The Sword of Hyperborea

The World of Hellboy: Standalone Books

by Mike Mignola, Rob Williams, Laurence Campbell (Illustrator)

Hellboy creator Mike Mignola gives us a new tale from the world of Hellboy, cowritten by Rob Williams and featuring the art of Mignolaverse veteran Laurence Campbell to deliver four fascinating glimpses through time in this stunning hardcover collection!

From the ancient warrior Gall Dennar, to Sir Edward Grey, to the B.P.R.D.'s Agent Howards, the iconic Hyperborean sword from the world of Hellboy has landed in many influential hands.

And this has been no accident. Trace the sword's path through the adventures and encounters that finally brought it to Ragna Rok, at the end of the world, and witness the sword's journey through history.

Collects The Sword of Hyperborea #1-#4.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Horror, Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Historical Fiction

128 pages, Hardcover

First published September 13, 2022

About the author

Mike 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.

Reviews

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit that I was slightly lost at times here, because I haven't read all of the BPRD backcatalogue.. I've read a good chunk, but not the later bits that will be pertinent to this book. Luckily I have encountered the Heliopic Brotherhood of Ra before, so that helped.

That said, I had a great time! It's basically a couple of short stories surrounding the titular sword, and the characters are just defined well enough to have kept my interest. The deepsea diver chapter especially was a good one, and I say that specifically as someone who is scared of the sea, and especially the deep sea.

The art is Mignola-ish, but different enough to be its own style.

(Thanks to Dark Horse Books for providing me with an ARC through Edelweiss)

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did I sign this out thinking it was a Conan book?
...
...
...
maybe.

It was all right, as these time-spanning magical sword stories go. I liked the very dark, Mignola-esque artwork, but that ending was weak sauce.

[Ashley (Red-Haired Ash Reads) · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a bit disappointing. I was expecting more of a backstory on this sword and why it is the way it is. Instead we get brief jumps through history showing when the sword resurfaced and what happened when it did. It does end by showing the new race on earth using the sword but still, not very elaborate or detailed.

Also, if you have not read all of Hellboy and the BPRD then you will be very confused because this expects you to know that the world is ending and who Agent Howard’s is and why this sword is important. There are also references to the Brotherhood of Ra, Sir Edward Grey, vampires, and other things so you will be confused if you have not read most of the main Hellboy/BPRD story.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent supplement, with neither a belabored overarching story nor an obsessive need to force in established characters.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Something that The Sword of Hyperborea should probably note on the cover: read this one right after finishing the B.P.R.D. series. I think this book features characters from that series and weaves through B.P.R.D. plotlines. I say "I think" because there is almost nothing by way of explanatory materials. Either you know who these people are and what they're doing or you don't.

As far as I can tell, there's an ancient sword that shows up to help a few random people throughout history. Then a disembodied voice whispers "Chicago" and we're on to the next person. The art is pretty good and some elements are engaging, but unless you're a B.P.R.D. superfan, The Sword of Hyperborea is going to be mostly meaningless.

[Luke Shea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peripheral and inessential to the greater Mignolaverse, but so lore-heavy you have to be a fan to care at all. Still, if you're in the target demo: super fun. Particularly enamored with the chunk where Oliver Reed in an old timey diving suit fights an underwater army of lizard men to defend Atlantis.

[GONZA · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I am not a big Hellboy fan, I enjoyed the story of the sword of Hyperborea quite a bit.
The very dark atmospheres are drawn very well by Campbell and narrated even better by Mignola, which is certainly no surprise to anyone.

Pur non essendo una grande fan di Hellboy, la storia della spada d'Iperborea, mi é piaciuta parecchia.
Le atmosfere molto cupe sono disegnate molto bene da Campbell e raccontate ancora meglio da Mignola, cosa che certamente non sorprende nessuno.

I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

[M.i. · Rating 3 out of 5]

It never ceases to amaze just how much of an imagination Mignola has and how these worlds are filed away in his mind to be called upon when needed.

The distinctness of these individual character storylines for instance, has always caught my attention. The warrior for instance is stoic in how sparse his interactions are. Lots of action, not much dialogue. It works for him.

[RubiGiráldez RubiGiráldez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Siendo uno de los objetos más relevantes en la narrativa contemporánea del "Hellboyverse" del que ya se conocía su presencia por diversos lugares y personajes pasados gracias a spin offs como el de Sir Edward Grey. El tener una miniserie propia de la espada de Hiperbórea se siente algo totalmente lógico y quizás esencial... Pero el entusiasmo se disipa pronto. No porque la propuesta sea una antología dispar en torno a varios usuarios de la legendaria espada a lo largo de las eras. Si bien está claro que el "set up Howardiano" de ese pasado remoto salvaje es el que mejor le sienta a las aventuras con la espada (y bien reflejado en la historia que implica este escenario). Se sobreentiende el interés narrativo en poder abarcar los diversos siglos de relevancia de la espada. Pero por esto mismo se debe de cuidar más la cohesión de estos personajes e historias. Y si es cierto que se intuye una "tesis" curiosa cuanto menos en cómo esta espada predestinada a grandes guerreros y hazañas se adjunta normalmente a individuos de corte y desenlace desdichados que le hace más mal que bien. El conjunto de la miniserie se siente apenas como una "ensalada" conceptual que no hace epatar ninguno de sus personajes e historias por mucho interés inicial que tengan de entrada muchos como el buzo sumergiéndose en el abismo para escapar de su vida o el clásico músico de jazz con su trato diabólico en un cruce de caminos. Al final, solo parece que La Espada de Hiperbórea existe para juguetear un poco más con una de las peligrosas logias ocultistas del Hellboyverso, que siempre ha estado interesada en la espada de aquel reino antediluviano. Pero desde luego, si eres lector habitual de este universo comiquero, estarás más que familiarizado con esas historias.

[Joseph R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hyperborea is an ancient civilization in Mike Mignola's Hellboy universe. A recurring relic from that civilization is a split-end sword with a rough handle. This book shows some moments of the sword's travel through history, looking at four people who wielded it for good or ill. Gall Dennar is an ancient warrior who somehow mystically travels through time and is present at the end of the human world (so he covers ancient time and humanity's bleak future). Graf Ling de Gotha is an Asian woman who is adopted by German man. She works during World War I and comes afoul of the Heliopic Brotherhood of Ra, who want the sword and a Vril crystal (it has ancient magical powers) for their own purposes. Victor Olsen is a deep-sea diver during World War II, trying to recover the sword and crystal for the Brotherhood. Elijah Bone is a 1950s musician who's sold his soul to make it big, but the devil he sold it to has an interest in the sword as well.

The stories are diverse, giving a lot of different settings and characters. This book is more like an anthology with some on-going narrative. There's enough story and style here to satisfy human interests and horror fans. It's an engaging and creative. The art is not exactly Mignola; however, it has the shadowy horror resonances of Mignola's style and fits well with other work in the Hellboy universe.

Recommended, highly for Hellboy fans. If you aren't a Hellboy fan, it will feel less significant.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately, no matter how interesting of an epilogue you come up with, if the original story’s ending was a pile of slop, you’re gonna be fighting an uphill battle. That’s what’s happening here. Mignola (who I more and more do not believe is doing almost any work on this stuff) and the actual writer of this comic, Rob Williams, craft a story of the mythical Sword of Hyperborea, which connects the souls of a modern-day soldier and an ancient warrior, causing them to flash back and forth between each others consciousnesses despite the gulf of thousands of years between them. It’s always been a great idea that was completely biffed in the BPRD run, never leaning into its premise or exploring the characters of Gall Dennar (the ancient guy) or Agent Howards (the modern guy) in any meaningful way. Well, here they still don’t really do that, but instead just trace how the sword manages to fulfill its proscribed destiny of getting from Dennar’s hand to Howards’ centuries later. Williams manages to tell some interesting individual character stories along the way, but as each character is just a puzzle piece in moving the sword to a new location, it never fully takes off as a concept. Still, great art and a decent setup, but ultimately this is not essential by any stretch.

[Etain · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot fathom why this has such a low rating. I thought it was spectacular. Amazing art and amazing writing. It fits well into the world while still feeling unique. It has a much more darker almost horror feel which contrasts nicely against the usual mythic-gothic style. It even had multiple strongly held themes, something that's absurdly rare in comics. Like they're not subtle but subtlety is overrated in my book.
If I did have to find some nitpicks. I don't like how they didn't use the regular and I also thought the "Chicago" foreshadowing was overstated like we get it Chicago is important you don't need to mention 20 bloody times.
Aside from those minor gripes this might be a perfect graphic novel? Perfect in a subjective sense at least (how's that for an oxymoron) perfect except of course that there wasn't 500 more pages of it!

[Nick · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was hard . . . it had some neat ideas, but I had no idea what was going on. I didn't know I would need to know Hellboy's story to understand this story. I didn't know who anyone was, missed any Easter Eggs or allusions that would have made this more enjoyable.

It basically jumped from one story to another without connecting any dots, finishing any of the stories and barely holding together with a sword . . . that may or may not have . . . magical(?) properties. I have no idea.

None of the three people who held the sword were ever really introduced, and just as you are getting interested in their story, they are gone and we are onto the next story. We are clearly trying to get somewhere, but I have no idea where that somewhere is, or why it matters.

I was more lost and confused, and it just . . . wasn't very good.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent Hellboy tale following the titular sword as it makes its way through the ages to modern-day Chicago. Each issue introduces us to a new character who discovers the sword and strives to keep it from falling into the wrong hands.

The proceedings are almost like sketches--it's hard to get too attached in the short space allotted to each story--but they're competently done, with engaging art from Laurence Campbell.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

For BPRD completists, only, really. This isn't a bad little series that follows the titular sword throughout the ages as it comes to a variety of different people, some of whom wield it for a long time, others who see it only briefly. The artwork by Laurence Campbell is strong throughout, with a vibe not unlike that of Andrea Sorrentino.

[Jiro Dreams of Suchy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following the path of an ancient sword from cavemen to blues players in Chicago and to the hands of the new race of (frog) men. A really fun story about the Hellboy sword kind of leading its way into influential hands.

The mysterious workings of the Hellboy universe are always a blast to decipher and kind of trace- is there a greater plan being played out in front of us? Yes!

[Adan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tracing the history of the Hyperborean sword we last saw in Agent Howards’ hands, this was a pretty sweet ride through bits of the Hellboyverse’s history. I liked the characters a lot, and I hope we get to see more of them in the future, especially Graf Ling de Gotha.

[Craig Randall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love the world so much! Liked the feel and tone of each story, but it was so disconnected, I could find a way to keep caring. Wish each would have been developed into their own three or four chapter stories/books.

Always great to be in the Mignolaverse though.

[Kieran Healy · Rating 2 out of 5]

At was great but I had no idea what was going on. A series of vignettes that maybe require extensive knowledge of the Hellboy/B.P.R.D universe? Some seemed to stand on their own but generally out all was in relation to something I knew nothing about.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the 4 issues in a row, not the Collected book

[uzhuj · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was surprisingly good. More or less 4 standalone stories, great art with some overaching themes. Cool

[Ed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some very deep Hellboy lore is required to really get this. Issues 2 and 3 work better as standalone stories. 1 and 4 made me feel like I was watching something through a keyhole.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thin little anthology tracing a specific sword through time. Some striking artwork.

[Jefferson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I haven't kept up with the most recent Hellboy and BPRD storylines, so I don't know if this book makes more sense if you've read those. But taken on its own, I found it to be pretty incomprehensible.

[Andres Pasten · Rating 2 out of 5]

4 relatos unidos por breves momentos con la espada, poco aporte

[Cail Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

That’s a fun ride. Much better than some other mini-series of this era.

[zackxdig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stories about following a sword. There’s cults. Music. Monsters. And vampires.

[Drew Canole · Rating 2 out of 5]

This sort of just ended. I didn't even realize. It's a pretty fast read about the history of the sword. But like many of the recent expanded Hellboy universe stuff, it just feels so unnecessary.

[B. McKinley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of Antediluvian Fun! More please :-)

If you like Hellboy and BPRD, et al, you will probably love this. I really enjoyed it although it just sort of “ended” , and I felt like there were a few pages of story that could’ve been added at the end to sweeten the deal. But either way I really enjoyed it and I hope there will be other efforts like this in the future.

[Jack T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jan 2023 5/5
Aug 2024 4/5