Mike Mignola has spent over 30 years writing comics that send Hellboy on one misadventure after another. Among those many stories, he pulled back the curtains on Red’s origins in the 10-issue Hellboy in Hell saga. A decade after that part of the hero’s story concluded, Hellboy’s going back to Hell in not one, but two new adventures.
Earlier this year, Mignola announced he’s teaming with Cyrille Pomès on the Nothing But Blood event, which takes place in the middle of the in Hell series. io9 can exclusively reveal what comes after that: Hellboy in Hell: Parade of Horrors.Written by Mignola with art by Márk László (who previously drew the Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: Time Is a River comic) and colors from longtime collaborator Dave Stewart, the two-issue event picks up where Bloodleaves off and sees Hellboy looking for a drink. Instead, he winds up in a cemetery just as a funeral for Satan’s underway. You can check the first issue’s two covers from Mignola and László below.
Demons aren’t exactly jazzed to see their master’s killer at the service, and what follows is said to be a “morbid celebration in the pits of Pandemonium.” In an email, Mignola explained he’d never intended to go back to Hell, either on his own or with another partner, but couldn’t pass up the opportunity when he met up with László and learned the artist wanted to do something in that timeframe.
“Every time I think we’re done with this thing, it seems we find there are just a few more bits and pieces to explore, which I guess is a good thing,” he said. “There were a couple big holes between the chapters I’d drawn and I thought Márk would have fun with those two dead soldiers we meet in ‘The Three Gold Whips,’” he said. “I only gave him a rough story outline… as things took shape, we found a place to introduce a bit more of [Hell’s] history.”
For his part, László said Paradegave him the chance do a story set in Hell like he’s always wanted. “[Mike’s] version always felt like such a fun, rich visual playground to me,” he stated. Artistically, he said readers can look forward to learning more about Hell’s history. Plus, it gave him a chance to draw stuff he’s “very happy” to do, like dancing skeletons, demons, and bloody fights between Hellboy and whoever pisses him off.
If that sounds like your cup of hellfire, you can grab the first issue of Hellboy in Hell: Parade of Horrors on December 16.
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