10 Amazing Hellboy Spin-Offs Mignola Fans Must Read
2. Lobster Johnson: The Burning Hand
The mysterious Lobster is Hellboy's own hero. He is a character mythologised in-universe through pulp novels, comics and a
series of Lucha Libre films to the point that even in the crazy world of
the Mignolaverse many characters believe him to be a fictional creation.
The real Lobster died in 1939 at the start of the war, fighting mad Nazi scientist Herman Von Klempt, but his ghost shows up to assist Hellboy in defeating Von Klempt once again in the 2000s.
The character was popular enough not just with Mignola's own protagonist but also his fans to earn his own spin-off title, focusing on The Lobster's adventures busting gangs and their paranormal accomplices in 1930s New York.
The Burning Hand is actually the second Lobster Johnson miniseries, but it is set prior to the first (The Iron Prometheus) and does a better job of establishing his world. It is also the story that sees The Lobster up against the aforementioned Black Flame, easily his most disturbingly powerful foe.
The story introduces plucky ace reporter Cindy Tynan, a key player in the rest of the Lobster Johnson series and a good audience surrogate in a world whose hero is a taciturn man of mystery.
Where Witchfinder is Hammer Horror gothic, Lobster Johnson's tone is pure 30s urban noir pulp, taking its cue from classic Dick Tracy or The Spirit, but with a darkly supernatural Mignola twist. The Burning Hand shows all this off at its best.