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As great as it has been to have Mike Mignola's creative input used in the Hellboy films, one of the drawbacks has been that he has stepped away from the art table in recent years and focused primarily on writing. However, on the plus side, it has allowed talented artists to step in and give unique interpretations of this universe. This series is a reunion of Mignola with artistic legend Richard Corben, creative team on 2006's Hellboy: Makoma series. What I find especially great about Corben's work on this series (and on Makoma, for that matter), is that it balances Mignola's signature look with Corben's unique style.
For folks who haven't read Hellboy books before, I would recommend beginning with the first trade, Wake the Devil, but unlike my typical recommendation, you certainly don't need to in order to understand or appreciate this latest series. The narrative of the Hellboy series jumps back and forth in time with each series, and while for instance, Mignola and Corben's first series took place in 1993, The Crooked Man takes place in 1958. Here, Hellboy finds himself traveling in the Appalachian Mountains, and he has somehow stumbled upon a mystery involving witchcraft and someone known as The Crooked Man, who is probably much more than the unassuming name would indicate.
I found the story super-creepy, which was perfect for the subject matter. This series is the equivalent of a lower budget Hellboy movie, relying on atmosphere and direction to communicate the horror elements. (Well, so far.) While I have little doubt the Samaritan will be needed to shoot something at some point in the series, it's a lot of fun to see a change of pace from the bigger scope of some of the recent series since it shows the depth the character can have, especially since he is working alone here.
As with most Hellboy series, I am looking forward to the next issue. The difference from recent series is that I'm not looking for it to reveal a major secret of Hellboy's past, but I'm "just" looking forward to another great story.