With Halloween just around the corner, publishers have released new or updated editions of some horror and Halloween-themed comics. Each of these would make fine reading with a flashlight once the sun goes down on All Hallows’ Eve.

‘Batman: The Long Halloween’

“Batman: The Long Halloween” follows the fall of District Attorney Harvey Dent as Batman tracks “Holiday,” a serial killer who strikes on a holiday each month.

Most of Batman’s well-known rogues’ gallery appear, as does the mob boss Falcone, who appears in “Batman Begins.” The stylized art is by Tim Sale.

Set just after the “year one” era of Batman, the book features Dent, police Commissioner James Gordon and Batman beginning a tenuous alliance to root out the mobsters of Gotham City. A killer begins a campaign against men working for The Roman, aka Carmine Falcone, starting with the Halloween slaying of Johnny Viti. More slayings follow on major holidays each month, earning the unknown killer the nickname “Holiday.”

Tim Sale provides a great atmospheric tone for “Long Halloween,” and Loeb crafts a compelling mystery that will have readers talking long after finishing the book.

DC released a new edition of “The Long Halloween” in softcover this month.

The early tales of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Development (following their appearances in “Hellboy” comics) were collected in hardcover editions in 2011 from Dark Horse. The B.P.R.D investigates the supernatural mysteries that are beyond the expertise of regular agents. When Hellboy quits the team, Abe Sapien and Liz Sherman must run the team and protect the world from a growing menace of a strange invasion of frogs.

Mike Mignola teams with co-writers Christopher Golden (“Baltimore”), Geoff Johns (“Blackest Night”), Tom Sniegoski (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) and others in this hardcover collection that contains 12 issues of the earliest B.P.R.D. tales.

Artists include Ryan Sook (“X-Factor”), who has a very Mignolaesque style; Cameron Stewart (“Seaguy”), Scott Kolins (“The Flash”) and Guy Davis, who would become the series’ longest-running artist.

The second “Plague of Frogs” hardcover collection contains “The Dead” #1-5; “War on Frogs” #1-5; “The Black Flame” #1-6; and “Born Again” and “Revival.” This hardcover introduces John Arcudi as a co-writer, creating what’s probably the classic B.P.R.D. team of Mignola, Arcudi and Davis.

Vampirella debuted in 1969 in the black-and-white magazine “Vampirella.” The cover of “Vampirella” No. 1 was by famed artist Frank Frazetta.

“Vampirella is one of comics’ greatest female icons, and we’re proud to bring her classic and contemporary tales back to print for fans old and new,” Dynamite President and Publisher Nick Barrucci said in a news release last year.

Dynamite has collected the first 21 issues of the original magazine in three archive editions, featuring work by Oklahoma Cartoonist Hall of Famer Archie Goodwin, Barry Windsor Smith, Steve Englehart, Neal Adams, Richard Corben and more.

- by Matthew Price
WORD BALLOONS
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

In comic shops this week, “Vampirella Masters Vol. 6” collects writer James Robinson’s tale “Blood Lust,” in which Vampirella journeys to hell with Adam Van Helsing. The story is fully painted by Joe Jusko. The book also contains a new epilogue and the tale “Vampirella vs. Dracula” by Robinson, with art by Rick Mays and David Mack. Other “Vampirella Masters” collections include tales by Mark Millar, Grant Morrison, Warren Ellis and Kurt Busiek.

We discuss the Catwoman costume, the death of Hellboy, and 2 new Marvel movies in this week’s Planet 46 Comics Podcast at NewsOK.

CATWOMAN REVEAL
Anne Hathaway says in the Montreal Gazette that “The Dark Knight Rises” is “going to be way beyond what anyone imagines it could be.”

Hathaway plays Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises, and so far response has been mixed to the photo released of her in costume — but without any particular “cat” items.

Hathaway says people will be astounded, however.

“You can’t imagine the things that he’s doing. At least, I couldn’t until I read the script!”

Hathaway’s current film, “One Day,” opens Aug. 19.

HELLBOY SHOCKER

The third issue of Hellboy the Fury has sold out before even arriving on shelves.

In response, Dark Horse has rushed through reprints of all three issues of this critically acclaimed story arc. These reprints will go on sale Aug. 17.

Info from Dark Horse: Hellboy: The Fury marks the dramatic conclusion to the epic story line by Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo that began in Darkness Calls back in 2007. This final three-issue story pits Hellboy against the Queen of Blood one on one, leaving behind a war-torn battlefield strewn with the bodies of monsters and knights. In this dramatic conclusion, the fate of the world, and of Hellboy himself, lies with the Ogdru Jahad, his greatest foe, culminating in one final battle for the ages.

MARVEL MOVIES

Marvel has two movies scheduled for 2014, but haven’t announced what they will be as of yet. The first is scheduled for May 16, which is two weeks after The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and the second one is targeted for a June 27 release that year.

These two films will follow Marvel’s The Avengers (May 4, 2012), Iron Man 3 (May 3, 2013) and Thor 2 (July 26, 2013).

REVIEW FILE: Fear Itself #5, Red Wing #2, Amazing Spider-Man #667
Comics read in 2011: 1,182 Still to go: 829

Ron Perlman as Hellboy in “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” 

“Hellboy 2: The Golden Army” brings back the cigar-chomping, wisecracking paranormal agent with the indestructible hand and big red body from the first “Hellboy.” Ron Perlman reprises his role as the most powerful agent of the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, nicknamed “Red.” He and girlfriend Liz (Selma Blair), a pyrokinetic, are having off-and-on problems, largely based around Red’s loutishness: He leaves her toothbrush in the cat food, for one.

Elfin Prince Nuada (Luke Goss), angered by the humans’ constant encroachment on the elfin world, breaks a pact long-forgotten by the humans. The humans and the elves ended a long-ago war by agreeing to a truce — the elves would stay in the forests and the humans to the cities. But, as Nuada declares, the parking lots and shopping malls have driven the elves from their homes. He will reawaken the Golden Army, a clockwork grouping of 14,400 soldiers, built by a goblin for the elf king to answer the aggression of humanity in the first war. Nuada reclaims part of the crown needed to rule the Golden Army from an auction house — slaughtering the bidders in the process, with demented “tooth fairies” — so called because of their desire to feed on bones and teeth.

Hellboy and his BPRD crew, now led by the ectoplasmic German Johann Krauss (voiced by Seth MacFarlane) seek the Troll Market for clues to who unleashed the tooth fairies.

Fish-man Abe Sapien (Doug Jones) encounters Nuala (Anna Walton), Nuada’s twin sister, who wishes to keep her brother from awakening the Golden Army.

Multiple conflicts and showdowns follow, including the final meeting with the Golden Army. But before that, director Guillermo del Toro craftfully sets up a possible sequel: With Hellboy on the verge of death, Liz must decide whether she believes in Red, or what his destiny was foretold to be. Those who have read Mike Mignola’s comic books have an idea what’s coming, but it would still be spectacular to see filtered through del Toro’s vision.

The entire film is a visual marvel; the Troll Market recalls the “Star Wars” cantina scene with monsters rather than aliens. The film is similar in many ways to the original, but improved across the board.

“Hellboy 2: The Golden Army” is an over-the-top B movie, but near-perfectly so.

Matthew Price

MOVIE REVIEW

HELLBOY 2: THE GOLDEN ARMY

PG-13 1:50 3 ½ stars

Starring: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Luke Goss

(for sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and some language)

From Friday’s The Oklahoman: 

By Matthew Price
Assistant Features Editor

THE NEXT LEVEL

“Hellboy: The Science of Evil,” for PlayStation Portable, unfortunately fails to capture much of what has made the hero one of the most enduring comic-book characters of the past 15 years.

After appearances in a comic convention special and in “John Byrne’s Next Men,” Hellboy starred in his own series, “Seed of Destruction,” in 1994. The blue-collar hero with the body of a demon caught on with fans, as did Mignola’s atmospheric art. Mignola had been a professional artist starting in his early 20s, but the success of Hellboy moved Mignola to another level. Multiple successful miniseries followed, as did a 2004 film directed by Guillermo del Toro (“Pan’s Labyrinth”). A sequel to that film hits theaters today.

Video games, however, have been a medium where Hellboy has never fared particularly well.

Both the PC game “Hellboy” and the PlayStation game “Hellboy: Asylum Seeker” received generally poor reviews.

“Science of Evil” at least bragged the voice actors from the film, but that voice acting is absent on the PSP version. Mignola and del Toro supposedly gave input on “Science of Evil,” but it doesn’t seem to have helped the gameplay.

The backgrounds are suitably spooky, but the poor camera allows Hellboy to walk into a fatal ditch invisible to the gamer. The battles are too easy and repetitive.

“Science of Evil” begins with Hellboy on the trail of a witch, but the plot never coalesces. The cut scenes, done in a comic-book style, are decent but don’t match the overall look. The character deserves better.

The game is rated T for teen audiences.

– Matt Price 

– Matt Price 

#1. Wanted - Based on the Mark Millar comic-book miniseries for Top Cow.

#2. The Dark Knight - Introducing Heath Ledger as the Joker.

#3. Hellboy: The Golden Army – Guillermo del Toro directs this sequel starring Mike Mignola’s blue-collar supernatural hero.

(And at #5, the Wachowski Brothers’ Speed Racer, based on the classic anime.  And this trailer is seriously growing on me.)

 – Matt Price

PRESS RELEASE:

Universal Pictures is bringing out the big guns for Hellboy II: The Golden Army! Check out the Hellboy II Production Site to view the FIRST shot of Hellboy with his Big Baby and send your friends a personalized holiday eCard from the big red guy himself!

A few tidbits about what you’ll find on the HBII Production Site: www.hellboymovie.com -

**NEW** HOLIDAY ECARD: Send your friends a
Holiday eCard – Hellboy Style!

- **NEW** IMAGE: First photo reveal – Hellboy with his big baby.

- NEWS: Terrific Hellboy II news hits, feature articles and early cast interviews featured on various publications.

- GALLERY: Guillermo del Toro’s amazing HBII Scrapbook- including the incredible concept art and descriptions of each image.

- HBTV: Watch Abe Sapien, live from the BRPD Headquarters as he gives you a personal welcome message to the site! You can embed Abe’s welcome video and share it on your Facebook profile as well.

- Message Board: Chat with fellow fans of Guillermo del Toro about everything Hellboy II… and don’t be surprised if you get a response from GDT himself on the message boards! Hellboy II: The Golden Army blasts into theaters July 11, 2008!