Secret Origins v2 #8 (1986)
by Paul Levitz & Tom Mandrake
cover by Steve Lighle
Shadow Lass gets an unexpected spotlight on the anthology series “Secret Origins”.
Kind out of left field to be sure, but if you have to expand on the origin of a Legionnaire she’s not a bad choice.
After all she comes from a long line of planetary heroes, so you have plenty of history to explore… and indeed over the years we will get many, many ancestors.
Her 20th century ancestors are typically Lydea Mallor (we saw her recreation in LSH #290 during the Great Darkness Saga) and her mother Lyrissa who will join L.E.G.I.O.N.
(there really isn’t time to explain what L.E.G.I.O.N. is for the review, but I’ll touch it eventually).
Neither of them is mentioned here, although the family is said to have provided champions for a thousand years.
The latest champion is identified as Sarven Mallor, the grandfather of the girl who will become Shadow Lass, meaning that her mother (who we saw in LSH #263) was NOT the planet’s hero in this continuity.
In any continuity, however, she takes her heritage VERY seriously.
One of the things that make Shadow Lass stand out in the Legion is that her powers are simultaneously her family heritage AND she had to go on a quest to earn them.
Kind of a similar deal with Black Panther now that I think about it, but without any monarchy.
I’ve always loved the idea that the people of Talok VIII worship the shadows because they live on an inhospitable desert planet.
The reason why she’s in the desert is that she doesn’t actually know how her grandfather unlocked his powers, so she has to venture outside the city to undergo the same journey he did.
The quest is deliberately shown to resemble a classic fantasy quest, from her attire to the environment.
She’s supposed to be alone in this, but she finds unexpected company.
The boy is actually her cousin, who will grow to become the perpetually disappointing Shadow Kid.
Even if I couldn’t care less about Shadow Kid, that’s a nice moment between the two.
Also: their grandfather really was a dick, isn’t it?
It is interesting that her first instinct is to give HIM the chance to continue the quest and become the planet’s hero.
It’s kind of sad that helping his cousin fulfill her destiny is probably the most useful thing Shadow Kid has ever done.
I think we missed an opportunity to see what life was like for Shadow Lass growing up before beginning her journey.
Should we interpret the fact that she’s never seen a cave as them being rare on the planet? Or that she lived in a different place from her cousin? She does refer to “the city” as if she’s not originally from there.
I also wonder why supposedly there never were two heroes in the same generation. That’s not a universal thing with their powers, we’ve seen with the cousins.
It’s really a shame that we know so little of this family. This is a legacy of heroes that goes back AT LEAST a thousand years and know about less than half a dozen!
The grandfather narrates the origins of their powers, which date back to when “kings from the stars” enslaved their race.
The line dates back to the original Mallor; we don’t know if that was his only name or if it was already a last name like with his descendants.
We basically know nothing about him, other that he fought robots with a sword.
In fact there is A LOT we don’t know about this flashback, from who the aliens were to what kind of energy they were harnessing to run the place.
It does help giving the whole thing an aura of legend and mystery (helped by the runes that separate each panel), but it’s a little frustrating.
Leaving the nature of the energy they’re harnessing a mystery is particularly strange because it’s integral to the origin story, once Mallor blows it up.
And THAT is how the first Shadow Champion got his powers: he was bitten by a radioactive lightbulb, as far as we know.
It’s a legend, sure, so I don’t expect it to give specific details… but that’s one big detail to leave out!!!
Also, WTF does it mean that all of them have “ancestral memory”? I guess that’s a callback to Lady Memory since she was from the planet, but weird thing to bring up.
Can ALL Talokians speak with their dead or what?
So both cousins are given the power…
…but the boy is too young, so she’s chosen as the new champion to defeat the barbarians that were threatening the city.
Talok VIII joins the United Planets shortly after she becomes Shadow Lass, and from there comes Adventure Comics #365.
And finally we close the circle with Shadow Lass, now in the present, realizing why there had to be two people in the same family with the power: so that she could serve with the Legion while her cousin remains to protect the planet.
Legion significance: 0/10
As far as I can tell, this is the only appearance of Shady’s grandfather; in other continuities, her mother was the previous Shadow Champion. Likewise, this is the only story linking her powers to a somewhat scientific origin: mostly we’ll get some vague references to ancestral power.
Silver Age-ness: 3/10
There’s something slightly Silver Age-y in the flashback having science fiction coming out of left field.
Does it stand the test of time? 6/10
It’s fine, but it’s a missed opportunity. This tells us basically nothing of Shady’s past: why was she ignored by her grandfather? Considering he was close to her cousin, there’s some family drama there! Having the origins of the shadow power being told through a legend is fine, and it leaves things to interpretation… but I believe it leaves a bit too much to the interpretation.
What WAS the origin of the energy the aliens were harnessing? Or who were the aliens in the first place? Was Levitz planning something that didn’t pan out?
Bonus: did you think I’d forget the other story?
Dollman
by Roy Thomas & Murphy Anderson
This is a retelling of the Dollman origin story. It covers the same story beats, but will we finally learn why the girlfriend was being blackmailed?
The titular Dollman was completely nuts in his first story. I see not much has changed.
Exactly like in the original, the professor suggests to use aqua regia to make the shrinking formula suitable for humans.
What the original story neglected to say is that THE STUFF IS LETHAL TO DRINK, so I guess that’s why we needed this retelling to correct the mistake.
But I know what you’re thinking. Does this story give Dollman any reason whatsoever for drinking the formula without doing any test?
NOPE!!!
If the story isn’t going to fix THAT, why even tell it?
Clearly, it’s an excuse to show Dollman’s butt.
It’s a fetish thing, isn’t it? Has to be.
After 47 years from the original story, we DO learn why she was being blackmailed about a letter!
It reveals the shocking story that she used to have a crush on an professor when she was in college, and she was willing to pay thousands of dollars to prevent her fiancé from discovering it.
That’s it.
Look, lady, I get that 1939 was a different time… but if your fiancé leaves you because he discovers you used to have a crush on another man years before you met him, good riddance!
Did we REALLY need a retelling of this story? Well… apparently artist Murphy Anderson was an early fan of Dollman, so I can’t blame him for having passion for the character.
And let me tell you, it’s waaaaaay better than the original version!
Stick to this one if you want to read Dollman’s origin. It’s better written, better penciled, and you get to see his butt.
