Young Hellboy: Thrilling Sky Adventures #3 — Craig Rousseau’s Aerial Whirlwind Lands at Devil’s Plateau
The Sky Devil and her passengers touch down at the enigmatic Devil’s Plateau in this third chapter of the Young Hellboy saga. Craig Rousseau’s art turns a seemingly benign landscape into a breeding ground for the nefarious, pushing Scarlett toward a truth that refuses to stay buried.
There is a specific kind of dread that creeps in when the setting feels too peaceful, and Young Hellboy: Thrilling Sky Adventures #3 knows exactly how to wield it. We leave the skies behind as Scarlett and her crew make landfall at Devil’s Plateau, a location that presents itself as deceptively serene on the surface. It’s the kind of place where you’d expect rest, but in the world of Mignola, calm is often just the breath before the storm. Craig Rousseau captures this tension perfectly, rendering a landscape that looks inviting but hums with a low, unsettling frequency. You can feel the shift in the air just by looking at the panels.
The premise here is a classic mystery wrapped in high-flying adventure. Scarlett isn’t just visiting for the view; she’s on the trail of something darker lurking beneath the Plateau’s picturesque facade. As the Sky Devil, she doesn’t take the easy path, and she certainly doesn’t leave any stone unturned in her search for the truth. With Tom Sniegoski’s narrative pacing and Chris O’Halloran’s coloring adding atmosphere, the issue turns the setting into a character itself—a trap waiting to be sprung. It’s a compelling shift from the open skies to a confined, suspicious ground, forcing our heroes to adapt to a new kind of danger.
What makes this issue a standout in the four-part run is the way Rousseau balances the whimsy of young Hellboy with the creeping horror of the unknown. His line work gives the environment a tactile weight, making every shadow feel significant. This is the kind of issue that rewards close reading, where the details in the background hint at threats that haven’t fully revealed themselves yet. If you’ve been enjoying the blend of pulp adventure and supernatural mystery that defines this series, this is the issue where the stakes feel most personal and the environment feels most hostile.
If you’re looking to expand the stack with something that shares this love for atmospheric mystery and distinct visual storytelling, keep an eye on Barbara Gordon Breakout. The way it maintains tension through setting and character interaction feels like a spiritual cousin to what’s happening on the Plateau. Both books use their environments to challenge the protagonist, but that’s a story for another day.
Heads up on the physical copy: this is Craig Rousseau’s variant, and with his art taking center stage on the narrative pages, the cover does a great job of setting the tone. These tend to move quickly when the internal art is this strong, so if you’re a fan of his style, you’ll want to grab it before it disappears from the shelf. It’s a lovely piece to have on display when the mystery deepens.