This first issue of B.P.R.D.: Garden of Souls feels like the opening of a film – the short scene before the credits that introduces you to the characters and settings. It dances over seven different subplots dealing with the origin of Abe Sapian, the mysterious resurrection of Capt. Benjamin Daimio, a kindly giant robot, the passing of Roger – the homunculus – and a couple of other ditties before wrapping up with Abe Sapien receiving a curious package in the mail. Those already familiar with the ongoing B.P.R.D. series of miniseries will understand the circumstances quickly enough. Anyone new to the series will feel hopelessly lost.
I really like Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. titles, but this issue left me somewhat bewildered. I realize the payoff will likely come in the next few issues, but this feels like a tiny bit of story stretched out to fill 24 pages. And, while it never completely fails as a story, it feels more like the beginning of a movie cut short. I realize that monthly comics always cut the reader off in anticipation of the next installment, but this issue offers just enough to alert the reader to familiar characters and a potentially interesting story, yet not enough to really interest anyone beyond ardent fans – the ones that will always read the series, despite a flat first issue. All of the scenes have a potentially interesting hook, but their near-non-sequitur presentation elicits more confusion than intrigue. However, I don’t doubt answers will arrive in the coming months. I just wish the sample presented here reflected more of the main course.
Guy Davis’s art remains up to par with the past B.P.R.D. series – cartoonish, but with a welcome touch of humanity. He draws certain identifying facial features that remind the reader that, while this may be a comic book, the characters are people in their own right – not real like you and me, but realistic, and worth your interest. Let’s hope the story fulfills that promise in the coming issues.
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