Written by: Jody Houser & Rafer Roberts
Art by: Robert Gill & Michael Spicer
Publisher: Valiant Comics
The actual story of 4000 A.D. as an event isn’t something that I’ve kept up with considering how much of Rai’s world I’ve invested in before the even began. Though when they brought up that there would be a Shadowman tie-in, this became something worth getting into. No matter the story in the Valiant Universe right now, you do take whatever you can get with Shadowman in it knowing that aside from Operation: Deadside from Ninjak, Shadowman has been out of action for a good long while.
The first page of this issue is appreciated because the information provided served as the introduction to this corner of the world that didn’t take too much time from the main story for the sake of explanation. We get the gist of the situation, and from there jump into things.
From where the story takes off we see the way they take advantage of space given for more story development by starting us off with the root of the problem. That problem being that the city of Sanctuary’s aid to Gethsemane comes with the price of sacrifice. This plot of course being centered around that point in time where the humans now say no to this cost to power their magic. With that said, we also get to know our main characters off the bat as well. Not intimately considering a number of them are orphans, but you can see the appeal of them and what they may have to offer. Especially Kaia who seems daring for what she and the other two may not come back from as the sacrifices. Though of course these three being more than simply the next sacrifices which makes things interesting knowing anything can happen when dealing with what comes from the Deadside.
What I like here is that as their mission began, quickly this turned into more than it seems on the surface. For something that could have been a straightforward smash and grab, it developed into a struggle to understand both sides of this situation. Wanting to root for humanity, but not knowing if the demons from the Deadside are truly evil is conflicting. The best kind of inner conflict for our main character knowing that she carries a lot of individuality in the way she thinks and acts compared to others. Where things escalate is where you actually feel that this has grabbed you because the worst possible scenario for any side is a full-blown war. When the answer came as to who the true monsters were, you couldn’t have guessed how wrong you might be. It speaks to the writing ability of Jody Houser and Rafer Roberts when they make this so much more than about the fighting. In a world where hope seems all but lost, you want to toy with the idea that humanity can still exist. The essence of it rather than being human.
With how this issue ends, you definitely hope that this wasn’t just one issue when this could go somewhere with the cliffhanger we are left with.
You can say the only disappointment was in not knowing the fate of the Shadowman from present time.
Robert Gill and Michael Spicer do a standout job on 4001 A.D.: Shadowman #1 showing us the kind of world where a piece of the Deadside can exist on Earth. We’ve seen the kind of trouble the Shadowman brings with him, we’ve been to the Deadside a number of times, and now we see the kind of lives these demons can live on the human plane. Nothing too significantly different aside from the way they look and the structure of their machines, but that was where you find the most appeal from the way this art team visualized the story. Where we were supposed to see one side as good and the other evil, that was hard until it was actually their nature which outshined their appearance. Having a character like Kaia was a great help for the fact that she is confrontational, she is daring, and she comes in with the curiosity to understand both sides of the wall. You can see that through the way she interacts with people and having a genuine nature about it. Spicer as the colorist was a good fit because if you’ve read Shadowman books, the colors are pretty much the same. Not too strong, not too pale. Just the right kind of touch which looks natural.
4001 A.D.: Shadowman #1 is worth the read whether you are reading 4001 A.D. or not. You don’t even need to know who the Shadowman is to enjoy this, though still knowing him doesn’t hurt. It is self-contained and accessible to anyone. You would be surprised how small of an impact the event has on this story.
