Review: MAGE BOOK THREE The Hero Denied #1

MAGE, BOOK THREE: THE HERO DENIED No. 1
IMAGE COMICS – @ImageComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITER/ARTIST: Matt Wagner
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Dave Lanphear
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (August 2017)

Rated “T/ Teen Plus”

Chapter 01 “What's Past Is Prologue”

Written and drawn by Matt Wagner (Grendel), Mage is a fantasy comic book series with superhero elements.  The series will be comprised of three volumes, each running 15 issues.  The first was Mage: The Hero Discovered, which was published by defunct publisher, Comico the Comic Company, from 1984 to 1986.  The second was Mage: The Hero Defined, which was published from 1997 to 1999 by Image Comics.

Image Comics recently began publication of the third and final volume, Mage: The Hero Denied.  It is written and drawn by Matt Wagner; colored by Brennan Wagner; and lettered by Dave Lanphear.

The Hero Discovered introduced Kevin Matchstick, an alienated young man who meets a wizard called Mirth.  Kevin discovers that he has superhuman abilities and that a magic baseball bat wielded by a friend actually belongs to him.  That bat is Excalibur, and Kevin represents King Arthur.

The Hero Defined takes place several years later and finds Kevin fighting supernatural menaces in the company of other heroes.  Kevin discovers that he has misunderstood his mission and that he represents more than one mythical hero.  Kevin is also Gilgamesh, and he initially does not realize that his new mage/mentor is an old tramp named Wally Ut whom Kevin often chooses to dismiss as a crazy old annoyance.  Kevin also meets his future wife.

Mage, Book Three: The Hero Denied, #1 (“What's Past Is Prologue”) finds Kevin Matchstick living in suburban splendor with his wife Magda; son, Hugo; and preschool daughter, Miranda.  It has been years since his last adventure combating the forces of dark magic.  Now, some dark magic ruffians have found him and so has a powerful adversary.

It is good to have Mage back.  I find that The Hero Denied seems more like The Hero Discovered than it does as The Hero Defined – at least after one issue.  Everything about it, the shimmering, rich colors; the structure of the plot; the settings; and the villains:  all recall the spirit of the original series.  That's what I want; nothing against The Hero Defined, but the original Mage is still close to my heart.  It was one of the first independent comic books that I ever read.  It was also one of the first magical fantasy comic books I had ever seen.  In fact, the original seemed infused with magic.

So we are in the very early stages of The Hero Denied, but this feels right.  It is a call home to the foundation of Mage, so I'm calling Mage fans back to this series.  Since this is the first issue, I'll be a bit conservative with my grade.

8 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2017 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: MAGE, Book Three: The Hero Denied #0

MAGE, BOOK THREE: THE HERO DENIED, ISSUE ZERO
IMAGE COMICS – @ImageComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITER/ARTIST: Matt Wagner
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Dave Lanphear
12pp, Color, $1.99 U.S. (July 2017)

Rated “T/ Teen Plus”

“Third Interlude”

Mage is a fantasy comic book with superhero elements written and drawn by Matt Wagner (Grendel).  The series is comprised of three volumes, each running 15 issues.  The first was Mage: The Hero Discovered, which was published by defunct publisher, Comico the Comic Company, from 1984 to 1986.  The second was Mage: The Hero Defined, which was published from 1997 to 1999 by Image Comics.  The third and final volume is Mage: The Hero Denied, which is scheduled to begin publication from Image beginning this coming August.

The Hero Discovered introduced Kevin Matchstick, an alienated young man who meets a wizard called Mirth.  Kevin discovers that he has superhuman abilities and that a magic baseball bat wielded by a friend actually belongs to him.  That baseball is Excalibur, and Kevin represents King Arthur.

The Hero Defined takes place several years later and finds Kevin fighting supernatural menaces in the company of other heroes.  They are Kirby Hero (an avatar of Hercules) and Joe Phat (an avatar of the Native American figure, Coyote).  Kevin discovers that he has misunderstood his mission and that he represents more than one mythical hero.  Kevin is also Gilgamesh, and he initially does not realize that his new mage/mentor is an old tramp named Wally Ut that Kevin often chooses to dismiss as a crazy old annoyance.  Kevin also meets his future wife.

In the ongoing Grendel comic book from the 1980s (Grendel #16-19, Comico), Mage ran as a back-up feature that comprised two “Interludes,” stories that took place after The Hero Discovered.  With the impending publication of the final Mage volume, Image Comics has released Mage, Book Three: The Hero Denied, Issue Zero, which contains the “Third Interlude.”

This 12-page comic book finds Kevin Matchstick a.k.a. “The Pendragon” on a monster hunt.  He meets “The Steeze,” a new kind of hero who declares that he is part of new breed that has moved beyond the “old-timey” need for an avatar.  The Steeze is a hot young thing, but in being dismissive of The Pendragon, he may be missing the big picture about an adversary.

You never know what you are going to get when you get a sequel or follow-up to a classic work a long time after the original was published.  Mage: The Hero Defined began over a decade after The Hero Discovered ended.  Mage: The Hero Discovered was one of the first comic books published by a small or independent publisher and released on the Direct Market that I ever read.  It immediately loved it and re-read it several times in a variety of reprint formats.  It remains one of my all-time favorite comic book series.  [I must admit that I have not read The Hero Discovered since the late 1990s.]

The Hero Discovered was so fresh and new, and you could see Matt Wagner grow and mature both as a writer, storyteller, and comic book artist over the course of the series.  It was new and imaginative and also lighthearted, even when characters were killed.  The Hero Defined was edgier, and it lacked the sweetness and sparkle of the first volume.  I read the entirety of The Hero Defined once and a few chapters a second time.  I liked it, but never warmed to it the way I did the original.

Eighteen years is a long time to wait for the last volume, as far as I'm concerned.  Yet I find that Mage, Book Three: The Hero Denied, Issue Zero feels as if not much time has passed between The Hero Defined and this “interlude.”  The art crackles with the first stirrings of sparkle and potential, and the story shakes off the dirt and begins to summon the magic.  Can't wait!

A
9 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2017 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: CAVE CARSON HAS A CYBERNETIC EYE #1

CAVE CARSON HAS A CYBERNETIC EYE No. 1
DC COMICS/Young Animal – @DCComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

STORY: Gerard Way and Jon Rivera
ART: Michael Avon Oeming
COLORS: Nick Filardi
LETTERS: Clem Robins
COVER: Michael Avon Oeming with Nick Filardi
VARIANT COVERS: Matthew Wagner with Brennan Wagner; Bill Sienkiewicz
40pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (December 2016)

Mature Readers

Cave Carson created by France Herron and Bruno Premiani.

Part One: “Going Underground”

Calvin “Cave” Carson is a DC Comics science fiction character.  He first appeared in Brave and the Bold #31 (cover dated: September 1960) and was created by France Herron and Bruno Premiani.  A spelunker (someone who explores wild caves), Cave Carson and his team of fellow adventurers engaged in various adventures beneath the Earth.

Cave Carson is the latest decades-old DC Comics property to get a re-imagining makeover as part of the “Young Animal” imprint.  Cave Carson Has a Cybernetic Eye is written by Gerard Way and Jon Rivera; drawn by Michael Avon Oeming; colored by Nick Filardi; and lettered by Clem Robins.

Cave Carson Has a Cybernetic Eye #1 (“Going Underground”) opens with the funeral of Cave Carson's wife and partner, Eileen.  His relationship with his now-adult daughter, Chloe, is a little rocky, but his organization seems to be humming along.  However, Carson's cybernetic eye is acting up, and he is seeing strange things, some of which might be real.

This will be a short review.  I don't know if I will read Cave Carson Has a Cybernetic Eye past this debut issue.  It is not bad; I just don't find anything in particular that really grabs me.  I like Michael Avon Oeming's art, and my interest is piqued by the appearance of D-list DC Comics character that first appeared in the late 1980s.

I am, for the time being, wedded to Young Animal's Doom Patrol because I am a DP fan.  I am curious about Shade the Changing Girl because of its writer.  However, I might read the second issue of this third Young Animal title if I don't have to go out of my way to do so.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: THE SHADOW: The Death of Margo Lane #1

THE SHADOW: THE DEATH OF MARGO LANE, VOL. 1, No. 1
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITER/ARTIST: Matt Wagner
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: A Larger World Studios
COVER:  Matt Wagner with Brennan Wagner
COVER B: Matt Wagner (B&W Incentive Cover)
COVER C: Matt Wagner with Brennan Wagner (Rare “Virgin Art” Cover)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (2016)

Rated “Teen+”

The Shadow is a fictional character that began life as a mysterious radio narrator, debuting on July 31, 1930 as the host of the radio program, “Detective Story Hour.”  Street and Smith Publications, publishers of Detective Story Magazine, hired writer Walter B. Gibson to create a character concept that fit The Shadow's name and voice and to also write a story featuring him.  The first issue of The Shadow Magazine went on sale on April 1, 1931.

The Shadow's alter-ego, Lamont Cranston, had a female companion, Margo Lane, who was also a spy for The Shadow.  Lane first debuted on radio in 1937 and first appeared in print in The Shadow Magazine in 1941.

Margo Lane is the focus of a new five issue comic book miniseries, The Shadow: The Death of Margo Lane.  The series is written and drawn by Matt Wagner, who is no stranger to chronicling The Shadow's adventures in comic books.  This miniseries is colored by Brennan Wagner and lettered by A Larger World Studios.

The Shadow: The Death of Margo Lane, Volume 1, #1 opens in the 1930s or 1940s, as Margo Lane jots down recent events in her diary.  It seems there has been a resurgence in the violent, criminal activities of the Tongs of Chinatown.  The Shadow believes that the mastermind behind this nefarious surge is a mysterious figure, the Red Empress, who so far really on exists in rumor.  When a shipping heiress, Gloria Sullivan, disappears, The Shadow believes that the abduction is a trap meant to ensnare him.  He is happy to oblige, but may be underestimating his adversaries.

Over the last three years, I have read somewhere between 200 to 300 pages of Shadow comic books written by Matt Wagner, and I have enjoyed most of it.  Honestly, I cannot tell you exactly why, but it may be because I am a longtime fan of Matt Wagner's work.  It seems to be that all it takes is Wagner's name on a character I love (and I do love me some Shadow), and I am pleased.

Now, I have heard a few episodes of the original Shadow radio show and I have read a few of Walter Gibson's stories published as novels.  Wagner's story and art and graphical storytelling recapture the mood and sense of mystery I remember feeling when I first heard the Shadow coming through the speaker of a tape player and when I read my first Shadow novel.

Right now, Matt Wagner is the top guy when it comes to creating Shadow comic books.  Wagner knows the potential that lurks in the heart of The Shadow.  I can't wait for the next issue of The Shadow: The Death of Margo Lane.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: Will Eisner's THE SPIRIT #1

WILL EISNER'S THE SPIRIT VOL. 1 #1
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITER: Matt Wagner
ART: Dan Schkade
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: A Larger World Studios
COVER: Eric Powell
VARIANT COVERS: Matt Wagner with Brennan Wagner; Alex Ross; John Cassaday; Francesco Francavilla; Dan Schkade; Matt Wagner; Dennis Calero; Jenny Frison; Stephen Mooney
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (July 2015)

Rated T+

The Spirit (a.k.a. Denny Colt) is the masked crime-fighting hero created by legendary cartoonist, the late Will Eisner.  The Spirit first appeared on June 2, 1940 as the main feature of what would come to be known as “The Spirit Section.”  This was a 16-page, tabloid-sized, newsprint comic book insert first distributed in the Sunday edition of Register and Tribune Syndicate newspapers.  “The Spirit Section” ended in 1952.  With only a few exceptions, Eisner did not produce new stories featuring The Spirit as a regular feature after 1952.

In the last two decades, Kitchen Sink, DC Comics, and IDW published comic book series featuring new Spirit stories created by other writers and artists.  Sometime in the last year, Dynamite Entertainment obtained the rights to produce new Spirit comic books.  July 2015 saw the debut of Will Eisner's The Spirit, written by Matt Wagner, drawn by Dan Schkade, colored by Brennan Wagner, and lettered by A Large World Studios, with covers by Eric Powell.

Will Eisner's The Spirit #1 opens some time in the 1940s, two years after the last sighting of The Spirit.  Central City Police Commissioner Eustace Dolan wonders about the fate of his loyal, crime-fighting friend, but he must focus on the city's politics, which are not necessarily playing in his favor.  Commissioner Dolan's daughter, Ellen Dolan, is busy with her role as a city councilman, and though she was romantically involved with The Spirit, she has moved on with her life.  She even has a new boyfriend, attorney Archibald “Archie” Shale.

The Spirit's former sidekick, Ebony White, is now part of “Strunk and White: Private Investigators.”  Ebony has grown bored of chasing people, and has decided that it is time to chase The Spirit.

There have been some good recent Spirit stories produced by creators other than Will Eisner; Alan Moore and Darwyn Cooke come to mind.  Even back in The Spirit's original run, the comic was produced by people other than Eisner.  I imagine that readers who are not familiar with Will Eisner won't know the difference between his Spirit and that of other creators, so I will partly review Will Eisner's The Spirit #1 in that context.

It is a decent comic book.  It has potential, but I wouldn't pay a cover price of $3.99 for it on a regular basis.  Series artist Dan Schkade draws so that his compositions try to capture the graphic style of a comic book from the 1940s.  However, his drawing, in terms of comic book art and storytelling, is raw, and the quality of his work says semi-pro webcomic.

Now, as a longtime fan of The Spirit, who has liked both Eisner and non-Eisner Spirit comics, I have to say that Will Eisner's The Spirit #1 simply does not live up to the best of either Eisner or non-Eisner Spirit.  The reality is that anyone who takes on The Spirit works in the shadow of Eisner, one of the greatest and most influential comic book artists and creators of all time.

So truthfully, Dynamite Entertainment needs to do better than Dan Schkade as the series artist.  Flashy cover artists cannot hide that this book does not even come close to living up to its pedigree.  [I must admit to loving Alex Ross' gorgeous “Subscription Cover” variant cover.]  I want this to be better, and I think writer Matt Wagner and artist Dan Schkade can do better.  They must.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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I Reads You Review: DJANGO/ZORRO #1

DJANGO/ZORRO #1
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT/Vertigo (DC Comics) – @dynamitecomics

WRITERS: Quentin Tarantino and Matt Wagner
ART: Esteve Polls
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Simon Bowland
EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Reginald Hudlin
COVER: Jae Lee with June Chung
VARIANT COVERS: Francesco Francavilla (Cover B); Matt Wagner with Brennan Wagner (Cover C)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

Rated T+

Dynamite Entertainment, in association with DC Comics' Vertigo imprint, present an exciting new comic book miniseries based on licensed properties,  Django/Zorro.  Django Freeman, the hero of Quentin Tarantino's Oscar-winning film, Django Unchained, joins forces with Don Diego de la Vega, better known as Zorro, the legendary fictional character created in 1919 by New York–based pulp writer Johnston McCulley.

For almost a century, Zorro (the Spanish word for “fox”) has appeared in countless movies, television series, comic books, and stories.   Django/Zorro is the first new story starring Django Freeman since his film debut almost two years ago.  [Vertigo did publish a comic book adaptation of Django Unchained as a miniseries, beginning in 2013, so this isn't Django's first comic book appearance.]   Django/Zorro is written by Quentin Tarantino and Matt Wagner, drawn by Esteve Polls, colored by Brennan Wagner, and lettered by Simon Bowland.

Django/Zorro #1 opens several years after the events depicted in Django Unchained.  According to the back story to this series (provided by Dynamite), Django is still a bounty hunter.  He has settled his wife, Broomhilda, near Chicago, and is working in the western states to avoid the bounty on his head back east.  As the story begins, Django encounters the aged and sophisticated Don Diego de la Vega and his man-servant, Bernardo.  Django, of course, does not know that Don Diego is also Zorro.

After Django shows his shooting skills with a pistol, Don Diego hires him as a bodyguard.  Django is fascinated by this unusual older man, who reminds him of a deceased old friend (King Schultz).  Don Diego is also the first White man who seems unconcerned with Django's skin color.  Now, Django will follow his new boss on an adventure in which he will discover that slavery in these United States isn't just for Black folks.

First, I have to say that Esteve Polls is one of those comic book artists perfect for drawing comic book Westerns.  The Spanish artist's style and storytelling recall the late, great artist of Western comic books, John Severin.  In this first issue, Matt Wagner's script merely teases what his and Tarantino's story will offer in later issues, but still, it is a very good tease.  As first issues go, this is the kind that entices you to keep reading.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

I Reads You Review: GRENDEL VS. THE SHADOW #1

GRENDEL VS. THE SHADOW #1 (OF 3)
DARK HORSE COMICS with DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @DarkHorseComics and @dynamitecomics

WRITER/ARTIST: Matt Wagner
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Michael Heisler
COVER:  Matt Wagner with Brennan Wagner
VARIANT COVER: Matt Wagner
48pp, Color, $5.99 U.S. (September 2014)

Acclaimed comic book writer, artist, and creator Matt Wagner has been producing work that is unique and inventive for just over three decades.  His signature creation is Grendel, which Wagner debuted back in 1982 in the black and white comic book, Primer #2, published by COMICO The Comic Company (or simply Comico).  The most popular iteration of the character is the novelist, assassin, and crime lord, Hunter Rose, the original Grendel.

Recently, Wagner has been writing The Shadow: Year One (Dynamite Entertainment), a miniseries that depicts the beginnings of The Shadow and his war on crime in New York City.  Now, Wagner brings Grendel-Hunter Rose and The Shadow together in Grendel vs. The Shadow, a three-issue miniseries from Dark Horse Comics.

Early in Grendel vs. The Shadow #1, Hunter Rose obtains a mystic artifact, an urn of Chinese origins.  Inside, he finds a scroll, upon which is written the “Eternity Codex.”  Reading the codex somehow causes Rose to be transported to 1930s New York City, and he almost immediately decides that this is a new world to conquer.

Meanwhile, in a crime war brews with news of the impending demise of Don Carlo Luppino.  The “Five Families,” which rule NYC crime are trying to decide who will take over Luppino's operations, and crime boss Lorenzo Valenti sees this as an opportunity to become more powerful.  Meanwhile, The Shadow is trying his best to stop a crime war from happening after Luppino dies.  Into this power keg steps Grendel, a grim reaper slashing his way through mob foot soldiers and lieutenants.  He is sending a message, and The Shadows knows he must stop this mysterious new killer before his actions start a gang war more vicious than any imagined.

I have been a fan of The Shadow for longer than I can remember, probably as long as I've been in love with the Hunter Rose Grendel (and I loved me some Hunter Rose).  Matt Wagner does not disappoint.  I really like this comic book.  Strangely, it seems more like a Shadow comic book than a Grendel comic book or even a Shadow-Grendel comic book.  It is as if Grendel is a guest star in The Shadow's world of pulp-noir violence.

I had planned on reading the first issue and likely not reading the other two issues.  Now, the Shadow knows I plan on reading this entire three-issue, prestige-format series.  Besides my love of the title characters,  Grendel vs. The Shadow is simply a fun comic book to read.  As a kid, I probably would have “creamed my pants” to see this on the table of the little comic book store where I once shopped.

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Review: THE SHADOW: Year One #4

THE SHADOW: YEAR ONE #4
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

WRITER: Matt Wagner
ARTIST: Wilfredo Torres
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Simon Bowland
COVER: Matt Wagner (A), Alex Ross (B), Chris Samnee (C), Howard Chaykin (D)
The Shadow created by Walter B. Gibson
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

Rated T+

After some years, I’m finally reading a comic book starring seminal old-time radio and pulp magazine vigilante and crime fighter, The Shadow, and I’ve had some mixed feelings about it.  Now, I truly satisfied… at least, for now.

Dynamite Entertainment has brought The Shadow back to comic books.  Dynamite’s latest release featuring the dark avenger who knows what fear lurks in hearts of men is The Shadow: Year One.

Depicting the beginnings of The Shadow’s campaign against crime, The Shadow: Year One is written by Matt Wagner and drawn by Wilfredo Torres.  The adventure begins in Cambodia, 1929 and moves to New York City on October 30, 1929.  That’s when wealthy, world traveler and adventurer, Lamont Cranston, becomes The Shadow and begins a war on evil in America.

As The Shadow: Year One #4 opens, Guiseppe “Joe” Massaretti, top crime boss in New York City, forms some kind of union with the mysterious Dr. Zorn.  Meanwhile, a young newspaper reporter finds that the closer he gets to Lamont Cranston, the farther away the hard-to-find millionaire seems to be.

After being saved from Carlo Luppino by The Shadow, insurance salesman, Claude Fellowes, learns the price he owes the dark avenger.  At the same time, Lupino is the one who needs saving, as he goes on the run.  Plus, in case she misunderstood, The Shadow informs Margo Lane what her relationship with Lamont Cranston will be.

I saw The Shadow: Year One #3 as an improvement over the first two issues of the miniseries because it emphasized confrontation and violence, rather than only talk and character development.  I understand that, early on, writer Matt Wagner was trying to establish the plot, setting, and characters for the series.  However, the series just did not seem like a story that deserved to run under the banner of The Shadow.  It seemed as if the story were waiting for something to really happen.

Now, with this fourth issue, The Shadow: Year One offers the kind of explosive episode that deserves to be called The Shadow.  The gamesmanship, the intrigue, the mystery and suspense; it’s on now, baby!  Oh, I mean… this is most excellent writing indeed.

I have had mixed feelings, to put it mildly, about the art by Wilfredo Torres, but he’s hitting his stride at the midway point in the series.  Now, Torres’ art has a graphic sensibility that recalls Golden Age comic book art.  It’s a visual aesthetic similar to Paul Smith’s art for The Golden Age, a 1990s DC Comics miniseries.  Smith adapted his style in way that would recall Golden Age comic book art.  Torres, in a similar fashion, is doing that with his art for this series, with increasingly good results.

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

Review: THE SHADOW: Year One #3

THE SHADOW: YEAR ONE #3
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

WRITER: Matt Wagner
ARTIST: Wilfredo Torres
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Simon Bowland
COVERS: Matt Wagner (A), Alex Ross (B), Chris Samnee (C), Howard Chaykin (D)
The Shadow created by Walter B. Gibson
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

Rated T+

Dynamite Entertainment returned The Shadow to comic books. The Shadow: Year One is Dynamite’s latest comic book series featuring the dark avenger who knows what fear lurks in the hearts of men.

This new miniseries imagines the beginnings of The Shadow’s campaign against crime and is written by Matt Wagner and drawn by Wilfredo Torres. The adventure begins in Cambodia, 1929 and moves to New York City on October 30, 1929. That’s when wealthy, world traveler and adventurer, Lamont Cranston, becomes The Shadow and begins a war on evil in America.

As The Shadow: Year One #3 opens, an insurance broker named Fellowes is summoned before crime boss, Carlo Luppino, AKA “the Dandy Don.” Luppino wants a new agent for his criminal enterprise, but The Shadow is also seeking agents. Meanwhile, after inviting herself into his home, Margo Lane confronts Lamont Cranston.

Because it emphasizes confrontation and violence (of course), The Shadow: Year One #3 is the best issue of the series since the first issue. In fact, this third issue is a big improvement over issue #2, which writer Matt Wagner used to establish what are likely to be the dominate plot lines of this miniseries. That was a dialogue-heavy issue, with an emphasis on establishing the personalities, conflicts, motivations, etc. of the cast – besides The Shadow. There is not a thing wrong with that; it simply came across as flat in its execution.

Issue #3, however, is about bad guys, the kind of fictional violent, remorseless killers that deserve to have the sword of justice brought down on them. Thank goodness that Matt Wagner finally, really unleashes The Shadow’s pistols. Honestly, I didn’t know that I was that crazy about cap-popping in comic books; after all, I haven’t read The Punisher in years. Wagner also has some fun with the Lamont Cranston/Margo Lane dynamic; it’s good to see them go at each other.

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

Review: THE SHADOW: Year One #2

THE SHADOW: YEAR ONE #2
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

WRITER: Matt Wagner
ARTIST: Wilfredo Torres
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Simon Bowland
COVERS: Matt Wagner (A), Alex Ross (B), Chris Samnee (C), Howard Chaykin (D)
The Shadow created by Walter B. Gibson
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

The Shadow began as the mysterious narrator of the radio series, Detective Story Hour. Then, pulp writer Walter B. Gibson, under the pen name Maxwell Grant, fully developed the character into the one we know, the mysterious crime-fighting vigilante with psychic powers. The Shadow became a pop culture icon. The character is no stranger to comics, having debuted in a daily newspaper comic strip in 1940 and also starring in a comic book series that ran during the 1940s, entitled Shadow Comics.

In 2012, The Shadow returned to comic books via Dynamite Entertainment. Dynamite’s latest release featuring the dark avenger who knows about fear lurking in hearts is The Shadow: Year One, a new miniseries from writer Matt Wagner and artist Wilfredo Torres. The adventure begins in Cambodia, 1929 and moves to New York City on October 30, 1929. That’s when wealthy, world traveler and adventurer, Lamont Cranston, becomes The Shadow and begins a war on crime in America.

As The Shadow: Year One #2 opens, The Shadow rescues Margo Lane, a mobster’s sex toy (a.k.a. “piece of ass”) from that mobster’s goons, Vinnie and Sal. You see, Ms. Lane is or was Guiseppe “Joe” Massaretti’s lover, but he didn’t need her services anymore and wanted to get rid of her permanently. Surprisingly, Ms. Lane recognizes her rescuer. Meanwhile, a young reporter continues to track Cranston, as a mob war begins.

Writer Matt Wagner uses The Shadow: Year One #2 to establish what are likely to be the dominate plot lines of this miniseries. This is a dialogue-heavy issue, so the emphasis is on establishing the personalities, conflicts, motivations, etc. of the cast – besides The Shadow. Surprisingly, Wagner’s exposition (which appears in the caption boxes) is stiff and kinda dull. This is surprising because Wagner, a veteran writer/artist and comic book scribe, is usually in top form. So far, The Shadow: Year One has not been anywhere near his best work.

This issue, the art by Wilfredo Torres looks like a broken-down version of David Mazzuchelli’s art for Batman: Year One. The compositions are arthritic, and the figure drawing is awkward. Both Wagner and Torres are capable of better, and I’m sure or I hope they will deliver better in future issues.

B-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

Review: THE SHADOW Year One #1

THE SHADOW: YEAR ONE #1
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

WRITER: Matt Wagner
ARTIST: Wilfredo Torres
COLORS: Brennan Wagner
LETTERS: Simon Bowland
COVER: Matt Wagner (A), Alex Ross (B), Chris Samnee (C), Howard Chaykin (D)
The Shadow created by Walter B. Gibson
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

“Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows.”

He has influenced such characters as Batman, Green Arrow, the Green Hornet, and Alan Moore’s V from V for Vendetta, but The Shadow began as a sinister voice on the radio, the mysterious narrator of a radio series.

Then, pulp writer Walter B. Gibson fully developed the character into the one we know. The Shadow became the mysterious crime-fighting vigilante with psychic powers that appeared in novel-length stories published in pulp magazines. The Shadow became a pop culture icon. The character is no stranger to comics, having debuted in a daily newspaper comic strip in 1940 and having also starred in a comic book series entitled Shadow Comics that ran during the 1940s.

In 2012, Dynamite Entertainment returned The Shadow to comic books with a new regular series. Dynamite’s latest release is The Shadow: Year One, a new miniseries from writer Matt Wagner and artist Wilfredo Torres.

The Shadow: Year One #1 opens in Cambodia, 1929. Chanda, a young gang member, runs to his cousin for aid. It seems his boss, the fearsome warlord, Kai-Pang, has been killed by “a dark spirit… thirsting for vengeance.” Now, that spirit wants Chanda.

Later, on October 30, 1929, the wealthy, world traveler and adventurer, Lamont Cranston, arrives by ship in New York City. A young reporter’s interest is piqued by Cranston’s return to America. Meanwhile, Margo Lane, a kept woman, is having a disagreement with her keeper, New York-based criminal and hood, Guiseppe “Joe” Massaretti. Margo and Joe’s relationship is about to bring The Shadow out of the shadows.

For a time, I was a huge fan of The Shadow. I read Howard Chaykin’s four-issue miniseries, The Shadow (DC Comics), several times. Chaykin, who provides one of four covers for the first issue of The Shadow: Year One, created a very popular re-imagining (before that word was used) of The Shadow. Eventually collected as The Shadow: Blood and Judgment, Chaykin’s miniseries was also controversial.

Whereas Chaykin’s The Shadow was flashy, crazy, sexy, cool and maybe just a tad bit aggressive and in-your-face, The Shadow, as drawn by Wilfredo Torres, is quiet and smooth. Torres’ art is straight from the David Mazzuchelli school of comics-as-Film-Noir, but this is a low-budget Film-Noir, with straight-ahead camera work. It’s no frills, just meat-and-potatoes, as if the camera just stands still and shoots what is in front of it.

Matt Wagner’s script offers intriguing tidbits throughout, but he writes a first issue that is frustratingly and mostly set-up. This is barely a prologue. The way this story is presented seems to suggest that the actual story hasn’t really started. Will this series turn out to be good? I’ll put my money on Wagner to deliver quality, if not excellent, work. But for now, this first issue is so much cock-tease.

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux