A wildly otherworldly hero emerges from the grave in SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS, a visually breathtaking and deeply moving adventure.

The press release follows:

Media Release -- EMBRACE YOUR FEAR . . . THE SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS DRAWS NEAR! Oni Press, the multiple Eisner and Harvey Award-winning publisher of groundbreaking comics and graphic novels since 1997, is proud to announce the most visually stunning and hauntingly heartfelt superhero-horror hit of 2026: SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS #1 – a stunning new five-part series drawn from the darkest recesses of the imagination of co-writers Nick Cagnetti (Pink Lemonade, XINO) and Daniel Ziegler (Elodie) and featuring the first full-length artwork by Nick Cagnetti since his dazzling debut with 2022’s PINK LEMONADE.

“I'm excited to be working with Oni Press again, bringing something completely different to life this time…or rather raise it from the dead,” said Cagnetti. “This series goes to a lot of crazy spooky places and its multiple settings were so fun for Daniel and I to become immersed in when we were creating it all together. It's an intricate web of revelation, revenge, and redemption that weaves back and forth on itself and constantly leaves you gasping at the moral quandaries. I don't know how you're going to feel or who you're going to be rooting for, and that makes it a nonstop rush - can't wait for readers to see this book finally!”

Once, Erik Leroux was a mortal musician, selflessly devoted to his music and his true love, Katrina . . . until his sudden death plunged his soul into the carnival-like torments of the Spirit World beyond our own. Now, reborn as a phantom with fleeting memories of his life among the living, and forever cursed to bear the arcane costume his corpse wore to the grave, Erik will claw his way back from the infernal planes to uncover the mysteries of his own life . . . and avenge the dark sins that transformed him into the SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS!

“I’m thrilled to be working with Oni Press and my longtime friend and collaborator Nick Cagnetti to finally let this monstrous story loose,” said Daniel Ziegler. “SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS embodies the kind of horror I love most, but don’t see much of anymore: classic monsters, iconic spooky imagery, forbidden romance, and a hefty dose of the supernatural. Nick and I have spent many years building up a world unlike anything you’ve ever read or seen, and I can’t wait to finally welcome readers into it.”

Like a day-glo hybrid of Jack Kirby’s The Demon, Mike Allred’s Madman, and Todd McFarlane’s Spawn, SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS is an eye-popping new addition to the canon of creator-owned superheroes – with an astonishing artistic style and heart-wrenching verve all its own! SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS #1 ascends from the underworld and into comic shops everywhere on January 28th, 2026 – featuring covers by Nick Cagnetti (Pink Lemonade) David Lafuente (Ultimate Spider-Man), Karl Kerschl (Gotham Academy), and Matt Lesniewski (Faceless & The Family)!

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SPIRIT OF THE SHADOWS #1 (of 5)
WRITTEN BY DANIEL ZIEGLER & NICK CAGNETTI
ART BY NICK CAGNETTI
COVER A BY NICK CAGNETTI
COVER B BY DAVID LAFUENTE
COVER C BY KARL KERSHCL
COVER D BY MATT LESNIEWSKI
FULL ART VARIANT (1:10) BY NICK CAGNETTI
B&W VARIANT (1:20) BY MATT LESNIEWSKI
FULL ART VARIANT (1:50) BY KARL KERSCHL
ON SALE JANUARY 28, 2026 | $4.99 | 32 PGS | FC
IOD: 11/29/25
FOC: 1/5/26









About the Creators

Nick Cagnetti is a cartoonist based in Arizona and a graduate of Arizona State University with experience doing storyboards and commercial art but he’s been drawing forever thanks to a life-long love for comic books. He’s been making his own regularly since 2012 with books like Infinite Wonders and The Spirit of The Shadows but he’s best known for his work on Pink Lemonade.

Daniel Ziegler is a writer and filmmaker with a lifelong passion for storytelling. While still in high school, he founded Black Box Films as an outlet to bring his writing to life on the screen. He went on to study Film and Creative Writing at Hofstra University in New York where he began developing “Spirit of the Shadows” over a decade prior to its publication as a comic.

About Oni Press

THE LOUDEST THING IN COLOR SINCE '97. For nearly 30 years, Oni Press has carved a distinctive path as one of the world's most respected and acclaimed publishers of award-winning comic books and graphic novels, including Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim, Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer, Cullen Bunn & Brian Hurtt's The Sixth Gun, Brenna Thummler’s Sheets trilogy, Jay Stephens' Dwellings, Ezra Clayton Daniels' Upgrade Soul, LySandra Vuong's Covenant, and many hundreds more. In 2019, Oni Press merged with Lion Forge Comics – the Eisner Award-winning independent comic book publisher founded by Academy Award-winning producer and entrepreneur David Steward II – to create one of the largest, independent libraries of comics content anywhere in media. The Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group now exists as a publishing subsidiary of Steward’s diversified global media company, Polarity.

The Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group publishes more than 60 original and licensed graphic novels annually, in addition to an extensive roster of periodical comics for globally recognized properties including Adventure Time, Biker Mice from Mars, Choose Your Own Adventure, Cult of the Lamb, EC Comics, Murder Drones, Rick and Morty, and more.