‘The Black Wedding’ by Jim Pascoe and Rick Lacy.
‘Pryamid of Death’ by Tad Stones and Fabio Laguna
Publisher: Dark Horse
Price: $6.95
Release Date: January 31st 2007
This oneshot coming ahead of the Animated series DVD release brings Hellboy to comic books in yet another guise. The introduction, by author and animated series producer Tad Stones, warns us that this is not Hellboy ‘canon’ and that the animated series has its own slightly different continuity. This is perfectly normal and almost expected as the different media have their own demands on tone, pacing and timeline. In any case, the story is largely self-contained so any inconsistencies of time or character are probably limited anyway.
The cover, by Jeff Matsuda is a wonderful blend of the spiky stylings of a genuine Mignola and the cartoonish look of a Saturday morning animated feature. Inside, the art by, Rick Lacy, and the colouring, by Dan Jackson, are very much in the style of the modern, high quality, animated series based on comic books that have been getting produced since Batman – Mask of the Phantasm and have continued with the Batman animated series and the like. The layouts, quite often a five panel affair in 2-1-2 formation, are equally modern and in keeping with the uncluttered animated style. The panels focus largely on the characters rather than on backdrop or setting (unless it is germane to the plot) and while that isn’t a bad thing per se, it does catch the eye every now and again.
The main story, which clocks in at 65 pages or so is on the surface a pretty standard tale of witchcraft and devil worship and as such it entertains without really bringing anything new to either the characters or the genre. However, this is Hellboy so the plot is laced with some subtle humour and a lightness of tone (amidst the darkness) which helps the story to romp along at an enjoyable pace.
As the book opens, Hellboy is accompanied by fellow BPRD psychic Josh Ecton as they investigate a missing cat. The cat appears to have been abducted by talking wolves, dressed in Tuxedos. The wolves (and the cat) are on their way to the Goat Stone. Abe Sapien is also investigating a lead down in the catacombs when he overhears a group of hooded figures discussing the retrieval of a Black Wedding dress. On the surface, Liz Sherman and Kate Corrigan are also on duty, investigating Alexisa, the Witch of the Woods, who appears to be on the verge of summoning a demon.
The downside of all this is that the wicked witch is just that, the mystery is pretty transparent and the ending is eminently predictable. Despite the length, there is little in the way of character development and anyone coming to this for the first time would perhaps be wondering what purpose half of the characters served (though I did end up feeling sorry for the cat).
Despite these criticisms, it is rendered and told with a cheerful Saturday morning tongue in its cheek and is consistent, by and large, with the tragic-comic tone of the ‘real’ Mike Mignola written Hellboy. The mixture of horror and humour and at least one instance of serious violence did make me wonder who the intended audience was.
The backup story, Pyramid of Death is played entirely for laughs with a young and very enthusiastic Hellboy getting involved in a mystery inspired after he watches a Lobster Johnson TV show. The events of the show play out alongside Hellboy’s current actions in a slightly slapstick but none the less amusing manner.
Overall this book is not essential Hellboy, but it is an interesting and engaging diversion. Where it falls down is that it lacks the kind of character moments and emotional depth that the real Hellboy comics contain in spades. While it would be harsh to describe this as Diet Hellboy it might offer a less dense introduction to the character for people who have not yet tried the full-function version and the quality of the product is certainly high enough to suggest that the animated series itself is worth watching.
The first movie in animated series Hellboy: Sword of Storms is available on DVD in the US on February 6th and is scheduled to be shown on Cartoon Network on December 30th.
There are no UK release dates as yet.
John Davidson Despite working in IT for the last 20 years and collecting comics for even longer, he is married, has two young daughters and lives in Scotland. Ideally he spends his spare time reading and watching movies, but this is curtailed by the calls of child-rearing and part-time study, not to mention the 'call of the internet'.