The end of an arc, but will it be the end for one of our Agents?
Written by Mike Mignola and John Arcudi
Illustrated by James HarrenAs Manhattan erupts with Lovecraftian demons, a young psychic must lead the remaining B.P.R.D. crew through the monster-packed streets of New York back to headquarters for safety, as Liz Sherman goes supernova.
Mark: Back in your review for “B.P.R.D.” #115, you and David said you thought this arc was going to be one of the all-time great B.P.R.D. arcs. Now that’s it’s wrapped up, was it?
Brian: I think it is fair to say that it is. Since you didn’t make an outrageous claim in public, your stakes are lower, but do you agree with the sentiment?
Mark: Absolutely. How could I not? This one has a tremendously epic scale, crazy monsters, and really strong character beats all through it. I did a reread of all five issues just before writing this review and the Prospect Park scene still blows me away.
Brian: Not that it should matter, but as someone who spends a fair amount of time in Prospect Park each summer, that scene is especially chilling. That, truly, is one of the finest sequences in the entire run of the book.
So, the issue picks up and Liz and the Black Flame are still mid-battle, and the agents on the ground are doing their best to escape Manhattan, and are fighting all of the various mutated creatures that have infected the island. Outside of the always-stunning James Harren artwork, was there anything about the early pages of the book you want to comment on?
Mark: Well, I don’t know if you noticed, but the Abe Sapien/Salton Sea Monster cult has a presence in New York. You can see the ichthys on the wall on page four. And I found it genuinely worrying to see Iosif so messed up. I mean, I know he’s a zombie guy, and given his first appearance in “Abe Sapien: The Abyssal Plain” this isn’t exactly the first time he’s lost his guts, but seeing him so far gone is concerning.
Brian: I did not notice that. Damn, you are one eagle-eyed reader!
I, too, am worried about Iosif – he is a character of such mystery, and yet such a likable one, that I really want to see where his story pans out.
This is as good a time as any to discuss Iosif, so let’s get to it: do you trust the guy? At this point, is he truly on the same page as the Bureau? Or does his Varvara-hiding side still give you pause?
Mark: I’ve liked Iosif from day one, back when Varvara was ruining his life in the forties. I was grinning like an idiot when he first appeared again “Russia” as a zombie in a containment suit. I don’t quite know what his motives are, but I still trust the guy, though it’s clear that Varvara really messed him up.
Going into this arc, I was really worried about him. You and David kept talking about somebody dying, and given that Laurence Campbell just drew up a lovely new cast picture, I didn’t see John Arcudi picking off any of them yet. Iosif, though… Well, we’ve seen the future B.P.R.D. craft in “King of Fear” which have since been revealed to be Russian technology, so I’ve often wondered if perhaps the S.S.S. and B.P.R.D. will eventually be collapsed into a single organisation under the U.N.. Losing Iosif is something that could nudge that further along.
Brian: Or is Iosif the person who is the bridge between the two units? Personally, the Iosif/Johann friendship is one of my favorite developments over the past few years, and they seem to be the universally respected, but also supernatural, beings that could potentially get the two groups to work together in a more permanent way.
Mark: Yeah, I loved seeing Iosif’s dedication to Johann in this miniseries. And it makes sense too.
OK, so let’s go into spoiler territory now, because I have so many questions. The biggest of which is where does the B.P.R.D. go from here? In many ways, they’re in a better position than they have been in a long time. They know about Zinco at last. They’ve captured Kurtz. And Liz can easily kill an Ogdru Hem. I half expect her to start doing a world tour, blasting them left, right, and center.
Continued belowHowever, while they now know what their enemy is, how can they defeat it? The Black Flame can be killed, but in doing so Liz would have to become a monster herself. According to the Black Flame, every living creature in New York is his lifeblood now. So Andre, the kid Fenix is getting friendly with, as long as he lives, the Black Flame can’t die. How is the Bureau going to deal with that?
Brian: In terms of where they go from here, I think they, essentially, become firemen – going around, taking care of problems, city by city. Since Liz can kill almost anything, she will be utilized as the big weapon, and let the others deal with the smaller issues. However, before this happens, I think they will be re-organizing and re-shaping their ranks.
As for the Black Flame, that is a really, really tough question. I like how both Liz and the Black Flame share a central belief: life always wins. This is a rare moment of unity for the two of them, but Liz must ask herself the question: does “life” – the overarching life of the planet and humanity – trump “life,” aka Andre and a bunch of rats.
Also, does removing someone from the island sever their connection? Can the Bureau do a wide-scale evacuation of the island, and torch only what is left?
Mark: I’m gonna throw my hands up in the air. I’ve no idea. The next five issues are three shorter stories, but I hope they spend some time dealing with the fallout of this arc.
By the way, how great has this story been for Fenix? It’s been a slow journey, but she’s been stepping up in “Lake of Fire” and now here. It’s really great to see her shouldering such a huge burden as working with the B.P.R.D.. And this is why I think the Liz and Fenix connection works so well too, because Liz once was just like Fenix. She was a young kid taken in by the Bureau and stepped into being an agent because she didn’t really belong anywhere else. And she ran away numerous times. These last two arcs have had massive character growth from Fenix.
But I still like when she interacts with Johann. Those two just don’t get along. And I love that Panya refers to her as a “ragamuffin.” I want to see them interact more in future.
Brian: The way you describe both Fenix and Liz being taken in by the Bureau, doesn’t that sound an awful lot like Hellboy? And where would Johann be, if not for the B.P.R.D.? The majority of the Bureau is made up of humans just like you and me; but there are also these orphans that are special, and who get taken in.
Forgive the inclusion of non-Mignola comics here, but the Bureau is almost like Ma and Pa Kent (or Pharaoh’s daughter, to take it back to Moses and the Book of Exodus), taking in little Kal-Els and helping them grow into the planet-saving people they become.
Mark: Yeah, but the Bureau was always just an organisation. Hellboy made it a family. And that spirit carried on after he left. That core group of Liz, Abe, Roger, and Johann, had a real family group feel to it. After “King of Fear” that unit has been in tatters, but in this arc, it’s really started to pull together again. That’s just another element that makes me like this one so much.
Brian: I can’t believe we’ve gone this far without specifically singing the praises of one Mr. James Harren. This issue had a lot of great moments, visually, but I think I have to, again, focus on his insanely over the top Black Flame/Liz stuff. David likened it to a video game boss level, and that is the best description I can think of for it.
Mark: Ha! I was trying to rein it in a bit to avoid being too gushy, but yeah, his work was amazing all through this arc. His sense of scale is really impressive; the way he can go from crazy monsters emerging from the sea to much smaller moments like Fenix’s glee at seeing Bruiser again. And the atmosphere in that sequence when Tian, Andre, and Fenix were looking for Liz was so surreal and yet grounded. How does a person draw skyscrapers tumbling into the ocean in a way that feels so real? That should be impossible, right? Honestly, I don’t think there’s anything he can’t do.
Continued belowBrian: You’re right – the guy is an absolute superstar. Take a look back at the issue, and one thing becomes really, really clear: the eyes of his characters tell the story perfectly. You mention Fenix’s reunion with Bruiser, but you could have also said Leonid’s hesitation to leave the group with Iosif, or the resignation on Liz’s face when she is pulled out of the ground. All of these incredible human moments co-exist with stunning, epic, huge, crazy events happening all around them.
God damn is it glorious.
Mark: As much as I love his action scenes, I like his human moments more, and it’s where I can see him growing the most as an artist. Take a look at “Abe Sapien: The Devil Does Not Jest” and then “The Long Death” then this, and you can see his character work evolving in leaps and bounds. The eyes are fantastic, but it’s not just limited to that. He can draw a character as a distant figure with gesture so clear you feel the mood they’re in effortlessly.
So yes, it is god damn glorious.
Brian: Anything else to add before we grade it?
Mark: Only that I have no idea what to expect next. This arc is going to have huge ramifications. So, that said, this issue’s a 9 for me. And you?
Brian: 9 sounds just about right to me. 9!
Final Verdict: 9
Mark: Also out this week is the final issue of “Dark Horse Presents” in its eighty-page format. Included is a new Witchfinder story from Mike Mignola and Ben Stenbeck (who drew the first Witchfinder miniseries). The story serves as a reminder to readers who Sir Edward is before next month’s “Witchfinder: The Mysteries of Unland.” It’s only a short story, but I think there is more to this one than is first apparent. A Lovecraftian statue like the one seen in this story has appeared in “Dark Horse Presents” before, in a Lobster Johnson story two years ago.
I can’t help but wonder if we’ll see more statues like this in future. Perhaps if Hellboy or other B.P.R.D. agents venture into Bolivia… But in the meantime, this is well worth checking out. And hopefully it won’t be too long before we’re seeing more Mignolaverse stories in “Dark Horse Presents” when it returns in its new format in August.
