Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Discuss the VALIANT comics, characters, and collecting.
PLEASE DO NOT REVEAL SPOILER INFORMATION IN YOUR TOPIC TITLE.

Moderators: Daniel Jackson, greg

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

As I mentioned in my intro thread, I found my way into Valiant when someone at my friendly local comics shop recommended Shadowman to me. He sold me, originally volume 1 of the VEI and also the hardcover of the Valiant Masters first issue of Shadowman. I've been much more slowly finding my way into VH1 titles since running through VEI as fast as I can to catch up. There's a lot more variance here in quality issue to issue from what I see, so it may be reviewed a little bit differently, but I'll report what I find.

Shadowman: (Issues 0-7, Valiant Masters)

What I found when I read this version of Jack Bonaface, is that I liked him as a character a lot more than the VEI universe. This is a jazz musician who plays in a club, is quite talented and happens to fall upon this shadowman mask which grants him powers. It's much simpler than the newer world, and I find it flows a little better. We're not given a ton of background information on it, but as he progresses through he's compelled to fight for good and protect the innocent, Batman-style almost. It's just fun and refreshing without a lot of the hard asking of "why?" that modern comics do.

The first intro looks like he ran into an alien species from X-O Manowar of this universe, though it's not elaborated upon. Was that Lydia as a cameo? I don't know enough about the universe to confirm that.

The art is very early 90s. It's fine for what it is, the storytelling and dialogue have that feel too, so you'll have to be okay with that, but once you settle in, there's a lot more story here than modern comics.

One thing I got annoyed with was almost the instant Unity crossover where he goes into this alternate timeline... finds love there... and it kinda doesn't flow, and he just comes back and seems to forget about it by issue 6. Was a weird thing to throw in so early into the comic. But, I want to know what happened there, so I'll be reading Unity soon as I finally compiled all of the issues.

Issue 0 was very different, a history of Darque which makes him and his sister very compelling villains.

8/10
Last edited by otomo on Tue Sep 26, 2017 12:36:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

At the comic-con today I picked up the 6 issue Deathmate series for $5. Remember when these were expensive? I actually had Black back in the day because I was a huge Gen 13 fan when I was about 14... I remember Black being like "huh" when I read it and reading about Gen 13 escaping something evil, but that's all I remember. :)

Deathmate:


Going to have to separate these out by issue because they vary wildly:

Prologue: This actually is pretty interesting. Solar comes across Void and they kinda merge together in their grief and into a sexytime and it makes the two Image and Valiant universes go haywire. Intriguing concept and was fun.

Yellow: A bunch of short vignettes of crossovers. Most were pretty boring, Shadowman/Wild C.A.T.S. was okay, rest were forgettable.

Black: Gen 13 is on the run from Something. XO Is working for some Evil Mother. It's really convoluted by the Gen 13 heroes seem to win out in the end from whatever the evil folk were planning. Hard to get through!

Blue: More vignettes. The Solar/Supreme one actually ties into the main story and Darque and Eclipse get added in to make it interesting. Decent, not great.

Red: Rob Liefeld was allowed to write the script and draw this whole thing. Gritted teeth. Muscles growing on msucles. Feet. All you need to know. Ouch.

Epilogue: And back to a compelling story again. Solar fights his future solar self and they try to contain this unmaking of the world. It's a little convoluted but it works out and a decent read. Can pretty much read this, prologue and that one vignette from Blue and get the story -- and I kind of recommend that as this as a series was pretty awful :) .
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

X-O Manowar Birth:

This covers issues 0-6 and a special vignette that was written for the book which adds to the villain's background of the first arc.

This Aric of Dacia is MUCH more barbarian than the VEI iteration. He tries on the "Good Skin" and goes on a bit of a rampage almost immediately, as we're thrust into action. It's actually a more gripping of a start than the 2012 version. In this volume, it's got a ton of story packed into it. XO goes on the run, he meets a "friend" gets betrayed, faces off against aliens, comes up against Harbinger, wrestles for control of his new destiny as he nearly gets betrayed again. It's awesome!

The #0 issue is maybe the best. It goes back to right before the 1 issue with some great art and a really cool tale of how he was ripped from the ancient kingdom and how he came to wake up here.

I enjoyed shadowman, but this is the best of the old Valiant I've read so far.

9/10

Next up: Unity! I got all the issues because I was interested if Shadowman actually had a little more depth to what happened with him and Elya in the future, and XO's 7-8 were in that storyline so I figured I'd see how that goes.
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

User avatar
Sunlight on Snow
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat May 28, 2016 1:11:03 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Sunlight on Snow »

otomo wrote:Red: Rob Liefeld was allowed to write the script and draw this whole thing. Gritted teeth. Muscles growing on msucles. Feet. All you need to know. Ouch.
He, nice one!

User avatar
Sunlight on Snow
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat May 28, 2016 1:11:03 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Sunlight on Snow »

otomo wrote:As I mentioned in my intro thread, I found my way into Valiant when someone at my friendly local comics shop recommended Shadowman to me. He sold me, originally volume 1 of the VEI and also the hardcover of the Valiant Masters first issue of Shadowman. I've been much more slowly finding my way into VH1 titles since running through VEI as fast as I can to catch up. There's a lot more variance here in quality issue to issue from what I see, so it may be reviewed a little bit differently, but I'll report what I find.

Shadowman: (Issues 0-6, Valiant Masters)

What I found when I read this version of Jack Bonaface, is that I liked him as a character a lot more than the VEI universe. This is a jazz musician who plays in a club, is quite talented and happens to fall upon this shadowman mask which grants him powers. It's much simpler than the newer world, and I find it flows a little better. We're not given a ton of background information on it, but as he progresses through he's compelled to fight for good and protect the innocent, Batman-style almost. It's just fun and refreshing without a lot of the hard asking of "why?" that modern comics do.

The first intro looks like he ran into an alien species from X-O Manowar of this universe, though it's not elaborated upon. Was that Lydia as a cameo? I don't know enough about the universe to confirm that.

The art is very early 90s. It's fine for what it is, the storytelling and dialogue have that feel too, so you'll have to be okay with that, but once you settle in, there's a lot more story here than modern comics.

One thing I got annoyed with was almost the instant Unity crossover where he goes into this alternate timeline... finds love there... and it kinda doesn't flow, and he just comes back and seems to forget about it by issue 6. Was a weird thing to throw in so early into the comic. But, I want to know what happened there, so I'll be reading Unity soon as I finally compiled all of the issues.

Issue 0 was very different, a history of Darque which makes him and his sister very compelling villains.

8/10
I guess it wasn't so easy to tie-in all the series to Unity in the same 2 months, and for some it flows better than for others.

You can find complete sets of Unity for about $25 on the bay.

jakgrimm
My posts can all fit in a short box
My posts can all fit in a short box
Posts: 153
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 3:47:51 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by jakgrimm »

Hi Oto,
I am very curious about your findings with VH1. To me it is the true and best version of Valiant over any iteration. But we love to see it under fresh eyes so please let us know! Also I wanted to recommend that you read the 0 issues after you read your mini run stints. All of the 0 issues came out a year or two after the universe was already rolling and contain a few Easter eggs, surprise explanations, and also (unfortunately) inconsistencies. I think you will get the most out of each series by reading them in the slow revealing order that the authors intended. My two cents.

ps Yes it was Lydia! She pops up all over lol
Time to take a dump. -Torque

jakgrimm
My posts can all fit in a short box
My posts can all fit in a short box
Posts: 153
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 3:47:51 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by jakgrimm »

One thing to keep in mind while reading the Unity books is that the whole arc takes place over approximately 5 months! So you just get glimpses at times of what the characters are doing during that time. Keep an eye on the 'unity days' between panels and maybe it will flow a little better. Also no arc has ever had a tighter continuity between titles. It really is magic
Time to take a dump. -Torque

Zhuge1
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 350
Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2014 10:45:34 am
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Zhuge1 »

Also worth pointing out in relation to this thread that VEI will be releasing the Classic Ninjak Omnibus later this year which would be a great way to read that entire series.

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

Zhuge1 wrote:Also worth pointing out in relation to this thread that VEI will be releasing the Classic Ninjak Omnibus later this year which would be a great way to read that entire series.
Yes I'm looking forward to that. I'm about halfway through Unity but don't want to judge issues before I'm through yet. I think not being as familiar with Magnus and Solar might be hurting my enjoyment of it a little, especially with their books but the rest I've followed very well so far.
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

User avatar
Sunlight on Snow
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat May 28, 2016 1:11:03 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Sunlight on Snow »

otomo wrote:
Zhuge1 wrote:Also worth pointing out in relation to this thread that VEI will be releasing the Classic Ninjak Omnibus later this year which would be a great way to read that entire series.
Yes I'm looking forward to that. I'm about halfway through Unity but don't want to judge issues before I'm through yet. I think not being as familiar with Magnus and Solar might be hurting my enjoyment of it a little, especially with their books but the rest I've followed very well so far.
Check out instocktrades.com....

https://www.instocktrades.com/search/po ... er=valiant

You can get the A&A and XO omnibus together for less than $95 right now.

The A&A Omnibus collects the complete VH1 series, plus EW #25, and extras.
The XO Omnibus collects #0-30, XO-Database, Armorines #0, the new story from the XO Birth hardcover, and extras.

The Ninjak Omnibus will collect the entire Ninjak series as well.

User avatar
Sunlight on Snow
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat May 28, 2016 1:11:03 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Sunlight on Snow »

jakgrimm wrote:Hi Oto,
I am very curious about your findings with VH1. To me it is the true and best version of Valiant over any iteration. But we love to see it under fresh eyes so please let us know! Also I wanted to recommend that you read the 0 issues after you read your mini run stints. All of the 0 issues came out a year or two after the universe was already rolling...
Except Archer & Armstrong and Armorines. These series started with zero issues.

Zhuge1
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 350
Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2014 10:45:34 am
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Zhuge1 »

Sunlight on Snow wrote:
otomo wrote:
Zhuge1 wrote:Also worth pointing out in relation to this thread that VEI will be releasing the Classic Ninjak Omnibus later this year which would be a great way to read that entire series.
Yes I'm looking forward to that. I'm about halfway through Unity but don't want to judge issues before I'm through yet. I think not being as familiar with Magnus and Solar might be hurting my enjoyment of it a little, especially with their books but the rest I've followed very well so far.
Check out instocktrades.com....

https://www.instocktrades.com/search/po ... er=valiant

You can get the A&A and XO omnibus together for less than $95 right now.

The A&A Omnibus collects the complete VH1 series, plus EW #25, and extras.
The XO Omnibus collects #0-30, XO-Database, Armorines #0, the new story from the XO Birth hardcover, and extras.

The Ninjak Omnibus will collect the entire Ninjak series as well.
That's a good deal

User avatar
Sunlight on Snow
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat May 28, 2016 1:11:03 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Sunlight on Snow »

Here's a shipping schedule for VH-1 and Acclaim comics. By the end of the first page Unity's already over meaning everything that is considered "pre-Unity" is on the very first page.

http://valiantarchive.com/valiant/shipping.pdf

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

Sunlight on Snow wrote:
otomo wrote:
Zhuge1 wrote:Also worth pointing out in relation to this thread that VEI will be releasing the Classic Ninjak Omnibus later this year which would be a great way to read that entire series.
Yes I'm looking forward to that. I'm about halfway through Unity but don't want to judge issues before I'm through yet. I think not being as familiar with Magnus and Solar might be hurting my enjoyment of it a little, especially with their books but the rest I've followed very well so far.
Check out instocktrades.com....

https://www.instocktrades.com/search/po ... er=valiant

You can get the A&A and XO omnibus together for less than $95 right now.

The A&A Omnibus collects the complete VH1 series, plus EW #25, and extras.
The XO Omnibus collects #0-30, XO-Database, Armorines #0, the new story from the XO Birth hardcover, and extras.

The Ninjak Omnibus will collect the entire Ninjak series as well.
Wow I may do that. I have all the issues of X-O because I got obsessed and found them at a comiccon (except #68, missing one issue! If anyone has an extra reasonable price :) ) I don't have the acclaim stuff yet.

And thanks for the timing link! I'm in Unity now but I'll probably go back and try to get everything pre-unity.
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

User avatar
hulk181man
Huh, huh....dude, you said member.
Huh, huh....dude, you said member.
Posts: 3288
Joined: Sat Jan 22, 2005 6:55:58 pm
Valiant fan since: Unity
Favorite writer: Warren Ellis
Location: Central, PA
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by hulk181man »

otomo wrote:As I mentioned in my intro thread, I found my way into Valiant when someone at my friendly local comics shop recommended Shadowman to me. He sold me, originally volume 1 of the VEI and also the hardcover of the Valiant Masters first issue of Shadowman. I've been much more slowly finding my way into VH1 titles since running through VEI as fast as I can to catch up. There's a lot more variance here in quality issue to issue from what I see, so it may be reviewed a little bit differently, but I'll report what I find.

Shadowman: (Issues 0-6, Valiant Masters)

The art is very early 90s. It's fine for what it is, the storytelling and dialogue have that feel too, so you'll have to be okay with that, but once you settle in, there's a lot more story here than modern comics.

8/10
Feel...so....old.......
"Did they get you to trade your heroes for ghosts...?"

User avatar
hulk181man
Huh, huh....dude, you said member.
Huh, huh....dude, you said member.
Posts: 3288
Joined: Sat Jan 22, 2005 6:55:58 pm
Valiant fan since: Unity
Favorite writer: Warren Ellis
Location: Central, PA
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by hulk181man »

There's a reason we all went GaGa over pre-Unity Valiant, the stories were incredibly well done and the art was gorgeous.

Rai
Magnus
Harbinger
Solar
Archer & Armstrong

All pre-unity = :thumb: :thumb:

Rai 1-6, Magnus 1-14, and A&A during the BWS run were my personal favorites, others really, really loved the early Harby's and Solar. Check 'em all out you're in for a treat....actually I'm kindof envious, discovering those stories for the first time was such a special, memorable experience. I remember thinking, 'this is how Marvel fans must've felt in the early 1960's'

Sorry that you read Deathmate, many of us would have warned you away (on the plus side you won't find anything worse....)
"Did they get you to trade your heroes for ghosts...?"

Aram
I'm just glad it was pretty good, long and drawn out. (that's what she said.)
I'm just glad it was pretty good, long and drawn out. (that's what she said.)
Posts: 3292
Joined: Sat May 05, 2012 9:38:00 pm
Valiant fan since: Unity
Favorite character: Tie between Flo and Andy
Favorite title: Archer and Armstrong
Favorite writer: The ones that wrote 4 Valiant.
Location: Here, there, at some point everywhere.
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Aram »

hulk181man wrote:There's a reason we all went GaGa over pre-Unity Valiant, the stories were incredibly well done and the art was gorgeous.

Rai
Magnus
Harbinger
Solar
Archer & Armstrong

All pre-unity = :thumb: :thumb:

Rai 1-6, Magnus 1-14, and A&A during the BWS run were my personal favorites, others really, really loved the early Harby's and Solar. Check 'em all out you're in for a treat....actually I'm kindof envious, discovering those stories for the first time was such a special, memorable experience. I remember thinking, 'this is how Marvel fans must've felt in the early 1960's'

Sorry that you read Deathmate, many of us would have warned you away (on the plus side you won't find anything worse....)
X-O bike.
It's not that I don't have an avatar... I've just been working on it for the last few hundred years.

jakgrimm
My posts can all fit in a short box
My posts can all fit in a short box
Posts: 153
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 3:47:51 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by jakgrimm »

Nice. I didn't know A&A started with 0. Also EW never had a 0 issue right?

Its not surprising Magnus and Solar are hard to flow for you since I think they were the highest number issues by the time Unity came out. Alot had occurred for them at that point as opposed to EW who starts his number 1 issue with Unity (albeit they go through most of his origin first. )

Any surprises with Unity yet? Tons of reveals but I wonder what you can see coming....
Time to take a dump. -Torque

User avatar
ckb
Psssst. Hey buddy, need another CGC fix?
Psssst. Hey buddy, need another CGC fix?
Posts: 7397
Joined: Wed Feb 04, 2004 10:15:59 am
Location: Paul Smith's house
Contact:
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by ckb »

otomo wrote:... It's much simpler than the newer world, and I find it flows a little better. We're not given a ton of background information on it, but as he progresses through he's compelled to fight for good and protect the innocent, Batman-style almost. It's just fun and refreshing without a lot of the hard asking of "why?" that modern comics do.
Shooter.

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

Unity Parts 1-9 .

Very ambitious. Rather than a full 18 issue series it seems like it's really 2-3 issues of time that overlaps with different perspectives doing their own stories. Everyone's kinda there to help Solar which is the main plot point

Unity #0: Erica Pierce has died and the Geomancer shows up telling Solar it wasn't a suicide. They get flung into the future following something, and Geomancer goes back to grab all the Valiant heroes to help Solar fight. Not much of an issue, but it is free, not a bad prologue.

Eternal Warrior #1: The eternal warrior of course through time. Most the vignettes don't matter too much but we get to the present and he meets the Geomancer and is flung into 4001. Not super inspiring. I dunno if I had seen this as a #1 issue that I would have been much into the Eternal Warrior in a vacuum. It was okay.

Archer & Armstrong #1: This is the first real intruiging issue. We don't learn a ton about A&A here which is odd for a first issue, but they come in already established and we get a much bigger glimpse at 4001 through Armstrong hanging with Erica Pierce's son in some futuristic club setting. Good character development of the setting's main players. Mediocre but some bright spots.

Magnus #15: The art was so bad in this I just skimmed over it. Couldn't do it. Didn't seem all that impactful of a story from the skim.

X-O Manowar #7: Aric handles business with Ken, bonding him with the weird arm made by the good skin, then goes into the future where he kicks the *SQUEE* out of a bunch of dinosaurs. He rescues some kinda naked cave men who think he's awesome, cuz he's a barbarian himself. One of the better installments of the first volley of Unity.

Shadowman #4: This is the reason I got Unity to begin with because I was interested from the shadowman trade. Jack goes into the future via a swamp, gets caught up in this and makes a lady friend. I wanted to find out more about that relationship but it looks like the other books in the series ignore it. Sad, but good issue.

Rai #6: Rai fights some stuff with Magnus. New Japan crashes, Rai is mad, he's gonna go crush some stuff next issue. Interesting and fun, middle of the pack in terms of quality of this lot.

Harbinger #8: Wow. Best old Valiant book I've read to date. So much compelling intrapersonal drama. The kids are swept into the future, fight, but find out Kris is pregnant and Peter is like whoooooa let's not risk her and the baby. They *SQUEE* off other Valiant heroes and there's a big ol' secret that is really wroth reading rather than spoiling. Very high quality and makes me want to immediately read Harbinger.

Solar #12: This really is the best issue for continuing the unity storyline. It all makes sense what went on after reading this, and it's very well outlined. If I thought it was haphazard in those first couple of issues I was reading, it's not. Shooter did a great job setting this all up and I'm extremely impressed. I went back and looked through a couple of the first issues I read when I was a bit confused. I kinda wish that this wasn't part 9... the numbering almost doesn't matter for these as long as you keep the issues in sequence for their respective titles, but dang what a story. Between this and Harbinger I'm very invested now.

Overall, it's been a mix, but the main storyline is compelling enough where this might be a pretty darn good crossover if the concluding half holds up. 8/10
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

Finished reading Unity! talk about a breath of fresh air compared to Deathmate.

Unity Parts 10-18

Interesting way this is told, I think very ambitious and I think it works to some degree. You definitely don't need every issue to get what's going on but need Solar/Harbinger and the unity series and I think if you wanted to piece the rest together from what you're interested in, that works. Each book kinda builds on the last, restates some of it from other perspectives and opens up a little more toward the end. It's pretty neat. Of 10-198there wasn't a bad issue of the lot.

Eternal Warrior #2: A lot of restating what's been going on in unity as it catches up and Gilad fights. Good issue, enjoyed more than the first.

Archer & Armstrong #2: We see them following Erica's son around, and that he's doing some nasty things with his little hooker playthings. Armstrong seems to be helping out Kris in her pregnancy. Interesting but not mind blowing.

Magnus #16: MUCH better art from last issue. In fact, a strong issue overall. I enjoyed watching Magnus fight and the reveal that Kris's baby was going to grow up to be Magnus -- a very X-Men way to kinda handle timestream things and makes for compelling story.

X-O Manowar #8: More Aric butt kicking. He's got an army at his back now of people who are like him who fight for him. He's all about honor and more about them until convinced to go fight more with the Valiant heroes. Mostly action, not a ton of development but good.

Shadowman #5: Main relationship with Jack/Elya. It's beautifully developed. Reading it again in the unity context I liked the parts with Armstrong and seeing how it all ties in. Some good developments to the story, and great character development.

Rai #7: Rai is determined to kill Erica pierce and then himself. Japanese honor! He talks to magnus and says he'll carry through his vow. mostly fighting in this issue too.

Harbinger #9: Baby birth. Good personal stuff between Kris and Peter. The Magnus baby storyline develops more. Peter goes to rescue Solar who is still alive, a lot happens here. Best art of the whole series in this book, maybe the best book. I really need to read all of harbinger.

Solar #13: Equally compelling to harbinger. Solar gets rescued, we see his deep perspective through time, very cool. This is really difficult and interesting storytelling like few books offer. Probably the best valiant book despite the best character/interpersonal being Harbinger. He takes down Erica but he still needs to save all of time from the reactor! I love how Erica was dealt with, a real sympathetic villain and she was just tortured by her past. Well done, Mr. Shooter!

Unity #1; Clean up time! They clean up time, in a very cool but short issue. We see everyone kinda being taken back and Solar cleaning things up with Geomancer. Elya and Shadowman vow to find each other (I really hope they follow up on this! This is why I read the dang series!) and all is returned to Valiant Universe. The timeline on the covers was pretty legit too, shows how well this was planned.

As a crossover, this really succeeded. I saw new characters and all of them that I wouldn't have checked out otherwise. They all played parts and not just in stupid tie-ins the way marvel/dc does where it doesn't really impact the story other than to screw up other books, it was great. A super ambitious project. A couple rough issues overall, but the second half was so strong it made up for those early ones. Really brilliant work. Jim Shooter is a master.

9/10
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

jakgrimm
My posts can all fit in a short box
My posts can all fit in a short box
Posts: 153
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 3:47:51 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by jakgrimm »

Yeah man. It was genius to have the different angles of the same panel from at least 3 of the different characters' perspective and what they were thinking at the time.

One thing I just realized this week - 2 Gilads and 2 Magnuses! Really genius work.
Time to take a dump. -Torque

jakgrimm
My posts can all fit in a short box
My posts can all fit in a short box
Posts: 153
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 3:47:51 pm
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by jakgrimm »

Also what if Chris got preggo by Sting that day?? We'd have Magnus Robot Devastator! Is there a post that discusses this??
Time to take a dump. -Torque

otomo
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Get those scissors away from my coupons
Posts: 342
Joined: Sat Mar 25, 2017 4:04:27 pm
Valiant fan since: 2017
Favorite character: XO Manowar
Favorite title: XO Manowar
Favorite writer: Matt Kindt
Favorite artist: Tomas Giorello
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by otomo »

X-O Manowar #9-11, just after returning from Unity.

#9 Listed as a part I, but it ends up a 1 part story anyway. Aric is accidentally sent back to 408. He shows up, does some good for his tribe, but they all believe he has some Demon armor and are quick to shun him. Even his Deidre is scared of him. They try to trap him, setting all these different death traps and finally find a way to reflect his power, collapsing a place in on him and killing everyone inside. Aric freaks out at the end. Fantastic issue, I wish they'd explored this a little further but...

#10 Ken's metal arm leads him to where Aric is buried, hybernating underground. Aric gets back to health. Ken finds the XO ring and intends on taking it for himself. A spider-alien shows up and Ken gives the ring to Aric, who knew Ken was hiding it from him. Very fast paced issue, fun. At the end of this in the editor's column, I found out they fired Jim Shooter. :( Sad. Hopefully that doesn't bode ill for the rest of Valiant. He did such a great job up until this point.

#11 Aric is feeling uneasy after the spider attack. He's having bad dreams. Doesn't like dealing with the company. The dreams lead him to some spider alien arena where a spider puts on the x-o armor, and in the dream it sees Aric. He wakes up in space. I don't generally like dream issues, and this felt a bit slower and not quite as good as 9-10. Still alright though.

I like this series a lot so far, almost as much as 2012's early arcs.

I stopped here because issue #12 is billed as a crossover with Solar, so gonna have to find the Solar issue. :)
Like XO Manowar or Conan The Barbarian? Check out my new graphic novel, DEUS VULT on IndieGoGo now: Deus Vult: http://igg.me/at/deusvult.

User avatar
Keith
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Rockin' out in Torquehalla
Posts: 2454
Joined: Wed Dec 12, 2012 10:01:36 am
Valiant fan since: 1992
Favorite character: Timewalker
Favorite title: FVLs Archer & Armstrong
Favorite writer: FVL
Location: Saint Louis
Re: Discovering the Valiant II (VH1 Reviews)

Post by Keith »

If the opportunity is there, try and grab a copy of Rai #0 as a post-Unity read asap.
Good Morning, that's a nice tnetennba.
The thing about Arsenal is they always try to walk it in...


Post Reply