Screw the DC relaunch – this issue of Hellboy truly marks the end of an era. The mega-arc that has been the “main” Hellboy miniseries comes to its conclusion with this issue, and it looks like one of the running subplots will be taking over as the primary story. But how was this issue? Follow the cut, as per usual, and you’ll see. By the way: no spoilers! At least, I don’t think.
Written by Mike Mignola
Illustrated by Duncan FegredoWith her tower in ruin, and her body a vessel for the Ogdru Jahad, the Queen of Blood shows no mercy to Hellboy as their final battle meets a stunning conclusion! The conclusion of the epic story that began in 2007’s Darkness Calls.
Just for a little bit of background, I only recently got into Hellboy. In fact, my timing was pretty much perfect – I finished The Wild Hunt about a week ago. Like many others, I had been completely hooked, and today yesterday I sat down and binged this whole mini in one sitting. I can only assume that those fans who have been following Big Red since the first issue of Seed of Destruction – or even earlier! – were just as pleased as I, a relative newcomer, was with the quality of this issue.
For the most part, this is a slugfest of an issue. But boy is it one hell of a slugfest. In the previous issues, we’ve seen Mike Mignola put the finishing touches on how the many kinds of mythology in his universe tie together, and now that we are “in the know” we can sit back and watch the carnage unfold. And while Mignola gets massive props for the story and the scripting of the series as a whole, this issue really lets artist Duncan Fegredo shine. Don’t get me wrong, Mignola started as an artist for a reason, and has one of the greatest and most unique styles I’ve ever seen in the industry, but Fegredo takes that style and injects it with breathtaking vitality. The action in this issue will rock you and throw you around just as much as much as Dragon does Hellboy, and it’s truly something amazing to behold. Fegredo knows how important this issue is, and gives each panel a touch of life that many other comics lack – though it’s a very violent, frantic kind of life. While Mignola deserves accolade upon accolade for this final arc, Fegredo is at least his equal on this issue, and I might even go so far as to call him the true star of the finale.
I don’t mean to underplay Mignola, though. Without spoiling anything, Mignola takes the plot in a few directions that might be considered “standard” in this kind of story, but it’s far from predictable in that sense. Mignola has enough sense to not telegraph these sort of things, and so I can assure you that they will still surprise you – as well as remind you why they’re standards. Not only is this one of the most action-packed Hellboy issues – which is saying something indeed – this is also one of the most powerful. If you’ve been following Hellboy’s adventures from Seed of Destruction until now, I can guarantee you that this is a fulfilling closer of one era, and the beginning of a new one.
Which reminds me of my one problem with this issue: it ends, rather than resolves. I understand that there’s more Hellboy to come, and that this story doesn’t mean that he’s hanging up the Red Right Hand and settling down, but I feel like there wasn’t enough done to “bring me back down to Earth,” so to speak. Don’t get me wrong, the silent sequence that closes the issue – the last couple of panels in particular – are a great way to end this story, but I just feel too many things are left unanswered. Of course, since Hellboy’s story isn’t over, that’s supposed to be the case, but I just feel like it could have been tied up a little bit more neatly. Still, that doesn’t hurt the issue in terms of quality, and is easily excused because we have another mini on its way. Here’s to seventeen years more.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy it!
