Grendel vs. the Shadow

[LobsterJohnson]

This was a great #1 issue! I've never read any Grendel, but I could still dive right into the story. Plus, 48 pages!

[Torpedo]

How many issues is this series supposed to go? I'm trying to decide whether to get each issue at $5.99 each or wait for a collected edition.

[FanboyStranger]

I think it's five issues, but I may be wrong on that. It is essentially a double-sized issue if that makes the $5.99 price tag more palatable.

Anyway, excellent start. Being a huge Grendel fan, seeing Hunter Rose getting sent into the past with full knowledge of the future was chilling. I love how he just rolled with it, too-- writing a new novel, joining the social scene, and taking over crime families in the bloodiest way possible. The Shadow has his hands full.

[FiveGhosts]

I think it's five issues, but I may be wrong on that. It is essentially a double-sized issue if that makes the $5.99 price tag more palatable.

Anyway, excellent start. Being a huge Grendel fan, seeing Hunter Rose getting sent into the past with full knowledge of the future was chilling. I love how he just rolled with it, too-- writing a new novel, joining the social scene, and taking over crime families in the bloodiest way possible. The Shadow has his hands full.

It's a 3-issue series.

[Drz]

This was incredibly well drawn, the coloring was even more amazing.

[dishpan]

hi guys, maybe you can help me. i read the whole grendel vs shadow series and really liked it, especially matt wagners style (writing and art). prior to this i am not familiar with his character grendel and found him very interesting. can you give me a hand and point me towards more good grendel stories like this one? i tried researching myself on amazon and it seems the entire series was recently re-released in omnibus format to good reviews. however when i read the details it sounds like putting the stories in this new order makes it tougher for new fans like me because it makes less sense, contains spoilers, and also puts a lot of non-wagner works up front -- as well as having shrunk down the physical size of the pages.

tldr = i am looking for recommendations of which collected editions to track down of the best grendel stories that matt wagner both wrote and drew, in their original size if possible, if there are more out there that are similar to this one with the shadow, for a new reader like me. thanks in advance

[FanboyStranger]

hi guys, maybe you can help me. i read the whole grendel vs shadow series and really liked it, especially matt wagners style (writing and art). prior to this i am not familiar with his character grendel and found him very interesting. can you give me a hand and point me towards more good grendel stories like this one? i tried researching myself on amazon and it seems the entire series was recently re-released in omnibus format to good reviews. however when i read the details it sounds like putting the stories in this new order makes it tougher for new fans like me because it makes less sense, contains spoilers, and also puts a lot of non-wagner works up front -- as well as having shrunk down the physical size of the pages.

tldr = i am looking for recommendations of which collected editions to track down of the best grendel stories that matt wagner both wrote and drew, in their original size if possible, if there are more out there that are similar to this one with the shadow, for a new reader like me. thanks in advance

The omnibii are the best value, and all of volume one is written by Matt with guest artists (all of whom are excellent) for the two "Black, White, and Red" series. The place to start is Devil by the Deed, which is included in the omnibus but there's also several other editions. Bear in mind that around 2000, Matt had all the Hunter Rose stories reworked with a black, white, and red pallette, so some of the earlier editions have a lot of color, but the later one's don't. (I own DbtD in both the first color DH edition and the recolored BW&R HC put out for the 20th Anniversary. Personally, the size reduction on the DH omnibii doesn't bother me, so I'd buy the Hunter Rose omnibus, read Devil by the Deed first, then work back through Behold the Devil and the Black, White, and Red stories. It's all excellent material. Also, do yourself a favor and pick up the first Batman vs. Grendel mini, which makes Grendel vs The Shadow look like amateur hour.

[dishpan]

really appreciate the info, i went ahead and ordered this one to see what i think

http://smile.amazon.com/Grendel-Devi...PQB4DASH4FDGMK

The omnibii are the best value, and all of volume one is written by Matt with guest artists (all of whom are excellent) for the two "Black, White, and Red" series. The place to start is Devil by the Deed, which is included in the omnibus but there's also several other editions. Bear in mind that around 2000, Matt had all the Hunter Rose stories reworked with a black, white, and red pallette, so some of the earlier editions have a lot of color, but the later one's don't. (I own DbtD in both the first color DH edition and the recolored BW&R HC put out for the 20th Anniversary. Personally, the size reduction on the DH omnibii doesn't bother me, so I'd buy the Hunter Rose omnibus, read Devil by the Deed first, then work back through Behold the Devil and the Black, White, and Red stories. It's all excellent material. Also, do yourself a favor and pick up the first Batman vs. Grendel mini, which makes Grendel vs The Shadow look like amateur hour.

[Mr MajestiK]

I found Grendel vs the Shadow to be most excellent.

[MajorHoy]

I wonder how a Grendel vs the Green Hornet might do if they were to try that?

[FanboyStranger]

I wonder how a Grendel vs the Green Hornet might do if they were to try that?

Matt said in an interview he gets offers for Hunter Rose crossovers all the time, but The Shadow was the first one that enticed him since Batman. But since he wrote Green Hornet: Year One, he might have some ideas.

What I really want to see off the strength of Django/Zorro 1 is Django/Lone Ranger written by Matt and Tarantino.

[matt levin]

the best part of GvS for me, is that I have Orson Welles' voice as Cranston and the Shadow very firmly lodged in my head, and Matt's dialogue captured that voice beautifully. For me, this is the best Wagner work since Mage (first series), and on the basis of Mage, I've tried nearly every title Wagner's produced. The Pander Bros. Grendel was the best rendition for me after Matt's early work.

[Ying Ko]

this was a fun little mini, miles better than Chaykin's current Shadow book.

[FanboyStranger]

this was a fun little mini, miles better than Chaykin's current Shadow book.

It's definitely better than Midnight in Moscow, but one of the things I've started to appreciate about MiM is that it's gotten better by the issue as things have gotten more into focus. All in all, I feel that MiM is a solid mini, but I'm not sure I felt that way after reading the first two issues.

[FanboyStranger]

the best part of GvS for me, is that I have Orson Welles' voice as Cranston and the Shadow very firmly lodged in my head, and Matt's dialogue captured that voice beautifully. For me, this is the best Wagner work since Mage (first series), and on the basis of Mage, I've tried nearly every title Wagner's produced. The Pander Bros. Grendel was the best rendition for me after Matt's early work.

I think Matt's pinnacle as writer/artist on Grendel was the "Devil Tales" stories that Wiggan narrated. He was really doing some wild stuff with storytelling and page design.

After Matt, it's Tim Sale for me. The 0 issue that precedes God and the Devil was a masterpiece, and Devil's Reign, while so unconventional its approach, is a remarkable display of Tim's gift for singular, haunting images. But there's never been a bad artist on Grendel.