"I'm delighted and grateful to Dynamite for the
opportunity to work once again on so legendary a character as The Shadow,"
says Chaykin. "My new miniseries,
The Shadow: Midnight in Moscow, tells the secret story behind the Shadow's disappearance
in 1949." While this new series
marks his return to Shadow storytelling, he hasn't strayed far from the
character in recent years, contributing gorgeous cover artwork for Dynamite's
variety of Shadow series.
"The Shadow: Blood & Judgment is one of my
favorite comic series of all time," says Nick Barrucci, CEO and Publisher
of Dynamite. "It absolutely blows
my mind, still to this day. I can't even
begin to express how much this means to me as the publisher of the series and
how much as a fan of Howard's series.
Howard Chaykin's return to the character is going to be phenomenal. And in a move that will certainly keep his
fans on their toes, he's setting Midnight in Moscow up not as a direct sequel
to his earlier work, but years and years beforehand, at an exciting and
critical moment in the Shadow's history.
I have such tremendous respect for Howard as a storyteller, a true
modern master of the comic book medium."
Howard Chaykin is a legend in the comics industry, with
an exceptionally respected body of work spanning four decades. He is perhaps best known for American Flagg!,
a series published by First Comics in 1982.
Chaykin wrote and illustrated the first twelve issues exclusively, and
was praised by critics and readers alike.
In 1985, Chaykin wrote and drew The Shadow for DC Comics, the acclaimed
run that would later be collected by Dynamite as The Shadow: Blood &
Judgment. He is the recipient of Inkpot
and Eisner Awards. His extensive library
of comics work includes such titles as Star Wars, Black Kiss, American Century,
Challengers of the Unknown, Blackhawk, Hawkgirl, Blade, Punisher War Journal,
and Satellite Sam. He was also executive
script consultant for The Flash television series on CBS, and later worked on
action-adventure programs such as Viper, Earth: Final Conflict, and Mutant X.
The Shadow began its existence in 1930 as a narrative
voice on the Street and Smith radio program Detective Story Hour. The audience thrilled to the serialized
adventures of this mysterious figure, whose mythos expanded to include
Occidental mysticism, hypnotic powers over weak criminal minds, and twin .45
caliber handguns. With a keen intellect
and relentless drive, The Shadow hunted criminals without mercy in an era when
gumshoe detectives and bootlegging mobsters was a thrilling yet fearsome reality. The character's popularity has endured for
over 80 years, bolstered by appearances in radio serials, novels, comic books,
films, and more. In recent years,
Dynamite published a groundbreaking and well-received Shadow series launched by
comic writer Garth Ennis (Preacher), with further tales crafted by Victor
Gischler and Chris Roberson. Lamont
Cranston's grim alter-ego has also appeared in such related series as The
Shadow: Year One, Masks, and The Shadow / Green Hornet: Dark Nights.
