So I recently complained about not knowing what was
happening in Superboy volume 2. I was totally lost; felt dropped in the middle
of a story I had no investment in.
This is the opposite of that. I started off in the same
place. I have absolutely no memory of what happened in the last couple BPRD
flashback books. Other than Professor Bruttholm, I don’t remember any
characters. But IT DOESN’T MATTER. This book has everything you need to get
invested in the current mystery. This book has horror, gore, action, and a
great set of characters that pulls you right in.
A friend of mine just said “how can a comic keep being this
good” and honestly, I just don’t know. Mike Mignola and John Arcudi have been
putting out these excellent stories for so long, spanning genres and artistic
styles in a magnificent fashion. Hellboy fans will adore these books, of
course, but all you have to really like is good stories to get something out of
this collection.
Set in 1948, this story is wrapped up with alternate
dimensions, atomic bomb testing, and the early days of the BPRD as a military
offshoot. One of my favorite aspects of these early days is the way the field
agents are basically just US military troops with weird orders. I love monsters,
because you can shoot them. And man, do the BPRD guys shoot a lot of monsters
in these comics. No cheating vampires or ghosts with no rules, these are big, tentacle
monsters that want to eat you.
I’m not a huge fan of Max Fiumara’s art, but honestly, his
stuff didn’t bother me here. His monsters look so otherworldly and spooky that I’m
willing to look past his odd faces and somewhat cartoony human drawings. Every
scene has a strong sense of setting, and again, the action is fantastic. The
jump cuts between the soldiers and the monsters sets each conflict in utter
clarity.
This scary comic is GOOD!
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