Welcome to February’s Mignolaversity News Update. As always, we’re bringing you the latest solicitations and news from the past month, but we’re switching things around a bit. We’re doing the news first and the solicitations last. You’re likely already aware, but “B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know” #5 had a hell of a spoiler, and the solicitations for #6 issue would ruin things for trade readers. We’ll make sure to put that one right at the bottom of the article.

Now, enough explanations. On to the news!

• Last week Dark Horse began teasing an upcoming comic on Twitter under the hashtag “#DHreveal” before revealing “Witchfinder: The Gates of Heaven,” a new five-issue miniseries written by Chris Roberson and with D’Israeli on art (see full solicitation below). Over on ” target=”_blank”>Geeks and Sundry Chris Roberson posted a letter about his love for Sir Edward Grey and his world, shared a two-page preview of the upcoming story, then took to Twitter to answer questions…

Q: oh baby, art looks great. Should we expect at any point for Sir Edward to take on your luscious beard instead of his usual pointed goat?

A: Sir Edward will up his beard game in time, I have no doubt.

I assume this is a reference to Sir Edward’s appearance in his later years.

Q: How will this series be different from previous Witchfinder arcs?

A: While it will be a standalone story like previous arcs, this one will have many more connections to other characters and eras in Hellboy’s world, while at the same time expanding the scope of Sir Edward’s era.

Q: Will this new arc be set entirely in the UK or will we be taking in wider locations?

A: Yes and no. The main action takes place entirely in London, but we will be seeing a LOT of other locales around the world in flashbacks as the story unfolds.

Q: Does The Silver Lantern Club appear ?

A: This story takes place before Sir Edward leaves government service and becomes a private occult investigator, so the Silver Lantern Club is still a few years in his future. But we’ll be seeing it soon!

Q: Any chance that Death Riding An Elephant will do a cameo?

A: Not yet, but soon. We’re getting close to the point in Sir Edward’s timeline when he moves into the rooms above the Silver Lantern Club, but he’s not quite there yet.

The preview pages on Geeks and Sundry confirm ‘The Gates of Heaven’ will be set in 1884. Sir Edward was in the service of Queen Victoria until February 1989. From then on he established a private occult detective practice. The Silver Lantern Club was formed sometime after these events, 1891 at the absolute latest.

Q: Also, what’s the deal with that airship?

A: Sir Edward was seen riding an airship in the first issue of Abe Sapien: The Drowning, way back in 2008, and we figured it was high time to see where it came from.

Q: And any relationship between “The Gates of Heaven” and the creepy mushroom-eating German guy with the Spear of Longinus?

A: I’m going to have to let any potential connections there remain a mystery for the time being…

This is a reference to “B.P.R.D.: The Dead.”

Q: Does a younger Sir Edward mean he’s going to have different perspectives, such as being more skeptical or surprised by the occult things he encounters? Will we be seeing how some of his later traits are formed?

A: By this point in his career Sir Edward has been investigating the occult for the better part of a decade. and has served as the Queen’s own occult investigator for five years, so he’s seen a fair amount already. But he learns in this story that the world is stranger than he knew

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Q: Ah, so it’s set in 1884. Looks like we’ll be bumping into Epke Vrooman…

A: Briefly considered doing the Vrooman story, but as we know how it ends up it felt like it would be anticlimactic. Which isn’t to say we don’t learn how it started here. Whose airship was that, for example, and where did Sir Edward get a Lipu dagger in the first place…?

Epke Vrooman was the villain in “Abe Sapien: The Drowning.” The Lipu dagger is a key element in that story.



Q: If I read this, am I going to be able to wait another two years again for the next arc? Because it really hurts my soul

A: Such decisions are above my paygrade so I’m only speculating here, but my guess would be that the better this arc sells, the more likely we are to do another arc sooner rather than later!

Q: Hopefully we can get a few short stories between larger arcs

A: When we get to the Silver Lantern Club/Private Occult Investigator era we’ll definitely be alternating between longer arcs and short stories, but this arc and the next are both going to be five-parters.

It’s nice to know Roberson’s already got another arc in mind. I’m always impatient for more “Witchfinder.”

• In more spoilery news, Mike Mignola spoke to Entertainment Weekly about the “B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know” #5 reveal. The article’s title is a spoiler, as are all the images, so click on this link only if you’re up to date on the series. Max Fiumara also showed off his process on the “B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know” #6 cover.

• Ben Stenbeck did a series of interviews regarding “Koshchei the Deathless” with Forces of Geek, Comicon, Comics Beat, and Freak Sugar.

• The “Hellboy: Into the Silent Sea (Studio Edition)” showed off the cover and teases some of the interiors in a recent update.

• Mantic Games is making a co-op Hellboy board game for up to four players. A Kickstarter is planned for April 2018.

• From March 6 to April 21, The Society of Illustrators will be running an exhibit called “The Art of Mike Mignola: Hellboy and Other Curious Objects.” While I doubt Hellboy would approve of being called an object, the exhibit sounds fantastic:

In this exhibit, the Society will feature highlights from his fan-favorite Hellboy series, as well as other spin-off titles including work from B.P.R.D., Abe Sapien, and Witchfinder. The Society is also pleased to feature samples from his award-winning comic books including the Eisner Award winner The Amazing Screw-On Head (Dark Horse Comics) as well as Baltimore, or, The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire (Bantam Spectra), co-written by best-selling author Christopher Golden. This special exhibit will include an array of comic pages, covers, and rarely seen original paintings by Mignola.

• And Juxtapoz interviewed Mike Mignola about his art and the upcoming Hellboy reboot.

• Speaking of the Hellboy movie, David Harbour spoke about how his friends tried to talk him out of taking on a role already made popular by Ron Perlman, but Harbour was interesting in bringing to life a new version of the character. “I can like Michael Keaton’s Batman and I can like Christian Bale’s Batman. I can like Jack Nicolson’s Joker and I can like Heath Ledger’s Joker. There’s other Jokers I don’t have to like.”

• Harbour spoke about the role in greater detail with Collider, and praised Milla Jovovich’s performance as Nimue.

• Ian McShane, who plays Professor Trevor Bruttenholm in the reboot, spoke to Fandom about his role and respecting John Hurt’s portrayal in the Guillermo del Toro films.

• And now for some art! Since finishing his run on “Joe Golem: Occult Detective,” Patric Reynolds has been busy doing some commissions, a number of which feature characters from the Hellboy Universe.

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And, as always, he’s been sharing process images from “Joe Golem.” Definitely worth checking these out.

• Sebastián Fiumara’s been working on a Hellboy commission too…

• Paolo Rivera’s been posting videos of his process on instagram.

• Duncan Fegredo’s been sketching Hellboy again. (We need to get him another OGN to work on I think…)

• And Mignola’s been drawing again…

Moving on, here are the solicitations for the collections coming in July 2018… (Full solicitations at Comics Continuum)

ABE SAPIEN:

THE DROWING AND OTHER STORIES

—OMNIBUS EDITION—

Written by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi, and Scott Allie

Illustrated by Jason Shawn Alexander,‎ Patric Reynolds,‎ Peter Snejbjerg, James Harren, Michael Avon Oeming, Santiago Caruso, Kevin Nowlan, Juan Ferreyra, Alise Gluškova, and Mark Nelson

Color by Dave Stewart, Kevin Nowlan, Juan & Eduardo Ferreyra, Alise Gluškova, and Mark Nelson On sale July 11

Full color, 408 pages

$34.99

Hardcover In the early 1980s, new B.P.R.D. agent Abe Sapien was set to retrieve the corpse of a powerful warlock off the coast of France. Abe quickly finds himself in a battle with a century old evil in the form of demonic monks. This mission, along with tales involving a haunted lake, South American vampires, and a mad scientist seeking out man’s missing link are collected here! Collects Abe Sapien Volumes 1, 2, and 9. This deluxe hardcover edition collects Abe Sapien: The Drowning, The Devil Does Not Jest and Other Stories, and Lost Lives and Other Stories

HELLBOY

—OMNIBUS EDITION – VOLUME 3—

THE WILD HUNT

Written by Mike Mignola

Illustrated by Duncan Fegredo

Color by Dave Stewart On sale July 18

Full color, 512 pages

$24.99

Trade paperback The basis for the upcoming feature film Hellboy: The Rise of the Blood Queen! Terrible powers determined to kill Hellboy force him strike a deal with the Russian witch, the Baba Yaga, and to confront the truth about his destiny. The human race hangs in the balance, as well as King Arthur’s sword Excalibur, in a story that wipes England off the map and sets in motion the end of the world… Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo’s complete trilogy is collected for the first time in this 512-page volume, reprinting Darkness Calls, The Wild Hunt, and The Storm and the Fury, and the short story “The Mole.” The four-volume Hellboy Omnibus series along with the two volumes of The Complete Short Stories collect all of Mignola’s award-winning Hellboy stories in chronological order for a definitive reading experience.

RASPUTIN:

THE VOICE OF THE DRAGON

Written by Mike Mignola and Chris Roberson

Illustrated by Christopher Mitten

Color by Dave Stewart On sale July 25

Full color, 144 pages

$19.99

Trade paperback Hellboy’s future guardian Trevor Bruttenholm, working for Britain’s Military Intelligence, uncovers a collection of messages. The messages throw him into a world of animated corpses, deadly mystics, and Nazi agents. The treacherous journey leads him face to face with the man who will bring Hellboy to Earth—Rasputin! Collects Rasputin: The Voice of the Dragon #1–5.

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And finally, here are the the issues coming in May 2018…

KOSHCHEI THE DEATHLESS #5 (of 6)

Written by Mike Mignola

Illustrated by Ben Stenbeck

Color by Dave Stewart On sale May 2

Full color, 32 pages

$3.99

Miniseries Koshchei attempts to defy Baba Yaga, but it comes at an unbearable cost. Mignola returns to Hell and to the bizarre folklore that’s filled some of his greatest books, reuniting with one of his favorite collaborators, Ben Stenbeck.

WITCHFINDER:

THE GATES OF HEAVEN #1 (of 5)

Written by Mike Mignola and Chris Roberson

Illustrated by D’Israeli

Color by Michelle Madsen On sale May 23

Full color, 32 pages

$3.99

Miniseries A series of occult events mystifies the man known as the Witchfinder, but even more surprising is the revelation that he is not alone in exploring the paranormal in London. When a personal invitation arrives from the palace, Sir Edward Grey is pulled even deeper into underground supernatural exploration alongside new allies in the race to stop a mad scientist from destroying London in his pursuit of mystical power.

Spoilers ahead

B.P.R.D.:

THE DEVIL YOU KNOW #6