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In Phantom 2040: A New Shadow Episode 8, we find out what happened to Carlos Oserio's friend Mel. For those who are caught up, Carlos and Mel were separated after the events of the 6th episode. The creative team of writers Alex Segura and Michael Moreci and artist George Kambadais have taken us on a short jump back in time to fill in the gaps, as well as introduce a new character into the mix. Read Phantom 2040: A New Shadow  Episode 8 here Whereas the past couple of episodes have been heavy with the drama and action, this episode peppers in some much-needed lightheartedness to the mix. We learn little tidbits about the world while Mel dashes away from Charles Tyrus' press conference, and it's just enough to keep this episode interesting and moving along at a nice pace. For those looking to find out what happened to Carlos, they'll have to wait at least another episode. Other than a brief glimpse in one panel, we don't know how his cliffhanger in episode 7 is going to pay off just yet! Phantom 2040: A New Shadow art by George Kambadais Question for the Phans: Do you like lighthearted interludes like this episode? Let us know by commenting below this article, on our YouTube, or by dropping us a line . We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Stop! Listen. What's that sound? Everybody look at what's going down in episode 13 of Phantom 2040: A New Shadow over at Comics Kingdom . After being reunited once again last episode, the mentor/mentee bond between Carlos Oserio (the new Phantom) and Kit Walker Jr. (the older Phantom) is severed! Strange things are afoot as tech magnate and Maximum Inc. patsy Charles Tyrus puts his plan into motion that causes a fracture in the Ghost Jungle. Read Phantom 2040: A New Shadow Episode 13 here . Writers Alex Segura and Michael Moreci are juggling a hefty number of story threads as we push deeper into the second act of this webcomic. In this episode, we touch base on Charles Tyrus and his shadowy benefactor ( no spoiler: we won't say who!), Carlos' friend and possible love interest Melinda, and Carlos' storyline all in one go! It's fast-paced, with no room for breathing as the plot gets amplified. What does it mean? What even is going on?! We haven't a clue. As we dive deeper into this series, with art from the likes of George Kambadais and John Amor , we hope to get some answers so we can truly wrap our heads around the cataclysm that is looming in the near future. Phantom 2040: A New Shadow episode 13 art by George Kambadais Question for the Phans: What do you think "dark magicks" refers to? Let us know by commenting below this article, on our YouTube, or by dropping us a line . We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Christian Moller reviews the latest issue from Zauberstern #9 which features the following stories: " All Zauberstern and other German comic reviews will be included in our monthly X-Band: The Phantom Podcasts If you would like to join the team and review new comics being released around the world, please contact

Make sure you stay with us and do not forget to subscribe and leave a review on our podcast and or our

For those who have been reading Phantom 2040: A New Shadow , the most recent episode brings us up to speed with the events that kicked off Phantom 2040: A New Shadow episode 1 . In this episode, titled "Stolen Legacy," tech magnate Charles Tyrus treats media and audience attendees with a deep dive into who The Phantom is, his oath, and his legacy. Writers Alex Segura and Michael Moreci , and Artist John Amor , use this episode to reference past stories and famous imagery, some of which seem plucked from The Phantom Bible . It's clearly a nod to the older fans, as well as an introduction to The Phantom lore to new fans who found the character through this series. Read Phantom 2040: A New Shadow Episode 5 Here . After the big reveal of The Phantom's legacy, which Charles Tyrus aims to claim as his own, Carlos Oserio is stirred to action. His actions propel us back to episode 1, where we first encountered him running through the Ghost Jungle with The Phantom's suit in hand. Phantom 2040: A New Shadow art by John Amor Question for the Phans: Do you have a theory on how Charles Tyrus knows so much about The Phantom's legacy? Let us know by commenting below this article, on our YouTube, or by dropping us a line . We'd love to hear your thoughts!

The Phantom series published by DC Comics called, you guessed it!, The Phantom, ran from 1989 to 1990, and has always been dear to my heart. Created by the, to use a cliché, dynamic duo of writer Mark Verheiden and artist Luke McDonnell , the series made a lasting impression on the character much bigger than its mere thirteen issues would suggest. You can watch or listen to our interviews with writer Mark Verheiden  and artist Luke McDonnell on our X-Band: The Phantom Podcast . 1988 marked the release of DC’s miniseries based on Lee Falk ’s comic strip crusader. Written by the talented Peter David , drawn by Joe Orlando on top form, with excellent covers by Orlando and Watchmen -artist Dave Gibbons , the series was both a commercial and artistic success. While a very good read in almost every way (only minor, but apparent, nitpicks prevent the story from being a true Phantom classic, such as turning Colonel Worubu into a white man!), the series’ greatest achievement must be the regular series it spawned: the Verheiden/McDonnell created book, which premiered in 1989. It sported a tone and feel very different from that of the newspaper strip, thereby probably alienating some traditional fans but also likely winning the character many new ones. Mark Verheiden ’s Phantom is a much more introspective character than the one we read about in the newspaper every day. He can often get into deep reflections on his purpose in life – fighting a battle he knows for sure he can never win, potentially sacrificing his own happiness and life to follow an oath sworn by a man almost five hundred years ago. He is a man clearly marked by what he does with his life, something we have never seen before or after this series. This is perhaps the only take on the Phantom to be far more concerned with the man behind the mask than seeing the legend from an “outside” perspective. Though I am not sure if it was the creators’ intention, they made a series about what it means to be the Phantom and what such a heavy burden can do with a person, something that nobody has really succeeded at since (Egmont’s Year One stories kind of tried, but ultimately collapsed under the weight of unforgivable continuity problems). This Phantom was, by Verheiden’s own admission, slightly angrier than the one seen in the comic strip, but given the gritty tone of the series and the realism of the situations The Man Who Cannot Die faces here, it’s absolutely appropriate. The charming, funny Phantom of the early Falk stories would not really work in this kind of setting, and Verheiden knows it. It’s strange that despite coming out twenty years ago, these stories still feel like the most modern adventures told with the Phantom. Lee Falk 's stories became increasingly more concerned with the Phantom fighting problems straight from the headlines as the mastermind got older, and both Egmont and Moonstone have made an effort to make their respective universes more up-to-date and realistic of late (which I applaud), yet none of them have managed to feel quite as REAL as what Verheiden and McDonnell managed. The reason might be that both companies still have one foot in the camp of classic Phantom stories, with pirates with scimitars, eye-patches and really bad hair, evil witch-doctors, countless hidden civilizations popping up again and again in Bengalla, and so on. Verheiden pretty much threw out these types of elements, and placed the Ghost Who Walks in the most believable Africa I’ve ever seen depicted in a comic (despite taking place in a country you won’t find on any map, of course). Gone are the slightly over-the-top villains we see frequently, this Phantom fights enemies that might not even be evil when all things are considered. Gone are the Singh Brotherhood, in its place we get the kind of pirates that we read about in the newspapers right now: real people committing terrible, cowardly crimes, real evil. Antagonists have more shades of grey than the sometimes black and white villains found in Falk and Egmont comics: some of them are not really bad at all, but act the way they do out of what is expected of them. A prime example of this is the captain who commits toxic dumping in Bengalla in the story Waste, which according to an interview done by Friends of the Phantom is Verheiden’s favourite of his own Phantom stories. Waste also happens to be this writer’s favourite of the bunch, and if I were to make a top 10 list of the all time best Phantom stories (I probably will, so watch this space) this would surely be on it somewhere. It is certainly the most moving story ever crafted with the character (though Donne Avenell and Hans Lindahl ’s masterpiece Eden gives it real competition), and I remember shedding a tear while reading the ending for the first time, around a decade ago. A haunting tale of a poor father trying to support his family by driving the poison that eventually ends up killing his own son, it has a maturity and honesty to it that assures that even if you only read it once you will never forget it. The excellent two-parter Hate , on the other hand (Verheiden seems to have a thing for one-word titles), is the first ever story to make Kit confront his past in the US, as he travels back to the peaceful town he spent many happy years in to find out things have changed for the worse, with a group of racists terrorizing black inhabitants. Once again we get scarily believable villains; these people could be your neighbours. This is probably among the Phantom stories I’ve read the most times in my life, its impact and message of tolerance always powerful. It also has a moral that I try to live by to this day: do not judge people because of the colour of their skin, sexual preferences, etc., judge them by their character. The only bizarre element is that US authority clearly knows very well who the normally mysterious Phantom is, and gives him permission to do whatever it takes to clean up the mess created by the antagonists. Maybe they knew him from reading the Phantom comic strip in their local papers? The series’ best villain is easily British arms dealer Cammel, appearing in the two-part story that appeared in issues 1 and 2, Guns . Wicked, nasty and generally despicable in every way, he’s the kind of villain you wish would show up in that great Phantom movie we will likely never get. His ”I don’t care about what my actions do to people as long as I benefit from it” attitude is one found everywhere bad things happen in this world. Like so many of Lee Falk ’s stories, this is a very romantic take on the Phantom. The writing really makes the reader feel that Kit and Diana are destined to be together, and Verheiden adds a sense of melancholia not found in the newspaper strip: Kit knows that he could possibly have been even happier with Diana if he didn’t have to follow his family legacy. This is a take that focuses heavily on the darker aspects of being the Ghost Who Walks, and Diana Palmer is here shown as the light in Mr. Walker’s at times dark existence. The story in issue 7, Gold Fever! (which deals with the cheery subject of death), ends with a lovely three-panel sequence of Diana walking towards a clearly shaken Phantom, putting her hand on his shoulder with him gratefully putting his left hand (with the Good Mark ring prominently displayed) on top of hers. No dialogue is needed, the sequence perfectly illustrates their relationship without a single word uttered. Mark Verheiden ’s words frequently feel like poetry, with beautifully constructed sentences and a real sense of depth. While too many comics that prominently features the lead character’s internal monologues end up pretentious, pointless and downright laughable by not really adding anything to the story and being poorly written, Verheiden never falls into these traps. The Phantom’s thoughts really add depth to the tales being told, and usually have some kind of relevance to the plot. Issue 3’s superb adventure Pirates is a great example of this, as it shows Mr. Walker’s disdain for this breed of criminal better than any other Phantom story by connecting the chilling story of a modern day pirate with the 21st Phantom reminiscing about something as normal as going to the movies with his father, to see a movie featuring, yes indeed, pirates. Luke McDonnell ’s artwork matches the prose perfectly, giving the book a moody, gritty and almost sketch-like look unlike anything I have seen before or since in comics. I really like the body language he gave the character, his Phantom moves in a way different than other interpretations. Like he should, this Ghost Who Walks looks terrifying when angry, and like somebody you’d trust and respect when he isn’t. Some of the book’s best and most memorable illustrations are not found in the action scenes. My favourites are the stunningly beautiful, intimate scenes of Kit and Diana together at Eden, where the terrific script is brought to life in a way reminiscent of a beautifully shot feature film. Marvellous stuff. A minor nitpick is the fact that the colourist arguably gave the purple costume much too light a colour (a colour more like the one seen in recent Moonstone stories would have been far more appropriate for a series as realistic as this one). The series finished with issue 13 (according to Verheiden because of dropping sales and licencing issues), which ended beautifully with the Phantom and Diana’s marriage. I would have loved to see at least another year’s worth of stories, but hey, that’s life, and the US just isn’t as big a market for the Phantom as the rest of the world. You can watch or listen to our interviews with writer Mark Verheiden  and artist Luke McDonnell   on our X-Band: The Phantom Podcast . Mark Verheiden has since moved on to become a successful writer for both film and TV, working on hit-movies such as The Mask , Timecop , the upcoming Teen Titans and Quartermain (starring Sam Worthington, who was at one point rumoured to be starring in the now likely dead The Phantom Legacy ), as well as two films starring and directed by Bruce Campbell (who thankfully lost out on the title role of The Phantom to one Billy Zane ) My Name is Bruce and the recently announced Bruce VS Frankenstein (the greatest title in motion picture history? Maybe). He has also executive-produced TV-shows such as Heroes , Smallville and most importantly, the remake of Battlestar Galactica , the best work of fiction this writer had the pleasure of following last decade. Mouthwateringly, the man was also in talks to write what eventually became the 1996 Phantom movie. I can only imagine how much better the picture would have ended up being then. Luke McDonnell has continued to illustrate comics, among them Batman , and he also designs toys and figures, among them a beautiful, and these days very rare, Phantom figure that was released in the early 90s. He also revisited the Phantom in another way, drawing a superb, haunting cover for Friends of the Phantom’s Lee Falk memorial issue. It goes without saying I would kill to see them both creating Phantom stories again one day, as, the world of the Ghost Who Walks would be an even richer and more complex place for it. Thanks to Ed Rhoades , whose wonderful Friends of the Phantom magazines allowed me to find some of the information used in this article.

Mikael Lyck from Chronicle Chamber reviews Fantomen 20/2023 featuring the following stories: "Monstret Preview of next issue shows us that we will read two Phantom stories including a new newspaper and a All Fantomen reviews will be included in our monthly X-Band: The Phantom Podcasts. Thanks also goes to Jörgen Karlsson for his help creating the Fantomen review intro which will now be featured for all reviews by Mikael Lyck.

In Phantom 2040: A New Shadow Episode 16, readers are treated to a rich, colorful tapestry of fisticuffs with Charles Tyrus' army of disposable biots. Our new Phantom, Carlos Oserio, plays beat-em-up with Tyrus' henchbots while on his way to stop the tech magnate from siphoning energy from the Ghost Jungle. We don't learn much this episode, but it sure is fun to look at! Read Phantom 2040: A New Shadow  Episode 16 here George Kambadais really brightens up the episode this time around, ditching the noir style that has been drenched throughout this series in favor of an old-fashioned tussle. While the action takes center stage, writers Alex Segura and Michael Moreci make sure to fill in some of the missing information we're looking for, carefully weaving deeper ties between Fitzroy and Carlos Oserio. We also learn the name of our new villain! It's Anti-Phantom . Phantom 2040: A New Shadow Episode 16 art by George Kambadais Question for the Phans: Do you think Fitzroy is another secret character or someone entirely new? Let us know by commenting below this article, on our YouTube, or by dropping us a line . We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Chronicle Chamber was lucky enough to receive a sample of these products from Arki Design to be able to review

Christian Moller reviews the latest issue's from ECR (Edition Comic Rundschau ) #91 which features All ECR and other German comic reviews will be included in our monthly X-Band: The Phantom Podcasts. Below is the German language review of the same comic. If you would like to join the team and review new comics being released around the world, please contact

Our big, bad villain is out on the prowl, and he's hunting for The Phantom in episode 15 of Phantom 2040: A New Shadow by writers Alex Segura and Michael Moreci and artist John Amor . Meanwhile, we catch up to what happened to Melinda Starker and Sagan Cruz, who just met, only to be attacked by a shadowy figure. Read Phantom 2040: A New Shadow Episode 15 here This shadowy, neo-noir thriller boils over as our bad guy takes matters into his own hands. While we still don't know what happened to the Ghost Jungle last episode, we're treated to a full reveal of who are punch-worthy villain is. Still... this new masked agent of terror doesn't have a given name. Any ideas? Phantom: A New Shadow Episode 15 art by John Amor Question for the Phans: What name would you give to this new, masked villain? Let us know by commenting below this article, on our YouTube, or by dropping us a line . We'd love to hear your thoughts!

There's something cataclysmic happening in the Ghost Jungle in Phantom 2040: A New Shadow ! We're not quite sure what it is, but it's the driving factor propelling our hero, Carlos Oserio, toward his big encounter with the villainous Charles Tyrus! Read Phantom 2040: A New Shadow  Episode 14 here . This is arguably one of the most beautiful episodes in the Phantom 2040: A New Shadow series thus far! The colors, the style, and the techno-organic edge are firing on all cylinders. George Kambadais delivers the goods as writers Alex Segura and Michael Moreci focus this latest episode on Tyrus. We're not quite sure what to make of what's happening at the moment. There's some information missing, intentionally so, that keeps us from connecting the dots. While it helps propel the mystery, it is a detriment to our enjoyment of the story. Phantom 2040: A New Shadow episode 14 art by George Kambadais Question for the Phans: What do you think makes The Ghost Jungle so special? Let us know by commenting below this article, on our YouTube, or by dropping us a line . We'd love to hear your thoughts!

We are joined with Mikael Lyck, Christian Moeller and Seuj Abir who review comics from Sweden, Germany Our next podcast is the review of the Frew 75th anniversary comic. Minutes 30 Seconds Famtomen HC book got as high as top 5 best selling book in Sweden: 1 Hour 33 Minutes Defenders Will you buying the Defenders of the Earth keychains? Make sure you stay with us and do not forget to subscribe and leave a review on our podcast and or our

Please note, this review will have spoilers. A huge shout out to our reviewer Scott Waldyn  who will reviewing Phantom comics from USA. Jermayn Parker and Stephen East will also review this issue in the next X-Band: The Phantom Podcast All Mad Cave Studios  comics and other comic reviews will be included in our monthly X-Band: The Phantom You can find out more at our website and or subscribe to our YouTube channel  for more videos and reviews

In episode 12 of Phantom 2040: A New Shadow , Carlos Oserio meets with Kit Walker Jr. Now that Carlos has learned of his past and accepted who he is, all roads lead to his legacy. It's a colorful, heartfelt, and action-packed episode that's fun and a welcome reinterpretation of The Phantom for fans both old and new. Read Phantom: 2040: A New Shadow  Episode 12 Here Writers Alex Segura and Michael Moreci , with art by John Amor and George Kambadais , craft a compelling episode that serves as both an introduction to The Phantom for new readers and a passing of the torch in the Phantom 2040 storyline. From reader this series, one gets the feeling that while the assignment is continuing the 2040 storyline from the 90's cartoon, the goal is to create a compelling narrative that embraces all of The Phantom. This episode dives into what makes Phantom, who celebrates his 90th birthday this year, a memorable hero. It serves as an argument to explain why, unlike other popular superheroes, The Phantom is distinctive and unique. In a way, it's also coded to celebrate the more global nature of this character. Phantom 2040: A New Shadow  Episode 12 art by George Kambadais Question for the Phans: Which episode of this series is your favorite thus far? Let us know by commenting below this article, on our YouTube, or by dropping us a line . We'd love to hear your thoughts!