Spirit of the Shadows #1- Advanced Review
- Bobby Campbell
- 9 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Publisher: Oni Press
Written by Daniel Ziegler & Nick Cagnetti
Art by Nick Cagnetti
Click here to Buy
Release date: January 28, 2026
Price $4.99
Solicit: EMBRACE YOUR FEAR . . . THE SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS DRAWS NEAR! From the darkest recesses within acclaimed cartoonist Nick Cagnetti (Pink Lemonade, XINO) and co-creator Daniel Ziegler (Elodie) comes the most visually stunning, outrageously otherworldly, and hauntingly heartfelt superhero-horror hit of 2026!
Once, Erik Leroux was a mortal musician, selflessly devoted to his music and his true love, Katrina . . . until his sudden death plunged his soul into the carnival-like torments of the Spirit World beyond our own. Now, reborn as a phantom with fleeting memories of his life among the living, and forever cursed to bear the arcane costume his corpse wore to the grave, Erik will claw his way back from the infernal planes to uncover the mysteries of his own life . . . and avenge the dark sins that transformed him into the SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS!
REVIEW
I was immediately arrested by the implied wild premise of the main cover by co-writer and artist Nick Cagnetti, with expectations set sky high for an especially weird time, the comic still managed to over-deliver on that great promise!
Ostensibly, the story is about Erik Leroux, a recently deceased musician enduring a surreal underworld/afterlife journey, wherein he is tormented by fragmented memories of Katrina, his lost true love, and the mystery of who he really was in the land of the living.
Nick Cagnetti’s art is absolutely electrifying, and lures you into the “book of the dead” narrative with a seemingly bottomless bag of visual tricks and delights. Combining the extra-dimensional dynamism of Jack Kirby, filtered through Mike Allred’s ginchy gloss, with a dash of Michael Avon Oeming or maybe Bruce Timm’s less-is-more stark cartooning, and Ditko-esque metaphysics.
Nick Cagnetti’s art is absolutely electrifying, and lures you into the “book of the dead” narrative with a seemingly bottomless bag of visual tricks and delights. Combining the extra-dimensional dynamism of Jack Kirby, filtered through Mike Allred’s ginchy gloss, with a dash of Michael Avon Oeming or maybe Bruce Timm’s less-is-more stark cartooning, and Ditko-esque metaphysics.
Every panel is an explosion of novelty, with a psychedelic Dia de los Muertos aesthetic, and a unique charm all its own that distinguishes it from its highly visible influences.
But then also for the flashback sequences, affecting a kind of vintage EC comics visual style, creating a distinct level of reality from the bardo hullabaloo.
While I was distracted by the visual pyrotechnics, Daniel Ziegler and Cagnetti’s plot was methodically building towards a recontextualizing twist that reframes the whole story and reveals the full premise of the series, ending on a tantalizing cliffhanger that prompted an immediate re-read, and anxious anticipation for issue #2!
... Daniel Ziegler and Cagnetti’s plot was methodically building towards a recontextualizing twist that reframes the whole story and reveals the full premise of the series...
This is maybe an odd comparison, but it reminded me a bit of reading Thunderbolts #1 by Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley, way back in the day, which sold itself on the strength of its craft, because it was hiding the true nature of its secret storyline.
What more can I say? Buy the ticket, take the ride!
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