So on Saturday Dave and I are over at Brian’s playing games, and Brian’s son David (yes, we are Legion) is flipping through the channels, when suddenly our eyes notice the words “Hellboy: Sword of Storms” on the listing for Cartoon Network. The first thought is, “zu-wha?” followed quickly by, “Oh yeah! I forgot they were doing an animated Hellboy thinger!” Dave quickly called Vicky and employed the Tivo-Like DeviceTM. Sunday, we enjoyed the fruits of our labor.
Sword of Storms is the first animated Hellboy movie to come out. Here’s the synopsis, according to the official site:
When a university professor opens a forbidden scroll, he is possessed by the twin demons of thunder and lightning whom seek to return to the world to wake their brothers, the dragons. Hellboy, along with a folklore expert and a psychic, travels to Japan to investigate.
There, Hellboy finds the sword of storms, the only weapon that can defeat the demons, and he is transported to a world where he encounters several creatures of Japanese folklore. He learns that the sword is the only weapon that can defeat the demons, but also comes to know that this sword also holds magic that will return them to Earth.
You can see a trailer and some images at the official site.
So how was Sword of Storms? Not bad, really. Many of the same actors (Ron Perlman, Selma Blair) returned to do voices, and although David Hyde-Pierce isn’t on-board for Abe Sapien (and this is very jarring), another Frasier alumnus, Peri Gilpin, provides the voice for Professor Kate Corrigan. The voice acting and animation is quite good, and while the plot is pretty padded out, it’s still a fun ride (especially since elements from some of the Hellboy comics short stories are interwoven into the plot.) The film keeps a PG-13 rating, with Hellboy lightly cussing all the annoying supernatural events unfolding around him. Dave and I were both pleased with the results, and I’m looking forward to the next animated movie, Blood and Iron.
I don’t know if or when Cartoon Network will replay the movie, but the official site says the DVD will be available in February of 2007. Definitely something to keep an eye out for.
