Hellboy: The Bride of Hell and Others
Another collection of “Hellboy” short stories? That’s all right by me! Even though I’m eagerly awaiting “The Storm & The Fury,” which is the next major arc in the main Mignola/Fegredo storyline, this collection of one-shots and shorts will tide any fan over until it arrives. These collections are an eclectic affair — as always — since it starts off with the title character teaming up with some Luchadores to battle evil in Mexico, mix it up with a creepy little girl vampire creature, face off against an ancient devil in the title story, and punch aliens in the face. What I’m trying to say here is that this collection really has something for everyone.
It also has the most artists I’ve seen in a (numbered) volume of “Hellboy.” Richard Corben, Scott Hampton, and Kevin Nowlan, along with Mignola himself, contribute art here. They’re all spectacular, with Hampton’s work showcasing an etheral beauty you don’t normally get from the series and which gives his vampire tale a cool Hammer horror movie vibe. Nowlan’s work could’ve been irredeemably goofy with it’s 50’s sci-fi vibe, but his detail grounds the story and it just winds up being funny instead.
However, the real star of this collection is Corben. While he’s worked with Mignola before on “Makoma,” and the excellent “The Crooked Man,” his varied work here shows that aside from his creator, no one handles Hellboy better than him. The shades in his art always give it as sense of realism, which, when contrasted against the cartoonish look of his characters makes them come off as somewhat unnatural. The effect is unsettling, and as a result, even stories about Hellboy palling around with Luchadores have a creepy edge to them. Even though I love Fegredo’s work with Mignola, his achievements are all within the realm of stylistic consistency — that I’m amazed at how well he’s able to replicate another man’s style. With Corben, it’s a different vision of the character and his world, and something that I look forward to seeing more of in the future.