It is rare, but not unheard of, for a character introduced in a comic book adaptation to make their way into the source material. It is rarer still for a change to the mythology in an adaptation to be made canon in the comics. And yet, The Flash: Bad Moon Rising Special #1 has done this in regard to one of DC‘s most powerful villains.
Written by Alex Paknadel with art by Daniel Bayliss, the special centers around the character of The Shade. Originally introduced as an enemy of The Flash, Shade was not given a backstory until the 1994 Starman series. There, he was reestablished as Victorian thief Richard Swift, who acquired shadow powers and immortality after a botched ritual.
Over the course of Starman, The Shade reformed somewhat and began dating police detective Hope O’Dare. The Flash: Bad Moon Rising Special #1 affirms this history is still canon. However, it also shows Hope to be suffering from some kind of prolonged undiagnosed illness.
With Hope’s death imminent, The Shade is inspired to seek out the power behind The Shadowlands hoping to save her. A mystic realm of darkness and negative emotions, The Shadowlands is the source of several DC characters’ powers, including The Shade’s. However, The Shade was not prepared for the twisted truth behind the power behind the Shadowlands.
DC’s Shadowlands is the realm of Eclipso
The Shade discovered that the Shadowlands were born of the cosmic villain Eclipso. A former angel of vengeance, Eclipso devoted himself to corrupting mortals to sin through manipulation. He was limited, however, in that he had to possess a host or required magical assistance to operate.
The idea that DC’s Shadowlands are connected to Eclipso is a brilliant retcon in several respects. Both have an association with negative emotions. Also, many shadow-themed heroes who draw power from the Shadowlands have had problems with temporarily turning evil. These incidents could be signs of Eclipso’s influence on those heroes in moments of weakness. However, while this is the first time Eclipso and the Shadowlands have been linked in a comic, it is not the first time they’ve been tied together.
Stargirl established Eclipso/Shadowlands link first
The main storyline of Stargirl Season 2 centered around the return of Eclipso. This season introduced the Shadowlands as “a void created by the darkness inside humanity.” The Shadowlands were also explicitly identified as where Eclipso was born in the Arrowverse. While this is somewhat different than the lore presented in The Flash: Bad Moon Rising Special #1, it still marks the first time Eclipso was linked to the Shadowlands in any medium.
The Flash: Bad Moon Rising Special #1 is now available at comic shops everywhere.
