reflection

Mike Mignola returns with a book of tales mythic, mysterious, and ingeniously clever.
Writing/Plot
Pencils/Inks
Colors
Letters

Review: BOWLING WITH CORPSES & Other Strange Tales From Lands Unknown

From comics legend Mike Mignola comes a new graphic novel full of folklore and myth in Bowling With Corpses & Other Strange Tales from Lands Unknown. Featuring long-time collaborators Dave Stewart on color art and Clem Robins on lettering, Bowling With Corpses is exactly the kind of mysterious and clever romp fans of Mignola’s work would expect. With sharp, humorous writing and Mignola’s signature visual style, this is a must-read for fans of Hellboy or comics in general.

“New folklore-inspired tales abound in this new anthology of fantasy stories written and drawn Hellboy creator Mike Mignola. From a search for the beating heart of a long-dead sorcerer, to a pirate girl who makes a deal with the devil, to the titular boy who wins a grim prize in a game with some undead interlopers, and more.”

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Writing & Plot

Mike Mignola’s signature blend of folklore, myth, and witty humor all collide once more for Bowling With Corpses & Other Strange Tales from Lands Unknown. For this new world of magic and monsters, Mignola takes readers on a tour of different tales with different lessons, but all with his now iconic sense of mystery. The first story, Bowling With Corpses, takes us to do just that – while also setting up the tone and worldbuilding for Mignola’s new creation. Every story offers a unique sort of tale while bolstering this new mythology and promising more in the future. Several of the tales in this volume, like any great piece of folklore, end in a way that basically says “we haven’t seen the last of them.” Mignola is still a master at pacing and direction, which is why his more wordy panels and pages still flow so well. There are pages of characters talking about the many gods, lands, and legends this world has to offer. While it can feel like rambling, the way these sequences are constructed and paced makes them feel like a rabbit hole to fall down rather than just exposition. Of course, Mignola still knows when *not* to write as well, and his ingenious sequential direction frequently steps in to bolster the storytelling. Mignola’s sense of humor is on display in Bowling With Corpses as well, with plenty of delightfully funny pieces of dialogue interspersed to break up the mystery and add whimsy to the story. All in all, this is exactly the kind of graphic novel fans of Mignola’s work would be delighted by in terms of its story crafting.

Art Direction

Mike Mignola’s unmistakable visual work is on full display here in Bowling With Corpses & Other Strange Tales from Lands Unknown. From his iconic approach to character design, to his atmospherically rich inking, and his expert sequential direction, the master is still firing on all cylinders. Mignola is able to swing from moments of macabre delight and whimsy wo those of genuine dread and immense mystery. This is all due to how dynamic his visual approach really is. The strange joy in watching a boy bowl with some corpses for a promise of treasure, or farm animals comment on their place in a tale of mythic heroes, is just pure comics greatness in the simplest ways. Mignola’s manner of playing with timing for both structural and comedic effect is a constant treat, as he utilizes the comics medium to demonstrate the kinds of effects that can only be captured in said medium. Joining him are his two most faithful collaborators, Dave Stewart and Clem Robins. Stewart’s color art has always filled out Mignola’s worlds with his dark, flat palette completing the atmospheric tones of this new universe. Clem Robins’s lettering is the perfect finishing touch for the reading experience. His dialogue fonts are great of course, but it’s his iconic SFX work and the detailed touches on specific panel moments – like exclamation points above a character – that really set his work apart. As phenomenal as Mignola is, his work just wouldn’t feel complete at this point without the efforts of his collaborators. Overall, Bowling With Corpses is yet another astonishingly stellar piece of visual storytelling from some of the greatest to ever do it.

Verdict

Bowling With Corpses & Other Strange Tales from Lands Unknown is yet another stellar entry in the Mignola library. The Hellboy creator’s iconic style of mystical yet simplistic writing takes readers on a journey into a new land of gods, monsters, and adventurers with all the wonder and humor we expect from a modern legend. Mignola’s art, completed by Dave Stewart’s colors, is still a joy to experience and shows off just what the medium is capable of in the hands of a practiced master. Be sure to grab Bowling With Corpses from your local comic shop today!

Justin Munday
Justin Munday
Reader and hoarder of comics. Quietly sipping coffee, reading, and watching sci-fi in Knoxville, TN.
Mike Mignola returns with a book of tales mythic, mysterious, and ingeniously clever.Review: BOWLING WITH CORPSES & Other Strange Tales From Lands Unknown