INTERVIEW: ‘Hellboy’ universe goes west with new ‘Carmen Red Claw’ story
Image courtesy of Dark Horse / Provided by Superfan Promotions with permission.
The Hellboy universe created by Mike Mignola is one of the most expansive and amazing worlds ever put to print in the comic world. This monster-laden land keeps growing and growing with interesting settings and fascinatingly horrific monsters. The latest addition is called Carmen Red Claw: Belly of the Beast, a four-issue series that launches Wednesday, Jan. 7, from Dark Horse.
The new story focuses on the title character, Carmen Dascher, who is a descendant of the notorious El Bogavante, according to press notes. For the uninitiated, El Bogavante first appeared in 2014’s Lobster Johnson: Get the Lobster. Carmen is a shape-shifter and gun-for-hire, and she’s investigating a cursed ranch in 1870s New Mexico territory.
Carmen Red Claw: Belly of the Beast is co-written by Mignola and Rae Allen, who is known for The Manderfield Devil. Allen pulls double duty as the artist, with colors by Michelle Madsen and letters by Clem Robins. Allen takes care of the covers, with variants by Mignola, Jake Parker, Tonci Zonjic and Benjamin Schipper
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Allen to learn more about the project. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
Do you feel like the paranormal and western genres go nicely together?
Shockingly well, actually! One of the things I love about Hellboy is how much of it is inspired by historic myths and legends. It’s expected that fairies and monsters will be found in old European tales, less so in the American Old West. So while I was researching for Carmen Red Claw, I was delighted to discover that the Old West is a veritable treasure trove of cryptids, ghosts and tall tales perfectly suited to the Hellboy universe.
How does the story connect to the overall Hellboy universe?
In a few esoteric ways! Carmen herself was inspired by a couple of pages in Lobster Johnson: Get the Lobster that tells the story of the dread pirate El Bogavante and his illegitimate son Obahdas Dascher. Obahdas was a fur trapper and a bounty man who married a Lakota woman who bore him 30-some-odd children that could all turn into panthers at will. I decided I wanted to hear a story about one of those shapeshifting children, and Carmen Dascher was born.
How did co-writing with Mike Mignola work out?
I’d write an idea, flesh it out and back it up with some historic references, then pass it by Mike. Then he and I would brainstorm over the phone for an hour or two at a time, until we landed on a direction we both liked, and then I’d go back to writing again. It was fantastic to work with someone with so much experience; it really streamlined the process. And our combined nerdiness and strong creative visions meshed together quite nicely.
How did you settle on the “look” of the series?
What got me this gig in the first place was a personal project I made in college, called The Manderfield Devil. I had challenged myself to work with heavy black shadows, which was a territory I was really uncomfortable with before. When Mike saw the book, he liked it enough to contact me. He asked if I had any other work like it, and I said, “Not yet! But I want to make more.” Not long after that he asked me to pitch him something.
What’s it like to bring the New Mexico desert to life? Did you consult photographs?
I lived in New Mexico for a short while, in a town north of Santa Fe called Española. It wound up making sense to put Red Claw Ranch (Carmen’s headquarters) there. I take historic research very seriously, so I wound up diving deep into old records to find out what Española was like at the time. It took a lot of digging to discover old photos from the era because the city is entirely different now. It used to have a train running straight through town, with a lively main street and many luxurious mansions owned by wealthy sheep farmers.
How would you describe the character of Carmen Red Claw?
When I pitched the character to Mike, I described her as a paranormal version of Paladin, the famous gunslinger from the old radio show Have Gun, Will Travel. Like Paladin, she’s a classy, well-to-do lady who’s made a name for herself as a hired gun. But Carmen also has a complicated upbringing, with half-Lakota, half-Spanish heritage. She fights against her family’s violent legacy as descendants of a brutal privateer and struggles to find a sense of identity as a person of mixed-race in the American West. On top of that, she’s cursed with the constant companionship of a bloodthirsty shoulder demon, Pest, who doesn’t aid in her plight.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Carmen Red Claw: Belly of the Beast, written by Mike Mignola and Rae Allen, is a four-issue series that premieres Wednesday, Jan. 7, from Dark Horse. Click here for more information.
