Comics
Review: ‘The Shadow’ Annual #1
The Shadow returns, sans Garth Ennis and Aaron Campbell, in this “Annual” issue to face an ancient enemy of the higher power he serves. Independent of the current arc in pre-World War II China, this issue of “The Shadow” unfortunately fails to meet the standards of Ennis and Campbell’s current run. The artwork by Dennis Calero shows promise in certain areas, but leaves a lot to be desired in others. Tom Sniegoski’s dialogue is generic, and his script brings nothing new to the character. This is a subpar issue in an otherwise excellent series.
WRITTEN BY: Tom Sniegoski
ART BY: Dennis Calero
PUBLISHER: Dynamite Entertainment
PRICE: $4.99
RELEASE: Sept. 26th, 2012
One of the biggest problems with “The Shadow” Annual #1 is it focuses too much on the title character. That might sound like an odd criticism to make, but the fact is, The Shadow is not a very
interesting character. He shoots people, talks to the dead and disappears from place to place in a manner similar to “The Coon” on South Park. All of which are cool, but these qualities don’t make him terribly interesting. “The Shadow” works best when it focuses on Lamont Cranston, the darkly humorous, intelligent, analytical and determined human being.
It’s not a coincidence that the best – perhaps the only – character moment in the issue comes when Cranston intentionally causes a server to cut his finger for almost spilling one of his drinks. It’s interesting to see the effect of frustration on Lamont, who has been sensing an evil presence he can’t identify, and how it causes him to indulge his inner sadistic tendencies normally reserved for his murderous alter-ego. Sadly, it’s all Shadow, possessed demon-children and mob bosses with generic dialogue from there on out. Maybe Sniegoski could have made an epic clash between diametrically opposed forces of good and evil interesting over a series arc. However, condensed into a single issue, there’s no sense of gravitas, especially considering that the conflict is resolved by the end.
Calero’s art certainly has its moments. Landscapes, people, everything is usually detailed and atmospheric. The color team does an excellent job as well. The biggest problem, however, is Calero’s faces and eyes. His character’s facial features simply don’t seem to correspond to their emotions, and their eyes seem detached from their faces. It’s jarring and takes away from what impact the script possesses. The artwork in the final few pages – specifically the flames, which appear to have been created digitally – also fails to meet the standard of the previous art in this issue.
“The Shadow” Annual #1 doesn’t live up to the rest of the series from Dynamite. Fortunately, it is of no consequence to the current plot, and we can look forward to Ennis and Campbell finishing their run on the series in issue #6.
2/5 Skulls
Reviewed by – George Shunick
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
You must be logged in to post a comment.