B.P.R.D. Hell on Earth, Volume 9: The Reign of the Black Flame
Paperback | Kindle Edition
Story by Mike Mignola and John Arcudi
Art by James Harren
Colors by Dave Stewart
Letters by Clem Robins
Cover by Mike Mignola with Dave Stewart
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: September 10, 2014
Cover Price: $19.99

I’ve always felt that I could count on Dark Horse Comics to give me unparalleled supernatural stories. I mean, no matter what is going on, they always have some of the greatest (and darkest) writers around. Hell, Lovecraft would have read these comics! My one gripe, though, is that it’s sometimes difficult to jump into a series because of all the back story and history that goes into their long running books. Take this one, for instance: B.P.R.D. Hell on Earth, Volume 9: The Reign of the Black Flame doesn’t just have a lengthy title, it’s also got a metric ton of plot lines that have preceded this one. Which leads me to my problem…

Conan The Barbarian #5
Script by Brian Wood
Art by James Harren
Colors by Dave Stewart
Letters by Richard Starkings and Comicraft
Cover by Maasimo Carnevale
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: June 6, 2012
Cover Price: $3.50

Conan the Barbarian #5 is part two of “The Argos Deception.” To put it mildly, Conan is in BIG trouble. He’s been persuaded by the Pirate Queen Belit to let himself be captured so that Belit and her crew can pull off a daring heist that will land them in gold for the rest of their days… and quite possibly land Conan in a grave.

Brian Wood adapts this Robert E. Howard story and the coolest thing about it, is that there’s MAYBE a page of dialogue in the whole issue. No, it’s not a silent issue, not by any means. The story itself is told through narration and inner monologues. Conan and his people are not the sort to deliver long-winded diatribes about how they’re going to best their enemy or conquer some kingdom or something like that. They’re cold. They’re calculating. They’re manipulative. They don’t need to talk. They don’t WANT to talk. And honestly, it totally works for this issue. Even though there’s not a lot of speaking, the characters are really moved forward this issue. Very well written issue.

Conan the Barbarian #4
Script by Brian Wood
Art by James Harren
Colors by Dave Steward
Letters by Richard Starkings and Comicraft
Cover by Massimo Carnevale
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: May 16, 2012
Cover Price: $3.50

Conan the Barbarian #4 kicks off a brand new story arc, The Argos Deception. Conan is in a weird place in his young life. Used to the life of a barbarian, he now find himself young and in love and… a pirate. Can the barbarian be tamed? Has he found the love of his life? I have no clue, but right now, all signs point to “yes.”

Brian Wood‘s writing this issue is fantastic! The issue is a wonderful character study on Conan, and that was one thing that I never knew I wanted or needed, but after reading it, I’m sure glad that I got it.

Abe Sapien: The Devil Does Not Jest #1
Written by Mike Mignola and John Arcudi
Art by James Harren
Colors by Dave Stewart
Letters by Clem Robins
Covers by Dave Johnson, Francesco Francavilla
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: September 28, 2011
Cover Price: $3.50

Abe Sapien: The Devil Does Not Jest #1 was a twisty little read. Abe is one of my favorite characters from Mike Mignola. Unfortunately, a lot of folks have only the most basic exposure to this character thanks to the Hellboy movies, which don’t portray him in his best light. This comic brings a combination of Abe’s intellect and badassery to the printed page.

A simple trip to meet an acquaintance’s relative leads us to the beginning of a warped tale. A lot of this story is a build up to the last few pages, of which I can tell you nothing without spoiling it for you. That said, in this issue Abe brings the pain. Everything he does to his enemies is calculated and deadly…totally laid the smackdown on the hellish minions.

There are a lot of great comic book art blogs out there, beyond the deviantart pages of the world, and if you’re a comic book fan, these are webpages that you should be checking out on a daily basis. All this week (okay, so we had a bit of a break, I had to find some more to talk about), I’m going to highlight a few that I think are worthy of your attention or are just pages for some of my favorite artists.

The Sindiecate is one of the newest art collective blogs. In fact it just started a few weeks ago. The artists involved in this one are David Lafuente, Jorge Munoz, James Harren, Ryan Ottley, and Mike Choi. Their stated goal is to “pay homage to independent comic books and authors.” The first theme they tackled was Todd deZago and Mike Wieringo’s Tellos, with Jonathan Ross/Tommy Lee Edwards being the second theme. This week is focusing on Locke and Key, and there are already a couple of great pieces up.