After the events of BILL & TED'S MOST TRIUMPHANT RETURN, Bill & Ted find themselves searching for their friend and bass player, Death. Their journey leads them to Hell where Bill & Ted's nightmares are working for someone truly evil. The assemble a group of friends and family on this most heinous adventure.
Must like MOST TRIUMPHANT RETURN, GO TO HELL really does a fine job at capturing who these two characters are. They're silly, fun, and a bit vapid, in all the best ways possible. Writer Brian Joines does a fine job with the dialogue from these two characters, as well as making this comedic, without it getting too cartoony. This feels like the tone of the films, but just turned a tiny bit up. The story moves pretty well, but where this book kicks into full gear is during the final pages, where we learn who is in charge of the kidnapping of Death. It's cool to see the book throw a few surprises your way, right in issue one.
Every opening issue to a mini-series is going to feel like a lot of set-up, but what threw me off about the issue was that it almost felt like a retelling or maybe "reminding" of the events of Bogus Journey. So much time is spent on characters introducing themselves or Bill & Ted saying their names. There's a whole page dedicated to that as well. It's a bit tedious and starts to feel repetitive. On the flip side, Bill & Ted shouting "Rufus" is completely necessary.
On the artistic side of things, Bachan works with colorist Jeremy Lawson and this team could not have done any better. Bachan is great at showing movement where it counts, and he does some fine work with over-exaggerated facial expressions. There's a great two-page layout that flows really nicely, as Rufus puts a team together and it doesn't feel too busy or convoluted, which can be tricky to pull off. In addition, Lawson provide's some beautiful colorwork, enhancing Bachan's style while providing a wonderful animated tone.
If you enjoyed BOOM!'s last offering, then this will be right up your alley. Heck, if you liked Bill & Ted at all, this is something you should check out. Sure, there's a few problems with a lot of rehashing from the movies and the last volume, but overall, this ends up being a really fun read and the issue has a great hook to keep the reader invested.