In 2014, I created a Hellboy Universe reading for Multiversity Comics and every year since, I updated with all the latest books. This is not an official reading order, because there isn’t an official reading order. There is no one way to read the Hellboy Universe. Most of the series in the Hellboy Universe can stand alone. “Hellboy,” “B.P.R.D.,” “Witchfinder,” and “Lobster Johnson” are are great starting points for new readers—just follow the numbers on the book spines. If you’re only interested in “Lobster Johnson,” dive right in—there’s no prior reading required.
However, if you’re up for a deep dive into EVERYTHING, you might find this reading order useful. The Mignolaversity reading order prioritizes the library editions and omnibus editions. If that’s not how you want to experience the series, maybe there’s another reading order that may work for you. I’ve linked a whole bunch of ’em below, as well as other useful resources.
While I’ve tried to keep the Mignolaversity reading order simple, the “Hellboy” series is collected in both library editions and omnibus editions, which collect the stories in radically different orders. To accommodate both, the reading order is split into two columns: stick to the left if you’re reading “Hellboy” in trade paperbacks or the library editions, or stick to the right if you’re reading “Hellboy” in the omnibus editions. If you’d prefer a text-based version, I have one available here.
A final note for new readers: once a trade paperback has been collected into an omnibus, there are no further reprints of that trade. If a trade is collected in an omnibus, that’s going to be the easiest way to track down those stories. If you read digitally, the trade paperbacks and omnibus editions are readily available on ComiXology and Dark Horse Digital. However, the library editions are not available as digital volumes.
Thanks to Julix, David Hyde, and Katii O’Brien for the their help this year. And if you need a larger version of reading order, just click the image below.
Other Reading Orders
If you’re interested in other reading orders, here’s some that other readers have come up with:
Hellboy Book Club
This is my personal favorite reading order (and not because I played a role in shaping it). The reason I made Mignolaversity’s Hellboy Universe reading order, and why I make sure to update it annually, is because I don’t just love the books, I also love the community around the books. The Hellboy Book Club taps into that community in a fantastic way. There’s nothing like working your way through a book and then digesting it with the book club after. The hosts, John Salinas, Danielle Reneé, and Aubrey Lovelace, all have such different points of view on the material and add so much to the conversation. This is not a “the comic was good” podcast; their approach is detailed and critical. Plus it’s great to just read some comics and talk to your friends. (And if you do give this a lesson, be sure to send them a “Hey you damn guys!” Listener feedback is a huge part of the podcast.)
Aw, crap! A Hellboy Podcast
For many of the same reasons I listed the previous podcast, Mark David Christenson and Kait Thompson’s podcast is a deep dive into this universe that heavily promotes the social aspect of reading the comics. This podcast is taking things slower, generally taking three episodes or so to get through the major arcs, and has special episodes talking to writers or focusing on particular aspects of the art.
Julix’s reading orders
Julix has put together several different reading orders based on format, timeline, publication, and even has a section for the out-of-continuity material. As much as I love the the omnibuses and library editions, just by sheer volume of material collected they can tend to force some awkward transitions jumping between different titles, and Julix’s order often feels more natural (and it’s actually much closer my own personal reading order than the one I post here on Multiversity Comics). This one gets a big thumbs up from me.
Julix is also currently running a weekly reading group on the Mignolaversity Discord. The reading schedule is here and here’s an invite to the Mignolaversity Discord.
u/Dimd2’s Essential Reading Order 2023
Posted over on Reddit, this reading order is meant to just be the essentials.
u/stefan1138’s Essential Reading Order
Also posted on Reddit, this reading order likewise just meant to be the essentials, however it’s still being created.
The Comics Bookcase’s reading order
The Comics Bookcase released their own reading order in 2020, building on Sean T. Collin’s reading order from 2015. It is focused only on the trades, some of which can be quite difficult to track down now, however it does include an interesting “best of” section at the end.
Fabien’s Reading Order
Originally published in 2017, Fabien has been diligently updating this order periodically, with the latest being June this year. This reading order is focused on the trade collections, and has some conversation about each section, often labelling titles as optional, and splitting off entire series like “Witchfinder” into their own sections at the end. It also includes discussion about the prose novels too.
Hellboy Media’s reading order (in Russian)
This includes a breakdown of each series and a chronological list of stories. It also includes a chronological list for the Baltimore—Joe Golem Universe. This list is regularly updated.
The Hellboy Universe Publishing Order
This is a story by story reading order based on the debut of the first issue of an arc or miniseries. There’s not really much more to it than that. I’ve been keeping this order updated since February 2009, back when it was on the Dark Horse forums.
Hellboy Wiki Publishing Order
This is not really a reading order, but rather a table showing when every single issue came out. I’m putting it here for the sake of being thorough.
Fraser Sherman’s Chronological Reading Order
If you’re new to the Hellboy Universe, don’t use this one. Chronological reading order is really only good for rereads, so this for readers that have read it all before and want to experience this universe a new way. Truth be told, it is a very fractured, high effort reading experience. It jumps from book to book and even at times mid-story. It hasn’t been updated since 2018 at this point either.
Brooks Child’s story finder
This isn’t a reading order, but if you’re looking for a specific story, Child’s list will show you where you can find it.
My Personal Reading Order
Like last year, I’m including my personal reading order, though I haven’t updated it since last year. It’s not a reading order, but rather a reading tree, and it is monstrously complicated.
Anyway, I hope this helps you. If you find any other reading orders you like, please link them in the comments section below.
