There are a couple of things I absolutely love about this story. First, there's the propulsive nature of the narrative. Episode trips on the heel of episode, sending you on a careening thrill-ride of adventure. Even in the first couple of chapters, if you think about what happens, it's crazy: two mobsters meet to make a criminal plot, which is foiled by zombis, who are interrupted by The Shadow, cue the fist and gunfight, thrilling escape, followed by a car chase, a murder attempt via poison gas at a doctor's office, followed by another car chase! And that's just the set-up.
I always enjoy The Shadow's notions of justice: searing lead from the twin .45s. The inherent conflict between law and justice is often at the heart of this particular pulp figure and he always errs on the side of criminal execution.
Notions of identity also play a heavy part here. The Shadow uses the identity of Lamont Cranston, but he's not really Lamont Cranston. Who is this figure of dark justice? I mean, who is he really?
One final thing I'll mention, since it's getting late, is the totally hyperbolic writing style. No one is just a criminal, he's the blackest-hearted demon-spawn ever to tread the earth's soil. Etc. Really fun stuff. Like prose on steroids.
Well, I've finished, and it was quite a rollicking ride. The Shadow is one mean hero. As you say, Matt, his idea of justice is pumping a bunch of bullets into the Bad Guys. There are no shades of gray in the shadow's world. The good guys are the ones helping The Shadow (however inexpertly); the Bad Guys are opposing them. The good guys must be saved; the bad guys must be destroyed. No need to worry about not injuring the bad guys so that they can stand trial for The Shadow. Death is surer justice ~ though as Mocquino evidently demonstrated, it is not 100% certain, either.
ReplyDeleteI did like the episodic style. Each new chapter could stand alone as a mini-adventure. Is this the same writer who wrote the Shadow radio features? It comes across that way. Let's take you on 10 minute thrill ... and stop. Then do it again. And again. And again. The chapter ends often offering a dramatic pause, or heroic statement of some kind, which reinforced my suspicion.
What really struck me about this, though, was the science. Yes, the science -- such as it was. Written some 70+ years ago, I am guessing, the author had a lot more latitude than we do today to inject a "scientific explanation" for his preferred plot. Why are the people zombi's? Because of the gas slowly being emitted through this particular cavern. It comes across as a perfectly rational explanation, and maybe it is literally correct, but I have my doubts. But it's a really cool world to be writing about, since, from the writer's standpoint, you could have a lot of neat tricks in your deus ex machina arsenal to call upon. The world is a rational one, but no one really knows all the rules yet, either. Thus The Shadow is not a magician, he is a man of advanced science; science beyond the kenning of mere mortals. And likewise his enemy is not simply a crazed power-hungry lunatic (though he is all of that); he is also a really clever and scientifically skilled mastermind. So skilled that only a superhuman scientist (how's that for an oxymoron?) could possibly be able to bring him low?!
As a storyteller, I'm really attracted to a world that is in transition towards science, but has only begun that transition. My own medieval stories have that going on in the back of my head. I was delighted to see a similar theme play out here more explicitly. The science is advanced, but still not remotely comparable to the standards and rigor of 2011 (or even 1981 for that matter). I think this setting creates a great opportunity for a writer.
A fine selection Matt, I quite enjoyed it!