I’m a considerable fan of Hellboy creator Mike Mignola and have been for more than a few years systematically collecting his art books and comics.
This particular volume collects DC comics that the artist drew before he created his iconic Hellboy, and is definitely interesting because you can see the evolution of his art work, many of it neigh unrecognizable from the Mignola style drawings we know today ( also in part due to the very different color palette used by his inkers ).
By the time the artist embarked on Batman material his line work has simplified significantly, the hatchings reduced, and the bold blocks of rich black shadows are beginning to dominate his over composition style.
As you scroll down this post you can see how his art style change gradually over the course of time.
I certainly prefer the much more simplified and stylized look of Mignola’s work that he has created in more recent years, but this book is a good study of his earlier day works, and the Batman comics that take up the later half of this book are also of excellent quality, and stylistically much closer to his early days Hellboy work. Recommended.
“The DC Universe Of Mike Mignola″ comic book details :
– Dimensions – 7 x 0.9 x 10.5 inches
– Hard cover, 395 pages
– Full color, In English
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You might also be interested in these items :
Hellboy Artist Edition – Mike Mignola Comic Review
Alien Salvation – Mike Mignola Comic Review
Mike Mignola : The Quarantine Sketchbook Review
Koshchei in Hell Mike Mignola Comic Review
Bram Stoker’s Dracula – Mike Mignola Graphic Novel Review
November 23rd, 2018 at 12:51 pm
Glad you got to reviewing this. I’ve followed Mignola since my grade acho days. And returning back to his older work and seeing it side by side with his current work? Just beautiful. I agree with you that his various inkin collaborators gave his style a different look each time but his basic framework has always been there. Once he became comfortable with his more solid inks he came into his own. Also i wanted to say, you can also see Mignola is at his strongest when he is tackling fantasy/horror elements over mainstream superhero fare. I’ve always highly enjoyed him when he is in his element.
November 24th, 2018 at 4:56 pm
Hey, don’t forget that fill-in issue of X-Force he did early in the run. Fans were livid that the “amazing” art of Rob Liefeld was absent and some “loser” named Mignola did the issue instead. My how time gives up perspective.
Speaking of Marvel, I always loved his art on “Wolverine: The Jungle Adventure.”
November 25th, 2018 at 10:12 am
Yes! I absolutely remember! Mignola had some good stuff during his Marvel stint as well! I absolutely love his covers too for those annual crossover events. And yes, wolverine jungle adventure is another favorite of mine! Don’t forget he also had that back up story in the web of spiderman annual and that gorgeous Dr. Strange & Dr. Doom graphic novel!
November 25th, 2018 at 12:39 pm
Kwong / Josh- Glad you guys liked this. I’m a sucker for everything Mignola so I had to get a copy of this book. :]
December 6th, 2018 at 1:15 am
Gotta say, I’ve been a fan of Mike for a very long time, but more into Hellboy than his Batman runs. On the other side of the comic book line, I really enjoy Joe Quesada and what he cooks up, specially with Spidey.