Something that has bothered me for some time now...

How come The Shadow can make it down from Dr. Lane's office, injured, and into Shrevvie's cab in a relative blink of an eye and yet when he confronts Shiwan Khan in the Chinese restaurant he has to make his way down the stairs giving Khan more than enough time to get a lead on our hero and his faithful cabbie? Annoying

Credo

"Every man pays a price for redemption"
"I'm not lookin' for redemption"
"You have no choice, you will be redeemed"

Pretty much the credo of The Shadow. I love some of the lines in this film.

Green Eyes

Love this cover (even if the one I'm posting is pretty beat up). Iconic imagery for sure. This was one of the first stories I read back in the 70's (Pyramid reprints) and I really liked the Steranko cover as well but this one is, in my opinion, better. Would really like to see the original.
As always, if you want to read a review then turn your green eyes here.

Love this cover...

do you know which one it is?

Twins of Crime

A decent cover although not my favorite. I prefer The Shadow in the shadows and not caught in the glare of a fully lit room. Also, where is the ring! While the composition is nice and it is a fully rendered scene I still prefer the more iconic designs.
There is a review for this tale here, in case you are interested. Apparently this is one of those stories that just didn't measure up. I'll get to find out on my own, one day.

Another Clewsday is upon us

The new story I'm reading

Dead Men Live. I'm about a quarter of the way through this one and I'm really enjoying it. As I'm reading I think of the days when pulps and radio ruled the entertainment industry. I would have been more inclined to sit for several hours (as I've stated before, I'm a slow reader. My lips can only move so fast) and read through the novel and then eagerly await the next.

Voodoo Trail

Kind of a boring cover. I think that the rendering of the "damsel in distress" isn't distressed enough and our hero doesn't seem to be all that concerned as he stares off into the distance. However, mysterious hand that holds the deadly viper does add an air of mystique to the cover. It almost reminds me of a promotional still from a movie. At least the ring is prominent.
This is the third of the Dr. Mocquino tales. I have to admit I have only read the first two, "The Voodoo Master" & "City of Doom". I'm sure I'll get to this one soon since I changed my reading patterns to the order in which they were written. Anyone who is interested in a brief synopsis of this story can just click here.

Such a pale clew

Welcome back, Agent T. Here's a new clew to start the week off.

The Blackmail Ring

The cover to this tale is one of my favorites. Anyone who had stopped in and read anything that I have written will know that I love the "hand covers" that feature the ring. While the rendering is somewhat rough, the concept is wonderful and it pulls me in. As to the story itself...
While I love the early tales with the original stripped down cast and items used to help our hero such as Vincent's radio set, the coded radio programme message, Rutledge Mann, the use of an aeroplane piloted by the Dark Eagle (although in my mind I saw this as the autogyro even though it wasn't stated to be such), and of course the Sanctum, this story just seemed a bit convoluted for me. Perhaps I didn't read it in an expedient enough manner to keep all of the threads connected but I just didn't feel that it was a big enough story to have The Shadow involved. I also didn't think that the blackmail angle was really worked out very well. And he didn't make enough appearances for my taste. However, it is an early tale and there were touches that really made me happy. Ghoulish as it may sound, I loved how The Shadow left Denby to take his own life thereby avenging the death of his uncle. Macabre to say the least and what I would expect of The Shadow.
All in all just an okay story for me with some nice touches that kept me happy. I am now starting "Dead Men Live". I'll report my thoughts on that later.

Latest novel conquered

I just finished "The Blackmail Ring", an early tale from the annals of The Shadow. I'll give my opinion on the morrow since I am beat after a quick run to Deadwood to investigate the oddly addictive slot machine mentality. Luckily I'm not prone to the addiction since I have another malady that supersedes the aforementioned addiction; lack of disposable income.

The White Column

Most assuredly not my favorite cover. Where is the ring? His left hand is being burned as he tries to get out of the ropes and there is no indication of the ring. Big faux pas in my book. The light gray color of his cloak and the lack of mystery in his face makes our hero just a man. Not how I see The Master of Darkness.
This is a Tinsley tale so the cover reflects the graphic nature of Ted's portrayal of The Shadow. According to this review the story is a humdinger. Wish I could say the same about the cover.

The Shadow sees all...

and knows all.

The Crime Clinic

An early Shadow mystery that used the concept of The Shadow as a lurking figure as shown by this cover. I like the concept but as a fan I would have wanted to see my hero, not a parrot, on the cover. However, since I am no longer a child (at least in age) this cover does make me want to read the story to find out what it all means. Since the title it was submitted under was "The Jackdaw" I am even more curious why the brightly color bird was used rather than the dark hued fowl that is a jackdaw. Anyhow, well rendered if a bit odd, this is a cover that, at the very least, piques curiosity.

Agent T want a clew?

Here's a clew. Here's a clew.

Trail of Vengeance

Eh, not the greatest but also not the worst. An example of the 40's Shadow, not quite the daunting denizen of criminals the world over. The story was written nearly a year before publication and just after America got hit at Pearl Harbor. By now the pulps were tied into the radio programme, which is terrible for the magazine. Perhaps Rozen was told to play down the... ah, let's face it, there is no excuse for the poor execution and boring composition of this piece. Perhaps I just expect brilliance at all times which would have been quite difficult at two a month and seeing the stories get watered down.

Tuesday's Clew

Have fun.

Speaking of my reading list...

I have decided to read the stories as they were submitted, not published nor how they are being published by Mr. Tollin. I know I won't be able to do this exactly as Walter wrote them since I don't have all of them in front of me but I will read the oldest one that is sitting in my queue first and proceed from there. I kind of think there may be a bit more continuity in this than in reading "The Magigals" before "The Blackmail Ring". So much changed with the character and the times that to go from the silent avenger who showed no mercy to the one who got knocked around more than I would like and back again really is a bit jarring. Just a personal decision.

The Man From Shanghai

Very action packed cover. Don't care for the antagonist's rendering. Love the angle and perspective of Ying Ko, reminds me of a really great drawing by Joseph C. Coll of a firefighter swinging out into nothingness. Looking forward to reading this when it comes in on my reading list. Check out the review of the tale originally titled "Ku-Nuan's Jewels".

Clew for the Week End

Have a great weekend, Agent T.

The Killer

Interesting cover. I like it. I think the title submitted, "Appointment With Death", sounds a bit like a radio programme title so I think the editors made a good call there. Granted it was 1933 and the radio play wasn't on the air yet and over at "The Shadow in Review" John Olsen has the exact opposite opinion but that's just how I see it.

Got a new Clew for you

Give this a try, Agent T.

Finally

I know it's only a replica but it really makes me happy to finally have a ring that represents The Shadow. Based on the ring that Walter B. Gibson wore and his wife Litzka designed, it is a pretty cool prop.

Fingers of Death

Love this cover. Okay, throw out the horrible "rainbow" surrounding The Shadow and you have a seminal painting of our hero. The wonderful color palette, the great hands and the piercing eyes. The slouch hat is about as perfect as it ever had been and the idea that The Shadow was covering the entire world, albeit he is pointing to the East Coast of the United States. This is how I think of The Shadow. I even like the placement of the title. As far as a depiction of the Dark Eagle, I put this up their with "The Book of Death" and "The Black Hush". Oh, if you want a review of this tale, go here.

A bit too obscure?

Let's try this.

Your Monday Morning Clew

Atoms of Death

I love seeing the various looks of one Mr. Kent Allard. I wish that The Shadow's slouch hat were rendered more "slouchy" and that the middle image were a bit more Shadow-like. It could be an iconic image if it were more pulpish and less "Arrow Collar" advertisement. If you want to read a bit about the tale that Gibson originally titled "The Shadow's Quest" click here.