Itty Bitty Hellboy #1
Once upon a time, comic books were meant for kids. At least, that’s what publishers thought. Then something happened along the way. Those who began reading comics at a tender age grew up and in return, so did comics. Nowadays, you’d be hard pressed to find a comic geared towards a younger audience. For every Adventure Time! and it’s seemingly infinite number of spin-offs, you get about 13 other stories involving dark, brooding and psychopathic heroes. Enter Itty Bitty Hellboy from Dark Horse Comics, a mini-series safe for kids, yet packed with fan service for those old enough to buy alcohol.
Itty Bitty Hellboy #1 is a series of stories set within a world where Hellboy and his pals are care-free children worrying about childish things. Rasputin wants a bigger box for his fort, Roger likes to hide in bushes and poor ol’ Johann seems to have caught a cold. Each story, no more than a couple pages in length, is a refreshing take on a much loved series, though other than a nice gimmick with good intentions, there isn’t much to care about here and that is the books biggest problem.
Writers Baltazar & Franco have done a fantastic job of shrinking down Mignola’s epic scale, and framing it through the scope of children. The backyard tone is spot on, and the way the characters interact are just so darn cute, you almost feel bad for not liking it. Whereas books like Adventure Time! or Sonic the Hedgehog embrace a serialized format, Itty Bitty Hellboy is severely hurt by its short vingettes. By the time you realize you’ve finished the book, you can barely remember having read it. It’s all to brief and all to underwhelming.
The art is a hightlight as Baltazar has captured the child-like innocence and care-free spirit of the playground perfectly. One can imagine that we’ll be seeing his Itty Bitty Hellboy design pop-up long after the series has ended.
Itty Bitty Hellboy #1 is a conflicting the read. The art, story and tone is just so darn cute and innocent that any ill-will towards it feels unfounded. But at the end of the day, a reviewer has to go with their gut, and my gut says ‘meh’.
Itty Bitty Hellboy #1
Writer: Alt Baltazar & Franco
Art: Art Baltazar
Publisher: Mike Richardson for Dark Horse Comics
Itty Bitty Hellboy #1 is a series of stories set within a world where Hellboy and his pals are care-free children worrying about childish things. Rasputin wants a bigger box for his fort, Roger likes to hide in bushes and poor ol’ Johann seems to have caught a cold. Each story, no more than a couple pages in length, is a refreshing take on a much loved series, though other than a nice gimmick with good intentions, there isn’t much to care about here and that is the books biggest problem.
Writers Baltazar & Franco have done a fantastic job of shrinking down Mignola’s epic scale, and framing it through the scope of children. The backyard tone is spot on, and the way the characters interact are just so darn cute, you almost feel bad for not liking it. Whereas books like Adventure Time! or Sonic the Hedgehog embrace a serialized format, Itty Bitty Hellboy is severely hurt by its short vingettes. By the time you realize you’ve finished the book, you can barely remember having read it. It’s all to brief and all to underwhelming.
The art is a hightlight as Baltazar has captured the child-like innocence and care-free spirit of the playground perfectly. One can imagine that we’ll be seeing his Itty Bitty Hellboy design pop-up long after the series has ended.
Itty Bitty Hellboy #1 is a conflicting the read. The art, story and tone is just so darn cute and innocent that any ill-will towards it feels unfounded. But at the end of the day, a reviewer has to go with their gut, and my gut says ‘meh’.
Itty Bitty Hellboy #1
Writer: Alt Baltazar & Franco
Art: Art Baltazar
Publisher: Mike Richardson for Dark Horse Comics
A Look Inside
