Forget Romeo & Juliet, Hellboy Is Making a Comeback With the World's "Greatest Romance"
Hellboyis returning with a new two-issue comic book event, which promises to elaborate on the “greatest romance” in franchise history, as creator Mike Mignola and collaborator Christopher Golden deliver the highly-anticipated follow-up to the acclaimed Hellboy in Love series, pairing Hellboy with Anastasia Bransfield once more, on“an unforgettable journey.”
As reported by Fangoria, Hellboy In Love: The Art of Fire, written by Mignola and Golden, with art by Alex Nieto, will continue the romantic arc between Bransfield and Hellboy, with the story also promising to have greater implications for the “Mignolaverse,” which remains one of the most expansive comic book mythologies the medium has to offer.
In fact, co-author Christopher Golden went as far as to reveal that The Art of Fire is set to delve into “the evil at the root of Anatasia’s story,” which could spell doom for her love affair with Hellboy.
The New "Hellboy In Love" Sequel Promises A Romance Plot With Lore Implications
Hellboy In Love: The Art of Fire #1; Written By Mike Mignola And Christopher Golden; Art Byy Alex Nieto; Available August 6, 2025 From Dark Horse Comics
The original Hellboy in Love run introduced Anastasia Bransfield, and provided the franchise with what Christopher Golden calls an opportunity to "fill in a vital missing era of [Hellboy's] life," while at the same time, in her role as an archeologist, Bransfield as a character has afforded the creators a way of "illuminating some key elements of the Mignolaverse’s ancient history." Both of these things make the upcoming Art of Fire two-shot a particularly exciting new entry into Hellboy lore, as it effectively centers both the deeply personal and sweeping mythological veins of the franchise.
Hellboy Teases a Special 2025 Comeback With New Dark Horse Series
The latest entry in the expansive Hellboy universe, "Shadow of the Golden Crane," is set to drop this year from publisher Dark Horse Comics.
The Art of Fire will bring Hellboy and Anastasia "to a dig site in Iceland, where answers and danger await," with the promise that this story will further their romantic plotline in a satisfying way, though whether their relationship will survive the series, or in fact whether Anastasia will make it out of the story alive at all, are still questions that fans can only speculate about in the next several months leading up to the release of Art of Fire's first issue, and even then, it won't be until the second issue that readers will have any definite answers.
Comparisons To "Romeo And Juliet" Don't Bode Well For Anastasia Bransfield
Is This Hellboy Romance Destined To Become A Tragedy?
In their reveal of Art of Fire #1's main cover, by series artist Alex Nieto, Fangoria equated Hellboy and Anastasia Bransfield's romantic arc to Romeo and Juliet, and it is worth questioning whether that is an ominous portent for Anastasia's future, and the couple's trajectory over all. After all, Hellboy is something of a tragic figure, and the loss of his true, or at least greatest love would certainly feel like an expected beat in his overarching story. Whether Anastasia survives Art of Fire or not, fans of the Hellboy franchise are not wrong to forecast doom in her future.
This is an engaging next step for Hellboy overall, especially if the series can also deliver some refreshing new details about the "Mignolaverse."
Whatever ultimately becomes of Anastasia Bransfield, and how her relationship with Hellboy plays out, this is an engaging next step for Hellboy overall, especially if the series can also deliver some refreshing new details about the "Mignolaverse," which could in turn have greater implications for future stories. Or at the very least, will feed the franchise's lore-hounds, and keep them invested as creator Mike Mignola and his creative team try to expand the range of what is possible in Hellboy stories, including romance.
Hellboy In Love: The Art of Fire #1 will be available August 6, 2025 from Dark Horse Comics.
Source: Fangoria
- Created By
- Mike Mignola
- Cast
- Ron Perlman, David Harbour
- First Appearance
- Hellboy
- Alias
- Anung Un Rama
- RELATIONSHIPS
- Professor Trevor Bruttenholm (adoptive father), Liz Sherman (love interest), Abe Sapien (friend and teammate)
- Alliance
- Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (B.P.R.D.)
