And Then I Read: ABE SAPIEN VOLUME 3

Image © Mike Mignola.

The fish-man and former B.P.R.D. agent Abe Sapien has become a fugitive of sorts, and these stories reminded me a little of the old TV show of that name, but with supernatural elements and with the goal of the main character much less clear. It’s the B.P.R.D. that are trying to track him down, and they come very close in the first of these two stories, but Abe does not want to be found. His reasons for that remain murky, perhaps to him as well. Meanwhile, in the first story he encounters help from a small-town preacher whose village has been devastated by one of the hellish monsters unleashed recently, and while Abe appreciates the help, he is soon drawn into a town drama that he would rather avoid, not to mention more monsters. In the second story, Abe has reached the Salton Sea in California, the scene of more monster eruptions, and gets involved with a small group of young people there partly as thrill seekers, partly as worshipers of the monsters. The group is conflicted, and Abe’s presence only adds to that, in his new more monstrous shape. As one might expect, things go downhill from that. Despite the gloomy outlook, I enjoyed these stories and the characters in them.

Recommended.