The Shadow #25 Review

This volume does indeed get a finale, but does it do justice for the iconic pulp hero it represents? Read on to find out.

The official description from Dynamite:

FINAL ISSUE!!! The Zombie Queen of Chinatown and her undead horde have the city in a death’s grip, and the Shadow knows that he cannot defeat them alone. Only with the help of his entire network of aides and associates is there a chance that he can save the city.

This particular iteration of the storied title has seen the attention of quite a few noteworthy talents. And as this issue concludes I’m left with a bit of a torn perspective. On one hand it feels like a proper finish to a zany concept, but at the same time it just doesn’t feel like the right way to bring about the end of this rendition. Even so there are certainly plenty of reasons for dedicated fans to pick up this comic book and for critics to offers it some praise.

Chris Roberson pens the script and the author gives us exactly what the description states. He yields an epic scale that causes our hero to call in all of his agents for a city wide mission that holds the fate of New York in balance. Lamont Cranston has been through a lot, and as goofy as a zombie outbreak sounds the author finds a way to deliver a believable explanation. It all wraps up in a steady succession, that even has the audacity to deliver an iconic line right when we reach the final page.

The art handed in by Giovanni Timpano is simple and detailed from beginning to end. Thick lines litter the panels with enough personality to deliver a fitting visual component, while the steady illustrations of familiar characters and places carry the jaunt to a proper finish. Add in the work by colorist Fabrício Guerra and the bulk of the adventure looks just as good as it honestly needs to. In short: it’s a solid representation of the lore in the truest sense of the word.

The Shadow #25 is a good comic that ends an outlandish arc on the right note but just doesn’t pack enough of a punch to be the finale for this volume. Still between the works of the talented creative team there’s enough accomplished here for this book to earn a recommendation from me.