initially worked with DC and Marvel as Inker and artist, working on various titles such as Rocket Racoon, Phantom Stranger & Cosmic Odyssey.

Being in the comic book industry he would of course go to various Comic Conventions, and in a 1993 convention he drew this, and quickly thought up the name 'Hellboy'

Over the next year, the name Hellboy stuck in his mind and eventually he would rework the character and the world's greatest paranormal detective would make his major debut in 1994:

Notice I wrote 'major' not 'first'; Hellboy previously appeared in a short story published in San Diego Comic Con Comics #2 and on the cover of Dime Press #4 during 1993

Hellboy: Seed of Destruction, is a 4 issue mini series under the Dark Horse comics banner, and was written by both John Byrne and Mike Mignola with Mignola being the artist on the book, naturally.
The reason I emphasized 'written' above will be explained in due time, but for now, here's WHY I made this thread.

In the past I'd make it a habit of re-reading through Mignola's Hellboy and BPRD books. I skipped a year or two recently and now I was in the mood again to read the series, especially since this year is officially, Hellboy's 25th anniversary!
I'll be posting my impressions and thoughts on the series as well as provide a handy reading order for any who wish to get in on this wonderful overlooked series.

One thing that'll prob. come to mind when trying to recommend Hellboy is 'what kind of character is he?' Is he a righteous know-it-all, is he as arrogant as Batman, is he whacky or zany, just how can one properly jot down his characterization and personality?
If you've watched the 2 Hellboy movies, would you be able to describe his characterization for those movies? Because I'm coming up blank.

If I were to describe Hellboy's character, it'd be that he's someone who just wants to get by, having to deal with paranormal BS while looking out for his friends and comrades. He has his anger issues and should very likely be kept away from alcohol to be on the safe side, but he'll always be there for his friends and would rather not have to deal with his origins however possible.

My first bunch of write ups will be for the first 3 or 4 books for the time being, and I want to first list down the suggested reading order for anyone who would like to get into the series.
Over the years, Hellboy and BPRD would be released in TPB formats, and the reading order for at least Hellboy can be a little confusing as there were single issue stories or one shot books released that offered more insight into Hellboy's past or further adventures that become are mentioned in later stories.
Thankfully, the recent Omnibus releases which are also available digitally manage to alleviate this, and while my read through is done via the TPBs, I'll be listing the Omnibuses to look into to get into the series.

Hellboy
Previously, one would need only read the first 5-6 Hellboy TPBs, then they could start BPRD Vol. 1. The recent Omnibuses collect the first 6 or so major story arcs alongside Hellboy-centric one-shot stories in chronological order. In general these are THE essential way to read up on Hellboy's exploits, and as such should be your starting point, so read them in this order
1- Hellboy Omnibus Vol. 1 collects all stories up til Wake the Devil alongside The Chained Coffin and Almost Colossus.
2- The Complete Short Stories Vol. 1 Omnibus collects various single issue stories in chronological order. It may seem a little jarring to cut the main story at this point, but it helps to give an idea of the many crazy stuff Hellboy got into over the decades. This book also collects all of Hellboy's adventures in Mexico during the the 50s which themselves were published in TPB format as Hellboy in Mexico.
3-Hellboy Omnibus Vol. 2 collects Conqueror Worm and Strange Places alongside a couple of other single issue stories.

After the 2nd Omnibus, you may go and read Complete Short Stories Vol. 2 which tells of Hellboy's exploits around the world up til the events of Seed of Destruction, and then go into the 3rd and 4th Omnibus collections.

As you can see all, the series is available on Comixology so keep an eye on there when there is a sale to grab them for cheap if you prefer.

Once you've finished reading Hellboy, you may go into reading the BPRD series, once again, pref. in Omnibus format

Where the Hellboy series focused primarily on Hellboy himself, BPRD sheds light on the other members of the BPRD, with a great focus on characterization and fleshing out these characters. The series follows a primary plot and manages to give each character their own spotlight.
As mentioned previously, the events of the BPRD series start following the events of Conqueror Worm.
BPRD Omnibus Vol. 1: Plague of Frogs

That's about it for a reading order, there are OTHER series related to the major Hellboy series, but these 2 are good enough to get started. In my next post I'll begin my write up, and eventually will get to write about the other books within the Hellboy series.

Post automatically merged: Jan 12, 2019

Seed of Destruction is a 4 issue miniseries written by Mike Mignola and John Byrne.

In 1944, with the help of Nazi's technology, Rasputin summons Hellboy and is found in England by a US military unit that is being accompanied by Trevor Bruttenholm, founder of the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense that investigates and combats the paranormal.
Fast forward 50 years later to 1994, Bruttenholm resurfaces in America after being declared lost and dead after an expedition to the Arctic. After meeting up with Hellboy the two are attacked by a humanoid frog creature which results in the death of Bruttenholm. Hellboy eventually decides to investigate his foster father's death by looking into the ancestral home of his companions from the expedition at Cavendish Hall, taking along with him BPRD agents Liz Sherman, a pyrokenetic, and Abe Sapien. Unbeknownst to them, Rasputin has also returned and awaits them at Cavendish Hall to complete what he had originally set in motion 50 years ago...

Mignola's signature artstyle is in full force here, and the colouring greatly contemplates it with strong black shades and vibrant colours to make the panels pop out.. However, the writing feels a little odd especially when compared to all the later books and stories that followed it.

The reason behind this is because John Byrne co-wrote the book with Mignola and the writing style will feel a little strange as some parts of the story are told with boxed narratations

This doesn't happen as often as in later stories as I mentioned, and it seems that Mignola wasn't too good in writing action dialog or one liners, and some lines just seem a little silly like this one

While the overall book tells a solid story, it has a problem with the characters: They all get their asses kicked and the day is saved, not by any of them but by a fortunate interference of a ghost.
Seriously, Hellboy gets thrashed around from the first issue til the finale, Liz just gets kidnapped and becomes a power source for Rasputin to achieve his goal, and all Abe does is swim into a river, gets possesed by a ghost and THAT ghost is how Rasputin is stopped.
The entire book is pretty much a modern day (well far as 90s are concerned) story about bringing out the apocalypse with Rasputin being the main character here.
You kinda wonder how this series even managed to stay relevant with this story! Thankfully the later works of Mignola with Hellboy manage to make the character and the series much better.

This may come off as a rough intro were one to re-read or re experience it, but I can still say I enjoyed it for its focused plot at least. Characterization becomes much better over the next couple of years and stories.

I should make a note of a certain character that appears early in the story, the Torch of Liberty

This character never appears again in later Mignola books far as I can recall and is in fact a character created by John Byrne and appeared in Damage Control, a series published by Dark Horse as well. As borth were working at Dark Horse together, they thought it'd be fun to have the character cameo in Hellboy as a sort of 'Captain America expy'. That's about all that can be said about the character. If anything I'd like to think he lived his life within the Hellboy-verse and passed away of old age, but that's just my headcanon.

 

[Tizoc]

Wake the Devil is the 2nd Hellboy TPB, and collects the miniseries of the same name. Prior to the release of this series, there were 2 short stories featuring Hellboy as he investigates the mass disappearance of a village and a visit to the very church in England where he was found in half a century ago.

Neither of these stories are collected in the Wake the Devil TPB, but are in the 3rd TPB instead. The omnibus edition thankfully slots the two inbetween Seed and this story.

In Wake the Devil, the BPRD travel to Norway and investigate the machinations of an occult Nazi unit aiming to resurrect a vampire. Sending 3 teams to investigate 3 possible locations where the Nazis may be hiding at, Hellboy lucks out at being sent to Castle Giuresc and gets into a heap of trouble.
The BPRD are provided equipment through the global conglomerate Zinco, who are actually aiding the Nazi unit that Hellboy and co. are investigating. Suffice it to say that the equipment provided backfire at Hellboy and co. at the worst of times, even getting in the way of communicating with HQ.

The story further expands on events revealed in Seed of Destruction, as Rasputin returns this time as a ghost and continues to plot to achieve his goal of freeing the Ogdru Jahad. Rasputin's former allies were resurrected following his defeat in the previous encounter with Hellboy and had set out to prepare their own Ragna Rok project, with one of their number, Ilsa Haupstein going out of her way to resurrect her lover, the vampire Vladimir Giurescu.

As Hellboy continues to investigate Castle Giuresc, he learns of the vampire the BPRD were sent to investigate and worse learns of the ancient Hecate as the source of the vampire's resurrection and power. Also he finds explosives, the best solution to a lot of your biggest vampire and nazi problems~
Meanwhile, as Liz and her BPRD investigate one of the possible locations of the Nazis they come upon an old alchemist's lab where a discarded and forgotten homonculus lays lifeless, which peaks Liz's curiosity...

Wake the Devil is an improvement in the writing department as the boxed narration is gone for the most part, and we start seeing Mignola quoting various works of literature, poetry, historical folklore and mythology in this book and in later stories.
The book also introduces many key characters that'll play a major role in later stories such as ZinCo and the Baba Yaga.
Since I'm reading the series using the TPBs, I become irritated by stuff like this:

See those notations at the bottom of the page? This pops up a few more times in later major Hellboy stories and it annoys me because it makes me feel like I missed out on something important, couldn't they had added AT LEAST that one story in the book as a prologue story? I could do without the sketches and have them be in later TPBs, but this just feels like I'm reading the book wrong. Well at least said annotated story is in the next book, but my point still stands.
Anyways, with Wake the Devil we see Mignola incorporating many cultural folklore and ancient mythology and history to the series story and lore. In addition, Hellboy's true nature is brought up and how he responds to it fully solidifies his character and resolve.

 

[Tizoc]

The next of books are The Chained Coffin & The Right Hand of Doom. These collect short stories as well as single or 2 issue stories published at the time.

The Chained Coffin has Hellboy travel to England, to the very church he was found in back in 1944, while there he has a dream where he sees an old dying woman entrusting a nun and priest to keep her safe from a devil she enticed with in her youth.
The story sheds light on Hellboy's (possible) origins, and Mignola would expand on it in the future.
The other stories in this book shows Hellboy meeting with the Baba Yaga in a short and simple story, which will have a major impact on Hellboy's life in coming events, as the Baba Yaga becomes a prominent character in upcoming stories.
The Corpse is a rather humorous story involving Hellboy looking for a baby kidnapped by fairies and the task given to him in order to retrieve the baby.

The final story in the book, Almost Colossus, follows up on the concluding events of Wake the Devil; after her power is drained by the homonculus creature, Liz is dying. The fire was a part of her and by giving it away her 'spark' begins to weaken.
Hellboy sets out in search of the homonculus and finds more than he had bargained for, but comes out of it with a new ally.
It should be noted that Hellboy tends ot piss off a lot of people in some of his cases, but that's to happen when you're putting a stop to witches and spirits messing around with the world of common folk.

Among the stories in this collection is 'Nature of the Beast', one of various simple and short stories where the plot simply resolves itself in a very simple manner...Mignola tends to do that a bunch. The story introduce the Osiris Club who seem to have their hidden agenda when it comes to Hellboy.

'Right Hand of Doom' is merely a recap story, giving a recap of Hellboy's past and the 2 major story arcs, while 'Box Full of Evil' has Hellboy and Abe investigate a break-in in an English house which leads them on the trail of Igor Bromhead a thief whom Hellboy encountered before that used various magical objects and enchantments. What seemed as routine mission soon becomes a deadly and fateful encounter for Hellboy.
Box full of evil is where this infamous panel comes from

...but to balance it out, here's a more interesting set of panels from later in the story

That must've been some $10,000 robe.

All in all these stories are a good breather from the main plot, and we start to see more of Mignola's incorporation of history, folklore and mythology. There are some setups for the later stories to come, and the next major arc, Conqueror Worm, would change the fate of Hellboy and the BPRD forever.

 

[Madventure]

I haven't actually read any of the comics for hellboy beyond seeing some panels of it online and seeing the movies (I know sue me) but my brother has leatherbound versions of each one, so suffice to say he's a fan.

Though I am a big fan of his take on what he did with Batman for the elseworlds comics with Batman: Gothman By Gaslight & Batman: The Doom That Came To Gotham. He has a fantastic art style and his writing isn't bad either!

 

[dummmyy]

Awesome, Tizoc I've always liked Hellboy but never really dove into it. Always wanted to, though!

 

[Tizoc]

Awesome, Tizoc I've always liked Hellboy but never really dove into it. Always wanted to, though!

Well now you know how to I'll provide a shorter and 'updated'r eading order once I'm done as I've come to notice some books should be read in advance before others.

 

[Alexandros]

Amazing post, I very much enjoyed reading it.

 

[Tizoc]

In 1939, the Nazis put a dead body inside a space rocket and launched it into space from Hunte Castle in Austria. 60 years later it's returning to that said same place and the BPRD don't like the looks of it at all, so head of the BPRD, Manning, assigns Hellboy and Roger to investigate it.

The story begins with some history of the events that occurred at Hunte Castle, which had involved Lobster Johnson, a vigilante that hunted crime bosses in America in the 30s.
Roger and Hellboy are joined by Laura Karnstein who will be their guide as they climb towards Hunte Castle, but before their mission could start, Hellboy is giving a switch to trigger a bomb that was installed in Roger's body. Turns out the higher ups are still not trusting of Roger and added in as a pre-caution, which angers and prompts Hellboy to ask when they'd put such a bomb inside him.

Having read the series via TPB, I'd come upon yet again another annoying annotation

Said story is collected in the first BPRD book Hollow Earth as well as BPRD Omnibus Vol. 1. Why it was never EVER featured in any collected Hellboy edition likely comes down to the fact that Hellboy himself isn't part of the story at all.
It's a silly reason and again, it makes me feel like I'm missing out on something even though the story itself is simple, these kind of notes become very annoying when you're reading a collected edition because you kinda expect such things to be 'collected' in it at least.

Still angry at the BPRD's inclusion of the bomb, Hellboy reluctantly starts the mission and the trio begin to climb the mountain, meanwhile, Manning notices a small call card floating in his office, flipping it over it shows a lobster's claw...
As the trio climb the snowy mountains towards the castle, they find a vagrant who warns them of approaching the castle, as they get a close look at him, they seem him wearing Nazi military clothes under his coat and Hellboy attacks him.
Laura stops Hellboy and tells them to climb on ahead of her as she goes to check on the man, she instead brings out her gun and shoots him dead, tossing his body off a nearby cliff

Things get complicated when they arrive at the castle however; as Laura enters to check on the inside of the castle, Hellboy and Roger are attacked and Roger falls off the mountainside. Knowing of Roger's resilience being a humunculs, Hellboy decides to enter the castle and everything instantly gets worse.
For now.

Hellboy finds himself at the mercy of Herman von Klempt, a Nazi scientist that Hellboy had tangled with in Macapa 1959, and is also Laura's grandfather who brought in some of her own men to help von Klempt in order to make sure the rocket lands at their location. Hellboy is left to be tortured by Herman's pet ape as he goes to see on the progress of getting the rocket landing at the castle.
As the scene shifts to Roger, he awakens to see Lobster Johnson and the two team up to reach Hellboy now knowing what threat awaits them there

It seems the Lobster's seen some shit back in his day, so a psuedo-Frankenstein's monster isn't all that strange.

Roger and the Lobster find a lower passage into the castle, only to find a room filled with half human half machine bodies in large capsules that were being experimented on. They sense the life energy in Roger and break free in order to claim it for themselves, but as the battle rages on the two manage to knock out the generator powering the castle with electricity.
This allows Hellboy to overcome the ape and then finds a wounded man in the castle who reveals to him the true nature of the rocket's purpose: to send a host vessel into deep space so that an ancient god could posses it and then return to Earth. In order to stop it, Hellboy is given an object and with its dying words, the man reveals his true form: an alien from outer space.
Roger re-unites with Hellboy, and not a moment too soon, because the rocket has arrived and with it a powerful storm.

Arriving at Herman's location within the castle, the rocket opens, releasing not only the creature that it brought with it, but also a mist that transforms Laura's men into the same frogmen that Hellboy had fought many years ago. As Hellboy and Roger battle against von Klempt and the frogmen, we eventually learn more of what the creature's purpose is, and it is one of the most chilling 'end of days' scenario ever

The sheer nihilism of it is terrifying and I've rarely seen it presented in such a cold way. Of course, our two heroes don't need to know that in order to stop the thing.
As Lobster Johnson helps them in the battle, the object given to Hellboy is unfortunately destroyed during the battle, but our heroes find that the alien creature dislikes electricity and as Roger himself can be a conduit for such power, he decides to sacrifice by unleashing all the energy within him to destroy the creature, at least its physical form, as Roger would then need to absorb its energy to prevent it from fleeing away.
The act works and with further help from Lobster Johnson, Roger is saved with the destruction of this alien creature once and for all.

In the concluding events of the story, Lobster Johnson's corpse is found and is given a proper burial by Roger and Hellboy, and then as they rendezvous with Manning, Hellboy declares his intent

Thus ends Hellboy's time with the BPRD; over the years he would often encounter creatures or demons that would constantly remind him of his purpose and destiny, but these recent missions over the past few years of his life have further forced the notion upon him.
Wanting to handle things personally and not get the BPRD involved, he sets out to find the answers to these questions that haunt him, starting with a trip to Africa.

 

[Tizoc]

I appear to have neglected to post my overall impressions of the Conqueror Worm story~

Conqueror Worm is a major turning point to Hellboy, the prophecies of the coming of the apocalypse are now stronger than ever before, and Hellboy would want to face it without bringing in his BPRD buds mainly for their protection. A common theme that's become apparent in Mignola's writing is ghosts communicating with Hellboy and other characters throughout earlier stories and in future ones. Seems the boundaries between the spiritual world and the living world are thinner in this universe :V

One interesting aspect about the next few stories is that they were written and released while Mignola was helping out with the 2004 Hellboy movie. The Island story underwent a few rewrites and changes over time and we finally learn more about the origins of the Ogdru Jahad.
Furthermore, Mignola would not be drawing a variety of Hellboy stories for the next couple of years, granted he DOES draw the next few stories but after that he sticks to being the writer for the better part of a decade and we don't see much of him drawing the comics far as I can recall.

 

[Tizoc]

Strange Places and later stories see Mignola switch to 2-3 issue stories which help in the pacing for the most part.

The first half of this book is the Third Wish story, it begins with a scene underwater, where 3 mermaids are seeking favours from the Bog Roosh, a witch. She instructs them to strike a golden nail onto the head of her enemy, and that enemy could only be Hellboy.
We next find Hellboy in Africa, arriving upon the hut of a shaman, Mohlomi, who had been expecting him. Mohlomi tells tales to Hellboy related to spiders and bats, whether these tales are true in real life I've yet to confirm myself, but this habit of injecting folklore and mythology is a neat aspect of the Hellboy series.
As Hellboy rests by the hut, he begins to dream and see wild animals who forbade him from ever entering into Africa again, when he awakens he finds himself near the ocean. Mohlomi gives Hellboy a small bell to help him on his quest, and as a giant wave crashes upon him he is sent to the ocean where the 3 mermaids find him and strike the golden nail upon his head. Also he loses Mohlomi's bell to the great blue, oops!

Taken to the Bog Roosh, Hellboy wakes up chained and the Bog Roosh grants the mermaid sisters their favours, but being a witch, the wishes of the first 2 sisters marks their death; a witch is a witch after all, and Hellboy has seen enough that he would do anything to save the remaining mermaid.
Thankfully her wish is far simpler; she wishes her father's weapon found so that she may return it to his grave.

With their boon given she sets off to place the weapon at her father's grave, and learns of her folly. Meanwhile, the Bog Roosh turns to Hellboy to inform him of the fate she has planned for him

I'ma have to agree with Hellboy on both his accounts here; for any faults he has, he really is a good guy and there are enough stories written about him cleaning up paranormal faracas to back it. At the least the Bog Roosh's plan is sensible in context.

As the Bog Roosh leaves to prepare to slice up Hellboy, the mermaid returns and frees him from his chains. Hellboy battles and kills the Bog Roosh, and is then freed from the nail in his head that had bound him to her. As there must be Bog Roosh, the lone mermaid takes her place and sends Hellboy back to the surface world.

This is a short and simple story, and once Mignola delivers with the art of the underwater world. The significance of Hellboy's purpose in the world is brought up once again, much to his chargin, but he will always be ready to fight against it no matter what.

The 2nd half of the book is the 'Island' story, as Hellboy finds himself by a beach with many damaged ships littering the scenery nearby. At night he goes joins a group of sailors for a drink in a pub, and tells them of his underwater adventure. As Hellboy indulges in the bottle of rum while they sing an old shanty, The Mermaid, they are interrupted by a loud noise outside, after taking a quick look out the window, Hellboy turns to inform the sailors that there's nothing to worry about, only to find rotting skeletons
Hellboy, had been drinking with the dead.

Outside Hecate appears and once again annoys Hellboy about his destiny to which Hellboy responds by telling her to shove it where the sun don't shine.

As he continues to explore the island he finds a fort with a golden trail and its surrounding land covered in gold, and as curiosity gets the better of him he decides to go in.
A flashback is shown of what happened within the fort of inquisitors surrounding a heretic monk that they would put to death with their spears, but instead of red blood, golden liquid flows from his wounds.
As Hellboy sets one step onto the golden plain a giant worm appears and thrashes Hellboy around. Finding a rapier(?) Hellboy decides to take it on

Alas, the worm creature overcomes him in the end and stabs him in the chest. Hellboy meets Mohlomi, recovering his bell to him and is told that he is not yet dead. However Hellboy then meets the monk from the flashback scene who reveals to Hellboy his past and the origin of all things

Spoilered in case you'd like to read it for yourself through the comics ;)

In the beginning, the spirits descended onto the earth and one of them dared to raise their hand 'to take fire out of the air'; it dared to use the fire of creation and of all things-

The monk knows what Hellboy is, what his Right Hand is for and decides to claim it for himself so that he may end mankind, and have them be sacrificial fodder for the Ogdru Jahad. As the two battle, Hellboy manages to defeat him in the end, and finding a boat, leaves the island, now knowing the true purpose behind his giant right hand and why it is so sought after.

This was the biggest revelation in the Hellboy series at the time; 10 years after the series' debut and we finally get an idea on what the Ogdru Jahad are, and why Rasputin and others desired their Resurrection. This story would be one of the last main Hellboy stories to be drawn by Mignola as well, as the next major stories are drawn by Duncan Fegredo. Mignola wouldn't return to draw a mainline Hellboy story until almost a decade later.

It should be noted that Hellboy was 'lost at sea' for over 2 years, until his resurface on the island. The next book is a collection of short stories from Hellboy's past adventures, so we're taking a break from all the big stuff, which is going to be needed, as things are going to escalate badly really really fast.

 

[Tizoc]

This TPB collects various one shots and short stories featuring Hellboy, giving us a break from the main plot.

The titular Troll Witch takes place in 1963, as Hellboy investigates a small town in Norway that's been terrorized by a group of trolls. Hellboy meets with an old witch who tells Hellboy of her past and how she once long ago also fought against trolls, and offered him aid in stopping them. The story has a Grimm brother's fairy tale vibe and among many easy resolved situations within Hellboy stories.

The most important story in this collection however, is Makoma, a 2 part story that involves Hellboy dreaming of creating the world by fighting the fusion of King Ghidorah & Godzilla

The story is based on an actual African creation myth of the same name, and takes place in 1993, a year before Hellboy's world is irrevocably changed.
The first part of the story is drawn by Mignola and recalls Hellboy's one and only visit to Africa in 1947, and also notes of Bruttenholm's missing expedition. The majority of the story that tell the Makoma story are drawn by Richard Corben whose distinct artstyle becomes familiar having drawn various other Hellboy stories such as the Crooked Man.

The Complete Short Stories Omnibus books collect and arrange these stories in chronological order, ergo, Makoma becomes the very last story in the 2nd book.

 

[Tizoc]

Mignola takes a backseat on the art duty, regulating it to Duncan Fegredo. The story begins in Italy, with Hecate being taken out of action by a former adversary of Hellboy, and the scene turns to a trio of witches who had fashioned a small 'bust' of Hellboy, which they intend to use for they vile deeds.

We then see Hellboy at the residence of an old friend of his, Harry Middleton, in England. Seems Hellboy's boat made its way to his seaside home after leaving the island.
The witches whisper into the bust of Hellboy convincing him to leave the safety of his friend's home and 'go out for a walk', and walks a distance into a woods. There he meets with a trio who invite Hellboy to witness their act of witchcraft; resurrecting hanged witches. Unfortunately their spell goes awry as it also resurrects a witch hunter that begins to pursue the witches and Hellboy

Non the less, the witches have an interest in Hellboy and they carry him to their Sabbath at Leeds

"You hear? The Midnight Trumpet sounds and Darkness Calls"

At the Sabbath, the witches tell Hellboy of Hecate's fate and how she was sealed and imprisoned away, and now that they do not have a queen, they ask of Hellboy to be their king. They tell him how his father "was lord over the witches of Lancashire and Abbotsbury", which ties in to the flashback he had earlier in the series after the Cavendish Hall incident.

Hellboy obviously refuses, and in doing so the witches declare war against him, but non of them are powerful enough to deal with him, thus they make a deal with the Baba Yaga and offer him to her to be rid of him.
Hellboy is transported to a snowy realm which the Baba Yaga's spirit has power in and now she is out for blood

Following the Sabbath, Graugach, another spirit angry at Hellboy proposes a new queen that the witches may seek. Graugach reminds the witches how it is not only their power that fades away but also all the ancient gods and spirits of the world, and that the witch they long ago betrayed and hid away should lead them.

Meanwhile, Hellboy battles against the Baba Yaga forces and as he travels through this realm he encounters various spirits from Russian myths and folklore such as the Leshii and Perun a pagan god.
Not wanting to lose her chance at her vengeance on Hellboy, the Baba Yaga calls upon the aid of her greatest warrior, Koschei who sets out to hunt him down.

Back in the real world, Graugach and 2 sprites find the abbey wherein the witch they spoke of during the sabbath and free her coffin from a deep hollow under the earth.

As Koschei gets the upper hand on Hellboy, he is once again aided by another spirit of Russia, Vasilisa and the two flee to nearby mountains from which Hellboy can escape from this realm.
Koschei is not deterred and catches up to them, but Hellboy manages to eventually escape thanks to the help of Vasilisa, much to the Baba Yaga's chargin.

Meanwhile, as Graugach hauls the coffin of their soon to be witch queen, he is stopped by Dagda, a great god of Irish mythology. Dagda hopes to stop Graugach and his fellows from awakening the witch; she was so powerful and terrible that the witches of old cut her body into pieces and scattered them throughout the world, but all the time her pieces yearned to be re-united. In the end she was cast into a boxed coffin and put deep into the earth.
Alas, Dagda words fail to convince Graugach and he is stabbed by a dagger and killed by one of Graugach's followers, though saddened by this act, Graugach still vows to release the witch and bring ruination about the world of man.

Darkness Calls hastens towards the climax of Hellboy realizing his destiny, along the way we learn of various spirits from folklore and mythology having an interested and invested role in Hellboy's actions.

Duncan Fegredo's art is great, and a welcome addition to the Hellboy and Mignola series and would continue to be the artist until the finale of Hellboy's quest.

 

[Tizoc]

The Wild Hunt originally published as an 8-issue miniseries, being the longest in the mainline Hellboy books at the time, and finally reveals the true origin of who Hellboy really is.
Following the events with the Baba Yaga, Hellboy is summoned by the Osiris Club to participate in the Wild Hunt; some giants have risen from their graves and it has been tradition that a group of hunters set out to slay these giants.

Along the way, Hellboy attempts to socialize

Some people are just ungrateful for extreme exorcisms....which Hellboy finds out the hard way, as the group betrays him, claiming that they would not have him 'sit on the throne of England'.
Hellboy however, survive their betrayal, waking up to find his former allies ripped to shreds by the giants that had ambushed them. Awakened by a white bird and given a small flower that conceals his presence from the giants he begins walking through them to safety, but then decides to drop the flower and assault the giants.
Elsewhere, Graugach succeeds in awakening the entombed witch with the aid of an old man (Astaroth), and now Hellboy's greatest battle draws ever nearer. As many ancient spirits and creatures gather round the witch she declares war on the world and bids they call upon as many allies as possible that seek to overthrow the world of man.

We next see Hellboy in Ireland, visiting Alice, a young woman he had saved long ago from being kidnapped by fairies. She takes Hellboy to visit Queen Mab who had been wanting an audience with Hellboy. Mab had told Alice of Graugach's scheme as well as Hellboy's recent history with the witches and Hecate, and requested she inform Hellboy to meet her at a nearby hill.

When Mab arrives she reminds Hellboy of his destiny but also that there is still hope he can avert it, then she speaks to him of his need of an army, as dark days are ahead and there is nothing to stop them.

After Mab leaves, a small imp appears and guides Hellboy and Alice to find the army that Mab spoke of. The imp does not remember what his name is or was, but he is sure of one thing: He's as much an English-man as Hellboy.
Leading the duo to a magical forest, Hellboy and Alice reminisce on the past events that led to Hellboy's current situation, and the imp once more referes to Hellboy as being from England, then asks them if they know of Dane Hills at Leicestershire. The imp may be older than recorded legends, but even his kind is nostalgic

Never a moment's rest for the guy, he's like a magnet for spirits and spooks when he isn't chilling at home. Alas the imp is displead with Hellboy slaying so many old spirits and gods, and lead them to a trap. During the fight, Alice is poisoned, but thankfully the two are rescued by a trio of white birds, who transform into maidens and then take Hellboy to their mistress' castle.

They instruct Hellboy to get rid of a giant armored knight that blocks the path to the castle, which he obliges. The battle is futile as the knight manages to overpower him, but a lesser demon from hell that's been roaming around the castle informs Hellboy how to defeat him.

Feel free to look up scripture and whatnot on the hierarchy of Hell at your leisure by the way~
Yet more omnious claims; Mab spoke of a crown and an army for Hellboy, now a demon asks him to remember him when he ascends his throne, no doubt in Hell.

Hellboy succeeds in defeating the knight and enters the castle just in time to save Alice and meet the mistress of the castle: Morgan le Fay, King Aruthur's half-sister.

Welcoming Hellboy back to his 'home', she regales her guests with the history of King Arthur & Mordred (look it up!) and how their two armies fought over the throne.
How with father and son killed, the line of Pendragon ended, or so history thought; Mordred had a daughter who survived him, and she had a daughter, and that daughter had a daughter, and so on. The descendants took on witchcraft and one such witch betrothed herself to a demon

Well shit...
Which was one of the many first things that came to his mind upon getting this revelation. Still in disbelief, Morgan is determined to quell Hellboy's suspicion, and if there is one way to do so, to prove that he is a descendant of King Arthur, then it would have to be the sword in the stone. Morgan takes Hellboy to a lake where the swords rests, waiting to be drawn out.
Morgan infroms Hellboy that pulling out the sword will call forth his army; the long dead knights of Britain, and that he must have this army if he wishes to defeat his nemesis: the witch Nimue.
Nimue, a disciple of Merlin whom she betrayed, had, much like Rasputin, was connected to the Ugdru Jahad. Thus was the reason the other witches feared her and had her hidden away, but now she's awaken and full of malice and fury, desired nothing but blood.
At that moment Hellboy recalls his battle with the giants, how he was full of bloodlust himself; the kind that would've made him the destroyer of the world, herald of the Ugdru Jahad, and now he is left alone with his thoughts; to pull the sword and risk becoming what he for so long despised, or let the world burn at the wake of Nimue.

Hellboy returns to Alice, without the sword, and she tells him of her dream where King Arthur spoke to her, telling her that her life was bound to that sword; that she would witness with her own eyes a king to fight against Nimue.
Believing this to be Hellboy, this puts more pressure on him and what he must do next.
As he leaves Alice to rest, Hellboy gets a visit from Astaroth. He informs him that Nimue's army is growing, though who would lead that army is anyone's guess. Hellboy says it may be the devil himself, but Astaroth assures him: Satan is asleep; has been for 2 millenia in Pandemonium. Astaroth propehcizes that Hellboy will return to them one day and lead the armies of Hell against man, to bring ruination upon the world.
As the visions Astaroth shows Hellboy become real and fight him, the castle begins to crumble from their battle.

Hellboy re contemplates his situation; regardless of Morgan's support and information, history has known her to be a deceiver, but in the end Hellboy decides it best to take the sword, which teleports him and Alice to the hill they met Mab at. Pleased at Alice being safe, the two begin to plan their next move in order to summon the army that will fight at Hellboy's side against Nimue
Elsewhere, Morgan herself anticipates Hellboy's next action as well...

Hellboy's origins are fully revealed in this story, and much of his personal nature is brought into light. The pressure from both Morgan and Astaroth have pushed him to take up the sword, and claim his destiny as a king, leading an army for the fate of mankind.
How Hellboy will face it will be revealed in the grand conclusion: The Storm & The Fury.

 

[Tizoc]

The main finale of Hellboy's journey feels a bit rushed, but in a way ties things up nicely for him. Before getting into it however, there were 2 TPBs published inbetween collecting short Hellboy stories

The Crooked Man is a 3 issue miniseries that has less focus on Hellboy; it is 1958, Hellboy investigates a case of witchcraft in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia. He teams up with Tom Ferrell, a young man who was born in the village but disappeared many years ago, and has recently returned.
Tom has some knowledge of witchcraft and helps Hellboy deal with the terrifying cases of witchcraft that are cursing his hometown, all the work of the Crooked Man.

The miniseries features art by Richard Corben and draws a rather creepy Crooked Man. The focus is mainly on Tom and his involvement with witchcraft, with Hellboy mainly tagging along but managing to help out.
It's a nice solid story that wraps itself up nicely.

The books make for a decent breather following the major events of The Wild Hunt, because Hellboy's quest was never going to end peacefully.

By drawing out the sword, a call is sent to the many dead knights and nobles of Britain to rise from their graves and fight for their king. Turns out it is as literal as it sounds; all around English churches, various tombs open and knights awake seeking out Hellboy.
The first half of the book is The Storm, at least 1/3 of it involves recapping past events and characters. As Hellboy and Alice travel through England in order to figure out their next move, Nimue sends one of her warriors to kill them, but after a fierce battle, Hellboy comes out victorious. The two learn that Nimue's army and her power grow stronger and Hellboy's decisive battle is nearer than he thinks.

As the duo try to find their bearings, they find a tavern in the middle of the woods, just in time as it suddenly begins to rain. Inside the tavern, they meet the proprietor, a woman, and her son. As they rest in the pub, Hellboy sees on the TV that the BPRD are in deep shit, and then begins to reflect on his past life. Alice calls him back by noticing that the army that was prophesied has gathered and is waiting for them just outside the pub.

Considering he has to fight off the apocalypse with them, he's clearly rethinking this whole deal.

It doesn't take long though, and Hellboy decides to drop the idea all together; the whole thing with the sword and the army just didn't sit with Hellboy, and goes against his nature. This whole time he's been fighting against becoming the agent of others desires, be it Rasputin, Astaroth, Hecate, Morgan, or any other nutjob that tells him he has no control over his fate.
So he leaves the sword with Alice, and sets out to find Nimue and end it once and for all. An unlikely figure steps in to aid him

Elsewhere, Nimue prays to the Ugdru Jahad, just as Rasputin and others before her, only this time they don't merely answer her; they've had it with past failures and with Nimue being their strongest and sole connection to the world, they consume her body and begin the end of days...

Hellboy ain't havin' any of that shit.

Back at the tavern, Alice recalls her dream with King Arthur, and the woman then tells her of George Washbrook who died in the Great War, or at least should have died. A spirit appeared before him and had him drink from a cup that restored him to life, he would then return to England and traveled through the country, finally settling down to build the tavern, and there he lived and outlived his family, as if he lived awaiting something, and now his patience is rewarded.
Alice gives him the sword that Hellboy left behind and is rejuvenated, now the army has a king and they set off to aid Hellboy, to face off against the army of the apocalypse..

The battle between Hellboy the Ugdru Jahad, the dragon rages on, but these are the end times, these 2 posses far greater power than Hellboy could ever imagine: The weapon of destruction and the embodiment of destruction collide and the whole world would feel its effects

Their battle goes on, blow by blow felt not just by them but the whole of England, but the final strike goes to Hellboy and he fells the dragon, and saves the world. The battle and road were rough, but he managed to pull off in the-

Son of a bitch...

U WOT M8?!

 

[Tizoc]

Hellboy in Hell is an ironic title, but what better way to describe this collection or series than with such a simple title as that?

Hellboy in Hell follows Hellboy as he treks, literally, through Hell. He gets into a few adventures and mishaps but in general, these are the quietest moments of his life, which is a bizarre thing to say considering where he ends up.
This is a book best experienced due to the interesting nature of stories that Mignola writes in them, many being stand alone exploring curious characters, as well as...quickly resolving Hellboy's familial ties in Hell.

In Hell is also Mignola's return to drawing Hellboy comics, something he hasn't done in years. What is interesting in this series is the colours used to represent Hell and this world Hellboy explores. The colours are very muted, with very few vibrant colours showing up, a very interesting and sombre choice to depict Hell.

Although the series consists of 10 issues (collected in 2 books or all in one Omnibus), Mignola intended for the series to last longer and tell a few more stories, but he decided to wrap things up with the final issue being an instant conclusion to Hellboy's walkabout in Hell. I would've liked at least a set up issue beforehand to at least build up this finale, but it still feels quite grand in its own way.

What becomes of Hellboy afterwards was anyone's guess, but there ends Hellboy's grand adventure for now at least.

One book of interest published following Hellboy in Hell is a mini series centered on Koshchei the Deathless

Hellboy meets him in a pub in Hell and have a friendly chat, where Koshchei opens up to Hellboy about his past and how he ended up with the Baba Yaga. As it is written by Mignola, expect the usual utilization of myths and folk lore to tell his tragic tale.


....and that's it for Hellboy, but that's not the end of the Mignolaverse; there are a few more series to talk about: BPRD, Witchfinder and Lobster Johnson, which I'll get into over the next couple of weeks. For now here's the suggested reading order for Hellboy, as per Omnibus releases, so keep an eye out on Humble or Comixology for them!
1- Hellboy Omnibus Vol. 1
2- Short Stories Omnibus Vol. 1*
3- Hellboy Omnibus Vol. 2*
4- Hellboy Omnibus Vol. 3 & 4
5- Short Stories Omnibus Vol. 2

*Short Stories Vol. 2 could be read before or after Omnibus Vol. 2, otherwise you can it read it whenever you like but Hellboy and Short Stories Omnibuses Vol. 1 should be read first.

 

[Tizoc]

A write up on BPRD would take far longer than what I did for the Hellboy series, as there are far more collected editions released compared to Hellboy. For all intents and purposes, where Hellboy followed his own quest, the BPRD series focused on them brisking with the Apocalypse/Judgement Day/Armageddon, then full out fighting to keep humanity's survival during said Apocalypse.

You know that quote from the first Hellboy movie where Prof. Bruttenholm states that the BPRD 'bumps back'? Yeah the author's must've not watched that movie, cuz they can barely bump back the crap they get themselves into.

The BPRD series made its debut in 2002 with the first story line: Hollow Earth. Following Hellboy's departure after the events of Conqueror Worm, his closest friends don't take his departure all too well; Liz leaves the BPRD and joins a group of monks to find inner peace with the destructive fire within her, Abe sulks and spends most of his time just doing deskwork for the BPRD (at best) and Roger just loiters around.

The first BPRD story marks the debut of Johann, The Ectoplasmic Man. A German psychic whose physical body is destroyed during a seance he was performing. Being only a spectral ghost now, he gets the aid of the BPRD to get a suit that'll contain him and joins them to help with any paranormal situations. Little did Johann know nor expect that he would be fighting for mankind's survival against forces he never would've expected to exist. Funnily enough, Johann ends up being a major character in the series moreso than Abe or Liz.

If there is one thing I praise the BPRD series for, it'd be its focus on characterization, as while things keep going south at every messed up situation, the characters also push the story forward.
The expansion on the characters is much needed, as both Liz and Abe hardly had them do much that's worth noting. BPRD goes further to flesh out their character and personalities. In my recent re-read however, I come to realize something: Abe and Liz are too emotionally damaged that they'd rather sit things out than deal with them head on.

In many of the early BPRD books, Abe would rather not go on missions, leaving the fighting to his team mates and other members of the BPRD. Hellboy's departure hit him hard, but it does get tiresome to see him sit things out and brood alone about himself, in the half a dozen stories in the series.

I should note that there is nothing ultimately special about Abe; he's just a fish looking humanoid and is about as strong as your average human. It's just that he is able to breath underwater and who knows maybe he's the last of an ancient race of humanoids that lived on Earth millenias ago?

Liz on the other hand, while wanting to go on missions still has her inner demons and she keeps getting emotionally and mentally tormented due to the fire within her. She wouldn't snap out of it until much later in the series.

It was bad enough that the very first Hellboy story had the trio get their butts kicked, now you've got about a dozen stories where Liz and Abe have doubts about themselves and the people around them.

...and yet the series is still worth reading as it is well written and honestly how many series can you think of that had its characters fighting through the apolcaypse for nearly 10 years? Marvel or DC would resolve that crap 6 months later. BPRD? Nope, the apocalypse is happening, and now they're going to survive through it.

I'd neglected to talk a bit about Roger, but there is something else I neglected to bring up initially: The BPRD series isn't written solely by Mike Mignola, as John Arcudi would pick up writing duties with him in later stories.
The first few stories of the BPRD series were written by Mike Mignola, but starting with 'The Dead' story arc, John Arcudi jumps onboard and becomes a main writer on the series from then onwards.
In addition, Guy Davis becomes a regular artist on the series early on as well, and I really like his artstyle, even though to some it seems 'scribbly'-looking, it has a distinct style that I really like.

Going back to Roger, his character gets further fleshed out in BPRD. In the Hellboy stories leading up to Conqueror Worm, Roger was still trying to discover who he should be, and has seen Hellboy as a role model. With his departure, he senses that he is lost, but as he goes on more missions with Abe, Johann and Liz, he begins to slowly find his stride, esp. once a new ally joins the BPRD.

The BPRD series is one that I feel is stronger than the Hellboy series, mainly because I enjoy stories with a focus on characters pushing the story forward, alongside or regardless of, the primary plot.
As is, the BPRD series is divided into 3 major arcs: The first is Plague of Frogs, the 2nd is Hell on Earth & the 3rd is The Devil you know.

Due to the many books collecting the series, here's a suggested reading order based on Omnibus editions first, then TPB editions of Plague of Frogs

BPRD Omnibus editions reading order
1- BPRD Plague of Frogs Vol. 1-4
2- BPRD 1946-1948
3- BPRD Vampire (TPB)
4- Abe Sapien Vol. 1: The Drowning (TPB)
5- Abe Sapien Vol. 2: The Devil does not jest (TPB)
6- Lobster Johnson Vol. 1: The Iron Prometheus (TPB)

Plague of Frogs Omnibuses collect the main story arcs, whereas 1946-1948 tells of the early adventures of the BPRD while Bruttenholm was alive. This collection has a character that'll be very important in later stories.

I personally didn't care much for BPRD Vampire, but the 2 Abe Sapien books mentioned should be read at least after finishing the first 4 omnibuses, as they contain stories and characters that'll be brought up in later stories as well. For whatever bizarre reason, Dark Horse published an Omnibus that collects these 2 books along with Abe Sapien Vol. 9: Lost Lives & Other Stories.

Vol. 9 is a collection of stories featuring Abe and generally don't spoil events past Plague of Frogs, however the last story in it features spoilers for Hell on Earth. Not only that, but they labled the Omnibus release as Vol. 3 (i.e. Abe Sapien Vol. 1, 2 and 9 are collected in one Omnibus)!
This is a bad move because as I mentioned, Vol. 1 and 2 both contain stories and characters that will be referenced in the 2nd arc, Hell on Earth, so why regulate it to a collection that would be intended to be read AFTER Hell on Earth?
So yeah, they made it far more confusing than it should, so just stick to my suggested reading order above.

I should note that at the time the series was being printed, Mignola began a Lobster Johnson series. While it's not too important to the main Hellboy and BPRD series, Mignola did a wonderful job with the 'pulp 30s noir action hero' genre and it's among my favourite works from him. As such I recommend at least reading the first book mentioned above, but if you enjoyed it and want more of the Lobster taking down mob bosses and thugs, check out the rest of the series as they feature fantastic art by Tonci Zonjic.

BPRD Trade Paper Backs reading order
There isn't much difference between reading it via TPB and Omnibus editions, outside of reading the 194x books after the main stories alongside the others mentioned above. If you prefer going through the series via TPB releases, do so as follows
1- BPRD Vol. 1 (Hollow Earth) to 14 (King of Fear)
2- BPRD 194x & Vampire books (you could still read them inbetween the main TPBs, but for consistency's sake, read them afterwards)
3- Abe Sapien Vol. 1 and 2
4- Lobster Johnson Vol. 1

Next up is Hell on Earth, the title itself should give you an idea of what to expect, but one thing I appreciate is that Liz finally toughens up and starts to kick ass confidently, so if you feel she's been too unendearing in the first arc, you'll prob. like her more here.
Hell on earth consists of 5 Omnibus editions, but the 5th doesn't release until March 2019

BPRD Hell on Earth reading order
1- Hell on Earth Vol. 1-7 or Omnibus Vol. 1 and 2
2- Sledgehammer '44 (TPB)
3- Hell on Earth Vol. 8-15 or Omnibus Vol. 3-5
4- Abe Sapien: The Dark & Terrible Omnibus Vol. 1 and 2
5- Abe Sapien Vol. 9: Lost Lives & Other Stories (TPB)

Hell on Earth is pretty straight forward. Sledgehammer '44 is included mainly because it was published alongside Hell on Earth, and I recommend reading it. Abe got his own stand alone series during the events of Hell on Earth and are best read after finishing Hell on Earth to find out what he's been up to during that time.

As of this writing, the current major arc in not just the BPRD series, but Hellboy AS WELL, will be the conclusion to this long running franchise.
That's right, Mignola intends to wrap everything up with BPRD: The Devil you know, with the final issues releasing over the next couple of months.

As is you now have a solid reading order for the series and this is one best experienced for oneself than being explained to, as when compared to the output from Marvel and DC, Mignola keeps things consistent and doesn't retcon or redo any major plot points.

While this may be the end for the mainline Mignolaverse books, there are still a few other series worth looking into which I'll outline in a later post.

 

[Tizoc]

Various Dark Horse books ar eon sale on Comixology, including hellboy
Search - Comics by comiXology

Grab them if their price suits you.

I've been busy with college+other stuff so I've been putting off writing the final part but will try to get to it :X