Comic Review: Hellboy and the BPRD: Long Night at Goloski Station

Hellboy & The BPRD: Long Night at Goloski Station

Dark Horse Comics

Writer: Mike Mignola

Artist: Matt Smith & Dave Stewart

Letterer: Clem Robins

What a great release. Please, do yourself a favor and pick up this fantastic one-shot from Mignola & Co. It’s truly remarkable how the series is over twenty-years-old but Mignola always manages to keep it fresh and timeless. There would really be no way to tell the difference in quality between a Hellboy comic from the 90s and now. A true testament to the consistency and skill of the creators.

In this new story, Hellboy finds himself somewhere in rural Russia on the hunt for an old friend. Its the dead of winter (fitting for the season) and exactly the type of backdrop you would want for a mystery. We aren’t given any inkling of background information, just start right as he is arriving. I really enjoyed how the plot plays out like a chamber piece, with very few characters and only one central location — the titular Goloski Station. It’s very much like an excellent slow-burn style film. The focus here is more on the dialogue between the two leads (the other being a mysterious local hunter) than much action.

The art is great as always and the colors appropriately bold as you would expect from a piece of work in the Mignolaverse. Strong dark colors permeate throughout the pages and help maintain the proper atmosphere. This is also helped by the fact that the story never takes place during daylight. 

If I had to nitpick, it would be that I wish the story was a little bit longer, especially given the name of the title. An oversized issue would have been a good fit here if a whole arc was not possible. There was certainly plenty more that could have been explored with this interesting story. Especially once you know how it ends.

Oh, and on a side note: It’s quite a shame that the recent adaptation on the big screen didn’t tap into what really makes this character and stories so great; choosing instead a bland apocalyptic premise that’s all-too-common in modern blockbusters. Here’s hoping we one day get a film version of this kind of story.

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