Dark Horse Comics has revealed that, following Hellboy in Hell‘s return this October with the two-part Nothing But Blood, the series will resume with another two-issue arc, Parade of Horrors. Written by Mike Mignola with art by Márk László (Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: Time is a River), and colorist Dave Stewart, the latest installment will see Hellboy attend the funeral of Satan (whom he killed during Hellboy in Hell #2).
The official synopsis reads, “Hellboy sets off in search of a drink, but finds himself in a cemetery just in time to witness a macabre procession in honor of Satan’s death. Not all of the demons are happy to see him after their Lord’s murder. This morbid celebration in the pits of Pandemonium will introduce readers to a horrific host of new characters haunting the hallowed halls of Hell, and send Hellboy on an all-new adventure in surreal depths of Mike Mignola’s singular version of Hell.”
Mignola comments, “I hadn’t planned to return to Hellboy’s Hell — I certainly didn’t think I’d ever let anyone else in there. But I love Márk’s work, and when we met he said he wanted to do a story set there. Well, how could I say no? Fortunately, there were a couple big holes between the chapters I’d drawn and I thought Márk would have fun with those two dead soldiers we meet in ‘The Three Gold Whips’ — and he did! I only gave him a rough outline for a story, and he took it from there. And as things took shape, we found a place to introduce a bit more of the history of the place. Every time I think we are done with this thing it seems we find there are just a few more bits and pieces to explore, which I guess is a good thing.”
László adds, “Ever since reading Hellboy in Hell, Mike’s version of the place (Hell) always felt like such a fun, rich visual playground to me: all those dark landscapes, the endless, bleak villages, the set of characters lurking inside. When I spoke with Mike about what could I do as a next Hellboy project, I knew I wanted to draw a story that is set in there. To my delight, he found a spot between two of the chapters of his original run where I could expand the story a little, and the whole thing was built up from there. It’s all made up of stuff I’m very happy to draw: Hellboy stumbling through parading demons, dancing skeletons, bloody fights, and I even got to draw a few glimpses from the history behind this version of Hell.”
Issue #1 will be released on December 16, with covers by László and Mignola. (Bridgit Connell will provide a variant, instead of Mignola, for the second issue.) Nothing But Blood, featuring art by Cyrille Pomes, will begin in the meantime on October 7, and the first issue is still available to pre-order until August 31.
