If anyone can put a new spin on an age old horror classic, it's Mike Mignola. A master of mood and tone, the acclaimed creator turns his sights on the moodiest monster of all, the neck-bolted, eternally undead Frankenstein. Joined by artists Ben Stenbeck and Dave Stewart, Mignola electrifies the famed Creature with new life, offering an entirely new take to go along with a complex and involving mythos. Whether a fan of Hellboy, horror or good ol' Frank, Frankenstein Underground is a comic made from all the right parts.
In typical Mignola fashion, issue #1 wastes no time getting to the good stuff. The writer sets the tone in a few deftly focused panels, introducing both the monster and his supporting cast in quick succession. From there the book powers through backstory and setup, Mignola using flashbacks to detail the Creature's distressing path. There's a lot of history to this first installment, Frankenstein's and others alike, yet never once does it feel cluttered or overbearing. Even in the second act, when more insidious players join the fray, there's never the feeling of being rushed despite the urgency of the issue's various situations. Given the many different factions colliding within the read and the many layers to process, such assured pacing is marvelous.
It also helps that Mignola writes some of the more uniquely compelling characters in the biz. His Creature literally lurches out of nowhere, yet within just a few pages we're completely invested in his plight. Much of this has to do with the character's overall voice. His Frank is remarkably intelligent, a far cry from the usual grunting monster we've come to expect, and Mignola uses this self-awareness to craft a painful layer of depth. Frankenstein knows full well that he's a what, not a who, and that knowledge both angers and pains him. Such human emotion in an inhuman creation makes for some lovely complexity, especially when he begins to bond with his elderly caretaker/witch bestie.
Said characterization also spills over into the book's various grumpy cats, particularly the power mad collector, Fabre. In a book filled with reanimated corpses, ancient gods and powder-wigged vampires, it's the sole human that strikes the most fear. We're not yet sure how or why Fabre is the man he is, but if the events of issue #1 are any indication, we're not all that sure we want to.
So many well realized characters call for an equally well realized rendering, and in that regard the book is amazingly blessed to have Ben Stenbeck and Dave Stewart on hand. Stenbeck animates each of Mignola's painful panels with extraordinary life, his Creature one of real and memorable presence. His design, while simple, is quite unique, distinctly human despite the deathly pallor, loping gate and protruding studs. The artist ably captures the burden that passes for life, his Frankenstein dour and withdrawn. Colorist Stewart adds a final depth to the book's pages, his panels draped in inky blues and blacks along brilliant swaths of color. Dark interiors are punctuated by vibrant hues, each flashback and set piece illuminated in ways to best reflect tone and voice. Even the Creature, gray in death, stands apart from the shadows with his striking yellow eyes.
Frankenstein Underground #1 is a darkly engaging tale, as told by true masters of the medium. Mike Mignola's take on the character and his mythos is unique in the best possible way, as is the artistic collaboration between Ben Stenbeck and Dave Stewart. In just one issue the creators have crafted a world that's tragic, engrossing and, most importantly, aliiiiive.