From writer Giovanni Barbieri and artist Gianluca Pagliarani comes The Shadow Planet, a comic described as “Star Trek with cigarettes, sex and bad language.”
Image Comics has published a number of impressive space operas so far in 2025, with Free Planet being a particular standout project. Up next is The Shadow Planet, which is an interstellar horror with heavy influences of seminal cosmic horror author H.P. Lovecraft. It’s also a mashup of some of the finest genre works out there, such as Alien, The Thing, Annihilation, and Event Horizon. To call it an ode and a love letter to classic sci-fi would be an understatement.
The Shadow Planet follows the crew of the rocket Vidar when they land on a seemingly desolate and barren planet to rescue a lost patrol. However, what they find there has the potential to destroy mankind.
“It’s some kind of Star Trek with cigarettes, sex and bad language,” said Barbieri in a statement.
Pagliarani added: “It’s a bonanza of rusty rockets, clunky space-suits and hideous monsters.”
First look preview pages of The Shadow Planet.
We’re delighted to share with you our first look at The Shadow Planet. You can check out the preview pages below:
The Shadow Planet trade paperback (ISBN: 9781534331761, Lunar Code 0725IM291) will be available at local comic book shops on Wednesday, September 24 and independent bookstores, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Indigo, and Waterstones on Tuesday, October 7. It will also be available across many digital platforms, including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, Google Play, and Omnibus.
Will you be picking up The Shadow Planet? Tell us in the comments down below!
