- Written by: Mike Mignola & Scott Allie
- Art by: Christopher Mitten
- Colouring by: Brennan Wagner
- Lettering by: Clem Robins
- Cover by: Christopher Mitten
Intro:
Hellboy and the B.P.R.D have returned for another mission and this time Big Red is teaming up with B.P.R.D Agent Kinsley to solve a mysterious case in Tatoskok Falls. New Hampshire, New England in the year 1975.
After some research I discovered that Tatoskok is actual a name given to a plesiosaur-like creature that has had reported sightings since 1609. The name Tatoskok is, however, the name used by the Abenaki Native Americans living in that area, whilst everyone else knows it by it’s modern name of Champ, which derives from the Lakes name, Lake Champlain, named after the one of the earliest and possibly first reporters of the sighting of the creature, Samuel de Champlain.
This could be a clue to the creature that we might see in this Hellboy story, but if not, it’s still a fun fact!
Plot:
Local Police of New Hampshire have discovered multiple corpses, dating back over a period of decades, accompanied by a wall full of graffiti of occult symbols. So, who better to call for help than the primary investigators of the paranormal, the B.P.R.D and their most famous agent, Hellboy.
Issue one introduces us to the characters and gives us a look at the investigative side of the plot, as the characters all share their theories as to what could have committed these murders and why. Hellboy doesn’t say much in this first issue but later on whilst talking privately with Agent Kinsley, he finally adds his own theories, claiming that it could possibly be a vampire or werewolf that murdered the victims. With very little evidence to go on besides a timeline of corpses and the fact that the later dated corpses have had their hearts removed, the case remains a mystery for now.
Meanwhile away from the main plot, we have a small side plot involving Liz Sherman, who you may know if you’ve watched the 2004 Hellboy film by Guillermo del Toro, starring Ron Perlman as Hellboy and Selma Blair as Liz Sherman. Liz has the ability of Pyrokinesis, which means she can create and control fire using her mind, somewhat like the Human Torch from Marvel’s Fantastic Four, but instead of becoming engulfed in flame, Liz can manifest it without burning all of her clothes off.
Professor Bruttenholm is keeping Liz away from the outside world because Liz has not yet learned to properly control her abilities, which Liz resents him for doing because she feels like a prisoner. She has a special connection with Hellboy and demands to see him, but with Hellboy busy on a mission, Liz begins to think he doesn’t want to see her, and feels trapped inside the B.P.R.D headquarters.
Art:
Mignolaverse veteran Christopher Mitten returns to create some beautiful sketches. Having worked on many Mignola stories in the past such as Rasputin: Voice of the Dragon, B.P.R.D: The Devil You Know, and Witchfinder: The Reign of Darkness it should come as no surprise that Mitten delivers a classic Mignola art style accompanied with fresh colours by Brennan Wagner.
Overall this issue felt somewhat slow but informative, with no action scenes and somewhat confusing dialogue (for me personally). However I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and I am ready to dive headfirst into #2 as soon as possible.
Media Mallrat 
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