An Ending Worthy Of The Hellboy Universe — Reviewing ‘Frankenstein New World: The Sea Of Forever’ #4

Welcome to the table,

We have arrived at the end of the newest Dark Horse Comics’ Frankenstein: New World story. I’m sad, but not disappointed or, honestly, surprised. Lets get into it.

Frankenstein New World: The Sea of Forever has been one of the most enjoyable comics I’ve read this year. The storytelling of Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden, and Thomas Sniegoski, aided by the amazing art of Peter Bergting and dynamic colors of Michelle Madsen, have been nothing short of a delight from cover to cover.

I began to suspect back in issue #2 that we would not get a full ending as this four issue run came to a conclusion. That was just based on the amount of story threads that the team had set up. What we did get felt fulfilling and left us in a good place before we move forward into what I hope will be a soon-to-be-announced next chapter in the tale of Frankenstein and his human companion Lilja. The two will hopefully continue to explore a reborn Earth, generations after the destruction of all things in the pages of Hellboy.

While I did not expect a complete ending to the story, I was hopeful we would get some finality to a personal favorite character from the Mignola-Universe lore, the Bog Roosh. I was not let down. This timeless undersea entity got such a beautiful moment. It really wrapped up some things that have been lingering for quite some time now.

I actually had some paintings I did as an art school kid that were inspired by the Hellboy: The Third, a two issue minis series that the Bog Roosh first appeared in. I gave those away a few weeks ago because I felt like it was time. This chapter coming in the way it did gave me such a peaceful and appropriate ending to her story. It provided a meta moment for me in the grand scheme of things.

That is what I love so much about these stories. I can point to moments in my life that coincide with occurrences in the Hellboy Universe. They transport me back to those moments in a way I have heard people on HGTV shows talking about sounds or scents transporting them to moments that matter to them.

Frankenstein: New World is part of the unbroken and unrevised magic that is contained in the modern mythology that is the Hellboy Universe. It is a constant reminder that stories hold power, even if they are not teaching us lessons but entertain us when the consuming darkness comes and eventually passes to a new dawn full of fresh wonders just waiting for us to enjoy.

I still have plenty of unanswered questions. I will wait, like the Bog Roosh, until Dark Horse and the creative minds behind these stories give us the next offering in this timeless tale to tell us more about the world we have been following for all these years.

Until next time, this is truly a fantastic comic and if you love the Hellboy universe the way I do you will be doubly delighted with this book.