Lady Baltimore: The Daughters of Medusa, the latest in the Outerverse Universe of books, is a two-part comic by Hellboy creator Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden, with art by Bridgit Connell. Connell told Cemetery Dance about her early (elementary school) horror artwork, working with Mignola and Golden, and why this is one of her favorite monster stories.
(Interview conducted by Danica Davidson)
CEMETERY DANCE: Your art career started in elementary school, where you won a classroom award for vampire stories made with crayons. Do you remember what happened in those stories? Were you always drawn (no pun intended) to spooky things?
BRIDGIT CONNELL: Oh my goodness what a call-out, haha! I think in the book I was best friends with Dracula? I was actually a pretty big wuss when it came to horror as a child, but for some reason I LOVED monster movies. Monsters were always more exciting to me than scary. At a younger age I stayed away from films that had jump scares, excessive gore, or haunting. I never watched any slasher films growing up, but I watched old school horror or monster movies like Universal Monsters, Clash of the Titans, or Vincent Price classics like House on Haunted Hill, to name a random few. Later on in college is when I got obsessed with horror, and then I evolved again when I got to my 30s and now I’m one of those odd true crime chicks, too.
You said this is one of your favorite monster stories you’ve ever read. What makes it stand out to you?
I’m a little biased because Chris Golden is so generous with what he lets me do with the journey of Lady Baltimore. We have meetings on Zoom before and sometimes during the time story arcs are being drawn, and this particular double shot he asked –– while he was brainstorming the script –– what monsters I was interested in drawing. That being said, I told him gorgons. The fact that they have been used over time as a symbol of feminine safe spaces; for instead of a curse, some versions of the Medusa’s tale claimed that instead of being CURSED with her monstrous form, she was instead BLESSED by Athena, as a gift to protect her from men. That concept fascinated me, plus I explained I was itching to take a stab at the monster design. I didn’t expect him to turn around a day or so later with a full outline, not only introducing the gorgon into the Outerverse in a completely logical way, but to incorporate so much depth to the introduction. There are also extremely valuable storylines with a few of the characters in this two issue arc, where he wrote the inclusion of the monster absolutely necessary to certain character revelations. It’s some really beautiful storytelling –– and I know that sounds vague –– but I really don’t want to ruin any of it for you.
How is Lady Baltimore: The Daughters of Medusa both different and a continuation of previous Lady Baltimore books?
In Lady Baltimore and the Witch Queens, WWII had just erupted. Entire demonic witch covens have joined with Nazis to form the HEXENCORP, which might be the vilest combo you can make. So in this way, in the midst of WWII, it continues in the same war, the same story. But these one-shots, two-shots, (and a three-shot on the horizon,) are little epics — stand-alone episodes of Sofia’s journey. And in these battles, we get to do my favorite things and step into the worlds of not only Sofia and her lover Imogen, but the tried and true crew of loyal soldiers that Sofia has gathered into her company. We take a heart-felt look at some of her companions in this arc, but DON’T WORRY: there’s still a ton of Nazi ass that gets kicked around in here too.
What is your process working with Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden?
Chris writes the script, and because we are often so in sync with our own nerding-out over these characters, I think there is a lot of trust there. One of my absolute favorite things to draw is emotion. Chris writes the script and his emotional development of the characters is something I just love to dive into, and with how I’ve learned to draw the world from reading Mignola’s books for forever, I try to push myself to draw beyond just my animation-type influence of emotion in the expressions but play with the emotion in the world — in the shadows and the compositions. Chris also allows me to add or condense story beats via my own judgment, depending on what I feel I can work out best for the story. Chris and I get a lot of freedom to play around in the Outerverse, and Mike gets to approve the character designs and world-building. Mike has the biggest say in monster designs, and it’s fun to get a small glimpse into what makes a monster work in his eyes.
Where can people find out more about you and your work?
Instagram & Bluesky: @bridgitconnell
Website: bridgitconnell.com
