While Hollywood’s flying fickle finger of fate ultimately determines whether Hellboy manifests in the cinematic flesh once more, we can feel secure in the knowledge that the red-skinned demon will continue fighting monsters in one form or another.

In addition to the recently announced Hellboy videogame (on which the movie’s writer-director Guillermo del Toro and comic creator Mike Mignola will again collaborate), a pair of 75-minute animated flicks will air on the Cartoon Network and hit DVD, eating pamcakes and fighting tentacles some time later this year or early next year.

We originally heard about these new flicks last year, but what will we see Hellboy and his comrades in the B.P.R.D. doing in their cel-shaded forms? According to the cartoon’s overlord, Disney animation veteran Tad Stones, the first one “is like Alice in Wonderland in some ways” and takes place in the realm of Japanese folklore, while the second delves into the history of Hellboy’s “father” Professor Broom and is being compared to an animated Hammer film.

In addition to Mignola’s involvement on these original flicks (which will incorporate elements from his comic stories), humans Ron Perlman, Selma Blair and John Hurt will reportedly voice the characters they already brought to non-drawn life in del Toro’s film.


UPDATE: Holy hell, there’s a production diary blog devoted to the animated flicks RIGHT HERE, with all sorts of details and groovy art. Thanks to Butane for the tip!