WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Shadowman #1 by Cullen Bunn, Jon Davis-Hunt, Jordie Bellaire, and Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
Valiant Comics has produced some truly phenomenal heroes throughout the years, though none have left quite the impact on pop culture that Shadowman has. From the comic book page to home consoles, the morbid adventures of Jack Boniface have shocked audiences to their core. Now a new threat is poised to tear through the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead, and it is unlike anything that the classic hero has ever seen.
When the series opens, Shadowman is already locked in combat with a gruesome demon, one which has already slaughtered several innocent bystanders in its search for some unknown woman. Jack is able to put the demon to rest, although it expires before he can get any useful information. While Shadowman mutters to himself that he doesn't even know where to begin his search, a dark figure emerges from the alley to point him in the right direction. Like so many times before, Baron Samedi has arrived to give Jack a nudge in the right direction, and this time points him toward an aristocratic cult whose machinations have worn thin the divide that Shadowman is sworn to protect.
Jack Boniface first appeared in 1992's X-O Manowar #4 by Steve Englehart, Bob Layton, and Mike Manley, though he wouldn't settle into his role as Shadowman until the first issue of his titular series that same year from Jim Shooter, Englehart, and David Lapham. Overcome by sudden nocturnal urges to hunt out evil, Jack discovers that he is host to a powerful Voodoo loa. With his new godlike abilities, Jack protects New Orleans from those who would do it harm, as well as protecting the world of the living from the denizens of the Deadside. During his time as Shadowman, Jack has faced off against serial killers, deranged occultists, and demented demonic forces, but the latest threat to humanity is something that even he has never prepared for.
The cult that he infiltrates is indeed working to pierce the veil between the living and the dead. Not only that, but they've been successful in the worst sort of way, damning themselves long before Jack can save them. To make matters worse, they were torturing demons in order to fuel their rituals, something that has turned our world into the stuff of nightmares for the literal denizens of Hell. With the mission accomplished, there is only the question of where to go next to find whatever else came through before Jack was able to close the portal.
For a character who has been rebooted and retooled throughout the years to fit different formats to make such a brilliant comeback is always a good thing, and there is little doubt that there is more fantastic action to come.
With any luck, things won't be so bad that Shadowman is forced into an early retirement. Then again, anyone who can fight alongside the likes of Solar and live to tell about it has pretty good odds against anything he has to face.