Mike Mignola, John Arcudi, and Guy Davis. B.P.R.D.: Garden of Souls (Dark Horse, 2007). $2.99, five-issue miniseries.

by Alex Boney

Hellboy occupies an odd place in the comics industry. The character became a sensation in indie comics circles shortly after he was introduced in San Diego Comic-Con Comics #2 in 1993. He reached the height of his comic book popularity in the late-90s/early-aughts and perhaps his greatest public recognition with the release of the Guillermo del Toro film in 2004. But as 8talented and distinctive a cartoonist as creator Mike Mignola is, he is not terribly prolific as a cartoonist. Hellboy has been published sporadically as one-shots and miniseries since 1993, but the comic has never gained much traction as an ongoing book because Mignola admittedly takes a lot of time to finish his solo projects. Luckily, Mignola (along with Dark Horse editor Scott Allie) is also talented at delegation. While Mignola was involved creatively in Hellboy’s translation to film, he left the overall vision and direction to del Toro. He has also been involved in the recent direct-to-DVD Hellboy animated films while leaving it to other creators to do the majority of the heavy lifting. Probably the most effective product of Mignola’s delegating skill is B.P.R.D., a comic book title which recently concluded its seventh miniseries in the last five years (Garden of Souls). As B.P.R.D. continues to plow onward while Hellboy is just now getting on track, it is becoming increasingly clear that B.P.R.D. has already achieved the potential that Hellboy has always promised but never quite delivered.

B.P.R.D. is an anagram for Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, a secret investigative arm of the U.S. government that operates out of the general public’s sight. The team is comprised of numerous paranormally-gifted scholars and detectives, most of whom were introduced in various Hellboy series. The amphibious Abe Sapien and pyrokinetic Liz Sherman are probably familiar to people who have seen the film and/or animated movies. But the B.P.R.D. also features lesser-known characters such as a homunculus named Roger, a disembodied energy medium named Johann Kraus, former NYU professor Kate Corrigan, and seemingly dead/undead field commander Benjamin Daimio. Hellboy’s departure from the B.P.R.D. after his discovery of corruption and cruelty in the Bureau’s management led to the first B.P.R.D. miniseries (Hollow Earth), so the majority of the B.P.R.D. titles do not include even an appearance by the Bureau’s most popular (and powerful) member. But this is more of an advantage than a disadvantage. Instead of focusing on the organization’s most powerful member, Mignola and recent co-writer John Arcudi have allowed secondary characters and team dynamics to emerge as focal points. The result is a level of depth and characterization found very rarely in most team superhero books.

DC’s Doom Patrol and Marvel’s X-Men, much like the B.P.R.D., are groups of freaks and outcasts who have been thrown together through circumstance and a unified sense of mission. But because the B.P.R.D. is a more recent creation and Mignola has maintained a consistent vision of his creation, B.P.R.D. has provided a greater narrative direction than stories featuring the former teams. Although Garden of Souls is the seventh official B.P.R.D. story, the series provides a good introduction for readers who have not read every issue to date. Garden of Souls fleshes out the origin of Abe Sapien, probably the most recognizable B.P.R.D. member after Hellboy. To this point, Abe’s background generally has only been alluded to. His transformation from human and amphibian was revealed in an earlier story, but the reasons for his transformation and the group he was associated with at the time have been shrouded in mystery. Garden of Souls sees Abe and Captain Daimio travel to Indonesia after Abe receives a vague clue regarding his past identity. Naturally, the mystery Abe uncovers has much broader implications, and the result is the elimination of a global threat and the introduction of a new B.P.R.D. member.

The story may look a bit simplistic and hackneyed in summary, but Garden of Souls holds together well and unfolds as an engaging, moving narrative. Mignola and Arcudi know their medium well, and they effectively employ timing, pacing, and transitions unique to comics. Some plot threads introduced in previous series are advanced quickly (we finally get a full, substantive story about Abe), while some subplots are nudged forward to foreshadow events that will undoubtedly be resolved in future stories (one of Liz’s dreams receives a two-page splash layout). The book is also well-served by regular artist Guy Davis (probably best-known for his stint on Vertigo’s acclaimed Sandman Mystery Theatre), who has illustrated every miniseries since Plague of Frogs. Davis’ art style – rough and loose – stands in sharp contrast to Mignola’s thick linework and heavy use of shadows. After Hellboy, his technique may take some time to get used to. But his stylization creates a dark, portentous atmosphere that’s well-suited not only to Mignola’s and Arcudi’s writing, but also to the overall tone and mood of the characters’ chaotic world. Somewhere in the process of reading this series, it became clear to me how organic the storytelling has become. This book has a narrative flow usually only found when one creator handles both the writing and the art. Frequency and consistency have been the hallmarks of B.P.R.D. since its inception, but these three creators have now achieved an impressive level of cohesiveness as well.

Last fall, I had intended to review B.P.R.D.: The Universal Machine for an issue of GutterGeek. But after the death of my favorite B.P.R.D. member and the emotional, evocative epilogue written and illustrated by Mike Mignola in the last issue of that series, I found that I didn’t have much to say. That may well be a sign of my limitations as a writer. But I prefer to think it’s a testament to the strong level of storytelling and characterization that Mignola, Arcudi, and Davis are achieving. This doesn’t mean Garden of Souls and the recently-begun Killing Ground are lesser stories than The Universal Machine. On the contrary, Garden of Souls is probably the most satisfying complete B.P.R.D. story to date. I just think that now is the time to call attention to a book that many readers may have dismissed as a distant, unimportant cousin to Hellboy. B.P.R.D. is now more than a filler to keep readers satisfied between Hellboy stories; instead, it’s a book that truly has hit its stride.