Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 741.5973
EAN: 9781593079109
Edition: Library ed
ISBN: 1593079109
Label: Dark Horse
Languages: Array
Manufacturer: Dark Horse
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 278
Publication Date: 2008-05-14
Publisher: Dark Horse
Studio: Dark Horse

Since Mike Mignola's Hellboy first hit the stands in 1993, it has become a cultural sensation, racking up a dozen Eisner Awards and inspiring numerous spinoffs, from a novel line, to video games, to feature films. Now, Dark Horse is pleased to present the comics that started it all, collected in deluxe hardcover editions. Sized at 9" by 12", and handsomely bound to match The Art of Hellboy hardcover, each volume contains two full story-arcs - the equivalent of two trade-paperbacks. Each volume of the Hellboy Library Editions also includes extensive supplemental materials, including previously unreleased sketches and designs.

Customer Rating:
Summary: Hellboy Volume 1 Hard Cover edition
Comment: This wonderfully bound and collected work of art/book covers the acclaimed Hellboy series and movies. The book Hellboy Volume 1 collects the first two story-arcs-Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil-with the original introductions by Robert Bloch and Alan Moore. This is one of the more important collections within the Hellboy series, as the two story arcs along with some bits from BPRD that show how Hellboy was found and discovered, are spread across multiple series and volumes, which can be found here in this book. You get to learn how Hellboy was discovered, and what happens through most of the series that is also covered in the movies. This is like owning everything; the even better part is that there is a volume two that covers the Golden Army saga, and even more of Hellboy's beginnings.

In all this is a high quality book that will make just about every Hellboy fan jump for joy to get their hands on this volume and its companion volume. Hellboy is one of the more fascinating characters to be developed by Alan Moore, and goes back to many of his roots with 2000AD and work that he did previously. There are excellent story lines, wonderful art, sturdy and very durable to tolerate a lot of reading or general book abuse. The story lines are assorted with Hellboy traveling the world solving problems and generally thumping the bad people. What is nice is that these are really collections of many of Mignola's shorter stories, with a continuity to make them all make sense to the reader.

One of the better Hellboy collections out there, well worth getting and holding on to, both volumes make an awesome present or gift to anyone who has any interest in Hellboy at all. This book is a 5 star book, well worth getting, reading, owning, and enjoying.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Boy from hell
Comment: Near the end of World War II, the evil Rasputin summoned a creature from another world -- a little red demon baby.

And so starts Mike Mignola's distinctly offbeat "Hellboy Volume 1: Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil," two interconnected action-factory stories with a bright-red demon as its anti-hero. Mignola happily crams this rather brief tale with Lovecraftian horrors, mythic demons, a cursed mansion, a vampire in an old castle, and a truly malevolent villain who wants to destroy the world.

Decades after Hellboy was summoned into this world, his adoptive father Professor Bruttenholm recounts what little he can remember of a doomed expedition to the north pole, along with the three Cavendish brothers. Then a grotesque frog creature attacks Bruttenholm, killing him instantly -- moments before Hellboy returns the favor.

Soon after, Hellboy and his companions Abe Sapien (fish-man) and Liz Sherman (pyrokinetic) arrive at cursed Cavendish Manor, unaware that the mansion's owner is in league with Rasputin. Then ghastly frog-creatures kidnap Liz and attack Hellboy, as Rasputin reveals his presence to the demon/man that he considers his servant -- and if Hellboy won't serve him, he'll used Liz's power instead.

But that adventure is not the end of Hellboy's clashes with Rasputin. Sent to find an ancient vampire in Romania ("Paprika chicken, baby!"), he runs afoul of a bunch of Nazis who serve Rasputin's spirit -- and a bunch of mythic creatures, including the vampiric Giurescu, who serve a ghastly, immortal lamia in the depths of his castle.

Elsewhere, Abe is falling into a trap of Rasputin's, and Liz's powers run amuck when her team finds an alchemist's lab with a seemingly dead homunculus. And Hellboy's fight with the lamia has shocking repercussions, when he finds himself hurtling into a darkness where his true purpose is revealed -- and he must choose what his destiny will be.

Vampiric snake-women, Baba Yaga, immortal sorcerers, grotesque frog monsters, disembodied heads, a Nazi woman in an iron maiden, and a walking skeleton. Oh yeah, and a Lovecraftian lake monster with way too many tentacles.

Mike Mignola knows how to craft a monster-filled universe, where a demonic anti-hero seems downright normal. And the first two books about him are technically separate stories, but they're more like two halves of the same tale -- and while each starts relatively quietly, they rapidly escalate into haunting, grotesque action-adventures set in half-ruined buildings where only monsters and statues still dwell.

And while a few plot threads are left hanging in the second half of the story, Mignola does a solid job plotting these. He also knows how to use dialogue for atmosphere as few authors can ("Witches, striges, vampir... ghosts come forth from their tombs..."), but also utilizes Hellboy's acid wit to lighten the mood ("Not gonna happen... 'cause you're very very ugly and YOU HAVE A GIANT SNAKE BODY!").

Hellboy himself is a classic anti-hero -- despite his red skin, bulky body and sawed-off horns, he's very human in attitude, with an understated love for his friends and his adoptive father. Throughout these stories he's faced by hints of what he truly is and what he's expected to become by the infernal players, but his good heart won't have it. And his snappy wit ("Insolent beast! Troglodyte!" "Big talk for a guy with no pants") only makes him more lovable.

It's also worth mentioning that this edition is simply beautiful. The heavy cloth binding gives the book plenty of resilience to repeated readings, especially since the paper it's printed on is thick and glossy. It makes Mignola's art -- with its vivid colours and heavy, thick shadows -- even more vivid.

"Hellboy Volume 1: Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil" compiles the first two books of Hellboy's adventures, and shows why Mike Mignola is such a well-loved, well respected graphic novelist.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Nicest Collection I Have Purchased
Comment: The Hellboy Library edition is absolutely wonderful. The cover and format are beautiful. The paper is perfect. And the story...well, there is a reason this book got the all-star treatment. Hellboy is one of the most original comic stories to come out in many years. Buy it!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: 5 stars for both content and presentation
Comment: As a long time fan of Mike Mignola's Hellboy series (as in, back to Hellboy's initial appearance in John Byrne's Next Men), I've been waiting for a collection that did justice to Mignola's incredible artwork. As soon as I set my eyes on the Hellboy Library Edition, I knew my wait was over.

Similar to the Sin City Library collections, the Hellboy Library Edition is a larger than normal hardcover size. Think of the DC Absolute hardcover series; this book is just slightly smaller than that format. As if the extra large presentation weren't enough, the page stock has been significantly upgraded. The pages are thicker than most cover stock, and they have a glossy finish that perfectly showcases Mignola's unique (and gorgeous) artwork. Each page truly becomes fine art. The pages are also very resistant to fingerprints, which is especially important given the amount of black Mignola tends to use. I can see some collectors having a problem with the cloth-like cover of this volume, but I think it suits the book quite well.

In this hefty first volume you get the complete Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil stories plus a nice helping of bonus material, including promotional artwork, shorts, and sketchbook artwork. Seed of Destruction is, of course, the Hellboy origin story and the basis of the 2004 Hellboy film. Wake the Devil is the sequel story, and served as the inspiration for the animated Hellboy feature Blood and Iron.

With its high price tag, the Hellboy Library Edition collections are not for everyone. They are however, a must-have for serious Hellboy collectors. Once you see the quality of the book, you won't think twice about replacing your Hellboy paperback collections.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: buy this, you won't regret it
Comment: i forgot how good "seeds of destruction" is. i also forgot the difference between "seeds" and the first movie. the art just looks better on the bigger pages, i found myself just staring and taking it all in. my only complaint is the cover material. if you have any pets this will be covered in hair, i wish it would have come with a slip case.

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