Mike Mignola's B.P.R.D.: Hollow Earth and Other Stories [Paperback]

Hollow Earth - Abe Sapien travels to the Himalayas and below to find and rescue Liz. The journey takes them do a world of darkness that threatens the surface. I really enjoyed the Journey to the Center of the Earth ending. Also touching were there Hellboy flashbacks and how he endeared himself to various characters (I loved the lollipop).

Hollow Earth Teaser - A three-page teaser that sets up one of the new characters at the Bureau.

The Killer in my Skull - This story stars Lobster Johnson, a hero who uses the lobster claw of justice. In this story he is confronted with some locked-door murders that lead to an unexpected killer.

Abe Sapien vs. Science - Having been the subject of scientific investigation in the past, Abe Sapien is against the use of "scalpels and microscopes" for advancing knowledge of living things. This time the subject is Roger.

Drums of the Dead - Another Abe Sapien adventure as shipping routes are being terrorized by sharks and drums.

Before I continue with explanations, the guides to our operations (comics) collected in this Trade Paperback include: "BPRD: Hollow Earth" from BPRD: Hollow Earth #1-#3, "BPRD"- the strip from Dark Horse Extra #42-#44, "Abe Sapien: Drums of the Dead" from Abe Sapien: Drums of the Dead, "Lobster Johnson: Killer Inside My Skull" from Hellboy: Box Full of Evil #1, "Abe Sapien vs. Science" from Hellboy: Box Full of Evil #2, and depictive illustrations in a Mike Mignola and Ryan Sook sketchbook.

So, you might be ask, what does B.P.R.D. stand for and who exactly are they? Well, the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense is composed of many individuals from the lowest operatives to field agents and beyond that strive to keep the world safe from those unclassified menaces, great and small. Within those ranks we have many people with special talents, including the currently inactive Hellboy (see the end of Conqueror Worm for detail), Abe Sapien, Roger the Homunculus, "Liz" Sherman, and newer agents that sometimes find themselves only temporary additions to the roster because of, um, unforeseeable circumstances. In the installment that directly deals with this agency and all the mainstays involved ("BPRD: Hollow Earth" from BPRD: Hollow Earth #1-#3), Liz Sherman finds herself with a dilemma of the soul because of her pyrotechnic talent and her inability to always control it, and is seeking remedies that the B. P. R. D. cannot provide. So, following Hellboy's lead and walking away, she heads for the solace of the Ural Mountains and a place where "dreams dwell." While there, she finds the peace she has sought, but only for a time before something comes seeking her and the aid of the agency is needed.

To understand another agent and his respective incorperation/the talents he bring to the Bureau, there is also additionally provided documentation on that as well. One of the pivotal cornerstone we use, Abe Sapien (Homo Aquaticus), has led to many contributions within the organization and is one of the finest stars ever forged in the detective sky. He found out that the "Roger" wasn't simply a mass of discarded science after the incident with the "incident" with the giant ("Abe Sapien vs. Science" from Hellboy: Box Full of Evil #2 - occurring after Almost Colossus), for instance, and, in an incident where madness and the cries of something within the depths of the ocean almost claimed he and one of our telepaths, he managed to thwart what was amounting to be the doom of many a sailor ("Abe Sapien: Drums of the Dead" from Abe Sapien: Drums of the Dead).

Also, to help one conceive of the blights confronting our agency, we've added in information on one of the mysterious cases that the reputed Lobster Johnson worked on, proving that sometimes it really is mind over matter ("Lobster Johnson: Killer Inside My Skull" from Hellboy: Box Full of Evil #1). We feel that, by opening case files of someone considered a mythological hero and combining it with who our bureau is and what we do, we can better protect the world and thereby protect you, the newly inaugurated, protect themselves.

And now you know.