2019 was both a big and small year for Mike Mignola’s comics. It was big in that it brought “B.P.R.D.” to an end, and with it plotlines that had been running for twenty-five years, going all the way back to the first “Hellboy” miniseries, ‘Seed of Destruction.’ But after that it was quiet, with the rest of the year mostly being “Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.” stand-alone arcs.
However, January 2020 is looking busy again with three new issues coming out set to come out and a new hardcover omnibus to follow in March. Check out Multiversity Comics’ look at what’s ahead for Mike Mignola’s titles below.
Mike Mignola! Chris Roberson!
HELLBOY WINTER SPECIAL 2019
Written by Mike Mignola, Chris Roberson, and Scott Allie
Illustrated by Márk László, Leila del Duca, and Andrea Mutti
Colored by Dave Stewart, Michelle Madsen, and Lee Loughridge
Lettered by Clem RobinsOn sale Jan 15
FC, 32 pages
$3.99
One-shotCelebrate the season in true Hellboy fashion!
Meet a ghostly miser in an alternate reality, fear the Boogam of rural New York, and embrace the wrath of St. Hagan in this trio of occult winter tales! The familiar faces of Hellboy, Sarah Jewell, and the legendary Knights of St. Hagan will help you ring in the new year with all the shivers you can take—and not all of them from the cold!
• Three short stories in one issue!
Mark Tweedale: This is the first time a “Hellboy Winter Special” has a line-up of artists all entirely new to the Hellboy Universe. I’m not familiar with Márk László’s work, but I enjoyed Leila del Duca’s work in “Sleepless,” and Andrea Mutti‘s body of work speaks for itself. It’s a great mix of stories too: a ghost story with Hellboy; a new Sarah Jewell story (always eager to see more of her); and a tale about the Knights of Saint Hagan (which you may remember from “Hellboy: The Bride of Hell”). I can’t help but be a little extra excited about these last two, since there have been stories in past “Hellboy Winter Specials” that have been lead ins to full miniseries. I would love a Sarah Jewell or Knights of Saint Hagan miniseries.
SIR EDWARD GREY
WITCHFINDER: THE REIGN OF DARKNESS #3 (of 5)
Written by Mike Mignola and Chris Roberson
Illustrated by Christopher Mitten
Colored by Michelle Madsen
Lettered by Clem RobinsOn sale Jan 29
FC, 32 pages
$3.99
MiniseriesAfter consulting Panya about the Ripper case and Asquith’s suspicious connections with the Heliopic Brotherhood of Ra, the Witchfinder sneaks into the Brotherhood’s temple. But he’s completely unprepared for the informant he finds there! Meanwhile, a turn in Sarah Jewell’s undercover operation in Proserpine Home suddenly makes her search for the truth much more urgent.
Mark: ‘The Reign of Darkness’ seems like it will draw to a close the 1879–1889 period in which Sir Edward Grey was in Her Majesty’s service. Since the Ripper investigation is in 1888, it’s jumping ahead four years from ‘The Gates of Heaven.’ Considering that last arc introduced so many new side characters (some familiar, some new), it’ll be interesting to catch up and see how they’ve developed. I expect this is going to be setting up what’s next for Sir Edward: his time as a paranormal investigation as a member of the Silver Lantern Club from 1889 to 1908. But more fascinating than that is the Ripper case—not because Jack the Ripper is a particularly fascinating story, but because Mike Mignola’s been sitting on this story for so long. He’s been hinting there’s more to the Ripper case than we know for well over a decade. I’m eager to see what he has in store for us.
Continued belowMignola takes on Frankenstein!
FRANKENSTEIN UNDONE #1 (of 5)
Written by Mike Mignola and Scott Allie
Illustrated by Ben Stenbeck
Colored by Brennan Wagner and Dave Stewart
Lettered by Clem RobinsOn sale Jan 29
FC, 32 pages
$3.99
MiniseriesFrankenstein’s creator lies dead in the icy grip of the Arctic, and the monster searches for a new purpose. Just as he thinks he’s found one with a group of unlikely companions, disaster strikes—and the monster is catapulted out of Mary Shelley’s novel and into the world of Hellboy.
Bridging Mary Shelley’s original Frankenstein novella and Mike Mignola’s Frankenstein Underground, this series brings together Mignola, Scott Allie, Ben Stenbeck, Brennan Wagner, and Clem Robins for an all-new horror adventure in the far north.
Mark: I’m pretty excited about this one. “Frankenstein Underground” was a popular title with the Mignolaversity team, and even though it was short lived, it keeps on coming back up again. Frankenstein’s monster is certainly a character worthy of more exploration. Plus, there’s that bit about tying it all back to Mary Shelley’s novel, which Mike Mignola had previously described as “a slightly fictionalized account of something that really happened.” It wasn’t something I really ever expected to be explored, but I’m all for it.
In case you missed it, I had a quick chat with Ben Stenbeck last Thursday when the title was announced.
BALTIMORE
OMNIBUS VOLUME 2 (hardcover)
Written by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden
Illustrated by Ben Stenbeck and Peter Bergting
Colored by Dave Stewart and and Michelle Madsen
Lettered by Clem RobinsOn sale Mar 18
FC, 576 pages
$34.99
HC, 7″ x 10″Lord Baltimore’s quest for vengeance against the Red King escalates in the second half of the Baltimore saga, which includes a new bonus story with art by Ben Stenbeck!
Finally armed with the identity of the being responsible for the vampire plague, Baltimore and his band of allies take on the evil around them with a new fervor. Enemies old and new, desperate battles, and strange horror await the reader as they follow Baltimore toward his ultimate destiny.
• Includes a brand-new short story with art by Ben Stenbeck!
• Deluxe omnibus HC with over 500 pages!
Mark: Honestly, the individual volumes of “Baltimore” are pretty great, so it’s really the completionist in me that needs every story that’s driving me to collect pick this up. I wonder if the new story will more firmly link “Baltimore” with “Joe Golem”. . .
