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stories4life's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
pantsyreads's review
4.0
The B.P.R.D. are put on a weird murder case after a research doctor is murdered by a seemingly deranged professor. The object of the doctor’s study are the eggs found in Cavendish Hall (from the first volume of Hellboy) which have grown into a bizarre sporous growth. Coming into contact with it is now turning people into giant humanoid frogs.
Amidst this, Abraham Sapien is having odd dreams. Dreams where he’s being beckoned by bells...
Ooouuu, it’s fun seeing the series getting a larger over-arching story.
As always, Mike Mignola’s storytelling is top-notch -- the perfect blend of fantasy, horror, and folklore. It’s fun seeing threads from earlier stories coming into play here, though, to be honest, a lot of this went over my head as I’ve been reading the volumes of this and Hellboy pretty far apart. However, the story still held up really well for me despite this.
I liked Guy Davis’ art. I read in another review that it looks like illustrations from a Victorian novel and I completely agree. There’s something slightly uncanny about his style that makes it a good fit for this creepy tale.
I’m really looking forward to seeing where the series goes from here.
Amidst this, Abraham Sapien is having odd dreams. Dreams where he’s being beckoned by bells...
Ooouuu, it’s fun seeing the series getting a larger over-arching story.
As always, Mike Mignola’s storytelling is top-notch -- the perfect blend of fantasy, horror, and folklore. It’s fun seeing threads from earlier stories coming into play here, though, to be honest, a lot of this went over my head as I’ve been reading the volumes of this and Hellboy pretty far apart. However, the story still held up really well for me despite this.
I liked Guy Davis’ art. I read in another review that it looks like illustrations from a Victorian novel and I completely agree. There’s something slightly uncanny about his style that makes it a good fit for this creepy tale.
I’m really looking forward to seeing where the series goes from here.
skolastic's review
5.0
Mignola and Davis coming together on BPRD is absolutely killer. I was very nervous about this after the first two entries and I can’t wait to see what’s next.
booknooknoggin's review
4.0
This was worth reading just to see Abe Sapian's origin story. Also picks up from Hellboy: Seed of Destruction. Great art as always, and a good story.
owen's review
5.0
I recently re-read the full Plague of Frogs saga as detailed in the B.P.R.D. comics by Mignola, Arcudi, Davies, and others.
As others have mentioned, Vol 3 is where it really gets good.
The first two volumes (with necessary readings from some past Hellboy comics which are unfortunately collected elsewhere) start some needed plot points and introduce these fully three-dimensional characters (albeit drawn beautifully on 2-D pages). When you get to Vol 3 you're already a fan of Abe, Liz, Kate, Roger, Johann, and the rest.
The Universal Machine does a fantastic job of outlining origin stories while detailing an adventure starring Kate Corrigan. While finally hearing Daimio's backstory is great, I really enjoyed the idea that by using her knowledge, Kate is just as capable of surviving in the field as Abe or Hellboy himself. Sometimes there's no need to punch problems to get to solutions. And all of it circles back to Roger's fate from the last volume - in a sense, this first part of the book is just about friends mourning the passing of a loved one. It's poignant.
Garden of Souls is a great Abe tale with some striking visual designs (those robots are fun). It also gives us more Daimio, which is necessary given the final part, Killing Ground.
Killing Ground is possible my favourite B.P.R.D. limited series. Johann's story arc is tragic here, while being brilliantly comical. The way past plot points come together, the questions of what does it mean to be human? To be a hero or villain? Good vs. bad... there's a lot of deep themes explored. The art feels claustrophobic when needed, there's a solid action-movie vibe to many of the scenes. The ending isn't as much of a shock as Vol 2, but is still pretty unexpected.
Ultimately, Vol 1-2 are build-up, and the action escalates so much in Vol 4 that the pacing feels a bit off. This, Vol 3, is the epitome of a good B.P.R.D comic and why I enjoy this series so much - it's a collection of flawed individuals doing their best to figure out their own stories and place in the world, while struggling with the weight of fighting wars they don't understand or even know they're a part of. That's the Mignola secret - his protagonists, and readers, only ever get a glimpse into what seems like nothing short of an epic, fantastical world of magic, prophecies, and mythical creatures. The revelations start to build, there's great character development, and then finally everything blows up.
As others have mentioned, Vol 3 is where it really gets good.
The first two volumes (with necessary readings from some past Hellboy comics which are unfortunately collected elsewhere) start some needed plot points and introduce these fully three-dimensional characters (albeit drawn beautifully on 2-D pages). When you get to Vol 3 you're already a fan of Abe, Liz, Kate, Roger, Johann, and the rest.
The Universal Machine does a fantastic job of outlining origin stories while detailing an adventure starring Kate Corrigan. While finally hearing Daimio's backstory is great, I really enjoyed the idea that by using her knowledge, Kate is just as capable of surviving in the field as Abe or Hellboy himself. Sometimes there's no need to punch problems to get to solutions. And all of it circles back to Roger's fate from the last volume - in a sense, this first part of the book is just about friends mourning the passing of a loved one. It's poignant.
Garden of Souls is a great Abe tale with some striking visual designs (those robots are fun). It also gives us more Daimio, which is necessary given the final part, Killing Ground.
Killing Ground is possible my favourite B.P.R.D. limited series. Johann's story arc is tragic here, while being brilliantly comical. The way past plot points come together, the questions of what does it mean to be human? To be a hero or villain? Good vs. bad... there's a lot of deep themes explored. The art feels claustrophobic when needed, there's a solid action-movie vibe to many of the scenes. The ending isn't as much of a shock as Vol 2, but is still pretty unexpected.
Ultimately, Vol 1-2 are build-up, and the action escalates so much in Vol 4 that the pacing feels a bit off. This, Vol 3, is the epitome of a good B.P.R.D comic and why I enjoy this series so much - it's a collection of flawed individuals doing their best to figure out their own stories and place in the world, while struggling with the weight of fighting wars they don't understand or even know they're a part of. That's the Mignola secret - his protagonists, and readers, only ever get a glimpse into what seems like nothing short of an epic, fantastical world of magic, prophecies, and mythical creatures. The revelations start to build, there's great character development, and then finally everything blows up.
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