I there this much?

A week-to-week plan is available for re-reading VALIANT from the beginning...
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Hatiko
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I there this much?

Post by Hatiko »

Hey guys I checked and there is like 700 old valiant issues. I can't even get to Invincible 94 without it taking me forever. Anyway, what are the must read stories? I hear that sometimes the stories are so bad they can be skipped. I want to be in the loop on the old valiant and read some good stuff from the old days, and good stories never go out of style. But I probably could never read all of it without me dying before that. So should I just read everything or is there must read stories that I can read to lessen the attacks. And feel free to correct me if I'm wrong about the 700 issues or anything else I said, I'm still new here.

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Re: I there this much?

Post by BugsySig »

Hatiko wrote:Hey guys I checked and there is like 700 old valiant issues. I can't even get to Invincible 94 without it taking me forever. Anyway, what are the must read stories? I hear that sometimes the stories are so bad they can be skipped. I want to be in the loop on the old valiant and read some good stuff from the old days, and good stories never go out of style. But I probably could never read all of it without me dying before that. So should I just read everything or is there must read stories that I can read to lessen the attacks. And feel free to correct me if I'm wrong about the 700 issues or anything else I said, I'm still new here.
Everybody will start by saying everything pre-Unity and Unity. Those are the musts along with Rai #0 (and Rai #8 and XO #9 for some Unity fall-out), BWS's full Archer & Armstrong run (#0-12) and Eternal Warrior until at least #8.

Harbinger all the way through #25 was still pretty solid, and Shadowman was good as long as Bob Hall was on it, but I guess you could stop at #28 before Chaos Effect. As far as Acclaim goes, Shadowman Vol. 3 and Quantum & Woody are musts.

I'm sure others will add to that, but those are pretty good starts.
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Re: I there this much?

Post by kevinbastos »

Anything BEFORE Unity is generally considered a win.

Archer & Armstrong 0-12 (but you could probably find the others in a set)
Armorines is easy and cheap, but mediocre at its best.
Bloodshot is pretty good at the beginning, uneven in the middle, and decent at the end. BUT EXPENSIVE at the end.
Eternal Warrior is good...
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Re: I there this much?

Post by Chiclo »

Eternal Warrior 32! It is definitely a product of its era.

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Newton
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Re: I there this much?

Post by Newton »

Almost done with my summer complete re-read.

I like MOST things that came out prior to Chaos Effect with Unity and Pre-Unity comics being the best (many of those are collected in trades). So start with the early stuff and read until it stops being interesting or tolerable to you is my advice.

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Re: I there this much?

Post by jmatt »

The Malev War is great and all you need is two titles, Rai and Magnus.

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Re: I there this much?

Post by kevinbastos »

I just remember when it came out, it took SO LONG!
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Re: I there this much?

Post by Hatiko »

Hmmm... I still don't know if I'll do this or just focus on the new Valiant. It will take me like a year or something to get through the old stuff. And when I use the words "get through" that is usually a sign that I shouldn't read it because comics should be fun and not a chore or something I should have to "get through". No doubt they are some good stories but Valiant isn't the only thing I'm reading. Thanks all for your posts though. They were a good help to me. I'm not as "VALIANT" as all of you. (Get it? Okay, bad joke...)

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Re: I there this much?

Post by MarrowMan »

In addition to reading the old VH1-VH2 VH3 - what have you, I would also recommend checking out the Only The Valiant Podcast

Their insights into the old (and new) Valiant are amazing. You will learn tons of stuff. I suggest listening from episode 1-82, they are all great.
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Re: I there this much?

Post by BugsySig »

Hatiko wrote:Hmmm... I still don't know if I'll do this or just focus on the new Valiant. It will take me like a year or something to get through the old stuff. And when I use the words "get through" that is usually a sign that I shouldn't read it because comics should be fun and not a chore or something I should have to "get through". No doubt they are some good stories but Valiant isn't the only thing I'm reading. Thanks all for your posts though. They were a good help to me. I'm not as "VALIANT" as all of you. (Get it? Okay, bad joke...)
If it seems overwhelming, I would suggest starting with the 3 hardcover trades that VEI published starting in 2007 (Harbinger: The Beginning, XO Manowar: Birth, and Archer & Armstrong: First Impressions). Each collects the first 6-7 issues of each book, plus the #0 issues and a new story. Reading those will give you a good sense of the original iterations and all 3 are probably the best story arcs for each title (though the BWS run on A&A goes up to issue 12).

The 4th HC (Bloodshot) will be out in November, and we all expect Shadowman and eventually Rai, Eternal Warrior & Ninjak to follow. There has also been some mention of a Unity hardcover or two down the road. So there is more to come if you stay interested in reading the originals.

They really are excelent stories, so dont give up on them yet :thumb:
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Re: I there this much?

Post by Newton »

Hatiko wrote:Hmmm... I still don't know if I'll do this or just focus on the new Valiant. It will take me like a year or something to get through the old stuff. And when I use the words "get through" that is usually a sign that I shouldn't read it because comics should be fun and not a chore or something I should have to "get through". No doubt they are some good stories but Valiant isn't the only thing I'm reading. Thanks all for your posts though. They were a good help to me. I'm not as "VALIANT" as all of you. (Get it? Okay, bad joke...)
I agree with the 3 newer trades as a good place to start because they are good stories and you can also find them for reasonable prices.

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Re: I there this much?

Post by 400yrs »

Hatiko wrote:Hmmm... I still don't know if I'll do this or just focus on the new Valiant. It will take me like a year or something to get through the old stuff. And when I use the words "get through" that is usually a sign that I shouldn't read it because comics should be fun and not a chore or something I should have to "get through". No doubt they are some good stories but Valiant isn't the only thing I'm reading. Thanks all for your posts though. They were a good help to me. I'm not as "VALIANT" as all of you. (Get it? Okay, bad joke...)
I agree. I'm reading it. I think I'm about 500 books in, but it has taken me probably 2 years to "get through" that much. It does feel like a chore which is why it's taking so long. If you are reading other stuff that you enjoy more, stick with that and these new Valiants. You don't want to burn yourself out nor blow your money on something you may not enjoy.

If you do get the itch, Shadowman was pretty good throughout the whole run. There were some stinkers in there, but mostly good.
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Re: I there this much?

Post by dave »

Any of the trades are great reads and so very worth it. They are fast too since they are all collected like that.

I would read:

Steel Nation
Invasion
The Rai tpb
Retribution
Alpha and Omega

each one can be read in a day rather easily.

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Post by MoonChild »

Def all the cheap trades you can get are worth it. Great reads & art. Solar, Alpha & Omega and the Magnus Trades are especially timeless.
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Re: I there this much?

Post by myron »

dave wrote:Any of the trades are great reads and so very worth it. They are fast too since they are all collected like that.

I would read:

Steel Nation
Invasion
The Rai tpb
Retribution
Alpha and Omega

each one can be read in a day rather easily.
throw in the harbinger tpb and you're pretty good to go
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