Go To Hellboy

Just finished watching "Hellboy:Sword Of
Storms" on DVD, plus some of the extras.
The switch to animation is very well done.
The project was sent overseas for the
finishing touches, so it might get
compared to the Saturday morning fare.
But it falls more in the realm of
"Samurai Jack"--not so much in style,
but in the way that there's an
underlying mythology to everything.
You want to dig deeper into the
Hellboy comics, and maybe even rewatch
the movie after viewing this. It also
retains the humor of the film and comic,
which should appeal to adults and kids
(is it possible to make animation that
kids don't groove to? Don't say
"Ralph Bakshi", I just thought of that).

The San Diego Comic Con panel discussion
in the extras is very informative. I
thought I heard them talking about a
live-action "Hellboy 2" along with
another animated feature, and Mike
Mignola mentions a comic mini-series
arriving in stores soon.

Some interesting tidbits:
*Doug Jones, who portrayed Abe Sapien
in the live-action movie, supplies
the voice for his character vs.
David Hyde Pearce (Doug was also
key to "Pan's Labyrinth")
*Peri Gilpin, who worked with
Hyde Pearce on "Frasier" also
voices a role.
*Phil Lamarr is the voice behind
a couple characters--he was
also in the three "Samurai Jack"
seasons. This Hellboy story
unfolds in Japan, both past and
present--curious.
*Guillermo Del Toro drops a few
F-bombs in the panel discussion--
"Oh Crap!" Maybe he'll drop a
few at the Academy Awards when
he accepts his "Pan's Labyrinth"
Oscars (it's up for six).

If you're a casual or fanatic
Hellboy follower, this DVD is
worth a look!