Product Description: Hellboy is one of the most celebrated comics series in recent years. The ultimate artists' artist and a great storyteller whose work is in turns haunting, hilarious, and spellbinding, Mike Mignola has won numerous awards in the comics industry and beyond. When strangeness threatens to engulf the world, a strange man will come to save it. Sent to investigate a mystery with supernatural overtones, Hellboy discovers the secrets of his own origins, and his link to the Nazi occultists who promised Hitler a final solution in the form of a demonic avatar.
Good graphic novel, get's even better later. Hellboy as a series is probably the best horror graphic novel out their. The first graphic novel isn't as good as the later ones, but you should buy it anyway, as it sets up the characters.
Great book I've just started to get into graphic novels/comic books and this was high up on my list to read. Happy to say I enjoyed it immensely...lived up to it's great reviews. Mike Mignola's art is amazing...has such a way of creating an eerie mood. Loved the Hellboy character and plan on picking up a few more in the series real soon.
Great! Problems with the binding The book was fantastic, with great writing and terrific art. While it was a fairly short read, the art definitely made up for it. It also had an interesting story and solid dialogue, especially for those interested in the fantasy/ horror genres. I would easily give this book 5 stars if not for the physical pages themselves. Like some other reviewers, I have had some problems with the pages falling out of the book. After flipping through the pages after reading, the entire book began to fall out of its cover. The glue holding them together came loose very quickly. This is definitely irritating, however, I would still highly recommend this book. P.S. Like one other reviewer, i also have the other books and have had no problems with the binding.
Something is coming Near the end of World War II, the evil Rasputin summoned a creature from another world -- a little red demon baby.
And so starts Mike Mignola's distinctly offbeat "Hellboy Volume 1: Seed of Destruction," an eerie action/fantasy with a bright-red demon as its anti-hero. Mignola happily crams this rather brief tale with Lovecraftian horrors, a crumbling cursed mansion and a truly malevolent villain who wants to destroy the world.
Decades after Hellboy was summoned into this world, his adoptive father Professor Bruttenholm recounts what little he can remember of a doomed expedition to the north pole, along with the three Cavendish brothers. Then a grotesque frog creature attacks Bruttenholm, killing him instantly -- moments before Hellboy returns the favor.
Soon after, Hellboy and his companions Abe Sapien (fish-man) and Liz Sherman (pyrokinetic) arrive at cursed Cavendish Manor, unaware that the mansion's owner is in league with Rasputin. Then ghastly frog-creatures kidnap Liz and attack Hellboy, as Rasputin reveals his presence to the demon/man that he considers his servant.
And if Hellboy will not serve him, then Rasputin intends to use Liz's power to unleash a horrifying evil on the world....
"Seed of Destruction" is basically the springboard for the Hellboy graphic novel series (particularly as it reveals Hellboy's background and supposed destiny), and it's also the briefest -- virtually all the action takes place in the course of an hour or two. It's only real flaw is that Rasputin's drawn-out monologues tend to slow the plot down -- there's a LOT of exposition.
But for all that, it's a pretty wild ride. Mignola's rough, shadowy art matches the overall tone of the story, starting as a straightforward horror/suspense story before rapidly escalating into an all-out war on the lakeside. And there are some poignant moments as well, such as Hellboy's tragic final meeting with his adoptive father, or Abe's glimpse of the frogmen cradling the mother they killed.
And Mignola is pretty clearly a huge H.P. Lovecraft fan -- the story takes place in a cursed lakeside house, with a tentacled monster and mutated frog-beasts that were once human. And the Ogru Jahad only add to that impression -- they're ancient, terrible creatures that apparently want to obliterate everything. For whatever reason.
Hellboy is the pivot of the whole adventure. And despite his scarlet skin, horns and cloven hooves, he's anything but devilish -- he's sarcastic, wry, hot-tempered and determined to keep the world from Rasputin's clutches. But he also has a gentler side that we see when he's dealing with the elderly Bruttenholm, as well as his teammates Abe and Liz.
Full of action and grotesque creatures, "Hellboy, Vol. 1: Seed of Destruction" is a solid introduction to a decidedly unusual series. Bravo, Mike Mignola.
Cool Art-Great story-cheap made book! Hellboy Seed of Destruction wasn't exactly what I thought it would be. I thought it would follow the original Hellboy movie. Not exactly. But wow, if you love the dark creepy and cool you will love this! I am not going to go into a lot of detail about the story-I would not want to spoil any surprises. What gets me is the artwork-that and I can't get enough of Hellboy,Abe(my favorite) and Liz-for any of the reasons listed above, you can't go wrong. Now here's my problem-I bought two Hellboy novels graphic novels. They didn't last two days before the spine cracks and pages started coming loose. I am not careless with my books either. I have many other graphic novels, these are the only books I've had come apart like that. If the book held together it would get 5 stars from me.
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