The New Valiant: A Roundabout Review

Well here it is, book seven and Archer and Armstrong continues to impress. Valiant keeps producing book after book that entertains me for my dollar. It doesn't seem to matter if it’s Bloodshot, Harbinger, or their flagship title X-O Manowar. Valiant in the nineties was the pinnacle new comic book company. Magnus Robot Fighter, Solar, and Harbinger were already out a few months before I became enraptured. Solar #10 was the first “gimmick” book with an all black cover which had comic book stores scrambling for more copies to sell. Valiant answered the demand with a second printing.   This is when I took notice and my addictive nature had me looking to pick up every back issue that I missed.

In today’s market of third party grading, mostly by industry leader CGC, many collector’s want the best possible, myself included. In the case of Harbinger #1 this means getting one graded a 9.8 with white pages. If I'm not mistaken this was the first book from the nineties graded a 9.8 by CGC to sell for over $1000. In March of 2008 it reached its ceiling price of $2550.  Recently it has been steady at twenty percent that price. This is nowhere near the same for an Archer and Armstrong #1 in a 9.8, which hasn't broke the $100 mark. 

Jim Shooter had his first major story at Valiant with “Unity”.  To this day it is my favorite cross-over event. Archer and Armstrong #1 made its debut with this story line (not including Zero) becoming my second favorite Valiant title behind Harbinger. Archer and Armstrong are fighting secret sects and it seems The Null is the biggest one of them. Their goal is unlike Pinky and the Brain’s, they don’t want to take over the Earth; they want to end it. I never understood those organizations, and Archer who once was a member of the sect through selective training comes to light by meeting the “devil” himself, Armstrong.

The action really started to heat up when a Geomancer was killed. Its Armstrong’s brother, the sworn protector of those that speak with the Earth, Gilad, or the Eternal Warrior as he is known to the reader, that plans to avenge the death by killing who he holds responsible, Archer.   How he could think it would be anything other than the Sect is somewhat close minded on his part, but then again Archer was a member of that same group until his "parents" tried to kill him. I guess being best friends with ones brother does not give a free pass.

The summer of 12' brought these great Valiant titles to the newsstand again in a day and age where the two major companies feel the only way to garnish new readers is to start with a new number one. And yes, Valiant did indeed start with a number one, but let’s face it they only just started publishing again. I could have easily ended with number two as I have with other titles, but between the art and story Valiant seems to be creating something I love to read, Comics Books.

Thanks for Reading