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Baltimore
Baltimore, Vol. 3: A Passing Stranger and Other Stories
Eisner Award–winning horror master Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden present tales featuring the world’s greatest vampire hunter on a quest for vengeance across a world overrun by monsters. A demented surgeon attempts to cure vampirism by creating greater horrors, and a perverse inquisitor reveals his own dark secrets, as Baltimore pursues the scarred vampire that he blames for all of it.
• Epic vampire horror adventure from Hellboy creator Mike Mignola!
• Epic vampire horror adventure from Hellboy creator Mike Mignola!
152 pages, Hardcover
First published November 20, 2013
4 people are currently reading
361 people want to read
About the author
Mike Mignola
1,884 books2,512 followersMike Mignola was born September 16, 1960 in Berkeley, California and grew up in nearby Oakland. His fascination with ghosts and monsters began at an early age (he doesn't remember why) and reading Dracula at age 13 introduced him to Victorian literature and folklore from which he has never recovered.
In 1982, hoping to find a way to draw monsters for a living, he moved to New York City and began working for Marvel Comics, first as a (very terrible) inker and then as an artist on comics like Rocket Raccoon, Alpha Flight and The Hulk. By the late 80s he had begun to develop his signature style (thin lines, clunky shapes and lots of black) and moved onto higher profile commercial projects like Cosmic Odyssey (1988) and Gotham by Gaslight (1989) for DC Comics, and the not-so-commercial Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser (1990) for Marvel. In 1992, he drew the comic book adaptation of the film Bram Stoker's Dracula for Topps Comics.
In 1993, Mike moved to Dark Horse comics and created Hellboy, a half-demon occult detective who may or may not be the Beast of the Apocalypse. While the first story line (Seed of Destruction, 1994) was co-written by John Byrne, Mike has continued writing the series himself. There are, at this moment, 13 Hellboy graphic novel collections (with more on the way), several spin-off titles (B.P.R.D., Lobster Johnson, Abe Sapien and Witchfinder), three anthologies of prose stories, several novels, two animated films and two live-action films staring Ron Perlman. Hellboy has earned numerous comic industry awards and is published in a great many countries.
Mike also created the award-winning comic book The Amazing Screw-on Head and has co-written two novels (Baltimore, or, the Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire and Joe Golem and the Drowning City) with best-selling author Christopher Golden.
Mike worked (very briefly) with Francis Ford Coppola on his film Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), was a production designer on the Disney film Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) and was visual consultant to director Guillermo del Toro on Blade II (2002), Hellboy (2004) and Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008). He lives somewhere in Southern California with his wife, daughter, a lot of books and a cat.
In 1982, hoping to find a way to draw monsters for a living, he moved to New York City and began working for Marvel Comics, first as a (very terrible) inker and then as an artist on comics like Rocket Raccoon, Alpha Flight and The Hulk. By the late 80s he had begun to develop his signature style (thin lines, clunky shapes and lots of black) and moved onto higher profile commercial projects like Cosmic Odyssey (1988) and Gotham by Gaslight (1989) for DC Comics, and the not-so-commercial Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser (1990) for Marvel. In 1992, he drew the comic book adaptation of the film Bram Stoker's Dracula for Topps Comics.
In 1993, Mike moved to Dark Horse comics and created Hellboy, a half-demon occult detective who may or may not be the Beast of the Apocalypse. While the first story line (Seed of Destruction, 1994) was co-written by John Byrne, Mike has continued writing the series himself. There are, at this moment, 13 Hellboy graphic novel collections (with more on the way), several spin-off titles (B.P.R.D., Lobster Johnson, Abe Sapien and Witchfinder), three anthologies of prose stories, several novels, two animated films and two live-action films staring Ron Perlman. Hellboy has earned numerous comic industry awards and is published in a great many countries.
Mike also created the award-winning comic book The Amazing Screw-on Head and has co-written two novels (Baltimore, or, the Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire and Joe Golem and the Drowning City) with best-selling author Christopher Golden.
Mike worked (very briefly) with Francis Ford Coppola on his film Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), was a production designer on the Disney film Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) and was visual consultant to director Guillermo del Toro on Blade II (2002), Hellboy (2004) and Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008). He lives somewhere in Southern California with his wife, daughter, a lot of books and a cat.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
November 8, 2020
A bunch of one shots featuring Lord Baltimore battling various monsters that arise. Standouts were The Play, which is a somewhat meta take on Poe's Curse of the Red Death and The Inquisitor where Inquisitor Duvic takes center stage. I liked that we stepped away some from vampires in these short stories. Mignola and Golden are fleshing out this world very nicely. Ben Stenbeck's art is great.
March 17, 2020
I am totally enjoying this series about Lord Baltimore. It's set after WWI; 1913- 1917 so far. Lord Baltimore is hunting down the Vampire that Killed his wife named Haigis. He can't quite catch up to him, but he has to clear out other terrors and vampires as he chases after Haigis.
This episode, he stops in a sea village and helps clear out some horrors from this town before he gets on his way again. We also see the Inquisitor come back in this book. I really don't like him. A few characters from previous volumes show up as well.
This is dark and post-apocalyptic. It's almost too dark for me, especially during the pandemic, but I'm still enjoying this story. Our library is closed, so I only have the things checked out and then I will run out of graphic novels. I think I have about 8 books left. That's a small thing compared to everything going on. Yeah, this isn't the best thing to be reading right now.
This episode, he stops in a sea village and helps clear out some horrors from this town before he gets on his way again. We also see the Inquisitor come back in this book. I really don't like him. A few characters from previous volumes show up as well.
This is dark and post-apocalyptic. It's almost too dark for me, especially during the pandemic, but I'm still enjoying this story. Our library is closed, so I only have the things checked out and then I will run out of graphic novels. I think I have about 8 books left. That's a small thing compared to everything going on. Yeah, this isn't the best thing to be reading right now.
June 27, 2017
Lord Baltimore's 3rd volume is a collection of short stories. For the most part they are uniformly excellent.
The Widow- 4 stars. A widow is keeping company with her husband. But he died during World War 1. Lord Baltimore solves the mystery. The ending is poignant.
The Tank- 3 stars. An abandoned tank seems to be causing trouble for a village. Lord Baltimore finds out what the monsters are and helps a surprising victim trapped in the tank.
A Passing Stranger- 4 stars. Lord Baltimore passes through a small town and helps them to defeat some strange monsters.
The Play- 5 stars. A Haigus story. Haigus the vampire takes interest in a play production. Interesting story with an excellent ending.
Dr. Leskovar's Remedy- 4 stars. A Doctor has found a "cure" for vampirism. Lord Baltimore is about to help the town since the "cure" seems worse than the disease.
The Inquisitor- 5 stars. A superb story about the psychopathic Inquisitor Judge Dovic and how he ended up cursed.
All these stories have excellent art. The short stories are all very good, some of them brilliant. All in all this was an excellent Lord Baltimore volume. This is a great series.
The Widow- 4 stars. A widow is keeping company with her husband. But he died during World War 1. Lord Baltimore solves the mystery. The ending is poignant.
The Tank- 3 stars. An abandoned tank seems to be causing trouble for a village. Lord Baltimore finds out what the monsters are and helps a surprising victim trapped in the tank.
A Passing Stranger- 4 stars. Lord Baltimore passes through a small town and helps them to defeat some strange monsters.
The Play- 5 stars. A Haigus story. Haigus the vampire takes interest in a play production. Interesting story with an excellent ending.
Dr. Leskovar's Remedy- 4 stars. A Doctor has found a "cure" for vampirism. Lord Baltimore is about to help the town since the "cure" seems worse than the disease.
The Inquisitor- 5 stars. A superb story about the psychopathic Inquisitor Judge Dovic and how he ended up cursed.
All these stories have excellent art. The short stories are all very good, some of them brilliant. All in all this was an excellent Lord Baltimore volume. This is a great series.
September 25, 2016
After two full lenght great Baltimore volumes, first anthology of tales about Golden & Mignola's vampire hunter is a mixed bag, but a few stories are real dark gems.
A passing stranger: 5 stars
Dr Leskovar's remedy: 4 stars
The play: 5 stars
The widow and The tank: 4 stars
The inquisitor: 3 stars.
"The play" is the best one for me: like Poe's Masque of Red Death with vampires in a nightmarish Verona.
Sipario, applausi.
A passing stranger: 5 stars
Dr Leskovar's remedy: 4 stars
The play: 5 stars
The widow and The tank: 4 stars
The inquisitor: 3 stars.
"The play" is the best one for me: like Poe's Masque of Red Death with vampires in a nightmarish Verona.
Sipario, applausi.
March 17, 2014
Set during World War 1, this is a collection of short stories featuring Lord Baltimore as he continues his hunt for the vampire Haigus who was responsible for murdering his family. While a lot of them read like Mike Mignola on autopilot, they’re not a bad bunch of shorts.
A Passing Stranger recounts the story of a soldier returned from the front, completely changed from his time at war; The Play is a meta version of Poe’s The Masque of Red Death where the Red Death and the plague sweeping the town is real; The Tank features a vampire in a tank; The Inquisitor follows the story of the crazed inquisitor on his obsessive hunt for Baltimore. There are more but you get the idea – spooky stuff goes down, Baltimore shows up to kill things.
Baltimore himself remains unremarkable – he’s like a mix of Hellboy and Witchfinder, and doesn’t really stand out as his own identity in the Mignola universe. And being so good at his job of killing monsters makes reading him that much less exciting as there’s no tension. As soon as he draws his sword and guns, it’s over, he’s won.
And if Baltimore as a character doesn’t stand out, the stories in this book fail to mark themselves as particularly original. If you’ve read Mignola’s myriad books from Hellboy, to BPRD, to Abe Sapien, Witchfinder, and this, you’ll have come across familiar stories of madmen and monsters in other, better books. A Passing Stranger reads much like you’d expect a Mignola book of horror shorts to read like and doesn’t really do anything special.
Some of the stories are more interesting than others but none are especially awful. Good or bad, they’re all pretty dispensable horror stories you’re unlikely to remember in a few months’ time, which happens to have some lovely art by Ben Stenbeck. It’s Stenbeck’s art that makes this book stand out because it’s so polished and imaginative.
I prefer the long-form storytelling of the earlier Baltimore books to these short, fragmented stories with a very basic tie between them: Baltimore on his quest to kill Haigus. This isn’t a bad collection of horror comics as they mildly entertain, but Baltimore is at his best when part of a more in-depth story rather than several light shorts.
A Passing Stranger recounts the story of a soldier returned from the front, completely changed from his time at war; The Play is a meta version of Poe’s The Masque of Red Death where the Red Death and the plague sweeping the town is real; The Tank features a vampire in a tank; The Inquisitor follows the story of the crazed inquisitor on his obsessive hunt for Baltimore. There are more but you get the idea – spooky stuff goes down, Baltimore shows up to kill things.
Baltimore himself remains unremarkable – he’s like a mix of Hellboy and Witchfinder, and doesn’t really stand out as his own identity in the Mignola universe. And being so good at his job of killing monsters makes reading him that much less exciting as there’s no tension. As soon as he draws his sword and guns, it’s over, he’s won.
And if Baltimore as a character doesn’t stand out, the stories in this book fail to mark themselves as particularly original. If you’ve read Mignola’s myriad books from Hellboy, to BPRD, to Abe Sapien, Witchfinder, and this, you’ll have come across familiar stories of madmen and monsters in other, better books. A Passing Stranger reads much like you’d expect a Mignola book of horror shorts to read like and doesn’t really do anything special.
Some of the stories are more interesting than others but none are especially awful. Good or bad, they’re all pretty dispensable horror stories you’re unlikely to remember in a few months’ time, which happens to have some lovely art by Ben Stenbeck. It’s Stenbeck’s art that makes this book stand out because it’s so polished and imaginative.
I prefer the long-form storytelling of the earlier Baltimore books to these short, fragmented stories with a very basic tie between them: Baltimore on his quest to kill Haigus. This isn’t a bad collection of horror comics as they mildly entertain, but Baltimore is at his best when part of a more in-depth story rather than several light shorts.
April 1, 2014
A good tertiary addition to the Baltimore graphic novel series. Readers who love classic horror fiction can't help but enjoy this series, and this one just cements the classic horror sensibility of the work by Mignola and Golden. Forgive the pun, but they are a bit of a Golden Team for me. I think their writing is seamless where I can't figure out which part Mignola wrote and what was written by Golden. The artwork is sober and dark in color, matching the unrelenting darkness of the literary tone of the stories. Baltimore is a lone hunter who travels with one goal in mind: finding Haigus, the vampire who turned him and destroyed his family. Along the way, he will destroy evil he encounters. His relationship with God is complicated. He still calls him Lord, but he has a palpable anger towards Him. Baltimore seethes with it. He shakes his fists at God, but doesn't curse him. He only asks that he be left alone to seek his vengeance. To my mind, God manages for him to be in the right place at the right time, a fierce warrior against darkness and evil creatures of all kinds. I am not saying I like an invincible hero all the time, but I appreciate how Baltimore always ends up in tight spots where I would expect him to be a goner, but he manages to survive, even if he adds a few more scars to the landscape of his body and face.
It's hard to rate this as a good book, in the sense that it's not at all feel-good. It's very depressing in a lot of ways. The vampire plague has left destruction in every place, and all manner of foul creatures prey on the humans who manage to survive the plague and aren't turned into vampires. So, no, it's not an uplifting read. However, the writing and the artwork are beautiful and has a penetrating effect on me as I read. An excellent example of how successful the graphic novel medium can be for storytelling. And since I don't get to read much Gothic/classic horror, lately, it satisfies my palate for the stories in a quick reading format, and the art-lover/artist in me.
I'm ever so grateful that I am able to get this from my library. These volumes would cost a pretty penny to buy new.
So, yes, I do recommend it to readers who aren't averse to a dark read. It's violent and at times visceral, but not at all over the top or graphic. As I said earlier in the review, it has the Gothic and Classic horror sensibility that any fans of 18th-early 20th century horror will appreciate.
Four well-deserved stars.
It's hard to rate this as a good book, in the sense that it's not at all feel-good. It's very depressing in a lot of ways. The vampire plague has left destruction in every place, and all manner of foul creatures prey on the humans who manage to survive the plague and aren't turned into vampires. So, no, it's not an uplifting read. However, the writing and the artwork are beautiful and has a penetrating effect on me as I read. An excellent example of how successful the graphic novel medium can be for storytelling. And since I don't get to read much Gothic/classic horror, lately, it satisfies my palate for the stories in a quick reading format, and the art-lover/artist in me.
I'm ever so grateful that I am able to get this from my library. These volumes would cost a pretty penny to buy new.
So, yes, I do recommend it to readers who aren't averse to a dark read. It's violent and at times visceral, but not at all over the top or graphic. As I said earlier in the review, it has the Gothic and Classic horror sensibility that any fans of 18th-early 20th century horror will appreciate.
Four well-deserved stars.
November 22, 2017
Several individual stories that help fill in some of the world around Lord Baltimore. A great background piece on the Inquisitor that was both enlightening and interesting. That story line should get a big payoff soon, which this is setting up.
September 22, 2020
This collection of three short stories deepens the world and characters of the Baltimore saga and introduces the sinister Inquisition, an order that seems more interested in punishing people than in fighting monsters. While Baltimore’s quest to find Haigus the vampire lord continues, its great to see the wider scope of this strange and bleak world where war, plague and vampires come together surprisingly well.
March 8, 2018
As with Hellboy, once a time it comes to short stories with various quality. And this is the stories book for Baltimore. And the quality vary. But it is still that good Baltimore.
After two books I was not yet ready to get few side stories with no actual extra progress on main story. Anyway, still excellent with rich dark atmosphere.
After two books I was not yet ready to get few side stories with no actual extra progress on main story. Anyway, still excellent with rich dark atmosphere.
April 4, 2019
An interesting collection of tales.
World: The art is solid, it's not the best of Mignola's books but it sets the tone well and it's a noce book to look at. The world building here is solid. With the collection of one and dones here we get a lot more of the larger picture in terms of Europe and what's happening. We get little snippets of character development and we get monsters. Solid.
Story: One and dones are good to fill out the world and I feel it was needed with this world. There has been some questions that have been left unanswered and not really clarified (how the vampire plague and the plague itself differ is one that comes to mind) but alas that's not what we get here. We get some interesting stories here but nothing really of depth. Sure there are some nice monster stories and some nice characters that show up but nothing of note.
Characters: The only development of note we have here is the crazy church dude and that was fairly par for the course for a zealot. The rest is homeostasis with nothing new to add to the table. The woman from arc one is here but I've already forgotten her and her showing up didn't really add anything.
It was okay. The bits that added to the world were fine but I want more depth and setting of rules.
Onward to the next book!
World: The art is solid, it's not the best of Mignola's books but it sets the tone well and it's a noce book to look at. The world building here is solid. With the collection of one and dones here we get a lot more of the larger picture in terms of Europe and what's happening. We get little snippets of character development and we get monsters. Solid.
Story: One and dones are good to fill out the world and I feel it was needed with this world. There has been some questions that have been left unanswered and not really clarified (how the vampire plague and the plague itself differ is one that comes to mind) but alas that's not what we get here. We get some interesting stories here but nothing really of depth. Sure there are some nice monster stories and some nice characters that show up but nothing of note.
Characters: The only development of note we have here is the crazy church dude and that was fairly par for the course for a zealot. The rest is homeostasis with nothing new to add to the table. The woman from arc one is here but I've already forgotten her and her showing up didn't really add anything.
It was okay. The bits that added to the world were fine but I want more depth and setting of rules.
Onward to the next book!
November 25, 2013
Yes.
Okay, this is my favorite volume of Baltimore comics so far, easily. Part of this is just because I tend to like short stories more than longer-form stuff, but part of it is also that these stories are great, and that they do a great job of showcasing the expanding world that Baltimore takes place inside of, which I really like. My favorite stories are probably "Dr. Leskovar's Remedy," for reasons that are probably obvious to anyone who has read it, and too numerous to get into here, and the title story, which is also the only one I had read before. But really, everything in this volume is fantastic, from the "Masque of the Red Death"-ish "The Play" to "The Widow and the Tank." "The Inquisitor" is probably the least of the stories here, but only because it isn't as self-contained as the other tales, but instead is mostly backstory on a character we've already met. Still, this is a fantastic volume. Ben Stenbeck remains one of my favorite artists working in the Mignola playground, and Baltimore is increasingly one of the Mignola titles that I most look forward to, and most enjoy.
Okay, this is my favorite volume of Baltimore comics so far, easily. Part of this is just because I tend to like short stories more than longer-form stuff, but part of it is also that these stories are great, and that they do a great job of showcasing the expanding world that Baltimore takes place inside of, which I really like. My favorite stories are probably "Dr. Leskovar's Remedy," for reasons that are probably obvious to anyone who has read it, and too numerous to get into here, and the title story, which is also the only one I had read before. But really, everything in this volume is fantastic, from the "Masque of the Red Death"-ish "The Play" to "The Widow and the Tank." "The Inquisitor" is probably the least of the stories here, but only because it isn't as self-contained as the other tales, but instead is mostly backstory on a character we've already met. Still, this is a fantastic volume. Ben Stenbeck remains one of my favorite artists working in the Mignola playground, and Baltimore is increasingly one of the Mignola titles that I most look forward to, and most enjoy.
March 19, 2016
7/10
One thing I don't really care for in various Mignola series' are these short stories. I much prefer a single sub-plot thread throughout the individual trade paperback. That being said there are still some great moments in this collection(I really enjoyed the story with the inquisitor)and it is still better than most of the mainstream stuff out there. Hits the bottom the four star range for me.
One thing I don't really care for in various Mignola series' are these short stories. I much prefer a single sub-plot thread throughout the individual trade paperback. That being said there are still some great moments in this collection(I really enjoyed the story with the inquisitor)and it is still better than most of the mainstream stuff out there. Hits the bottom the four star range for me.
October 31, 2014
I've been fairly tepid about the Baltimore books in the past, but this one really upped the stakes. Moving to post World War I apocalypse (something I've not seen before, and it works surprisingly well) and putting him in a world that is dying suited the character's sensibilities well, and the collection of short stories allows him to go in and out of situations much more freely. The title story was probably my favorite, but all of them work really well, from the moody despair of the Widow to the plot focus of the Grand Inquisitor, but Passing Stranger with its monstrosities of both science and nature really impressed me. It's a strong story and it strengthens the entire mythology of Baltimore.
July 10, 2020
3
Volume 3 hit me and it annoyed me with the short storylines. Hellboy and Abe Sapien had these short stories built into trades and I hated them for these types of short stories. I'm a sucker for mini arcs and twists and turns but I found my drifting away. The artwork is still incredible and I'm finding this as a labour of love, much like Hellboy. Baltimore is like a journeyman here has tiny adventures that add slightly to the overall series arc.
Why the 3?
This was tough to read. On one hand it's fun but on the other I just wanted more character study and world building. This has been a nice gap filler but in all honesty you could skip this series. Baltimore is still a fun character but these individual storylines didn't hold my attention.
Volume 3 hit me and it annoyed me with the short storylines. Hellboy and Abe Sapien had these short stories built into trades and I hated them for these types of short stories. I'm a sucker for mini arcs and twists and turns but I found my drifting away. The artwork is still incredible and I'm finding this as a labour of love, much like Hellboy. Baltimore is like a journeyman here has tiny adventures that add slightly to the overall series arc.
Why the 3?
This was tough to read. On one hand it's fun but on the other I just wanted more character study and world building. This has been a nice gap filler but in all honesty you could skip this series. Baltimore is still a fun character but these individual storylines didn't hold my attention.
July 1, 2017
Ιδέες! Αν δεν ήταν κι αυτός ο ιεροεξεταστής στη μέση, όλα θα 'ταν μια χαρά.
April 22, 2018
Still really enjoying this series. Lord Baltimore is still on his killing spree against the undead, demons and all other evil. Haigus seems to be one step ahead of Baltimore. The psychotic Inquisitor, Duvic will stop at nothing to purify Lord Baltimore. These two are on an inevitable battle to the death. I can't wait to see them go mano y mano.
PS, There were a couple of very amusing cameos in this volume. I really liked the short stories format this round.
PS, There were a couple of very amusing cameos in this volume. I really liked the short stories format this round.
July 30, 2016
Rather than one long story, like the first two volumes, this is a collection of short stories about Lord Baltimore and his quest for the vampire Haigus. It's a nice break, and it lets Mignola and Golden explore rabbit trails they really can't in the longer forms. It's a fun diversion (though bleak as ever).
September 8, 2019
This is kind of a Avengers Assemble collection where Baltimore's team picks up a few strays and and continues to expand his team of monster killers.
This hints more at a BPRD creation than a hellboy creation, focusing on a leader amongst a group as oppose to a single individual.
Solid work but the focus changes away from the fearful Baltimore in this one.
This hints more at a BPRD creation than a hellboy creation, focusing on a leader amongst a group as oppose to a single individual.
Solid work but the focus changes away from the fearful Baltimore in this one.
January 9, 2016
Mediocre, repetitive, predictable, and disappointing.
March 30, 2020
The form of short stories fits Lord Baltimore well.
October 28, 2021
Mignola and Golden's writing and Stenbeck's art continues to be amazing. This horror story of a plague and monster hunter is hitting all the right notes this October in the midst of our own pandemic.
October 28, 2020
Niektoré príbehy sú úžasné a niektoré priemerné. V celku je to dosť nadpriemerný diel.
January 17, 2021
This entertaining volume is a collection of one shots. I tired early on of Baltimore's indestructibility and ridiculous lethality with sword and pistol. But the varied stories and monsters and early 20th century European settings are delightful. It's the best
Baltimore
so far.
The Widow
The eponymous vampire hunter tracks an undead soldier--an associate of Haigus--to his enabling widow's estate.
The Tank
A little boy in Aquitaine begs the deadly-looking stranger to investigate a burned out tank, which he claims is occupied by a vampire. Baltimore finds that and more.
A Passing Stranger
In Germany, Baltimore stumbles across a nest of giant man-eating spiders that can disguise themselves as humans to lure out their prey.
The Play
This is actually told from Haigus's point of view, and it's kind of a mess. The elder vampire sponsors a play written by the severed head of Edgar Allen Poe and produced by a sort of Theater of the Damned. It burns, for unclear reasons. This issue was the volume's lone weak link.
Dr. Leskovar's Remedy
Baltimore makes an extremely dramatic entrance to a small fishing village in Croatia. He sets out to help the townsfolk with their local mad-scientist problem, but the Dr. Jekyll-inspired character isn't precisely the monster we expect him to be. Also, giant crabs.
The Inquisitor
At last we return to the main plot. The rabidly righteous, bloodthirsty inquisitor murdering his way across Europe catches up with Baltimore's journalist sidekick in Sarajevo. The intrepid reporter escapes slow death on a fluke but takes the opportunity to arrange a meeting between the two men three weeks hence in Budapest.
The Widow
The eponymous vampire hunter tracks an undead soldier--an associate of Haigus--to his enabling widow's estate.
The Tank
A little boy in Aquitaine begs the deadly-looking stranger to investigate a burned out tank, which he claims is occupied by a vampire. Baltimore finds that and more.
A Passing Stranger
In Germany, Baltimore stumbles across a nest of giant man-eating spiders that can disguise themselves as humans to lure out their prey.
The Play
This is actually told from Haigus's point of view, and it's kind of a mess. The elder vampire sponsors a play written by the severed head of Edgar Allen Poe and produced by a sort of Theater of the Damned. It burns, for unclear reasons. This issue was the volume's lone weak link.
Dr. Leskovar's Remedy
Baltimore makes an extremely dramatic entrance to a small fishing village in Croatia. He sets out to help the townsfolk with their local mad-scientist problem, but the Dr. Jekyll-inspired character isn't precisely the monster we expect him to be. Also, giant crabs.
The Inquisitor
At last we return to the main plot. The rabidly righteous, bloodthirsty inquisitor murdering his way across Europe catches up with Baltimore's journalist sidekick in Sarajevo. The intrepid reporter escapes slow death on a fluke but takes the opportunity to arrange a meeting between the two men three weeks hence in Budapest.
April 11, 2014
It seems to me that anything Mike Mignola does, I like. The third volume of Baltimore was no exception. This graphic novel contained many short stories, thus the title "Baltimore: A Passing Stranger and Other Stories". Everything takes place between June 1916 to October 1917, and Lord Henry Baltimore's adventures take him from Louth, Lincolnshire, England to Sarejevo, Austria-Hungary. He's on a hunt for a vampire named Haigus, and along the way runs into all sorts of evil that he has to contend with. There's his own personal battle with God to take into account, and his single-mindedness steers him straight. He's a World War I veteran who hasn't finished fighting, and now fights vampires, demons, and sometimes the Church. I'm actually really liking the series, and I'm hoping that Dark Horse continues to write more. Looking forward to reading the next volume in the series, "Baltimore: Chapel of Bones".
January 5, 2019
Because this volume is a collection of shorter stories, I expected perhaps a slightly drop in quality, but I was wrong. This volume is just as good as the previous 2. "The Play" was particularly good with it's homage to Poe. Mignola et al. are doing a great job at creating interesting villains, and the fact that I really hate the inquisitor Duvic so much speaks to how much I am invested in this world now. Speaking of which, I love the ending of the final story in which the journalist sets up what is coming in the next installment.
December 30, 2017
A little bit of treading water while we get more flavor for the world we're in and the three main characters don't really change much in relation to one another. The story about The Play may've had TOO much different stuff going on, even for a Mignola story. Still loving the premise, and definitely proceeding on to the next volume!
October 12, 2019
The short stories in this collection might be my favorite part. "The Widow" is especially poignant. This collection also gives some updates on the inquisitor, with a bit of backstory. Another story has the sentient head of Edgar Allan Poe as a muse. A goofy little aside that adds a smidgen of levity to the very sad world of Lord Baltimore.
January 3, 2016
Ahora sí que ya soy FAN INCONDICIONAL de este personaje y sus novelas gráficas. Imprescindible para cualquiera al que le guste el terror gótico.
May 28, 2017
Man, I love this series.
October 18, 2017
Nice anthology of shorts. Anthologies aren't usually my thing, but this one held together well and everything tied together nicely.
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