Batman/Hellboy/Starman #2 (February, 1999)
"Jungle Green Horror"
Writer - James Robinson
Art - Mike Mignola
Colorist - Matt Hollingsworth
Letterer - Willie Schubert
Editor - Peter Tomasi
Cover Price: $2.50
Well, Batman just tagged out to Starman... let's go fight some Lovecraftian Nazis... yup. If you need/want to catch up, part one discussed right here.
--
We pick up a bit after where we left off last issue... Batman is preparing to restart his Joker-hunt, but first, has arranged transportation for Hellboy and Starman to the South American village of San Diablo. On board, Hellboy and Jack discuss the possible reasons why the Knights of October would want his father... whether there's any metaphysical angle to the elder-Knight's work. Jack informs Hellboy that metaphysics really ain't his dad's thing. Jack then goes to sleep.
As the pair approach their destination, Hellboy wakes Jack up and gives him the quick 'n dirty about their operation. We learn that San Diablo was at one time a copper mining town... and the big Nazi boss is Otto Dantz. I mean, we already knew that bit... but we get some backstory here. He is the son of a war criminal... and his Knights of October have some sort of link to the Knights of Templar.
The plane reaches their destination, and the pair hop out using Jack's cosmic rod to safely descend... until, of course they are blasted with a Nazi death ray! They are thankfully able to shake it off... and land without incident. Of course, at this point... they find themselves in a hail of gunfire from Nazi soldiers wearing night-vision goggles!
A fight is on, and Jack and Hellboy are able to hold their own. At this point, Hellboy notices the fact that the baddies are all wearing those night-vision goggles... hmm, and Jack's cosmic rod can really light up the night, right?
With the Nazi grunts out of the way, our duo (plus a hostage) head toward San Diablo proper. There are swastika flags hanging from the buildings and a strange glowing light beaming from a sort of cannon into what appears to be a crater.
Hellboy "convinces" their hostage to spill the beans... and we learn that the Knights of October are trying to raise an... elder god to "do their bidding". Ya know, like an H.P. Lovecraft critter... turns out this one's called Suggor Yogeroth... can't say that without my mouth feeling like it's full of cotton. Anyhoo, Hellboy tells Jack that this isn't so weird, as Lovecraft... "knew some stuff". Interesting...
The hostage continues... Ted Knight was kidnapped due to his familiarity with the stars. The Knights are looking to draw energy from a particular star in order to raise the god. Jack's all "never gonna happen"... but the hostage informs him that Dantz is not above using mind-altering drugs to meet his ends. Before the conversation ends... the god begins emerging!
Hellboy bonks their hostage... and the pair look to hop to it. Unfortunately, neither has a plan. Ehh, that's no problem... Jack will just fly in and start blasting!
Inside the compound, the Ratzis are beginning to panic... one heads in to inform Dantz as to the goings on. His initial reaction is to blow Ted Knight's head off his shoulders as he "knows too much". Good thing Hellboy is there to stop him, and snag Jack's pop.
Hellboy brings Ted to safety... and inoculates him with a syringe full of anti-toxin to rouse him from his slumberous state. Here we have an interesting conversation about what to do with that, ya know... elder god. Ted Knight is all science, and Hellboy is all metaphysics. There is no contention, but the pair are definitely coming at this from two very different angles. Hellboy posits that he may be a prayer he can send the beast back with.
He instructs Jack to attack the creature to weaken it while he dismantles the Nazi compound and sets about getting his prayer on. The sky is illuminated with star blasts and green lights... and ultimately, the light cannon falls onto the elder god.
Dantz is running after the heroes wildly waving his fist about... until the explosion. The entire village explodes, leaving Jack, Ted and Hellboy standing alone in the jungle. Just then, their ride home flies overhead... Batman.
--
Gotta say, I enjoyed this a whole lot more than I thought I would. It seems that whenever there's an inter-company crossover, that event in itself sort of overshadows any potential story. I mean, in so many cases it's the spectacle of seeing two (or more) heroes from different universes in the same panel that "sells" the thing. Any story that was to follow was sort of secondary.
Here, however... we've got a story, setting, and tone that suit the heroes involved. Like I'd said yesterday... this story would feel right at home in an issue of Batman, Starman, or Hellboy... this is the way you do crossovers. We're not worried about how Hellboy found his way into the DC Universe... because, that doesn't matter. Batman knows things... and he's heard of Hellboy... that's all we need to concern ourselves with.
A few points... I liked the use of H.P. Lovecraft lore here, especially with Hellboy's mention of Lovecraft "knowing stuff". I will concede I have very little experience with the works of H.P. Lovecraft, but the little I have read is written in such a way that they are being told from the point of view of an observer. That would certainly lend to the idea that what he was writing wasn't (entirely) fictional. Really like that.
The discrepancy between Ted Knight and Hellboy's points of view was interesting, and quite well done. It is plainly stated by Jack that his father (despite having teamed with diety-power-levelled folks) does not believe in the afterlife. Well, Hellboy being the son of you know who, certainly comes at it from a different angle. They maintain a level of professional respect for one another, and seem (almost) open to accept what the other person is saying. Very well done, not at all soap-boxy like these scenes can (and often do) become. Just a great bit.
All my thoughts in regard to storytelling, dialogue and art from yesterday's piece are echoed here. This was a great two-and-done, it feels as though things happened... but nothing so great that it will need to be addressed in the future. Not an "out of continuity" waste of time by any stretch. Just a nice story utilizing fun characters. Definitely recommended... I listed the ways in which this issue (and series) is available in yesterday's post.
Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1 (January, 1999)
"Gotham Grey Evil"
Writer - James Robinson
Art - Mike Mignola
Colorist - Matt Hollingsworth
Letterer - Willie Schubert
Editor - Peter Tomasi
Special Thanks - Archie Goodwin
Cover Price: $2.50
They say if you love something you ought to let it go... and if it comes back, yadda yadda yadda. At the risk of projecting, I think we comics enthusiasts have something similar... we see a book that sorta-kinda catches our eye in the shop... buuuuut, we don't quite pull the trigger. We say to ourselves, "if it's there next time... I'll grab it!" Sometimes you get burned... sometimes you get lucky. Such was the case with today's subject.
This two-parter caught my eye in the back-issue bins at a nearby Half-Price Books... and for whatever reason, I didn't seal the deal... I decided if it were still there upon my next visit... well, you know the rest. Anyhoo... that is my excessive and long-winded way of saying... I dunno, Yay for this book!
Was it worth the gamble? Well, let's find out!
--
We open with helicopters hovering above the Gotham City skyline. Their spotlights are transfixed... on the Joker! It isn't long before Batman is on the scene, and in hot pursuit. A brief rooftop chase concludes when the Joker tosses a disturbingly cute Joker-bomb... causing one hell of an explosion. The pilots consider that the Joker perished in the blast... proving that this must be their first day on the job. Later on Batman meets with Commissioner Gordon and they discuss the clown that got away.
We jump ahead to (perhaps) the following day where the Golden-Age Starman, Ted Knight is about to give a lecture on alternative energies at the behest of one Bruce Wayne. This alternative energy is somehow linked with his cosmic rod... the crowd seems quite into the idea, when...
Nazis arrive! No kidding, this assembly is crashed by a group of magic-wielding Nazi skinheads... that's not something I'd ever expected to type! Anyhoo, Knight does his best to fight them off, but there's only so much an old man can do. Batman enters the fracas, and while he is able to hold his own... he cannot stop the creeps from kidnapping the elder Knight.
Batman continues fighting... and all of the skinheads escape, save one. The baddie looks at the bat... informs him that "It will soon be October", and then self-destructs in a blast of green magical whatzits.
Later that night Batman is summoned to the Gotham City Police Department via the Bat-Signal. Upon arrival, he is informed that it wasn't Jim Gordon that summoned him... it was... Hellboy!
Hellboy had already heard of the Nazi skinhead threat, and feels that they match the description of a group that the B.P.R.D. (Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense) are currently checking out... the Knights of October... and due to his experience dealing with magical threats, he offers Batman a partnership... Batman hems and haws, but ultimately accepts the help.
Batman and Hellboy go about town looking for information... they visit a sort of seer, who tells them to speak with a fella called Giovani. Giovani, a mechanic, tells them they're barking up the wrong tree and they need to check in with Morty Slade. Morty Slade... well, he's their guy. Batman visits his shabby apartment where he is greeted by a frantic Morty wearing his tighty-whiteys... that is to say, his own undies... not Batman's. He attempts to escape through the window by... well, throwing himself through the window. He then climbs the fire escape to the roof where he runs directly into big red.
Morty proves to be an extremely easy nut to crack, and he guides them to an abandoned airstrip outside of Gotham City. The place is swarming with skinheads... which leads to one helluva battle. While the pair of heroes are bustin' skulls, we see a Herr Otto Dantz has loaded Ted Knight into a small plane and is planning on taking him to San Diablo... which, via a quick Google search is quite the flight... all the way to the Marvel Universe, in fact! Okay okay, we'll play along. Anyhoo, he advises a skinhead grunt to fight Batman and Hellboy to the death if he must.... then tells him to use the "Spell of Passage".
The plane starts to take off and Batman throws a bat-line into the landing gear. It looks like it'll be academic from this point, but a passenger on board the craft jumps out onto Batman exclaiming "For October". Batman is knocked loose, and is able to maneuver the suicide jumper to break his fall.
Inside the hangar, several skinheads are standing in a sort of ceremonial circle. They are chanting as one plunges a blade directly through the swastika tattoo on his chest. From it erupts a blast of energy which sends Nazis flying. Hellboy recognizes this as the Spell of Passage, and advises Batman to grab onto something lest he be sucked into it's pull.
Batman tosses a line which wraps around a beam, and grabs Hellboy by the arm as the spell really starts "sucking". They are able to hold on until the portal closes... they now sit alone.
Batman and Hellboy return to Gotham where they meet with Jim Gordon to inform him of the goings on. Batman is interrupted with news that the Joker is at it again... and he'll need to sit this Knights of October mission out. Hellboy is prepared to go it alone, however... that is not necessary. Jack Knight, the current Starman will come along for the ride!
--
Dang... this was quite good! Somehow Robinson was able to craft a story that would feel completely at home in a Batman... Hellboy... AND Starman book! It's not often these crossovers (especially inter-company ones) can pull this off. It feels completely natural, and not forced in the slightest. Sure, Hellboy's not from the DC Universe... but, who cares? This is some great comics... and we can allow it.
I didn't give it much service during the synopsis... but Batman was really kind of standoffish with Hellboy upon their meeting atop the GCPD. He seemed quite put off at the thought of having to work with him... almost taking it as a blow to his ego. His not knowing the difference between "electricity" and "magic" seemed to really bother him. Having to rely on a subject matter expert really must have put him in his place.
I'd forgotten how likable Hellboy is... he just takes everything in stride here. He's affable and really interested in helping out... even to the point where he gets down on himself for not being as helpful as he'd hoped. It is at this point that Batman seems to become more accepting of his presence.
Not a whole lotta Starman in this issue... just a few pages of the elder, and a cameo of Jack at the end. Looks like next issue will feature far less Batman... so, that's fine... we'll get more Jack next time around.
Overall... this is definitely a story I think folks should seek out. The story and dialogue are top notch... and like I said above, would feel at home in the "native" books of all three participants. The art is some good Mignola... and I really dig some Mignola. It's dark without being moody... it's not line heavy without being simplistic. Just a wonderfully drawn book. His takes on both Batman and Jack Knight are great!
It looks like this was just collected in what appears to be a completely wild DC Comics/Dark Horse Comics Crossovers trade paperback. It's currently available at a pretty deep discount at In Stock Trades... if you can't track down the singles, this option is out there! It is also available digitally.
We've got no letters page or ads to look at today, so I will include the full wrap-around cover instead.
Phantom Stranger #2 (November, 1987)
"The Soul of the Man!"
Writer - Paul Kupperberg
Breakdowns - Mike Mignola
Finishes - P. Craig Russell
Letterer - John Workman
Colorist - Petra Scotese
Editor - Michael Carlin
Cover Price: $0.75
Revisiting one I'd kind of left sitting... having covered the first issue back in... damn, March (?). Hard to believe I've been at it that long. I gotta admit, I let it lay because I found it a bit hard to read. Not bad or anything, and I really enjoyed it for what it was... just wasn't sure I wanted to read another three issues of it right away.
Anyhoo, figure Boo, Haunted Blog would be as good a time as any to pick it back up... plus (and perhaps more importantly), it was in one of the handful of longboxes I can actually access at this point in my library-overhaul.
--
Sorta kinda picking up where we left off, we are inside Bruce Gordon's headspace where he's chatting it up with his darker alter-ego, Eclipso. Eclipso is taunting him... almost toying with him, until the Phantom Stranger finally intervenes... momentarily relieving poor Gordon from his waking nightmare.
In Bruce's apartment, the Stranger brings our man up to speed. He reminds him that they'd met earlier... and he'd promised him salvation from his evil eclipsed other. He makes it clear to Bruce that Eclipso is not a dream, but an actual entity in his mind... and as such, he upped his psychic defenses to protect against him for the time being.
He also... changes his mind about actually fighting Eclipso, claiming that it is futile. He reveals that Eclipso is an agent of the Lords of Chaos... or Darkness... and while they can certainly enter into battle, they cannot win. This causes the Lords of Order to appear...
They offer the Stranger relief from his obligation to mankind, and applaud his ability to recognize the futility of fighting Chaos. The Lords of Order believe the world is about to enter an Age of Darkness... and will in turn, emerge into a new Age of Order. The Stranger takes offense to this, and refuses their offer. He will not turn his back on mankind in their hour of need. And so, the Lords of Order strip him of his powers.
We get a bit of a news report that discusses the Cold War tension between the United States and the Soviet Union before checking in on our favorite reporter, James Olsen as he waits for his informant from the Russian Consulate. He doesn't get any specific information, but what he does learn is that he is on the right trail. There's definitely something going on here...
We move into a montage illustrating crazy amounts of seismic activity going on... causing all sorts of worldwide damage. We cut to a televised interview with a geological expert who attempts to assuage the viewers' fears by saying that this is all normal... after all, Mother Earth is a fickle one. Dr. Jenet Klyburn at S.T.A.R. Labs watches on, and has different thoughts on the matter...
Klyburn believes there are some powerful forces, outside of "Mother Earth" in play here. Her internal monologue is interrupted by the arrival of Bruce Gordon, and the Phantom Stranger. The Stranger states his case to Kyburn and gets her to agree to participate in what's to come next.
We shift scenes to The Temple of Divine Light where our old pal Lycaon is preaching the good word. He is seeing his congregation grow as fear and chaos spreads throughout the world. They look to him for salvation... hell, they'd probably look toward anybody at this point. He's as charismatic as ever, and implicitly states that he is not after his followers' money... just their belief... and love.
We know better, however... our preacher man is in the pocket of Eclipso... who is watching the sermon on his mystical video monitor.
We rejoin our threesome as they approach Mount St. Helens via Jeep. It's actually quite funny seeing the shadowy Stranger sitting in the back of a Jeep.
They eventually wind up at their destination. The Stranger, even without his more mystical powers can still "feel" where they need to be. Klyburn exits the Jeep as well, and has some sort of S.T.A.R. Labs tech. I'm guessing that's why she's been drafted into this endeavor. Anyhoo, the Stranger attempts to untangle some weeds... and actually winds up cutting himself on a thorn. This is a great scene... as this is not something you'd expect to happen to the Stranger (it's something that even surprises him), and for the fact that neither Klyburn nor Gordon really understand the significance of this.
Bruce Gordon has designed a sort of solar cannon-laser thing, with which they intend to release pressure from Hell... or the Earth's core... or maybe they're the same thing. Anyhoo, before the two humans get into position, the Stranger himself teleports to Hell... leaving behind him the stench of brimstone... perhaps he and Nightcrawler share some distant parentage.
The Stranger arrives in Hell, and finds himself standing alone before... well, a bunch of demons who are just itching to invade the Earth. From the onset, this doesn't seem like a battle he intends to win... yet he fights on anyway.
As this battle rages, Klyburn enters the volcano, laser in hand to alleviate some of this crazy seismic whoziwhatsit. She perforates the volcano real good, however... perhaps due to the battle in Hell, there is another violent seismic shift... which knocks her into Hell!
Well, not completely into Hell... she's kind of hanging from a cliff. Believing the Stranger dead, she decides to aim that solar laser and blast the head demon in charge with it. As one might expect, he doesn't take to kindly to this offense... and so, he chucks a giant flaming rock in her direction.
She plummets deeper into Hell, where she is caught by the Phantom Stranger. He says that her heroic act of bravery is what spurred him back to his feet. He takes the solar laser and unloads it into the demon. Then, in a final desperate attack... the Stranger plunges the laser cannon into the demon's chest. It's great, the demon's last words are "helppppp... meeeeeeee..." I mean, how cute is that?
Job well done, the pair return to Bruce Gordon on the surface. They know that one of Eclipso's "Three Dooms" has been avoided.
--
Well, I'm of two minds on this one...
On one hand, I feel like the story kind of dragged. It might sound like a silly complaint, but after reading for what felt like forever, I was shocked to find I wasn't even to the staples yet. I'd try and attribute this to just being used to contemporary books... but, hell... I read classic stuff on a daily basis, so it ain't that. This just felt, I dunno... plodding?
The dialog bounced between really good and... kinda precious. That may fit the Stranger, but it was also (at times) kind of rough. There was also this thing Kupperberg did, where he'd start the next scene with a narrative caption in the last panel of the previous scene... it's hard to explain, but you'll know it if you see it. This story-advancement method was kind of hit and miss here. A few times it felt natural, while others it just felt like the letterer plopped a caption in the wrong panel. Now, the art on the other hand... a real treat all the way through. Mignola was a perfect fit for this character and this story. The big blobby demons and monsters he draws are excellent. Russell's finishes gave this a wonderful dark feel, really lending itself to the atmosphere.
On the other hand, I really enjoyed seeing the Phantom Stranger having to adapt to his new (relatively) powerless state. His reactions to things such as bleeding and exhaustion were neat to behold. Imagine going toe to toe with a hellspawn demon, come out more or less unscathed... but beforehand cut yourself on an errant thorn. I really liked this scene... especially as his current traveling companions don't quite get the significance of it. His curiosity over what it would be like to actually rest was something I would not have considered... again, glad to see that here.
The ongoing Jimmy Olsen/Russian consulate bit has me fearing this might wind up being some sort of Cold War allegory. Not that it would be the worst thing... but, I don't read comics for political statements... regardless of whether or not I agree with them. It won't change my mind as to whether or not I feel the story is a good one, I'd just prefer politics be left out if at all possible.
Overall... while it didn't rock my socks, I cannot deny that there is a fine story (and fantastic art) to be found in this series. I was a bit more optimistic after reading the first issue than I am after reading the second... but I'm attributing that more to my own defects than any between the covers here.
--
Letters Page:
--
Interesting Ads (really running out of 1987 ads!):
