The end of the beginning of several things.
Creative Staff:
Story: Christopher Golden
Art: Matt Smith
Colors: Chris O’Halloran
Letterer: Clem Robins
What They Say:
Anastasia’s archaeological research in the mysterious group known as the Suaren Artea takes her to India, will Hellboy coming along for the ride. The crux of the discovery may be full of ancient bones, but the past is not as dead as they think.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
It’s definitely been interesting getting into a couple of different Hellboy releases over the past year after being away from the property for so long. I’ve definitely found that I prefer the stuff from the 50s era the most and some of the 60s stuff but this late 70s era material is definitely holding its own really well. This series comes from a familiar Hellboy writer as Christopher Golden definitely has delivered once again and their pairing with Matt Smith on the art just hits a sweet spot. There’s certainly a common design that we get across all the main books but Smith definitely has some great layouts here and the new original characters stand out very quickly, especially with Chris O’Halloran’s strong color design.
The finale operates about as you’d expect for a two-part story as we continue to see Hellboy and Anastasia in India. Ahead of their meeting with the professor the next day, the two opt to spend some time together just enjoying the break from everything and they have quite the night – off-panel of course – to the point where it’s clearer now that there’s something more there than just simple flirting. There’s also an ease between the two and I like that she makes clear she wants to deal with any issues of jealousy on her part as quickly as she can. Notably, Hellboy has been married before but it’s related in such a fashion where she’s both impressed and not threatened by it when you get down to it. You have to appreciate that in general but also just the way Hellboy delivers it.
The back half is where we get some action as the professor takes them later that night to the tomb where the skull is and it certainly excites Anastaia as a kind of Rosetta Stone for what she studies. With nods to both her origins of interest and the professors in all of this, we get a good bond established quickly which segues hard into the way creatures are sent in to kill everyone so that Delilah can take the skull. It’s no surprise considering her connection to it and she makes it so clear in telling Anastasia that it’s not hers and to give it back. I do like that Anastasia doesn’t win the day here – nor dies – so we get a relationship to explore but that they don’t keep the skull and a larger mystery now opens up in front of them. But also just expanding one events here with what we do get is pretty enjoyable and the tension of the brief but intense fight is well done.
In Summary:
This series has been pretty fun overall and I like that we basically got two different storylines of different lengths across it. This second story was a bit shorter and felt a little more unfocused overall but it set up things nicely when it comes to Anastasia and Hellboy as well as what they’ll be facing down the line as well. I definitely enjoy the way these two interact with each other and how they flirt and engage in everything so there’s a lot to like with it which helps to balance the slightly less interesting story. Hellboy’s nods toward his past marriage was also an amusing bit just in how it’s presented. The book once again looks great as I expected as Smith and O’Halloran deliver consistently throughout the run and it’s good fun overall.
Grade: B+
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: July 12th, 2023
MSRP: $3.99
