by M. H. Bartels

  Or is that ShadowDemon? I´m not quite sure, and since ole SD never got his name in the opening
  titles, it´s anybody's guess.

  Shadow Demon appears to be a creature entirely made up out of darkness. The only thing about him
  that isn´t black, are his eyes and eyebrows, which - apart from body language - are his only means
  for expressing himself.

  Legless - where humans have legs, he has some sort of tail - and winged, SD appears somewhat like
  a shadow of Venger himself, yet is clearly a separate entity. It does, however, remind me somewhat
  of the old story that a wizard might send out his shadow as a duplicate of himself, to spy, to parley, or
  even to act on his behalf.

  Starting out as a wannabe servant of Venger - The Box - Shadow Demon appeared one day,
  snooped on the kids, then reported to Venger´s castle. At first, SD tried to be a little cryptic, possibly
  hoping to squeeze some kind of profit out of the exchange: 'They found it. And they´re taking it
  somewhere.'

  Of course, SD if terrified of Venger´s wrath, as seen in many episodes where he questioned an order
  or was slow in answering a question, or even brought news that Venger didn´t like, and a simple
  inquiry in a loud and threatening voice was enough to make SD flinch and answer. The fact that SD is
  terrified of his master, who does not hesitate to hurl abuse at his servant at the least cause, does not
  stop SD from coming back for more.

  In fact, in Dungeon at the Heart of Dawn, SD showed impressive loyalty to his dangerous, abusive
  master. When the Unnameable One first appeared, he took to the shadows, hiding himself. But when
  the Big Bad Whatchemacallit declared Venger a failure, soon to be eradicated, he flitted to his
  master´s side.

  Down in the underworld, when Venger admitted to having been weakened by his transporting the
  both of them to the underworld, SD even tried to comfort Venger by touching his arm.
  This gesture was, of course, refused by the ever-proud Venger.

  Continuously oily and polite, SD appears to be something of a gentleman. This is in contradiction to
  the fact that he does Venger´s dirty work, trailing the kids and reporting back whenever an
  opportunity presents itself for Venger to further himself.

  In The Box, Venger assigned SD to do more than just spy. He was ordered to trap the children
  inside the Box of Zandora at the first chance, then keep it shut until Venger arrived.

  Apart from the episode The Dragon´s Graveyard, wherein SD flies upwards through ice, then
  shatters its surface as he leaves it, this is he only time that I ever saw SD manipulate solid matter.

  He usually passes through anything solid, or is as close as absorbed into it. In Dungeon at the Heart of Dawn he backs away from Venger´s fury, right through a stone altar.  In Day of the Dungeon Master, he seems to have become part of a stone to keep an eye on the kids unnoticed.

  SD´s powers of manipulation, therefore, seem to be limited. He either needs to make speed or the
  object he wishes to move must be light, like the lid of Zandora´s Box.
  If he could have boxed Diana away from the Weapons of Power in Day of the Dungeon Master
  and carried them to his master, rather than shout out a warning to Venger, I think he would have.

  He does have other intrinsic abilities, however. In The Box, as well as in The Lost Children, SD
  teleports out of a place where he is no longer wanted by Venger. Strangely enough, he does not use
  this ability in Day of the Dungeon Master, but rather takes wing to escape the effects of the Golden
  Grimoire´s blast.

  In The Lost Children and in Treasure of Tardos, he exhibits an ability to command orcs, even
  if it is only by indication in Lost Children, and seems to be willing to lead troops into battle.

  However, when alone, SD is more likely to beat retreat in overdrive. It is anyone´s guess whether he
  is really vulnerable to weapons, magic, or simply a coward. His ability to pass through matter would
  seem to indicate that magic´s his true nemesis, which also explains his ingratiating to Venger; what
  better way to keep the top wizard off your back than to be at his beck and call?

  Loyal sidekick, coward, spy, Shadow Demon is all of that and possibly more. He is the only creature
  of Venger´s that keeps coming back and keeps bestowing him his unequivocal loyalty.