Your EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK — complete with commentary by artist Christopher Mitten…

The latest Hellboy series launches Aug. 21 with Hellboy and the BPRD: Saturn Returns #1, by Mike Mignola, Scott Allie, Christopher Mitten and Brennan Wagner. Over two days we’re bringing you an EXCLUSIVE behind-the-scenes look at series artist Mitten’s first two covers for the three-parter.

On Tuesday, Mitten gave a rundown of Issue #1’s cover (click here). Here, then, is the FIRST LOOK at Issue #2’s cover, again with Mitten’s commentary.

Check it out:

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By CHRISTOPHER MITTEN

Thumbs: Now, here, unlike the relatively clear image I had in my head for the first and third issues, Issue #2 proved a bit harder to lock down for whatever reason—although I knew I wanted to get Liz in there. That was key. I think I must have sent around seven or eight different concepts and variations and this, happily, is where we landed. (It cannot be stressed enough: talented editors are invaluable!)

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Pencils: A couple changes happened in the jump from thumbs to pencils: Although I liked the image of Liz on the tree trunk skulls, it didn’t really match her location in the story, so I swapped the stumps for a flaming Beetle surrounded by strewn garbage. And we thought the creature should be a touch less obvious, creepier, more hidden by the forest and underbrush.

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Inks: Again, my favorite part. I get to make marks and fling ink at the thing until it lands where I want it to land.

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Color: Since I went fairly light with the first cover, I knew I wanted this to be darker. I try to differentiate the covers enough so that if I were standing on the other side of the room and had them all lined up next to one another, they wouldn’t all sort of blend together. I also find this helps me see if I’ve been lingering too long in one palette — “Man, I’ve been using a LOT of blue these past couple covers… it’s time for some red, I guess!”

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Hellboy and the BPRD: Saturn Returns #2 is due in September.

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MORE

— HELLBOY AND THE BPRD: Behind the Cover of SATURN RETURNS #1. Click here.

— VIDEO SPECIAL: Mignola Talks HELLBOY, Painting and Creativity. Click here.