[QUOTE=Angilasman;5380544]By the logic of the original post: Hellboy the Return is gonna knock our socks off in 20+ years.[/QUOTE]
Hahaha, I was thinking the same thing...
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[QUOTE=Angilasman;5380544]By the logic of the original post: Hellboy the Return is gonna knock our socks off in 20+ years.[/QUOTE]
Hahaha, I was thinking the same thing...
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There are some interesting insights in this thread, but I would have always thought that a definitive end would attract more readers.
I mean that is how I got into Hellboy, I came to the Hellboy Forum specifically to ask how to collect and read the books because I heard it was ending.
I think for the general public they prefer a story with a ending especially written by the creator of said story.
Think about Game of Thrones and its fans who have been waiting years for a new book; why would I ever start reading it if I know there is no end?
Hellboy is funny because it is a comic property as well as a literary work, and I am willing to bet that the omnis and library editions are doing extremely well for Mignola.
Would I like to see more Hellboy stories that take place after the end sure, but now I can enjoy the treat of a 3 issue arc, one shot, or OGN, that might pop up now and again.
I am really glad that Mignola ended it on his own terms, especially since I have been reading Claremont's X-Men run and to hear what happened to him; I am really glad that Mignola holds the keys to the kingdom.
Maybe the issue is not that it ended, but how it ended?
Yeah the end of Earth in "Hellboy the end" was a mood killer.
BPRD "Hell on Earth" was fine but it was a slow March to the end. Watching Hellboy forced to give in to his fate was a mood killer and made it hard to return to Hellboy for me.
Very interesting thread. I just finished Devil You Know and have read basically everything following the reading order on the multiversity website, except for the more recent Hellboy and the BPRD series. That made for a great experience, especially as it puts all the little foreshadowing nuggets that the OP mentioned in the right order and context.
Overall I did enjoy the way it ended story-wise. This was hinted at for ages but I was kind of rooting that somehow Hellboy would escape his "destiny". That he didn't made for a bit of a depressing end but not necessarily a bad one - it was not inconsistent with all the foreshadowing that came before.
However, the execution left a lot to be desired. While I do enjoy a good end of the world scenario without a happy ending (I'm weird like that ;)) I would have wished for a less rushed ending. It was insanely fast-paced and actually managed to tie up a lot of threads but I wish there would have been more time for the story to breathe a little bit. For instance when Hellboy is reunited with Abe and Liz, it kind of fell flat. I would have expected some huge character moments, something like the bittersweet joy of seeing each other again but being different people now, all set against the background of the nearing end. Also, the way that there was no epilogue dealing with Hellboy's or Abe's fates felt like a disservice to the characters.
Only one "advantage" of it being over: I can be more relaxed about any future Hellboy stories in that I don't need to analyse everything for possible hints at the larger narrative ;)
[QUOTE=Foxy;5475914]Very interesting thread. I just finished Devil You Know and have read basically everything following the reading order on the multiversity website, except for the more recent Hellboy and the BPRD series. That made for a great experience, especially as it puts all the little foreshadowing nuggets that the OP mentioned in the right order and context.
Overall I did enjoy the way it ended story-wise. This was hinted at for ages but I was kind of rooting that somehow Hellboy would escape his "destiny". That he didn't made for a bit of a depressing end but not necessarily a bad one - it was not inconsistent with all the foreshadowing that came before.
However, the execution left a lot to be desired. While I do enjoy a good end of the world scenario without a happy ending (I'm weird like that ;)) I would have wished for a less rushed ending. It was insanely fast-paced and actually managed to tie up a lot of threads but I wish there would have been more time for the story to breathe a little bit. For instance when Hellboy is reunited with Abe and Liz, it kind of fell flat. I would have expected some huge character moments, something like the bittersweet joy of seeing each other again but being different people now, all set against the background of the nearing end. Also, the way that there was no epilogue dealing with Hellboy's or Abe's fates felt like a disservice to the characters.
Only one "advantage" of it being over: I can be more relaxed about any future Hellboy stories in that I don't need to analyse everything for possible hints at the larger narrative ;)[/QUOTE]
I found the quick combat sequences and desperate battles somewhat an excuse to end quickly things but I generally enjoyed the omnibus and the end even if I also rooted for a different less tragic ending. I just read the Hellboy tbp up to HiHell so and 1st Plague of Frogs so i missed a lot of hints.
Does anybody else miss the days when Mignola did the interiors for Hellboy's comics? Don't get me wrong, I'm quite fond of most of the artists that're currently illustrating the various Hellboy series, but they just don't hold a candle to Mike's work, in my opinion.
[QUOTE=McGavino;5529532]Does anybody else miss the days when Mignola did the interiors for Hellboy's comics? Don't get me wrong, I'm quite fond of most of the artists that're currently illustrating the various Hellboy series, but they just don't hold a candle to Mike's work, in my opinion.[/QUOTE]
Yes, and I don't think the artist now are as good as the early ones they had. Davis, Tonic, Fergredo, they were superb.
[QUOTE=Kirby101;5529584]Yes, and I don't think the artist now are as good as the early ones they had. Davis, Tonic, Fergredo, they were superb.[/QUOTE]
Yeah modern artists are not even close to the skill of these masters, it's crazy how moody the entire Hellboy universe was.