"The Black Circle"

 Classic symbolic cover from George Rozen with The Shadow towering over the cityscape and literally crushing crime in his bare hands!  The crumbling building to the right of the viewer is intriguing and something I don't recall being a part of the covers before.  It feels a bit like an Avenger touch.

  This is the penultimate issue of The Shadow.  Did Gibson know his return would be so short lived?  I don't know.  Was bringing back the original creative team of Gibson and Rozen and a return to the good ol' days (large format and longer stories) really meant to save the magazine or was it meant as a respectful way to say good-bye to the character that created a cottage industry and made Street & Smith such a publishing powerhouse.  A farewell to a character that just didn't fit in with the shiny new world of the oncoming 1950s.  If that is the case, then Thank You.  I would like to think that S & S gave their flagship one last glorious cruise before consigning it to the scrapyards.