Hellboy: The Crooked Man No. 1

Published by Dark Horse Comics. Written by Mike Mignola. Art by Richard Corben.

The Deal: OK, so you may have heard about the new Hellboy movie that's set to hit theaters soon. Well, Hellboy: The Crooked Man is the latest in a long line of comics that the movie was based on. But if you never saw the movie, Hellboy is a horror comic book that chronicles the adventures of a demonic paranormal investigator (named Hellboy).

The Good: Hellboy is one scary-ass comic book ... which is a good thing since it's a horror comic. And make no mistake, this is a horror comic -- not a superhero book. Hellboy doesn't fight stupid super villains in crazy costumes; he battles witches, zombies and sometimes Satan himself. Each page is filled with freaky imagery and just plain weird shit (such as the skin of a woman whose bones and organs have left the building). But even in the midst of all the weird shit, Hellboy creator and writer Mike Mignola peppers the story with great characters and entertaining dialogue. Now when it comes to the art, I should mention that the best Hellboy stories were always drawn by Mignola himself. But whenever he employed a guest artist to draw the character, the comic just didn't look that good. The current story's penciler/inker, Richard Corben, however, is a legendary artist, and his dark, grainy style fits Hellboy perfectly.

The Bad: Well, the first Hellboy movie sucked a little. But as far as this comic goes, I've got no complaints.

The Verdict: Buy Hellboy. It's scary.

Reviewed materials furnished by Heroes Aren't Hard To Find: www.heroesonline.com.