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albertico66's review against another edition
4.0
what an ending... and oh how I miss original Mignola's drawing...
brandonadaniels's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
BPRD: Hell On Earth ended with a bang. The Devil You Know is more of a whimper, but it’s a fitting end for the most part.
I’m not quite sure who is to blame, but the storytelling in this series takes a nose dive. I have read the entirety of BPRD in the last year, and I even found myself confused on several pages. It’s a bummer and distracting, but the end does come together, largely because Mignola does the art for the final bit. Tim Sale even comes in for a few pages, which was an amazing treat.
Even with the slight stumble at the finish line, the story is given a satisfying conclusion. It’s far from a happy ending, but I never expected one, and there is some catharsis.
There’s still a few dozen mini series I still have to read in this world, and they continue coming out. But the combined run of the Hellboy Series and the BPRD saga is an incredible achievement. They will be in print and continue to be read for at least decades.
I’m not quite sure who is to blame, but the storytelling in this series takes a nose dive. I have read the entirety of BPRD in the last year, and I even found myself confused on several pages. It’s a bummer and distracting, but the end does come together, largely because Mignola does the art for the final bit. Tim Sale even comes in for a few pages, which was an amazing treat.
Even with the slight stumble at the finish line, the story is given a satisfying conclusion. It’s far from a happy ending, but I never expected one, and there is some catharsis.
There’s still a few dozen mini series I still have to read in this world, and they continue coming out. But the combined run of the Hellboy Series and the BPRD saga is an incredible achievement. They will be in print and continue to be read for at least decades.
zare_i's review
4.0
Hellboy returns back to BPRD at the time when he is needed most - Hell is literally taking over the earth and nobody is sure who stands behind it all.
In a final move against the demons BPRD jumps into the fray only to find out they are encountering something that is way over their head.
Hellboy seems somewhat deflated - it is as if he just wanted to find peace after he took over the mantle of master of Hell and he managed to thwart the aspirations of destroyers to take over the earth. Only to be brought back to world of living to see that his sacrifice actually meant nothing - somehow dark forces managed to raise Hell on earth after all.
Ending was surprising (considering Varvara always seemed self-centered) and I cannot wait for follow up volume (Ragnarok).
Recommended to all fans of Hellboy and mystery/eerie/mythology stories.
In a final move against the demons BPRD jumps into the fray only to find out they are encountering something that is way over their head.
Hellboy seems somewhat deflated - it is as if he just wanted to find peace after he took over the mantle of master of Hell and he managed to thwart the aspirations of destroyers to take over the earth. Only to be brought back to world of living to see that his sacrifice actually meant nothing - somehow dark forces managed to raise Hell on earth after all.
Ending was surprising (considering Varvara always seemed self-centered) and I cannot wait for follow up volume (Ragnarok).
Recommended to all fans of Hellboy and mystery/eerie/mythology stories.
zare_i's review against another edition
4.0
One more series I read out of order (having read volume #2 Pandemonium first) but I have to admit I did not mind it at all. It was good memory exercise to join the missing ends and get the whole picture of first two volumes. Now everything is ready for volume #3 :)
Following the actual Hell on Earth, various monsters are destroyed and remaining ones are forced to flee. We can see BPRD moving into ruined cities hunting down remaining monstrosities only to encounter new ones and what you might call old-ones woken from their crypts by the hellish creatures. They manage to handle these threats albeit not without casualties.
As for the team Liz is back, more powerful and confident than ever when it comes to her powers and abilities. And believe me she becomes more and more cocky as time progresses.
In parallel to BPRD's mop-up actions mysterious girl starts showing up and attracting great crowds to Manhattan by reaching out to them through dreams. And this little girl is no other than Varvara and it is very interesting how she rolls up the crowd that cheers her as a savior with few characters that are truly blast from the Hellboy's past.
Again as seems to be the case with much of BPRD stories this is rather slow-burner, more aiming to show interaction within the team (Devon is very very weird character) than actual action scenes. So it was truly change of pace at the end when major discovery is made (wont spoil it).
Good collection, warm-up for a main part of the story.
Recommended to all fans of X-File style of horror and Hellboy universe.
Following the actual Hell on Earth, various monsters are destroyed and remaining ones are forced to flee. We can see BPRD moving into ruined cities hunting down remaining monstrosities only to encounter new ones and what you might call old-ones woken from their crypts by the hellish creatures. They manage to handle these threats albeit not without casualties.
As for the team Liz is back, more powerful and confident than ever when it comes to her powers and abilities. And believe me she becomes more and more cocky as time progresses.
In parallel to BPRD's mop-up actions mysterious girl starts showing up and attracting great crowds to Manhattan by reaching out to them through dreams. And this little girl is no other than Varvara and it is very interesting how she rolls up the crowd that cheers her as a savior with few characters that are truly blast from the Hellboy's past.
Again as seems to be the case with much of BPRD stories this is rather slow-burner, more aiming to show interaction within the team (Devon is very very weird character) than actual action scenes. So it was truly change of pace at the end when major discovery is made (wont spoil it).
Good collection, warm-up for a main part of the story.
Recommended to all fans of X-File style of horror and Hellboy universe.
zare_i's review against another edition
4.0
Finale of the arc and as far as I can see finale for this glorious world of ours. Without spoilers this was very much show of how history repeats itself. One circle ends and the other starts. Story is (as it is case with entire series) rather lethargic and gloomy but it gives a great picture that when everything gets lost it is usually with the whimper and not roar.
Art is great as is case with almost all Hellboy-universe comics I read so far.
Recommended to all fans of Hellboy and Lovecraftian-horror-like stories.
Spoiler
Ending seems to be a little bit rushed. Last few chapters where inevitability of total collapse of human race strikes BPRD, Hellboy and reader heads on are worthy of at least several books on their own. Rise of the new race of man (yup Abe you were the missing link between Frogs and New Man), role of Hellboy as "father" of the new world (and his pretty creepy death) and remaining humans (of our age) moving to live under the Earth thus very probably becoming wizards and magicians for the new race - all of it was so rushed into several pages of last one or two chapters that you feel like reading edited version. I hope they will tell more stories from this period in future volumes.Art is great as is case with almost all Hellboy-universe comics I read so far.
Recommended to all fans of Hellboy and Lovecraftian-horror-like stories.
lleonora's review against another edition
3.0
One of the most frustrating finale I've ever read.
Don't misunderstand me, the last chapter, the one from Mignola himself, was amazing. BUT even there I felt like there was too much unfinished business, like the goal was to just end the narrative arc, one way or another.
I feel like they were in such a hurry to finish that they didn't make sure this finale was actually comprehensible and linear. I've binge-read the whole saga in the last few weeks and I'm not sure I got all the things I was suppose to get, I actually felt confused, had to re-read a few passages, because some things just didn't make sense.
I expected so much more from the last act of a quarter of a century long story. It'll take some time before I'll get over it.
Don't misunderstand me, the last chapter, the one from Mignola himself, was amazing. BUT even there I felt like there was too much unfinished business, like the goal was to just end the narrative arc, one way or another.
I feel like they were in such a hurry to finish that they didn't make sure this finale was actually comprehensible and linear. I've binge-read the whole saga in the last few weeks and I'm not sure I got all the things I was suppose to get, I actually felt confused, had to re-read a few passages, because some things just didn't make sense.
I expected so much more from the last act of a quarter of a century long story. It'll take some time before I'll get over it.
rocketiza's review against another edition
3.0
this series doesn't feel like skillful story telling anymore just a laid out plot that happens
jakekilroy's review
4.0
This goes from building up the finale to laying out the foundation of the final showdown. Just wild to witness all things coming to a fiery end, at breakneck speed no less. There are a lot of moving parts and I naturally have questions, but explanations and answers aren't really necessary for all this to work. You just know the universe well enough to agree with its most confounding mechanics, and it's as brutal as ever in the 11th Hour, though less fun this round given the severity of what's to come.
zanish's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
redhairedashreads's review
4.0
Series: B.P.R.D. The Devil You Know Vol 2
Rating: 4 stars - It was really good
In this volume, Hellboy finally returns to Earth and is helping the B.P.R.D. deal with the demon threat. Unfortunately, Hellboy is no longer as willing to fight as he was before.
This was an interesting one. Hellboy is back but he isn't the same. He doesn’t have that drive to fight and kill monsters anymore. There is also more going on with his return that hasn’t been revealed yet but I can’t wait.
I am liking this storyline a lot. I love that the old gang is back together and fighting monsters again. Also I love that Liz has a boyfriend finally.
You can also find my reviews at Red-Haired Ash Reads.
Rating: 4 stars - It was really good
In this volume, Hellboy finally returns to Earth and is helping the B.P.R.D. deal with the demon threat. Unfortunately, Hellboy is no longer as willing to fight as he was before.
This was an interesting one. Hellboy is back but he isn't the same. He doesn’t have that drive to fight and kill monsters anymore. There is also more going on with his return that hasn’t been revealed yet but I can’t wait.
I am liking this storyline a lot. I love that the old gang is back together and fighting monsters again. Also I love that Liz has a boyfriend finally.
You can also find my reviews at Red-Haired Ash Reads.