About book Hellboy N. 10: L'uomo Deforme E Altre Storie (2000)
H.P. Lovecraft is arguably the biggest pulp influence on the Mignolaverse, but in "The Crooked Man," Mike Mignola takes a break from the normally cosmic goings-on to pay tribute to another writer from the classic "Weird Tales" roster: Manly Wade Wellman.In 1958, Hellboy, still working for the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, sets cloven foot into the mountains of Appalachia, where the terrain may be sunnier on the surface but whose forests hide hillbilly witchcraft as black as the farthest reaches of the Old Ones' domains. The locals, complete with corncob pipes, are convinced that a woman in an open-eyed coma has been hexed by a witch named Cora Fisher. Tom Ferrell, a former member of the community who's reminiscent of Wellman's character Silver John, has returned after 20 years and found evidence of said hexing.Hellboy and Tom head farther up into the mountains to find Cora. They face a zeppelin-chested seductress (a longtime specialty of artist Richard Corben) and the legacy of dark vows Tom swore as a teen to a devilish thing known as The Crooked Man, one of Corben's creepiest-looking creations. "One look at him scared all the bad thoughts right out a me. I lit out for home, swearin all the way to be good again." But Tom, like Cora, has been "bought an paid for," and The Crooked Man is a possessive owner (no pun intended).Mignola says he wrote "The Crooked Man" specifically for Corben, who "really delivered the goods." I enthusiastically agree. I don't think even Mignola himself could have nailed the art any better. As the corporate clots at Marvel and DC continue to display their willingness to trample their own legacies for a quick buck (or 4 bucks rather) with 52 this or Ultimate that, it's heartening to read a title that's so obviously a joyful labor of love that holds its forebears in reverence while freshly renovating decades-old material. "The Crooked Man" is one of the all-time great Hellboy stories and one of the most frightening horror comix since Alan Moore days on "Swamp Thing."The backup stories in this volume are fine but not in the same class, though "In the Chapel of Moloch" is written AND drawn by Mignola (interpreting Goya yet!), which is always an occasion for fanboy squee. The book also appends an appreciation of Manly Wade Wellman by pulp authority John Pelan for those who might not be familiar with Wellman's contributions to the weird tale. Hellboy, the creation of Mike Mignola, is a good guy demon with bright red skin, one giant stone fist, horns kept filed down to round stumps, and a sardonic sense of humour. After being summoned from hell by Nazis at the end of WWII, the infant demon was retrieved by allied forces, and raised as a normal child by Professor Trevor Bruttenholm, a founder of the USA’s Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense. Now he’s a grown man – well, demon – who works with other creatures from the BPRD to fight paranormal forces of evil. On this particular adventure, in the year 1958, Hellboy finds himself deep in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia, where a local woman appears to be suffering the effects of witchcraft induced magic. Just as his investigation is getting under way, a former resident of the area, Tom Ferrell, returns after a twenty year absence, and happens upon the scene unfolding within the tiny log cabin. After Tom suggests a method for releasing the woman from the curse, he and Hellboy set out together to pay a visit to their primary suspect, a woman by the name of Cora Fisher. It turns out she is indeed the witch, but Cora Fisher, an old acquaintance of Tom’s, is a not an evil woman, she has just got mixed up with the wrong people – and Tom knows how easy it is to get mixed up with the wrong people in these woods. Ferrell reveals to Hellboy that at the age of 15 he himself got involved with witchcraft, under the influence of the perpetually young and beautiful witch, Effie Colb. With her guidance, he had performed a satanic ritual which produced for him a lucky cat bone (acquired through a grisly procedure which includes the boiling a dead feline), which Tom believes kept him safe during his years in the war. Unfortunately there is a price Cora and Tom have to pay for the privilege of these powers, and it’s the dreaded Crooked Man who comes to collect on such supernatural debts. Tom, along with the aid of Hellboy and a local priest, must confront man eating insects, a mass of terrible witches, including Effie Colb, and the Crooked Man himself, in order to break this terrible vow. The eerie seclusion of the Appalachian Mountains is a perfect setting for a tale of horrible witches, and demonic soul collectors. Mingola takes advantage of this traditional American mythology to create a chilling but fun narrative, and credits American pulp horror writer, Manly Wade Wellman for his influence on this particular story. At the back of the book, Mingola includes a very interesting essay on the man and his work. The art and design of this book, mainly provided by Richard Corben, is imbued with the appropriate amount dark tones (contrasting nicely with the bright red of Hellboy), provides the perfect amount of grotesqueness required for such a tale, and effectively moves the story forward in a meaningful way with every panel. The Crooked Man, which was initially released as a 3 part miniseries, won the Eisner award for best limited series in 2009. More importantly, in 2013, The Crooked Man received a 5 star rating from myself. Talk about prestige!
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"The Crooked Man", despite being Vol 10 in the Hellboy series, isn't a continuation of the events of the previous book but rather a collection of shorts written by Mignola and illustrated by the best comics artists around. While I would've liked to see what happened after Vol 9, "The Crooked Man" more than makes up for it by providing story after story of high quality, brilliant storytelling and art. "The Crooked Man" showcases Richard Corben's artwork as Mignola takes Hellboy into rural North America to fight mountain witches and the devil himself. The depiction of the devil, or "The Crooked Man", is truly amazing as are panel after panel of ruined churches, idyllic countryside, and horrifying creatures. If you're a Discworld fan and always wondered what Granny Weatherwax entering the body of an animal might look like, you get to see the graphic depiction here. It's the best story in the book and can easily see why it won an Eisner award in 2009. Jason Shawn Alexander (the guy who drew "Abe Sapien: The Drowning") lends his talents to a tale of a headless pirate Blackbeard, while Mignola himself draws "In the Chapel of Moloch", a Goya-esque tale of demon worship. The fanciful strip "The Mole" rounds out this superb collection with the inimitable Duncan Fegredo drawing beautiful countryside vistas, a ghostly poker game, and a derelict house with equal skill. Totally worth reading whether you're new to Hellboy or not, it's an amazing book and a fantastic contribution to one of the best comic series around.
—Yash2279
Quatre histoires courtes, placées dans un ordre à peu près aléatoire, et mettant en scène des thèmes habituels du gros démon : des sorciers, des choses bizarres, des malédictions, d'anciens dieux.Je ne sais toujours pas pourquoi je continue à acheter tout ça, mais en tout la cas la fascination opérée par Mignola et Hellboy demeure intacte.En fait, j'ai même tendance à apprécier moins les histoires dessinées par d'autres, même quand le dessinateur maîtrise manifestement mieux son crayon que Mignola (ce qui est le cas du premier, par exemple).Cela dit, cette première histoire mettant en scène l'homme tordu et les sorcières des apalaches est tout à fait fascinante.Et l'histoire de Barbe-Noire est également très sympathique. Malheureusement sa conclusion en est un peu rapidement exécutée.
—ingriddihle
I wish that Mignola was drawing all the hellboy stuff. That being said, each story is excellent.
—lala
Classic Hellboy! The Crooked Man almost turned against witchcraft.
—Cindy
