The Crimson Lotus comic was a dud in pretty much every way except in the art department. The art is phenomenal, but that's pretty much all the good I have to say about this one.
The writing, though relatively good in micro, absolutely sucked in macro. I enjoyed the characters, the two spies and their banter in particular, but the story didn't go anywhere. Though we start out with a revenge plot it peters out almost immediately after the first issue, leaving its plot threads dangling in the wind. Then, it seems as if it wasn't a revenge plot at all, but rather a sort of relic hunt with some serendipitous vengeance thrown in. We're kept in the dark pretty much every step of the way and pretty much nothing gets explained. The climactic battle is resolved with a deus ex machina, and with a completely unsatisfying open ending that can't do anything but adhere to the status quo.
One of the problems of the Mignola-verse comics is that after a while not a single one of them can be enjoyed on their own, without prior knowledge.
To make it worse, the writers have come to take it for granted that the reader is completely aware of what their big revelatory scenes mean, as if everyone who reads these stories has a lore bible in their heads that can be accessed whenever necessary, as if catering to the die-hard fans is what'll sell these stories. Stupidly enough I know I am one of those people. I have read all of the Mignola verse trades, except for Ragna Rok, and that is winging its way to me right now. I know it'll be disappointing, I know I'll think it'll be rushed and not well written, that it's just going to cement my opinion that the Mignola universe stories just thrive on brand appeal rather than actual quality story-telling. I hear you ask: But why, if you loathe this universe so much, are you still collecting and reading it, why have you gotten this far at all, Levi?
BECAUSE I'M A CONSUMERIST WORM, I guess. But let me rant a little more, please. There'll be spoilers for the Crimson Lotus comic next.
Every supposedly standalone comic in the Mignola-universe, spin-off or "origin story" has these panels where all of a sudden the laws of known reality are upturned. In Crimson Lotus, what was a relatively straightforward spy/occult magic thriller all of a sudden becomes something with practical superhero-powers and demons: Vril makes an appearance and anyone not in the know will be scratching their heads because why is this Chinese lady shooting fucking lightning out of her hands all of sudden? As someone who Loves, Loves capital L mind you, Lobster Johnson I was surprised to see the Lotus using Vril. What is going on, could she do that when she met the Lobster? Have I forgotten this? Nothing is explained here, damnit!
The climax of the story has, completely out of the blue, the little Russian-doll-girl/demon show up and deus ex machina the story to completion and I'm just wondering if anyone still cares about crafting a story that can actually be satisfying all on its own.
The Mignola-verse has just gotten too unwieldy to get away with these types of spin-offs. Sure, given where the series actually ended up, they don't really have a choice other than to go back into the past to flesh out some of the side-characters' stories, those that'll appeal to the buying masses, but if you're doing that you should at least make it stand on its own. Give us enough information within the comic itself, seed hints and clues throughout so that when something happens we can slap our heads and shout AHA, THAT IS SATISFYING rather than just sinking deeper and deeper into a well of despondent acceptance sad and angry that this is considered "a comic to pick up".
Good art though, it must be said. There are some genuinely awesome, and genuinely brutal, panels in here. Mindy Lee is a damn fine accomplished artist.
John Arcudi on the other hand... I love Lobster Johnson, I love Sledgehammer 44. But this, Abe Sapien and the mainline BPRD stuff has just been monumentally badly paced, and have all left me unsatisfied.
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