“Empty Graves” ends in shocking fashion.
Written by Mike Mignola and Christopher GoldenCover by Ben Stenbeck
Illustrated by Peter Bergting
Colored by Michelle Madsen
Lettered by Clem RobinsAfter the Blood-Red Witch disappears with Baltimore, Sofia and the others must fend off her followers while Rose and Kidd follow a new lead to find the witch and save Baltimore.
When I finished this issue, the first thought that jumped into my brain was ‘I hope the next miniseries won’t be the last.’ There’s no mistaking it — “Baltimore” is heading toward its end. You can feel it looming in every page of this issue. Still, I hope the series has a couple more miniseries left. The way “Empty Graves” leaves things hanging makes for a very compelling playground for future stories.
In my review for the previous issue, I observed that Lord Baltimore’s indestructibility means it’s difficult to generate tension with the character, whereas with his companions, their mortality automatically makes everything that much nastier. For example, in the previous issue Marchand’s face was set on fire and I immediately feared for his life. In this issue Baltimore’s face gets set on fire in much the same way and the tension was much less — a few panels later, Baltimore is fine. But there are ways to hurt Baltimore, and it is this underlying idea that gives this issue so much life.
Since this is the final issue of this miniseries, I’m going to be talking about spoilers. You have been warned.
It really doesn’t pay to be one of Lord Baltimore’s companions. I was hoping Marchand would survive, but it’s hardly surprising that he died. If anything, I’m more surprised that only one of Baltimore’s companions died. I was worried for Harish…
And Sofia showed a side of herself we’ve never seen before. Oh, it’s always been clear Sofia was tough as nails, but when she think she’s the last one attending after their skirmish with the Red Witch, she readies herself for a one-person hunt for vengeance. Sound familiar? I think it’s safe to say that Sofia and Baltimore are very similar people. Perhaps this is why she is so good at reading Baltimore.
But it’s the sequence in the Basilica Cistern that I really want talk about. First up, I have to note the haunting art from Peter Bergting and Michelle Madsen. They took a real-world location and made it seem completely otherworldly. This was the perfect location for the birth of a god.
More importantly, it was the perfect location to break Baltimore.
Let me remind you, we have seen him broken before. In the first miniseries and the original novel, when Baltimore returned home to learn of the death of his parents and sister, he became catatonic for months. More horrible things would follow, of course, but Baltimore weathered those better. His terrible return home had hardened him. Since then he’s been a distant, untouchable figure. No matter what happens, he seems incapable of expressing anything more than his intense resolve and anger.
Until “The Cult of the Red King.” In that story, Baltimore discovered there was a part of himself that still longed for connection, even though he scarcely acknowledged it. And with the loss of Childress, his childhood friend, it appeared as though the last bit of Baltimore’s humanity had been destroyed.
You’d think he can’t get any lower than that, but in this issue the Red King returns and takes Childress’s body as his host. And finally we see Baltimore human again. Yeah, he’s angry at first, but it’s the emotion that follows that I find interesting. Baltimore is scared and helpless. He’s fragile.
This, more than anything else in the issue, made me sit up and pay attention. I don’t know this Baltimore — I’ve never been acquainted with him before — and I don’t know what this Baltimore will do next. And that’s an exciting prospect given the circumstances this issue ends with.
There’s also a rift in the group now. Dr. Rose and Mr. Kidd deliberately allowed the Red King to possess Childress. Yeah, it’s for the greater good, but I’m not sure Baltimore will be capable of understanding that given his current emotional state.
Continued belowHaving the Red King in the real world is going to shake things up. For a long time “Baltimore” has been about defeating this evil that threatens the world, but I don’t recall there ever being a sense that they had to hurry. Baltimore could afford lose a day or two here and there, but as long as he persevered, the task would get done.
But after this issue if Baltimore merely perseveres, then he’s going to lose. There’s a ticking clock now.
End of spoilers.
Where does the series go from here? It used to be each new miniseries or one-shot of “Baltimore” stood alone for the most part. There were ongoing elements, but the main conflict was resolved when the miniseries or one-shot ended. But “The Cult of the Red King” didn’t end, and “Empty Graves” picked up right where it left off, and I’m pretty sure the next miniseries will do the same. It appears we’re in the middle of a multi-volume saga now. Will it span three volumes? Four? Five? I don’t know, but it sure makes me anxious for the next issue.
Final verdict: 8.5. A transformative issue that rips at the threads of the “Baltimore” world and rewrites the established structure.
