BPRD: The Dead Remembered #3

Written by Mike Mignola and Scott Allie
Art by Karl Moline and Andy Owens

This series, which has examined Liz Sherman's first mission for the BPRD, ends very well in this issue.  Earlier, I found that things felt a little forced at times, but with this last chapter, Mignola and Allie really find their groove, and give us a very good story.

Liz has accompanied Professor Bruttenholm on a mission to Massachusetts to aid an old friend who believes his house is haunted by a victim of the witch trial days.  As it turns out, it's actually the woods that hold the spirit, and Liz and a young local boy are the ones that discover that.

There's a very cool scene where the ghost forces Liz to relive her own experiences, and the art keeps shifting from what is happening to Liz in the present to what happened to the accused witch in the past.  It works very effectively.

I did enjoy getting reacquainted with Liz's character, and look forward to her return to current continuity with the next issue; it's been a long time since we've seen her in BPRD.

BPRD: The Dead Remembered #2

Written by Mike Mignola and Scott Allie
Art by Karl Moline and Andy Owens

One of the things I've appreciated the most about the Mignola-verse of comics (BPRD, Hellboy, and a few other titles) is the way that Mignola and company regularly dig into the character's pasts, and tell stories set throughout the twentieth century.  This series is centred around Liz Sherman, who hasn't been seen in the contemporary stories for a while.

In this three-issue series, Liz is fourteen, and still coming to grips with her abilities.  She's traveled with Professor Bruttenholm to help an old friend deal with a haunting, and it's her first experience in the field.  She's not a proper member of the Bureau yet - it's really just supposed to be a bit of an excursion.  The thing is, she's had the most concrete encounter with the ghost - the spirit of a woman who had been accused of witchcraft back in the Salem days.

Now Liz, and the local boy she's met, want to conduct their own investigation.  The ghost story is pretty standard stuff, but it's basically just a vehicle to delve into Liz's character.  The problem is that the sudden confession of how she killed her parents feels a little awkwardly crammed into the book, like the entire series exists just for this scene, but it doesn't flow well.

So, while this is not the best BPRD comic I've read, it's not awful.  I am curious to see how it ends, but I'm also pleased that said ending is coming soon.  Mostly, because I want to see what's going to happen to Abe after the end of the last mini.

BPRD: The Dead Remembered #1

Written by Mike Mignola and Scott Allie
Art by Karl Moline and Andy Owens

As much as I want to see what is going to happen after the end of the last BPRD Hell on Earth arc, I like that Mignola and company are revisiting some of the earlier days of the Bureau, in a manner we've become completely accustomed to with Hellboy.  This three-issue arc is focused on Liz Sherman, the pyrokine who has been around since the earliest days of Hellboy.

This story is set two years after Liz killed her family when her abilities first manifested, and has come to live with the Bureau.  Hellboy convinces Professor Bruttenholm (how nice to see them in this comic again) to take Liz with him on a ghost-hunting trip to Massachusetts.  She's dripping with attitude, but is also working pretty hard to disguise her interest in what's going on.  It's been a while since we've seen the adult Liz, so I have to wonder if this arc should be seen as a hint that she will be returning soon.

The Hellboy Project: B.P.R.D. War on Frogs #1-4

Written by John Arcudi
Art by Herb Trimpe, Guy Davis, John Severin, Karl Moline, and Peter Snejbjerg

I'm getting very close to the end of my Hellboy Project, where I've been reading one or two Hellboy or Hellboy-related story a day, in their original order of publication, the vast majority for the very first time.  I've gotten to the point where I've mostly bought individual issues instead of trades, and am beginning to think about the long view when I talk about these series.

War on Frogs was a mini-series that came out between other BPRD arcs, each issue focusing on one of the core BPRD characters who don't usually get much play, and fills in some of the things that happened during the BPRD's string of operations against the Frogs, the creatures that have been plaguing them since their title's inception.  This series was also unique because it is the first that doesn't give Mignola a writing credit, and for the wide stable of artists that it brings into the fold. 

The first issue has a Roger story, drawn by Herb Trimpe.  It's nice to see Roger in action again, and it reminds us of his humanity.  The third issue spotlights Liz Sherman, although it's told from the more interesting perspective of a female BPRD operative who looks up to her, but finds her impossible to relate to.

The best issues of the series are the second and fourth.  The second issue, with art by the legendary John Severin, doesn't really feature any of the main characters in an important role, and instead tells us what happened to a squad of operatives who were checking a boat for Frogs.  This story borrows heavily from Alien, as the single Frog picks off the soldiers.  Arcudi writes with the same suspense and tension of that famous movie, and Severin's more realistic art style helps add to the level of terror and believability.  The final issue, about Johann Kraus, is drawn by Peter Snejbjerg, and it looks fantastic. The story, about some Frog spirits that don't depart when their bodies are killed, is interesting. 

I like the way this series sort of reminds us of what the stakes are as we move into the big King of Fear arc.