Shadowman/Rae Sremmurd

Shadowman/Rae Sremmurd #1

Eliot Rahal (Writer), Renato Guedes (Artist)
Valiant
October 4, 2017

Shadowman/Rae Sremmurd #1 is an artistically pleasing, quick adventure that combines devil-dealing and soul-stealing with modern musical artists.

Shadowman/Rae SremmurdInstead of “the Devil went down to Georgia because he was looking for a soul to steal,” we start our story off with the Devil going down to a crossroad in Mississippi to steal the soul of famed blues musician, Robert Johnson. It turns out Robert has been looking for him and knowingly makes a deal to play his guitar better than any soul on Earth. The Devil accepts and Robert’s fate is sealed.

The story then time skips down to Tupelo, MS about a century after the deal. Jim and Swae, our two brothers/musicians longing for that big break while stuck in dead-end jobs at a mattress factory, decide to cut out of work and hit up a bar to talk business with the bartender who says he can make their dream come true. Turns out our smooth-talking bartender is none other than the Devil himself (he must REALLY like Mississippi), who easily pressures the boys into a contract that’s heavily lopsided in his favor: five years of fame and fortune and then he gets their souls.

The boys sign and become the rap duo Rae Sremmurd, performing hit after hit while living the high life and loving it. Unfortunately, time flies, and Swae and Jim turn to their manager, Vinny, to get them out of the deal only to be soul-napped right in front of him when the Devil comes to collect. Luckily, Vinny knows somebody who knows somebody who can give them a hand. He turns to Doctor Mirage, a hero with a penchant for pursuing paranormal events, who then turns to our titular hero, the Shadowman, to retrieve the duo’s souls.

Shadowman takes Mirage on a journey through the Deadside and down the River Styx (yes, there are rock and roll jokes; I’d like to see you try not to make a few yourself) to rescue Rae Sremmurd from being forced to perform for all eternity by the Devil, who is actually an ancient Loa that collects the souls of musicians. The music draws in the dead who crave the life music brings, and their presence in turn gives the Loa power.

Shadowman/Rae Sremmurd #1 is a fast, yet fun read and a welcome side story to the Shadowman verse. Eliot Rahal had me invested to the point I actually wish there were more pages to read, and I think because of the limited page count, the story jumps around a little too fast at points, particularly during the battle in the Deadside arena. I would have liked to see more there, but what I got was pretty satisfying. I also really enjoyed the quick team-up between Shadowman and Doctor Mirage (I’m weak for crossovers) and that Mirage is a Rae Sremmurd fan.

The artwork by Renato Guedes is absolutely stunning. He captures faces very well, and his coloring is a work of art. I love his take on both Jack Boniface and Shan Fong and the choice to give the Loa the face of a predatory white businessman was actually smart considering the time and place where he did many of his dealings.

Overall, I really enjoyed this comic and would recommend it to any Rae Sremmurd and/or comic fan who likes this type of lore.

Shadowman #1, first of a new ongoing series, is coming in March 2018

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