The penultimate act of this arc is here, but is it up the literary quality of the rest of the series?  Read on to find out.

The official description from Dynamite:

Revolutionary Part 3 (of 4) – The Shadow, along with faithful sidekick and pilot Miles Crofton and new partner in adventure George Orwell, pursues The Black Sparrow across the war-torn Spanish countryside. Cranston must decide how he’s going to confront the woman who is both former lover and current adversary, but there is a new player in the mix! Just who is the maniacal El Rey? The Shadow must thwart El Rey’s plot to rise from the debris of a war shattered nation and install himself as supreme ruler.

When you open a comic book like this there are certain predetermined expectations placed on the creative team.  At a relatively young run with only ten issues, an annual and a special at its back fans know exactly what they’re looking for from this continuing saga, and they can rest assured the creative team does not disappoint in this latest outing.

From start to finish the script by Victor Gischler is exactly the type of caliber this jaunt requires.  His bold characterizations of each unique individual are fully realized as he offers up wit through some expertly handled dialogue.  I’ll be blunt, there were several times that the words coming out of Lamont Cranston made me life with glee and when his alter ego took over the author dialed his work down a bit to let the actions of our pulp icon do the talking.

If the quality of the narrative isn’t strong enough to garner your attention, then the spectacular art by Aaron Campbell should.  Each proverbial pencil stroke has a necessary strength that easily realizes this world of vigilantes and maniacal mad men.  Whether he’s illustrating panels dedicated to action or one-on-one conversations, this talent is certainly up to the task.

The Shadow #10 is an exemplary addition as it brilliantly realized franchise, as it seamlessly builds toward its forthcoming conclusion while being backed up by an outstanding creative team.  Highly recommended.

4.5/5