I thought it would be neat to compare the new Shadowman #1 to the old Shadowman #1, what I noticed as being the same and what is different. The original Shadowman of course is one of my favorite Valiant characters. To me it always seamed as if Shadowman was this universes counterpart to DC’s Batman, a “regular” man who likes to fight crime at night. The new Shadowman keeps much of what made Jack great but does change it up a bit.
Shadowman, Original vs. New
To start, what’s the same?
- Both versions seam to operate better at night, as we see that Jacks dad is able to be killed when the sun rises.
- Both Jacks have a talent. One is a Jazz musician. The other a capable handy man working at a museum.
- The logo (man figure standing in a doorway) is the same of course.
- Both were given powers without being asked. Jack #1 was seduced and bitten by a spider alien. Jack #2 born into this legacy.
- Both are good looking, “Lady’s” men.
- Blood and gore are very prominent.
- In both books there are panels with bodies hanging from the rafters of a room where people were mutilated.
- Both have a villains that consume humans.
Both issues have a gruesome scene of discovery, and a villain that consumes people (click to enlarge)
- And finally we’re introduced to the name “Shadowman”, in both books at the very end.
In both, the name Shadowman is introduced in the last page (click to enlarge)
And what are some of the differences?
- There are more characters introduced in the new one. I count 7-8 characters to only 2-3 in the first one.
- Jack’s parents are shown, and even given a little background. (very little).
- I believe a lineage of Shadowmen are shown. (son of Julien, son of Micheal, son of Josiah..).
- One Jack does one thing very well (play jazz), the other has had a “hundred” jobs over the last few years.
- Short hair versus long.
Classic Jack has long hair and is a talented Jazz musician, while the new Jack has short hair and a variety of skills (click to enlarge)
- And costume clothes. One’s seam to just appear out of thin air while the other puts his on one leg at a time like anyone.
I’m sure there are many more similarities and differences between the two series, but these are the ones I’ve found. And I look forward to seeing what else Valiant keeps the same or changes. This is one of the best characters Valiant has and I can’t wait till #2!
– Rufus
November 21, 2012, 9:27 am
Michael Sacal comments:
Seemed, not seamed
November 21, 2012, 9:27 am
Michael Sacal comments:
The seam/seem typo happens often, and many plurals should be posestives, like “Jacks dad”.
November 21, 2012, 9:28 am
Michael Sacal comments:
argh, posessives.
November 21, 2012, 9:29 am
Xtianhardy comments:
“To me it always seamed as if Shadowman was this universes counterpart to DC’s Batman, a “regular” man who likes to fight crime at night.”
Interesting, I’d never really thought of Shadowman that way. I guess I considered him more like Moon Knight, except not “completely” crazy. But seeing as Moon Knight was originally Marvel’s bat-clone, makes sense. In terms of fighting style though, I’d compare Shadowman more to Daredevil: less of a gadget/technology-user, more of an acrobat/agile fighter.
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November 21, 2012, 9:35 am
Sean comments:
I didn’t even remember the bodies Jack finds in the classic, that is *very* similar to the new Shadowman. Great catch!
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November 21, 2012, 11:55 am
Rufus comments:
Thanks MOTA:) I’m always looking to improve.
June 8, 2018, 6:16 pm
Trike comments:
This was interesting, thanks for doing it. I missed the Valiant universe the first time around because by then I had graduated college and moved on to adult concerns (like getting a mortgage, blech). Now that I’m rediscovering it with the reboot, I’ve been looking for comparisons to the original.
I do find it amusing that you call Jack’s hair in the 1992 comic “long”. Back in the ‘80s and early ‘90s that was considered short hair. My late-20s self back then had really long hair (almost to my shoulders) and my then-girlfriend asked me if I were going to grow it out. Heh.