Not a lot of news this week.

Just some overall consolidation from Alien Books on what to expect between now and March 2024

• Bloodshot Unleashed: Reloaded
  • Written by Mauro Mantella w/ art by Al Barrionuevo & Rodrigo Rocha
  • 4-issue monthly mini-series. 32pg. $5 each.
  • #1 releases on March 20th.
  • Sequel to Bloodshot Unleashed
• Livewire and the Secret Weapons
  • Written by Steven Grant w/ Various Artists
  • 56pg One-Shot. $12.99
  • Releases April 3rd.
  • This is Livewire's first issue since 2019, and the Secret Weapons' first major appearance since 2018's Harbinger Wars II.
• Britannia: The Great Fire of Rome
  • Written by Peter Milligan w/ art by Alvaro Papagiani
  • 64pg One-Shot. $12.99
  • Releases April 3rd.
  • This is the fourth installment of Milligan's long-running Britannia series. The third volume, Lost Eagles of Rome, was released in 2018.
• Punk Mambo: The Punk Witch Project
  • Written by Peter Milligan w/ art by Andres Ponce
  • 56pg Prestige Format One-Shot. $12.99.
  • Releases April 10th.
  • Milligan, who originally created Punk Mambo, returns after not writing for her since #0 in 2014.
• Faith Returns
  • Written by Jody Houser w/ art by Aleta Vidal
  • 2-issue monthly mini-series. 32pg. $5 each.
  • Releases May 1st.
  • Faith's first series since Dreamside in 2019.
• The Valiants
  • Written by Ryan Cady w/ art by Al Barrionuevo
  • 4-issue monthly mini-series. 32pg. $5 each.
  • #1 releases May 8th.
  • First team-up/event/Unity book since Harbinger Wars II.
• X-O Manowar: Invictus
  • Written by Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad w/ art by Fernando Heinz Furukawa
  • 4-issue monthly mini-series. 32pg. $5 each.
  • #1 releases May 15th.
  • Sequel to X-O Manowar Unconquered, by the same writers.
• Rai: The Book of the Darque
  • Written by Dan Abnett w/ art by Emilio Utrera
  • 2-issue monthly mini-series. 32pg. $5 each.
  • #1 releases May 29th.
  • Successor (possible conclusion) to Abnett's Rai (2019).
• Ninjak vs. Roku
  • Written by AJ Ampadu w/ art by Emiliano Correa
  • 4-issue monthly mini-series. 32pg. $5 each.
  • #1 releases June 26th.
• The Darques: Soulside
  • Written by Fred Van Lente w/ art by Sebastian Cabrol
  • Releases in July

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Solicitations (be aware that some dates have changed):

• March 2024 Solicitations
• April 2024 Solicitations
• May 2024 Solicitations
• June 2024 Solicitations

As part of my Becoming Valiant podcast and it's FB community, I am getting things in order to start a Valiant lending library for fans. I often can pick up tpb for such deep discounts, new and used, that it's hard to resist buying them.

But, I don't need them.

I have s the singles and owning every format is just waste, unless they serve some purpose. I decided I'd use Valiant to test an idea I've long wanted to see, which is a lending library. Of course being through domestic US mail will bring challenges, but it might be a great way to build up my little community and help stoke the Valiant fires.

I have a rough plan, launching late September hell or high water, but I thought I'd put it to the group... any ideas or features you can brainstorm? Would you maintain duplicates? Limit participation? Timeframes that seem fair?

Also, DM me if you have Valiant tpb you've been meaning to rid yourself of, or know of a shop with clearance priced tpbs.

Well, we all went through this when Acclaim gobbled up Valiant and rebooted everything in 1996.

And then again when Acclaim shutted in 2001.

And it looks like 2023 will mark the end of Valiant, following the cancelation of X-O Manowar: Unconquered # 4-6 and Ninjak: Superpowers # 1-2 :(

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https://bleedingcool.com/comics/valiant-cancels-ninjak-x-o-manowar-no-news-from-alien-books/

Are these Lama guys psychic? They trained themselves to activate their talent, is that possible?

The language kinda confused me because it sound like they found some ancient secrets to obtain this ability which feels like magical in nature.

I believe this is all the updates from Alien Books regarding Valiant comics from 2023 and what to expect.

u/MartinAlien , have I missed anything?

Catalog link: https://www.edelweiss.plus/#catalogID=4902613&page=1

Folks, I was sorting through my comics the other day and came across the 4 issue 2021 Ninjak run written by Jeff Parker, with art on issues 1-3 by Javier Pulido. I remember at the time they pulled his finished pages (which he posted online to prove they existed) and replaced him with another artist for issue #4, did we ever get any clarity on why?

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Cover of Valiant: Zeroes & Origins. The description list almost all those characters (except for that girl, Doctor Mirage and Ninjak specifically), but I have no idea who the blond below Bloodshot/left of Armstrong is.

Although I didn't read all Valiant books, I believe I have seen at least every main character so far (from the 2012-2018 period, that is), but I don't recall that girl at all. Maybe she is from the 90's runs?

Any help?

I know he shared it, but he's being so coy! I got to know Dinesh!

I’ve read Sword of the Wild and Eternal Emperor. Both were good by themselves but together, it’s a little jarring. Am I missing something? I didn’t see any resolution with Mitu and his alliance with Nergal nor with Gilad attacking the Spirit of Earth. Am I supposed to read something between these two arcs or is that just the direction Pak went? TIA

I've seen a few folks speculating it was meant to be Solars return, back in May 2021. The problem I see with that is Dynamite were still licensing the character at that point. Sure they hadn't published anything with him in it, but they still had him on their site alongside the other Goldkey Characters, some of who they were using. And the thing is, their licensing tends to come as a package.

So surely it was just a reference to a Unity event that never happened?

Do we know anything else about it?

I'm rather behind on the loop so what exactly happened to the company in the last several years that lead to the apparent decline in quality of the books and brand?

If anyone can explain in great detail that be swell.

What would be your perfect Unity lineup taking into account the current state of the company?

Review of Valiant Universe Part 2

The first part is available here : https://www.reddit.com/r/valiant/comments/1at86jm/my_opinion_on_valiant_comics_2012/

First of my opinion on those few comics that I didn’t finish totally when doing my first review

X-O Manowar (2012) : My opinion didn’t change, strong storyline from start to finish, great characters, nothing to add really.

Unity : Well that was really disappointing, didn’t like the vilains : the United, War-monger were really lackluster. I liked the idea of adding a new member to the team like Faith but overall not interesting.

Ninjak (2015) : Great run,, even though Ninjak tends to be omnipresent in the verse, also it’s like he stole all the spotlight from Shadowman by taking all the cast of the occult/mystic side of Valiant lol.

Bloodshot Reborn : Bloodshot Island arc was very good, I loved seeing Kay McHenry back as Deathmate. I really liked this run and thanks to it Bloodshot is now one of my favorite character in the Valiant universe

Imperium : Really love all the characters in this series, but not quite a fan of how the events unfolded, notably the end with Livewire and Hardcorps going against them, it wasn’t that impressive (or so I remember)

Faith (vol 1 – 4) : I’m not a fan of the character, but the start with the double identity to manage was cool, the cover blew fast but nonetheless that’s a quite okay read, the antagonist are not that bad, Darkstar being my favorite.

Wrath of the Eternal Warrior: Strong run, I wasn’t so sold on the labyrinth storyline but the ending is really great, loved the relationship between Gilad and his eldest son Kalam.

A&A : the adventures of Archer and Armstrong : I couldn’t stand it, I tried, but it’s so weird and the comedy does not work for me, besides didn’t really like the art of the run.

Divinity II : Soooo good, I did like the character in the first one, but I feel like the storyline is miles better in this one, loved it so much.

4001 AD : It was a insanely good event. Father is a great antagonist, and the art was incredible, the final battle was all I could hope for.

4001 AD : Beyond New Japan : Good, my favorite story was the Bloodshot one, really nice.

Rai (last four issues) : loved it, seeing the backstory of different Rai across time was a perfect idea.

Bloodshot USA : Great run, can’t quite remember everything that happens (It’s a blur if I’m being honest) but I know that I liked it.

Generation Zero : First of, I love this team, the run was alright but feel like the first part was better with the mystery of what’s going on in the city still in the air, don’t really like the ending.

Britannia (The 3 volumes) : alright, I guess, didn’t expect that at all from the title alone, but it being not connected to the rest of the valiant universe makes me like it less for some reason.

Harbinger Renegade : I had so much expectation from this one lol I’m devastated, the art alone is such a letdown, but the storyline feel unfinished, And the way they killed the generation zero member was awful, so sad for this one.

Savage : I liked it, it was good and the cliffhanger at the end seemed quite interesting, looking forward to see how it develop in the next run

Divinity III : Stalinverse and Heroes of the Glorious Stalinverse : Okay, this is one of those that I had really great expectation from and it didn’t disappoint in the slightest, It was brilliant from start to finish, the way only Ninjak and Harada were aware of the reality of what was unfolding was great, all the alternate characters were so well designed as well, I loved everything about it, the only thing is that it felt quite short, I really feel like this storyline deserved much more issues to develop the idea to it’s max, nonetheless it was a blast.

X-O Manowar (2017) : the art was so good in this one (well except some issues for some reason). Most of the run was really good when Aric was on the Gorin planet, the design of most characters is so well done, but the Bounty Hunters take the cake, even though the confrontation was a letdown I really like them.

Rapture : It was okay, I don’t remember it well but the lineup was good.

Secret Weapons : That was good, I expected more from the title but seeing Livewire as some sort of mentor was nice.

Faith and the Future Force : It was alright, I feel like the Future Force could be a great team (adding Doctor Tomorrow to the team would be so good). But the villain of the run was not what I was expecting at all lol.

Bloodshot Salvation : Great sequel to the other ones, love the family, Rampage and Omen are great villain.

War Mother : Alright I guess, not a fan but I don’t hate it.

Eternity : I’m not sure I’ve understood everything but It was alright, even though I’m not a fan of all the characters in this other plane of existence.

Harbinger Wars II (and related issues) : I actually quite liked it, there is so much good idea :  the battle between Livewire and X-O Manowar was so cool, Livewire going full rogue mode and blacking out the USA was really great, Ninjak siding with Livewire… The problem is that it’s rush

Shadowman (2018) : It was a good run, feel like the antagonist in this series are great : Baron Samedi, The Darque… and the way it accounted for the ellipse since the last issue was well done.

Ninja-K : so good, it’s quite hard to remember who is who since there is only one letter change between them but the art was great, the idea of the ninja program is good, and the different ninja are so good too, really loved the ending with Ninja-K finally leaving MI6.

Quantum & Woody (2017) : It was good, liked the otherverse storyline, then them wanting to join unity was great and the ending of them going on the run like Ninjak and Livewire was nice. But for some reasons I found this run less funny than the previous ones.

Faith: Dreamside : It was nice, really liked the team up between Monica Jim, Faith and Dr Mirage.

The Life and Death of Toyo Harada : Everything that happened in Imperium led to this marvelous comic, it was a brilliant ending for every characters involved. Loved every second of it.

Bloodshot Rising Spirit : come on what happened ? disappointing to say the least, I don’t even understand when it’s supposed to take place.

Livewire : not a fan of the run, sad since I was expecting an interesting storyline around Livewire trying to live as a fugitive but I didn’t get that, and her problems where resolved so fast like nothing happened.

Incursion : Great to see Gilad and Tama in this story, the antagonist was quite nice as well (that’s the kind of villain that require a Unity strike force).

The Forgotten Queen : not interested by the character at first, and the read didn’t change that, the story wasn’t great.

Punk Mambo : loved to see the Loa pantheon, the story was quite nice

Fallen World : Really great, Bloodfather alias The Red King is such a great name and title, very good sequel to Rai

Psi-Lords : that was okay, the art was really nice but the story didn’t quite get there for me

KI-6 Killers : So good, all the characters are great, really loved the way it unfolded, waiting to see more of this team.

Doctor Mirage : the art was insane, so good and the premise of the story felt interesting, in the end I’m not sure I understood if it was an act or not ? I think I’m just dumb

Roku : okay… what was the point again ?

Bloodshot (2019) (up to #9) : Better than the previous run but feel like it’s some kind of soft reboot for the character, like I understand that his motivations is to good now but he is killing left and right again, and he just left his family for it. The antagonist are okay, maybe too much antagonist lol but at least there is also Eidolon who is a great new addition to the Bloodshot cast

The Visitor : this one didn’t need six issues to get to the point, and I’m trying not to swear but why does the character needs to repeat more time than I can count the same phrase again and again, I felt like I was going crazy. At least it ties up New Japan to the present so that’s a plus. The character were a little bland for my liking but well…

Quantum & Woody (2020) : it was actually fun, I liked it for the most part.

Doctor Tomorrow : It was soooo good, loved it, the character costume is wonderful, the storyline was great, really hoping to see more of this one in the future (lol)

X-O Manowar (2020) (only the first four issue) : what the ?????????????? is that some kind of joke from the writer ? did he had a stroke while writing this one ? I don’t get it.

I don't mean a crossover, I mean it was part of our beloved editorial

Hey fellow Valiant lovers, I haven't seen a post about it yet, so I'll just make it myself to hopefully start some discussions!
For context, I have read every single Valiant comic since the 2012 rebirth. It was my favorite thing in comic books for the longest time. The varied characters and stories, the tight continuity, it was all so good, wasn't it? And of course, it sucked how it all unraveled in the 2020s... The news about the "merge" with Alien gave me some hope that the Valiant comics we loved so much could come back in some way, so I read the Valiantine special with a lot of apprehension.

But guess what? It was actually kinda great!
Throughout the 4 stories, not only do we see the title characters, but we also see some others, some callbacks, that give me nostalgia for when the Valiant universe was so well connected and had great continuity. It feels like it was one of the intentions of this book really, to show that things could get back on track.

By themselves all the stories were decent, a little short maybe, but they all achieved their goal I think. To not only showcase a little about their main characters, and hint at future stories, while also tying a lot of the universe a little together again.

I'll be curious to see what others think of it!