Review by Frank Plowright

Metamorphosis pairs two stories nearing the end of B.P.R.D.’s Hell on Earth cycle, beginning with ‘Nowhere, Nothing Never’, an exploration of Johann Kraus. That it starts with the unusually amiable Agent Nichols violently reacting to the end of a mission sets alarm bells ringing, and from there Mike Mignola and John Arcudi turn in an ambitiously structured revelation leading to a long dark night of the soul. At its heart is whether Johann has lost his humanity along with his body. In his gaseous form and since acquiring his new containment suit he’s prioritised his own quests despite ostensibly commanding missions, as seen in Flesh and Stone. The story occurs over three chapters, and while the first is the mystery of what happened, the second is a suitably horrific and callous explanation.

It’s as shocking a story as has appeared in B.P.R.D. because the horror is generated by the inhumanity, not monsters, and comes with an ethical ambiguity. Having the superlative Peter Snejbjerg on art is the icing on the cake. That there’s no definitive answer to one aspect may prove frustrating, but sometimes in life there isn’t an answer and that’s just the way things are. ‘Nowhere, Nothing Never’ is great.

It leads directly into ‘Modern Prometheus’, which combines events in the present day with those of World War II and a strange armoured suit in possession of the B.P.R.D. Julián Totino Tedesco gives Snejbjerg a run for his money in the art department (sample right) with some atmospheric pages for one weird war story, and conclusions are reached about what being human is. At the same time Mignola and Arcudi move the main story forward a little, and perhaps the B.P.R.D. should be concerned that their base is now under attack.

B.P.R.D. is always good horror, but Metamorphosis raises the game. If you prefer B.P.R.D. in bulkier packages, the content of Metamorphosis is combined with the following End of Days in Hell on Earth 5.