The five-part story of Rasputin acquiring the powers of a dragon ends this week. Will he garner new powers for the Nazis to exploit? And when it comes to the comic’s finale, can Mignola and Chris Roberson bring it home?
So what’s it about?
The official summary reads:
Bruttenholm and Sandhu reach the site of the Nazis’ occult activity, where the shadowy ”Master” himself is about to complete his occult experiment.
Why does this matter?
A prequel series about Bruttenholm (the man who took in Hellboy as a baby) continues also revealing how Rasputin acquired new powers. This series aims to flesh out the Mignola universe in new and interesting ways. Plus, certain chapters have been great.
Fine, you have my attention. What’s good about it?
We’re all screwed.
Rasputin finally gets more play in this issue which is great considering he’s more of a character who lurks in the shadows in previous chapters. Most of this issue takes place underground where an ancient Egyptian tomb has been uncovered, lacing Rasputin’s minion with power. He’s not too keen on this, but Bruttenholm and Sandhu aim to stop everyone from using supernatural forces for evil.
Most of this issue is action packed, pitting Bruttenholm up against two Nazis. It also puts to bed the Sandhu character and ends in an effective way reminding us this was just the beginning of Bruttenholm’s supernatural exploits. Much of this issue has an Indiana Jones vibe since the heroes must watch as villains attempt to control powers never meant for humanity. You can guess how things go for the villains. That said, Rasputin knows all too well how it will go too and that plays into his plan.
Christopher Mitten keeps the action clear and interesting. His ability to add elements in the foreground and background give the environments a realistic look and an ample amount of adventure and intrigue. The visuals, when it comes to energy and ghostly projections are quite cool too and the end for the villain amassing power looks quite believable with ghostly forms shattering.
Yep, we’re screwed.
It can’t be perfect can it?
When all is said and done this story probably didn’t need to be told. Bruttenholm and Sandhu end up being observers rather than agents of change. Hell, even Rasputin is an observer in this issue. The supernatural stuff is certainly cool, but with so little happening directly from the heroes or villains it’s hard to care about much of it.
Is It Good?
A perfectly fine finish, but one that is rendered less interesting due to the characters serving as observers instead of agents of change.
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