Now that we’re in the year 2014, we have officially been reading the Mignolaverse for twenty years. Time has really flown right by for me. I don’t know about you folks, but I’m ready for the next twenty. And I’m completely ok with starting with Abe Sapien #9. It looks like Abe is still roaming the country doing his Bruce Banner thing. You know, wandering around searching for ways that he can help. Of course, I’m referring to how the character was portrayed on television (even though his name was David Banner in the show). Anyway, I’m digging it so far. We’re nine issues in and I don’t really know where the hell this series is going, but I don’t really think that we’re supposed to, and that’s ok with me for now. As long as the team of Mignola, Allie, and Fiumara are on it, I don’t see any reason to make my move away from the book anytime soon. As I mentioned in the previous “intro” paragraph, Abe is wandering around and happens to find a car accident that doesn’t really look quite right. He eventually gets into town and notifies the first authority figure that he sees. What a good citizen. After quick introductions, it turns out that this guy, JJ, is actually the Chief of Police and invites Abe along to join him while he investigates a situation that may be up Abe’s alley. They get to an abandoned field where JJ tells Abe that the horses that used to graze here have liquified, and their corpses have basically been invaded by some sort of unknown parasite that seems to be growing around them. This is where the story gets interesting. Abe notifies JJ that it would probably be best to burn everything, and the funky Mignolaverse stuff starts happening.

The script this month is really good. The dialogue between Abe and JJ is really strong stuff. I hate to admit that I would have probably been okay with watching these guys talk about the current state of the country for twenty-four straight pages. There is just something really impressive about a writing team that has the ability to make you feel like you’re a part of the conversation. Plus, I kinda like this JJ guy. I hope that he sticks around for the remainder of the arc. I have a feeling that he will.

Fiumara’s art is superb as usual. I love Abe’s new look so much. I mean, it’s not super new, but comparing it to his original look from the B.P.R.D. days, I love it. His evolution has totally given Fiumara’s art a chance to shine.

The only thing, and I repeat, the only thing that keeps me from giving this issue a perfect score is that I just don’t know where it’s going. Is this post-catastrophe world that these characters are living in ever going to get any better. This place sucks. I wanna see some hint of maybe something happening in the near future that will get this universe back on track. These characters have been basically just existing in a world where death lurks around every corner for a very long time. Pretty soon, if something doesn’t improve their situation, they’re all going to lose their minds. I don’t know how they’ve managed to keep it together this long. Guys, please. I want to see them start to find ways to fix things. If they don’t start fixing things soon, there won’t be any reason to keep coming up with hellish story arcs. Hell is already here.

Score: 4/5

Writer: Mike Mignola and Scott Allie Artist: Max Fiumara Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Price: $3.50 Release Date: 1/8/14