Review - itty bitty Hellboy #1Review by Paul Fiander
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itty bitty HELLBOY was part of Halloween Comicfest 2013
Hellboy is one of the most unlikely heroes out there, but who better to fight demonic adversaries than a demon. Despite he’s heroic actions the one phrase you could not really associate with Big Red Is Child friendly. This is where the authors of itty-bitty Hellboy come into play. By using Hellboy & the BPRD they are able to create a whole new set of stories based around our lovable characters. The stories themselves are an irrelevant look at child life and the fact that Hellboy still looks as mean as he always does helps to give a constant joke to the other players within the story. These jokes along with the others can feel repetitive after a while, but the fact that this book is aimed at children means they are very well crafted for the audience. The small size stories hold together very well and altogether form a more cohesive arc overall. This style seems to work really well especially when being used as stories for younger children with a shorter attention span but the full arc is still there for older readers to take note.
This is backed up wonderfully by the art, it’s fresh and vibrant and each character has a wonderful comic twist. You really do forget you’re reading about a Demon and his friends and instead can just warm up to the visual feast that is in front of you. The writing within the bubbles is very clear and strong making this a very good book for young readers. This creative team really do seem to have created a genre around themselves, the ability to take dark characters and bring them to a family friendly audience shows a great measure of understanding of the needs of readers. The fact I can read this book to my son and still get a kick out of it myself is a joy and I can highly recommend this book as a gateway into the world of comics. For readers looking for a typical Hellboy story you best look elsewhere this story knows its audience and caters perfectly to them.
In terms of the Halloween Comicfest edition you receive a good section of the story it’s more than enough to give you the general basis of what itty-bitty Hellboy is all about.
This is backed up wonderfully by the art, it’s fresh and vibrant and each character has a wonderful comic twist. You really do forget you’re reading about a Demon and his friends and instead can just warm up to the visual feast that is in front of you. The writing within the bubbles is very clear and strong making this a very good book for young readers. This creative team really do seem to have created a genre around themselves, the ability to take dark characters and bring them to a family friendly audience shows a great measure of understanding of the needs of readers. The fact I can read this book to my son and still get a kick out of it myself is a joy and I can highly recommend this book as a gateway into the world of comics. For readers looking for a typical Hellboy story you best look elsewhere this story knows its audience and caters perfectly to them.
In terms of the Halloween Comicfest edition you receive a good section of the story it’s more than enough to give you the general basis of what itty-bitty Hellboy is all about.
The Comic is available in both print and digital from Dark Horse Comics. Follow this link for more details.
Images courtesy of Dark Horse
Comic - Provided by Publisher
Halloween Comicfest Variant from Diamond
Comic - Provided by Publisher
Halloween Comicfest Variant from Diamond
