Can somebody recommend some Hellboy trades?

[Greg Waite]

I bought the trade on which the movie is based on and the movie was great. The trade itself was fun and action filled.

So can someone here recommend some other Hellboy trades?

My fav character (besides Hellboy) is Abe Sapien. He was funny and charming in the movie.

[Hellcow]

I bought the trade on which the movie is based on and the movie was great. The trade itself was fun and action filled.

So can someone here recommend some other Hellboy trades?



All of them!

And read them in order too. While this is not essential, there are some events that effect the future of Hellboy's world.

And the good new is.... after you have read all of the Hellboy TPBs, the BPRD trades are really great too, so you can find out what is happening to the rest of the team after Hellboy went his own way.

[Maija]

I recommend starting with the Right Hand of Doom TPB, which is an assortment of Hellboy stories. Some fill in details of Hellboy's backstory, others are just fun monster encounters. It was my first Hellboy read.

Chained Coffin and Others would be my second choice (it was the second TPB I read). It's also an assortment, it just doesn't contain quite as many of my favourite stories as RHOD, although it does have some great ones. Also, RHOD sketches in more of Hellboy's life story than Chained Coffin does.

I read the TPBs out of order and had no troubles keeping things sorted, probably because Mike Mignola was always rather vague anyway about Hellboy's back story (until the Strange Places arc, at any rate, which should be left to last, for continuity).

Personally, I wouldn't start with Seed of Destruction (the first TPB). It's my least favourite of all the TPBs. I don't mind it, but I'm glad I didn't read it first, or I might have been put off of Hellboy, or at least reluctant to embrace it as I have. Although the story is Mignola's, it was written by John Byrne and the voice isn't the same. It's worth reading later, once you've gotten into Hellboy by other avenues so you know Mike's writing. It should be read to get Mignola's version of Hellboy's origin story (vs. the movie).

[Hellcow]

Personally, I wouldn't start with Seed of Destruction (the first TPB). It's my least favourite of all the TPBs. I don't mind it, but I'm glad I didn't read it first, or I might have been put off of Hellboy, or at least reluctant to embrace it as I have.

I still really enjoyed it, Byrne or no Byrne. No way in hell it could have put me off Hellboy.

It's been a long time since I last read it. Maybe I should read it again now, it might give me a different persepctive?

[Neil Hill]

I second everything Ruta said, but for one caviat. Although Seed of Destruction was allegedly written by Byrne (although Mike admitted later that the majority of the dialogue at a certain point was his own- albeit tweaked a bit by Byrne and an inner monologue added), the "voice" of the character and the overall story are still very much Mike.

I'd say it's a moot point though as to whether or not to start with Seed, as the person who started this Thread had already read that story first. Regardless of where you start or end though, you should be in great hands. All of the trades are unique, but thematically very much in the same universe, so getting too lost or over your head should be difficult.

[Maija]

I second everything Ruta said, but for one caviat. Although Seed of Destruction was allegedly written by Byrne (although Mike admitted later that the majority of the dialogue at a certain point was his own- albeit tweaked a bit by Byrne and an inner monologue added), the "voice" of the character and the overall story are still very much Mike.I was thinking very specifically of the [*cringe*] inner monologue.

The inner monologue is a very self-conscious device that is too often employed as a story telling crutch. Too often the inner monologue is telling us things we can gather directly from the images and dialogue. It smashes the rule of "don't tell, SHOW."

It's tempting to go through Seed of Destruction with a Jiffy marker and black out all of Hellboy's inner monologue. It can easily be read without it (not to mention those first two pages from the soldier's diary that could have been boiled down to three lines).

Hellboy, this guy who goes on to tell other chatty characters "Big talk for a guy with no pants" and "SHUT UP!" won't shut up in Seed of Destruction.

The horror of Hellboy lives in malicious silence. ;)

[morna]

hahahahahahahahaha! yes the *cringe-factor*
It truly might have put me off the whole hellboy thing if I'd had the misfortune to read that one first.

[Gary_B]

So can someone here recommend some other Hellboy trades?


There are only six and they are all excellent reads. You've already read #1 so keep going.

[Neil Hill]

I was thinking very specifically of the [*cringe*] inner monologue. The inner monologue is a very self-conscious device that is too often employed as a story telling crutch. Too often the inner monologue is telling us things we can gather directly from the images and dialogue. It smashes the rule of "don't tell, SHOW."

Oh I completely agree that in hindsight John's inner monologue, now that we've all seen Mike's version of the dialogue, seems out of place now. I always assumed that John wrote it that way because HB was supposed to be a paranormal detective, and that inner monologue approach is very reminiscent of old hard-boiled Mickey Spillane type detective stories.

Again, Mike has since established that Hellboy is more of a think with his fists type and much less cerebral than the version John started us all off with, but IMO that doesn't invalidate what John was trying to do. Not that you were implying that Ruta, as you were expressing more of a preference than an invalidation, but well, I think you understand my meaning. :D

[Maija]

Gary just made me realize that you said in your initial post that you've already read Seed of Destruction. For some reason I read your post and thought you had read the movie novelization and none of the TPBs. My reading comprehension skills need some work. :p

So if you liked that one then you'll really enjoy the subsequent TPBs!

[Kelly Tindall]

"Wake the Devil" is my favorite right now, and it picks things up right after "Seed of Destruction". There's a lot of stuff for Abe, too. (which moves into his origin story in "B.P.R.D.: Plague of Frogs")

The best Abe story is probably the Beast of the Apocalypse story in "Right Hand of Doom", and the stories there are mostly self-contained.

I really recommend reading them in order.

-K.