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Jun 09, 2017 Web Exclusive By Jeremy Nisen

Hellboy: Into the Silent Sea has a lot going for it. Per usual with a Mike Mignola-verse project, the art-in this case by Gary Gianni, who also co-wrote the book with Mignola-is simply gorgeous. It’s quite evocative; you can feel the cold wind and desperation of being on the high seas, chained by pirates who are perhaps getting involved with macabre forces beyond their capabilities to handle. It’s a self-contained tale as well, which provides just enough context for where Hellboy is in his journey without becoming ponderous. And we appreciate the humor, primarily from the protagonist.

Plot-wise, there’s just not a lot of ground being broken; the action feels a little hackey. Perhaps the book is a victim of the high bar that Hellboy and ancillary titles have set over the past decades in that it just didn’t excite much. Better than okay, but not, say, a must-purchase stocking stuffer, which is usually how we treat our favorite self-contained volumes. Hellboy completists will surely not want to miss it, but the casual Hellboy fan or those wanting to delve into Hellboy for the first time may want to explore other books first. (www.darkhorse.com)

Author rating: 6/10