HELLBOY: WEIRD TALES

HELLBOY: WEIRD TALES

By Mike Mignola and a variety of writers and artists

$24.99, Dark Horse Comics, 261 pgs.

ISBN 978-1616555108

Writer/artist Mike Mignola’s genre-bending Hellboy series—equal parts two-fisted pulp heroics and supernatural horror—is one of the independent comics scene’s most enduring titles. This collection is a bit of an oddity in the Hellboy library in that (with the exception of the first couple stories in the book) it isn’t Mignola’s work. Rather, this is a collection of short stories by an all-star lineup of creators, originally produced to coincide with the release of the first Hellboy film in 2004, but released only recently in hardcover form.

The stylistic approaches to these stories are all over the map, as one would expect from a collection of this nature. The stories take place in different times and places, highlighting the range of tales one can tell in the wide-open playground that is the Hellboy universe. Some are funny, most are action-packed, and a couple are genuinely eerie. It’s a lot of fun seeing Hellboy in the hands of creators other than Mignola and his usual collaborators, and fans of the series will find much to appreciate here.

TIPS FOR LIBRARIANS: From a librarian’s perspective, the book’s only real shortcoming is that it isn’t a very good introduction to Hellboy or the world he inhabits. If you’ve got room in your collection development budget for only one Hellboy book, this isn’t the best option. Instead, go with either HELLBOY Vol. 1: SEED OF DESTRUCTION (ISBN 978-1593070946) or, if you can afford it, HELLBOY LIBRARY EDITION Vol. 1: SEED OF DESTRUCTION AND WAKE THE DEVIL (ISBN 978-1593079109), which collects the first two Hellboy story arcs in one hardcover edition.

READERS’ ADVISORY TIPS: Readers who enjoy genre mash-ups, rejoice…this book has them all! The stories herein should also resonate with fans of pulp action-adventure, horror, and mythology.

CONTENT ADVISORY: Horror violence; some nudity; some adult language; material some readers may find ideologically offensive