I remember reading about the fallen angels in the Bible and wondering what about the risen demons. Okay, so I didn't formulate it that way, but if an angel could fall, couldn't a demon rise? We don't hear much about that in mainline Christianity, and maybe it's entirely impossible; but lately, the creative media have really had a ball with that, whether it's Buffy and Angel, Hellboy, Reaper, Supernatural or some other twist. But that's what attracts me to Hellboy, and that's why I'm waiting expectantly for Hellboy II.

Guillermo Del Toro has taken his shots and now seems primed for big screen success. He knocked out critical audiences with Pan's Labyrinth, which, if you haven't seen, you must (and no, I don't care that you don't understand Spanish!). He's won the next "big" movie, The Hobbit, in two parts, wresting that power for himself and promising something different, and more likely darker, than Peter Jackson's trilogy. And he earned the right to direct the second in a series of bizarre yet entertaining tales of the demon saint played by Ron Perlman.

Perlman himself is funny, and he's obviously comfortable in his Hellboy skin. No doubt he had plenty of practice in The Beauty and the Beast series in the 1990s, but how comfortable can you be under all that makeup for hours and hours every day? Maybe that lends itself to Hellboy's slightly sardonic and grumpy take on life; but how can you explain the humor that comes through in nearly every Hellboy line?

While Hellboy can't seriously be considered Oscar-worthy, it's nice to see an action movie, a superhero movie, directed by someone with considerable Hollywood talent who isn't Ang Lee. Some people were meant to direct action flicks and some weren't. Del Toro is one of the former, and his knack for communicating through the power of fairy tales is superb. That allows us to consider the world of Hellboy without laughing too hard, as it's plausible within the confines of Hellboy's world, even if it completely defies our conventions.

Whatever you see this summer, know that Hellboy will be different. It will be entertaining, it will be visually stunning at times, it will be funny and sad and slightly inappropriate. But keep in mind the general premise: that a soul created for evil and pushed toward hell would emerge from the ashes with the golden heart of a champion and savior, would lay his life on the line and unflinchingly protect the world from darkness and death. That's Hellboy, defender of truth and opponent of the Golden Army. Bring it on!