The Shade How the Flash Villain Evolved Into DCs DARKEST Hero

The Shade: How the Flash Villain Evolved Into DC’s DARKEST Hero

Originally seen as a bit of a joke in the DC Universe, the Shade quickly evolved to become both a deadly villain and a powerful hero.

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The Shade How the Flash Villain Evolved Into DCs DARKEST Hero

One of the most important aspects of DC Universe is that creators can define and redefined characters and stories in ways that pull them in new and exciting directions. While every character has experienced this to some extent, few have with as much success as The Shade.

Richard Swift, aka the Shade, was created by Gardner Fox and Harold Wilson Sharp for Flash Comics #33 in 1942. Originally, Shade wasn’t anything special in the Flash universe and was actually one of the less memorable Flash villains, wherein his first appearance he did little more than turn the city dark in the middle of the day.

The most interesting storyline involving this incarnation of Shade was undoubtedly his role in 1961’s “Flash of Two Worlds” by Gardner Fox, Carmine Infantino, Joe Giella, and Julius Schwartz. This landmark of the DC Universe heralded the beginning of the Multiverse concept that has become synonymous with DC and the Flash specifically. In the story, The Fiddler, The Thinker, and The Shade join forces to fight both the Silver and Golden-Age Flashes, Jay Garrick and Barry Allen, which was such a success among fans that it would encourage DC to revive its Golden Age characters and the creation of the DC Multiverse.

The Shade How the Flash Villain Evolved Into DCs DARKEST Hero

Since his time in the ’40s and part in the “Flash of Two Worlds” in the ’60s, Shade has seen quite an evolution in his character and his place in the DC Universe. The Shade was absent for sometime after this series, but was very seriously affected by “Zero Hour” in the late ’90s. As Hal Jordan attempted to recreate the universe, Shade was one of the most impacted characters from Jordan’s manipulation of time and space. The once generic villain with a silly mask and magical cane, Shade was retconned into being a morally vague English gentleman from the 1800s named Richard Swift in James Robinson, Tony Harris and Peter Snejbjerg’s seminal ’90s run on Starman.

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Swift was in London one night where he was caught up in a mystical tragedy that killed over 100 people but left him alive. In fact, he was better than just alive, as the event left him with magical powers that gave him immortality as well as the ability to harness and control a dark shadow realm and unleash it on his enemies. The story also sees Swift befriending the real-life writers Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde during his journeys.

Shade’s new interpretation was received very well by readers, and DC found a way to expand on the character and add even more details to the story that had already come a long way from his humble origins. Like almost every other DC character, when the New 52 dropped in 2011, it brought a huge change to the Shade. This iteration of Shade held many similarities to the Post-Zero Hour retcon, but with the added inclusion of Mikaal Tomas — better known as Starman. This version of Shade first debuted in The Shade #1, by James Robinson, Cully Hamner, Dave McCaig and Todd Klein. In this storyline, Swift gets his powers in the 1800s when a man named Simon Culp attempts to sacrifice him in a ritual which inadvertently imbues him with a mysterious shadow power and turning him into the Shade. Shade would go on to gain immortality and become more of a demon.

Shade would survive until the 21st century battling heroes like the Flash and Starman, but unlike the original Shade in the ’40s, Richard Swift is a much more complex character that is more morally ambiguous than being just good or evil. After multiple lifetimes of acting like a villain, Shade decided to leave the world of heroes and villains behind him and start a quiet life with his girlfriend, Starman supporting character Hope O’Dare. However, like most ex-villain retirements, the peace is short-lived as Deathstroke comes to collect a bounty placed on Shade’s head. After dealing with those trying to kill him, Shade decided to give up the life of crime and killing for good, which caused the shadows inside him to sense his weakness and attempt to break free of his control.

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The shadows became too powerful for Shade to handle, which led him to call upon those who he once thought of as enemies — The Flash and Starman. Together, they were able to control the shadows and give Shade back his whole power. Shade then left the world of superheroes and supervillains behind and went to continue his life with Hope.

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Link Source : https://www.cbr.com/the-shade-flash-starman-villain-evolution/

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