Written by Mike Mignola
Illustrated by Richard CorbenDevastated over the loss of his luchador comrade to vampires, Hellboy lingers in Mexican bars until he’s invited to participate in the ultimate wrestling match with a vicious Frankenstein monster!
It’s the continuation of 2010’s incredible “Hellboy in Mexico” story and it finds Hellboy wrestling Frankenstein’s monster for the life of a damsel in distress. Don’t pretend you weren’t buying this already, and if you weren’t, good god, please go and buy this right now.
Find a discussion about the pros and cons of the book between myself and MC writer Brian Salvatore.
David: This week marked the arrival of the “first Hellboy graphic novel,” as the Eisner winning team of writer/creator Mike Mignola and artist Richard Corben are back to continue the story they started in the “Hellboy in Mexico” one-shot. Here to discuss it today with me is fellow MC writer Brian Salvatore. Let’s start with the overarching question Brian – did you like this book?
Brian: I did. I thought it was a fun continuation of “Hellboy in Mexico,” as well as being a pretty easy jumping on point for a casual, or even new, fan of the Hellboy series. It wasn’t my favorite Hellboy story, but I did enjoy it. How about you?
David: Well, considering that “Hellboy in Mexico” was my second favorite single issue of 2010, oooohhhhhhh yeahhhhhhh. I loved it. It continues on with the feel of that book in great fashion, and it ties back into the main story beats of “HiM” that worked so damn well.
I guess, if I was looking to nitpick I’d say this: this book could have been a two issue mini-series instead of an OGN, and if it had to be a graphic novel, “Hellboy in Mexico” should have been included. Thoughts?
Brian: I agree completely. We got an early preview of the book for review purposes, and when I downloaded the file, I initially thought, because of the low page count, this this was only a piece of the book. The story is pretty slight to collect in a hardcover book and, yeah, if the point is to give a nice book for your shelf, it only makes sense to include “Hellboy in Mexico” as part of it. (Editor’s Note: Hellboy Editor Scott Allie told us on Twitter that this story continues in the upcoming Dark Horse Presents #7, thus the lack of “Hellboy in Mexico” or a finalized collected form in this graphic novel)
David: Exactly. That way you get the complete narrative in one nice collection. I’d KILL to have that on my shelf. But instead, we get a perhaps overpriced but really good story in its place. But enough with the negative. What did you really dig about this book? What stood out?
Brian: Well, a part of my origin story as a super nerd is that, when I was in my early grade school years, I was OBSESSED with horror films. I used to get books from the library of old movies and draw pictures of all the monsters in them. And two of my favorite movies at that age, which my dad bought for me at a horror convention, were House of Frankenstein and House of Dracula, both of which were referenced in the acknowledgments page. That got me excited for the book before the story even started. If you’ve never seen them, those movies are cheesy anthology stories that had a central character or two who would interact with Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, and the Wolfman in their own little stories. And so, truth be told, I was satisfied before the action even started.
But, one of my favorite elements of Hellboy stories in general is the juxtaposition between this disturbing monster of a man and the matter of fact way he interacts with the world around him. That is even more fun when the world around him is full of luchadores!
But Corben’s art is what really struck me. He manages to combine some of the best parts of the horror world, but still retains some of that R. Crumb/San Francisco indies of the ’60s feel. I can’t think of another artist really like him.
Continued belowDavid: True that. I’m kind of an interesting fan of the Hellboy series in that I’d say Mike Mignola is my least favorite artist of the lot (I still love him!), and Richard Corben is one of my two favorites. His work on this OGN might have been his best work yet.
I like what you had to say about blending the San Francisco indies look into it. That seems to be his kind of deal, and it really stood out in parts here. His storytelling is just so damn good though, and the subtle emotions he can convey in facial expressions and mannerisms. The guy is an underrated giant of the industry in my book.
That said, going back to what you said, my two favorite things here are a) the introduction from Mignola that you mentioned and how it factored into the story and b) that the story continues to mine the fertile horror grounds of Mexico.
Brian: Yes. I was also impressed with how much of Mexico is in play here; the spirituality, the wrestling, the fascination with the occult. And yet, none of it seems shoehorned in; the story telling is so rich, both in text and in art, that this just feels like it has to be in Mexico, even if it was never mentioned (and if the wrestlers weren’t wearing luchadore masks).
David: Absolutely.
I have a question for you: did it seem like Dave Stewart gave (for organic purposes) everything else in the book besides Hellboy muted browns and grays and blues, almost to naturally remind the reader that Hellboy was the outsider with his bold red?
Brian: Yes, except when in the wrestling ring or when blood is present. The wrestling masks are just as bright and garish as Hellboy’s skin, and he even wears a mask in the ring, because it is only in the super-exaggerated world of professional wrestling that Hellboy is just one of the guys.
And the blood coloring reminds us that Hellboy = pain/hell/punishment.
David: Yeah. Man. I really loved a lot of parts in this book. I could go on and on. The ending with the funeral procession, the constant reminders of Esteban, the Monster and Hellboy getting a drink…it was a book filled with a lot of damn solid moments.
Was there anything you didn’t like besides our discussed problems with the format/cost?
Brian: Not really. Before we started the review, we were discussing our personal levels of Hellboy fandom, and where David is a rabid fan, I am more of a casual fan of the series but, let me tell you, this book made me want to go back and get myself more caught up in the world.
David: Good god, you should!
Brian: Was there anything you would have changed/added/subtracted?
David: As far as the story is concerned?
Brian: Yeah – was there anything you felt wasn’t up to snuff?
David: Ah. Not really. I thought it was a great story that continued the tradition and tale of one of my all-time favorite Hellboy stories. There wasn’t much for me to not like. I have to say, I’m even more excited about it because it got you interested in getting all up in Hellboy’s business.
So what do you say, we both throw down our final verdicts and average the two?
Brian: Well, I was totally engrossed in it from before the damn thing started, and couldn’t put it down, loved the artwork, and it made me want to dig deeper into the Hellboy books. If it wasn’t for its lack of “Hellboy in Mexico,” I would give it a 9.5, so let’s knock it down a half point for a 9.0. What about you?
David: That’s exactly what I was thinking. The only demerit I can give it is the unbalanced nature of its cost/story length, which you can’t really blame the creative team for. But for that reason, I’ll knock it down to a 9. But I loved it long time.
Brian: So, that looks like a solid 9.0, with an enthusiastic buy from both of us.
David: God, I almost said “hell yeah” but that would be a little on the nose. So instead I say that it sure does.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy
