Baltimore: The Widow and the Tank is a one-shot comic written by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden that features two stories starring Lord Henry Baltimore, a vampire hunter in a universe different from Hellboy’s but thematically similar. In keeping with typical Mignola tradition, both stories are self-contained and require no prior knowledge of the characters within, though an understanding of Baltimore’s backstory does add an extra layer of emotional depth if you’ve kept up with the series. That said, whether you have read all of Lord Baltimore’s travels or have never heard of the character before in your life, Baltimore: The Widow and the Tank is a must buy this week.
The first story, “The Widow”, is a creepy tale exploring the darker side of love and devotion between a woman and her husband, who is rumoured to be less-than-completely dead after an incident in the war. It serves as a microcosm of everything that makes Mignola and Golden such a great creative team. While the story is not terribly hard to predict, the brilliant pacing and poignant writing bring this story to life. Mrs. Yeardsley, the aforementioned widow, is particularly moving, as her witticisms in the opening scene make the reader immediately invested in the character, and that investment intensifies the fearful tone throughout. And the ending is nothing short of genius. I won’t say more at the risk of spoiling one of the most moving short stories I’ve read in months, but I will say the narrative presented here is worth the cover price alone. Trust me on this one.
That’s not the say “The Tank” is not equally enjoyable. In that story, Lord Baltimore learns of a vampire who is said to be hiding in a tank eating innocent children who walk by. However, it soon becomes clear that there may be worse things near that tank than the vampire himself. What makes this story so great is Mignola and Golden’s decision to focus on the humanity of the vampire rather than the beast contained within. Without spoiled anything, it would have been quite easy for the story to turn into a “vampire vs. other fearsome creature” fight, but instead, the team chose to focus on a rather real emotion to which any reader could relate. As such, “The Tank” has a surprising amount of emotional depth for a nine page story, and I was left wishing I could have spent more time with both characters. In this more than the previous story, Lord Baltimore thrives as a character in his own right. Also, the last page is absolutely chilling and will likely appear in my nightmares at some point over the next week.
As far as the art is concerned, the teamwork of Ben Stenbeck and Dave Stewart is as good as its ever been. This whole creative team has worked together on B.P.R.D. and previous Baltimore comics, so the art perfectly matches the tone of the stories. It’s sublime in the most eerie way, capturing the darker essence of these stories in a way few artists can. While “The Widow”‘s final page is made especially poignant by the symbolism and dark beauty contained in the last image, “The Tank” is where the art team is able to shine. The landscapes reflect the bleakness of the situation perfectly and, because it bears repeating, that last page is powerful in ways that can only be understood once you’ve read the comic.
Final Verdict: Baltimore: The Widow and the Tank is a brilliant horror comic more than worth the $3.50 cover price. Its only flaw is that it must come to an end. This creative team shows once again why Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden have been the faces of horror in comics since Hellboy first began. Buy it. Now. You won’t regret it.
Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. You can read more of his stuff at Toy-TMA, follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew, or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.
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