OFFICIAL SHADOWPLAY: MIDNIGHT SCHOOL PAGE
GRAPHIC NOVEL SERIES
This class is a nightmare.
Violent teachers, barbed wire fences, torture devices, and gruesome suspensions... How did these students get trapped here? Why can't they remember? And once they realize the truth, are they strong enough together to escape?
BOOK 1
MIDNIGHT SCHOOL is the debut of Sam Fonseca’s singular vision: a world where the macabre, the surreal and the adventurous collide. Merging influences of Junji Ito and Kentaro Miura with the spirit of modern JRPGs, Sam crafts a reality where art and magic are indistinguishable, and it can save your life in a world gone too dark.
As The Daily Fandom highlights, this creates a "dreamlike" experience where creativity is the ultimate weapon for survival.
The world of Shadowplay is a "contemporary dark fantasy" designed to test the characters' sanity at every turn. Here, the darkness is a living entity; every projected shadow hides a secret, from echoes of the past to the silhouettes of those lost to the gloom. In Sam’s universe, when the truth becomes obscured by terror, art serves as an essential force that allows one to reshape reality and endure.
(tap the image to enlarge)
What's going on in the characters' minds and what's going on in the real world?
Many things give the SHADOWPLAY characters hope and strength to fight back.
What makes your life
more bearable?
Family? Friends? Art?
What brings
dreams and color
to your world?
"Records of ARCADIA", the protagonist's favorite anime.
SHADOWPLAY: MIDNIGHT SCHOOL reviews
"Shadowplay is a raging fever dream that burrows down into the fears that haunt all
of us. Sam Fonseca hits the ground running and never lets up."
— Patrick Horvath (Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees)
"As surreal as it is nightmarish. A definite must-read for fans of things that go bump
in the night."
— Dave Baker (Mary Tyler MooreHawk)
"Filled with haunting imagery, Shadowplay: Midnight School straddles the line
between abstraction and linear narrative. Readers are provided enough background
information to piece things together, but ultimately the book's lasting resonance lies
in its ability to deal with a number of social and personal anxieties without ever
feeling like the author has taken on too much."
— Rue Morgue
"Shadowplay may be Fonseca’s first foray into horror novels, but he writes it like a
seasoned pro. The concept, the monsters, the yearning for freedom and escape, the
conflicts, and the fleeting hope, make a true horror story and he has them here in
spades. All of that is accompanied by jaw-dropping art and masterful use of color
(and an even more masterful non-use of color) making Shadowplay an absolute
must-read. 400+ pages feel short, and I cannot wait for volume 2."
— Monkeys Fighting Robots
"Shadowplay proves a meditation on the expectation to conform, how individuality is
crushed and how depression results... This is tough going, but evocatively drawn and
ultimately rewarding."
— Slings & Arrows
“This was such an intelligent, creative graphic novel, and the soundtrack is just the
perfect finishing touch...I can’t recommend it highly enough.”
— The Frumious Consortium
“Shadowplay—Midnight School is for anyone who has doubted themselves; been told
that they won’t amount to anything; anyone who went far too long without a
diagnosis in order to get proper help; and pretty much, anyone scared about the
world around us.”
— Amber Unmasked
“The story expertly weaves narratives about depression, creativity, individuality, and
the perception of adulthood. Fonseca’s art style reflects that of psychological horror
greats, Junji Ito (No Longer Human) and Emil Farris (My Favorite Thing is Monsters).
— The Daily Fandom
“Kafka-esque...Shadowplay is a really intense read. A dystopian nightmare critiquing
both the modern education system as well contemporary power structures, one that
any horror reader will want to read immediately.”
— Cemetery Dance
“In many ways, Fonseca simply taps in to a universal fear: the loss of childhood
innocence and making sense of authority when its logic is hidden or cruel. Fonseca
offers no easy answers, leaving readers intrigued for more.”
— Broken Frontier
There are mysteries scattered throughout the pages of SHADOWPLAY, but they go beyond the paper. Can you find them all?
SHADOWPLAY: MIDNIGHT SCHOOL kicks off an extraordinary and macabre journey, and you're invited to be among the very first to witness it.
424 pages, beautifully rendered in both striking black and white and vivid color, proudly brought to you by Top Shelf/IDW, publishers of fan favorites like TMNT, Sonic, and Godzilla.
You can find the graphic novel at your local comic and book stores or using the buttons below:
