While I've enjoyed the other two B.P.R.D. trades, Plague of Frogs is really where the strength of the concept, separate from any Hellboy interaction, comes into its own. When the series was originally published, I started out missing Hellboy's presence, but by the time we'd gotten a couple issues in, I was so drawn into the rising stakes of the plot and the increasing strength of the B.P.R.D. characters that Hellboy's absence wasn't even a concern. Plague of Frogs is no spinoff or cash grab, it's a logical continuation of the Hellboy story, only without Hellboy himself taking part. The supporting players come into their own as stars of the book, and the return of foes from the first miniseries takes on a different and larger scale menace.
Plague of Frogs starts out relatively small, with an isolated incident at a B.P.R.D. facility setting a monster loose on the world. Mignola and Davis convey the sort of waking dream focus of the fanatical doctor very well, and it's easy to get the sense of mental influence from the strange fungus. While B.P.R.D. is part action story, there's more than a little Lovecraft at the heart of Mignola's influence, and that creepy, "things man was not meant to know" vibe echoes throughout the book. B.P.R.D. isn't generally a book I think of as horror so much as horror/action, but there's no denying that there are some really creepy sequences in this story. The team setting down in an abandoned town, and what they find there, is played out in one of the medium's best examples ever of perfect pacing. I haven't been as creeped out by a comic since I read Uzumaki the first time.
The story is about the return of the frog monsters (and their supporting cult) from the first Hellboy story, but it is also about Abe's origin, Liz gaining more control over her powers and Kate settling into her role as a field agent. Mignola's story contains different elements, but never feels chaotic or unfocused, and I was particularly impressed that he managed to make the foreboding, hinting nature of Abe's dreams clear without obfuscating what happened unnecessarily. Part of the credit here, of course, must go to Davis, whose silent storytelling as Abe encounters the underwater sequence that originally gave birth to him, is note perfect.
It may be blasphemy, but I actually think I prefer Guy Davis's work on the B.P.R.D. to Mignola's in a lot of ways. Davis doesn't have the unique mastery of shadow and light that Mignola does, but he has an unusual sensibility that is ideal for the B.P.R.D., especially when it comes to the Victorian flashback sequences with Abe. Davis is also matched with one of the best colorists in the business, Dave Stewart, and the two of them turn in fantastic sequences on the action-packed last couple of chapters, with especially nice moments coming when Liz takes control of her pyrotechnic powers or on the desperation that encompasses Kate when she finds herself surrounded by green, glowing skeletons. Davis also brings a touch of sadness and isolation to these characters, a nice bit of visual subtext for Abe, Roger and Liz, in that their isolation from the normal world isn't really touched upon in the script but comes through loud and clear in the way they walk through their lives. Davis is also amazing when it comes to atmosphere, a key component of what makes B.P.R.D. work. The stunning detail of Crab Point, Michigan makes the desolate, empty feel all the more creepy, and the same detail on the helicopter or the tactical gear that the B.P.R.D. agents are wearing really highlights the working stiff nature of the jobs these unusual-looking characters are doing.
Throughout the course of this story, Mignola really puts his characters through the wringer. There's one point at which it seems that two of the main characters have been killed, and just when you find out that one of them made it, another one seemingly dies. Of course, the last chapter presses the reset button completely, but it's such a "the car's going off the cliff, what will happen?" serial type thing, keeping with B.P.R.D.'s roots, that I thought it worked pretty well. In addition, while Abe does pull through, it's clear that the ramifications of what he's been through and what he's learned will resonate in the future.
Plague of Frogs is a great standalone tale for fans of the B.P.R.D., and perhaps more impressively, it is also a great foundation for an even better story in the follow-up B.P.R.D.: The Dead. I'm as anxious as the next guy for more Mignola written and drawn Hellboy tales, but even if such a thing were never to come, I couldn't be very disappointed if B.P.R.D. were the alternative. 10/10
