Hellboy Library Edition, Vol. 1: Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil

I read Hellboy to fill a diesel punk prompt for a reading challenge. I never thought of this book as diesel punk, as most of the action takes place in the 90’s. It does start in the diesel punk era of 1944, but I think moreover it is a feeling, and not just the period that makes it diesel punk. It’s that dark and grittiness that comes after water and steam. That smell of diesel fuel and heavy equipment, the feeling of oppression and resistance. You get all that from the original Hellboy comics. Hellboy is a monster, but a friendly one with a poor attitude. He is a great anti-hero. He is who he was raised to be. I watched the movie years ago and loved it. I have read newer iterations of Hellboy but going back to the original really show more shows off that Hellboy is not just another Merc with a mouth, or a supped-up version of Deadpool, but a sensitive, broad backed character, with unusual friends and abilities, that turn a teddy bear rock hard. I thoroughly enjoyed this read, between the unusual art style for a graphic novel and the modern story that was both historical and new. It all works together to create a lasting work or fiction. show less

This edition includes "Seed of Destruction" in which Hellboy appears after Grigori Rasputin attempts to summon the Ogdru Jahad to the earth, "Wake the Devil" in which Rasputin's Nazi team attempts to bring back vampire Vladimir Giuresc, and a few sketchbook excerpts. Now this was a lot of fun: intriguing universe, charismatic and mysterious characters, and a storyline that brought me to unexpected places. The art is blocky at first, but after getting used to it, I can't imagine that it could have been done better for the subject matter. I got the "library edition" of this because it's very large and very pretty (and I've heard the glue isn't very good in the paperbacks), but it's so heavy (4+ lbs) that it's a bit hard to read - just a show more heads-up if you're thinking of buying. I've seen the movie-version of this and liked it, but I think I'll go back for another watch now that I have more background. I preferred Hellboy's appearance in the book, but the movie got a lot of other things right and Ron Perlman was great, so no hard feelings. show less

This volume collects the first two (connected) Hellboy story arcs in a beautiful large format. Mike Mignola's art is gorgeous and the stories are pretty solid, though there were a few instances where I felt a solution to a dilemma occurred too easily because of magic supernatural something. This collection also includes a couple short promotional pieces and sketchbooks with commentary by the artist. My only real complaint is that "Seed of Destruction" was printed with black borders and on this glossy paper the ink is prone to register even the slightest touch of the cleanest fingers. Even though I was careful holding the book and turning the pages I still slipped a couple times and got some smudges on. Everybody has their condition show more peeves and that's mine. Recommended, but maybe lay it on a table rather than reading it in bed like I did. show less

Like Hellboy I had no idea what was going on. Did not lessen my enjoyment of this comic. I'm really glad I got this gifted. This edition is gorgeous and the artwork is to die for.

I've seen the Hellboy movies and loved them, but mostly because Ron Perlman is just fabulous (and I also think Guillermo del Toro does amazing work). So it took me a while to decide to pick up the GNs. Not that I thought it'd be bad, but I knew the movie would obviously be at least a bit different, and because it's already been out so long, so many issues waiting, and it's got tons of hype over the years. All that stuff, I tend to shy away from. But I figured, Mignola is pretty good, and now there's these various other Hellboy offshoots and I "can't" read them until I actually read Hellboy, so... it's about time. lol.

I enjoyed it. I actually had picked up the first regular volume a month or two ago and liked it, so I thought I might as show more well go for the massive library editions with their extra content and all. It's fun looking through the old sketches Mignola had before the concepts were fully fleshed out. I like Hellboy and Abe, probably because they're such original characters; quirky, witty, solid, good guys! But no one else has really been in focus much so it's kind of odd; usually even if there's one main character, there's a handful of companions of some sort that you also get to know. It seems like most of the rest just float in & out though. Regardless. I love the bits of history and mythology that are tossed in, added level of interest! Quite glad I finally picked these up. show less

Beautiful large-scale Hellboy collection: the art and colours look stunning, and the binding is much more durable than the trade paperback editions. This is probably only for the real Hellboy or Mignola fan; most people won't want to spend the extra coin, but if you love good books and Big Red, this volume is a beautiful luxury.

Facinating and interesting. I enjoyed this, I really had never got into Hellboy when I was younger and this was a great chance to familiarise myself with that which the films were based on. Granted it's better but I think they are complimentary.

Hellboy combats evil to try to help the world, even though by his nature he is part of evil, apparently.