"Post No. 521"

REVIEWING: HELLBOY: WAKE THE DEVIL Trade Paperback Collection (Dark Horse / 1st. Print=1997 / 2nd. print=2003 / Approx. 140 pages / $17.95 / By: creator Mike Mignola / colored by James Sinclair & Dave Stewart / lettered by Pat Brosseau / Introduction by Alan Moore / edited by Scott Allie.)

It'd be difficult for me to give anything but the highest of recommedations for anything done by Mike Mignola, and even more so when it deals with his "Hellboy" character. This fine volume which collects the original Dark Horse 5 issue limited series gives us all of the characters we've come to know and love, such as Hellboy (of course), Abe Sapien, Liz Sherman (plus others) and Mignola throws in such villians as Rusputin, Ilsa Haupstein , and Karl Kroenen (of which many are familiar from their appearences in the first Hellboy live-action movie starring Ron Perilman).

In this collection we discover more about Hellboy's true origin, and Mignola clarifies those things on his forehead and shows his "crown of flame". In fact, this collection along with the Hellboy: Seed of Destruction limited series, carries most of the aspects that were played upon in that first Hellboy film.

And so not to ruin a fine read for anyone who has not viewed this series, I'll tell you no more, save that Mike Mignola does indeed do a bit of editing in this collected volume which will differ a bit from the original limited series, due to the fact that there were some "mistakes" he didn't like, or parts which he considered better by re-editing the originals to make a better flow for the tale. I have absolutely no arguements with Mr. Mignola over doing such since he is the one who created Hellboy, and also find no conflicts in the way he's done this to make the story work better.

There's a new epilogue, plus a 4 page folio of other artists featuring the work of Bruce Timm, P. Craig Russell, Derek Thompson, Dave Cooper, Jay Stephens and Olivier Vatine giving their own interpretations of the main character.

Well worth the bucks! X^D