Written by: Mike Mignola
Illustrated by: Richard CorbenEisner Award-winning horror masters Mike Mignola and Richard Corben present this bloodcurdling double–feature comic with Hellboy entering two very different, but very deadly, houses–a carnivorous home and a pagan temple, both hungry for human sacrifices.
Anytime the names “Mignola” and “Corben” are on the front cover of a comic, I’m buying it. That’s a fact. Does this issue live up to the awesome of this year’s “Hellboy in Mexico?”
Find out after the jump.
Mike Mignola and Richard Corben are two of the best individual storytellers in comics right now, and when you pair them up into one book like they have been on numerous Hellboy features (namely, The Crooked Man and Hellboy in Mexico) you get some pretty damn incredible comic booking. This one-shot is no different, as Hellboy: Double Feature of Evil tells two different stories that are little looks at Hellboy’s history as paranormal detective that could fit in at any time but don’t really have a home that we know of. Yet, for those looking for a truly revelatory story that fits up there with the best of the best like their aforementioned collaborations will be a bit disappointed.
Both stories are little vignettes of horror, with the former telling a story that is, in a lot of ways, an adult and Hellboy-fied version of Monster House (yes, the children’s movie). When Hellboy shows up in a small town to help a man named Sullivan who claims to be killing people (but not because he wants to), we know the story he tells is a bit inaccurate – and so does Hellboy – but he takes the case anyways. The story that unfolds is filled with delicious little moments, like the final fate of Mister Sullivan as well as the final showdown between Hellboy and the spirit. All beautifully rendered by Corben of course, who is probably the best non-Mignola Hellboy artist out there. He captures the spirit and darkness of these stories incredibly well, while also imbuing it with a real sense of humanity as well.
The second story is a quick one, telling the tale of Hellboy helping a damsel in distress from a gift shop employee at a museum who has unleashed mummies and death upon his work thanks to his keen eye for detail from the gift shop. This story is a really fast one, but one that is fantastic thanks to the final fate of this gift shop employee. I love what Mignola and Corben do here, and it’s just another example of how great their creative pairing is.
Both stories are framed as little grindhouse flicks that a slew of zombies watch, and it’s kind of an odd but fitting framing device. I especially liked it at the end when they actually depict one clapping at the ending of the last film. I mean come on, that ending would make anyone clap.
While this book is for all intents and purposes completely unnecessary, it’s a really fun read from Mignola and Corben. I enjoyed it greatly, just like I do on all of their collaborations. Here’s hoping we get more from them, as they never cease to impress.
Final Verdict: 8.6 – Buy
