So, yesterday I posted this list of what I think were the finest moments in VEI comics since the company's comeback in 2012. I have to say I was a bit overwhelmed by the reactions, and didn't expect so many people to enjoy it.
Many Thanks to You, first and most.
Many Thanks to You, first and most.
We had to take a break in order to avoid serious neck injuries, but we're now back to give you the second half of this article. Without further ado, let's get this done!
SPOILER FILLED AREA, ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK
In what I consider to be one of the very best comics I ever had the pleasure to read, Joshua Dysart presents "Harbinger" readers with a haunting tale of a child losing his innocence in the midst of- certainly- the most horrible setting one can think.
Harbinger #0 is the origin story of Toyo Harada, world's most powerful psiot and the founder of Harada Global Conglomerates, the company that funds his private army/academy- the Harbinger Foundation. It is also the tale of how this man came to embrace his philosophy of life, and how his powers help(ed) him build the biggest economical empire in existence.
From the start, this story unfolds in two directions, but the focus is primarily Harada's past in post-atomic bomb Japan.
In this segment, an horrifying look into the days immediately after the U.S. bombings and magnificently illustrated by Mico Suayan's artwork, we witness Harada's familiar life being completely destroyed by the bomb, an event that will mold his character until today.
The other half of the story is a present day dialogue between Toyo and Darpan, one of only three self-activated psiots that are known to exist- the others being Toyo himself and Peter Stanchek, the main character of this book. Darpan is just a sweet little kid and probably the biggest Winnebago fan in the whole universe, yet, Harada has no problems at all in manipulating this innocent person and make him walk into the middle of a certain death scenario. All for peace, political stability and oil.
In this segment, an horrifying look into the days immediately after the U.S. bombings and magnificently illustrated by Mico Suayan's artwork, we witness Harada's familiar life being completely destroyed by the bomb, an event that will mold his character until today.
By the time the issue ends and you see Toyo smiling after another success, it's impossible not to feel some deep respect for him, but it is also clear that this is not your typical moustache-twirling villain. In many ways, Harada represents what many normal human beings would do given the opportunity, which is what makes him so terrifying: he is our darkest side, a side that sees Might as Right and if you're weak, you're out of luck.
And he sees himself as the good guy, without doubt; after all, this is a man who is just trying to make the world a better place, without wars, famine or disease. From rice balls to oil, he just wants to give people what they need.
So what if he makes a little profit on the side?
2- The Future is Now. Or in 2014. (Archer & Armstrong #12)
Back in it's original inception (early 1990's), the VALIANT Universe was divided into 2 main timelines- Present and Future- and their books were either taking place in one or another. Magnus was a "future" book, and so was "Rai", both of them taking place in the year 4000. "Harbinger", "X-O", Shadowman all took place in (then) present day, for a few examples.
Since it's comeback, and not counting the RAI announcement from last year's FCBD, VEI didn't really showed any signs of commiting into the Future timeline. That is, it's unknow at this point if we'll ever see a Future line of books. For all we know, Rai (the only futuristic title announced so far) could take place in the present.
This was true until August's issue of Archer & Armstrong. Let me explain.
The current A&A story arc ("Far, Faraway") sees our heroes arriving at the weirdest, strangest place you can imagine: the Faraway, a land/realm/dimension/plane where people don't starve, dinosaurs roam the land and everything that should be Natural, is Artificial. It's creepy as hell, even though it's beautiful.
So, Archer, Armstrong and lil' Mary-Maria Archer (the titular Archer's "sister") arrive in this place, and soon find themselves fighting Aliens, "Dinopunching" everything in their way and allying themselves with the Lost Colony of Roanoke. In other words, good fun!
But what makes this issue particularly special is not any of that.
You see, in the latter part of the book, Archer finds these monks who are keeping a strange object called Aleph, which holds inside a Prisioner. Archer, being the good samaritan he is, decides to release this person from imprisionment.
That person is Ivar, the Timewalker- Armstrong's older brother.
Ivar, it seems, was trapped in there for a loooooong time, but he still manages to remember some of the important stuff that WILL happen, or not, in the future.
I was making weird sounds as I was reading the page where Ivar starts rapping, my mouth completely opened, really dumbstruck look on my face.
If you didn't read the issue, last warning: really BIG spoilers bellow.
So it seems that Archer's real love is Faith (not M-M) and he will kill Bloodshot, someday. Also, the goat from Quantum & Woody is destined to something Big.
Add to that, the little info given by the Archies (Archer's followers- don't ask) at the beginning of the issue about "sentient cities" and it seems to me that VEI is commited in giving us a future line of books. Or just one.
And since the company is now building a tradition of "Big! Summer! Annoucements!" I'll bet that we will hear about this in next year's Summer of Valiant. That's a guess, btw- I don't have any inside info, unfortunately :)
Either way, this issue should definitely be on this list because it's the very first time we saw a glimpse of the Future timeline.
1- Expect the unexpected. Seriously. (Harbinger #15)Ok, we got this on the bag- time for the final installment of this list.
But first let me clarify that it was a pain to leave so many great stuff out. We could only do 10, and 10 it is.
So, Harbinger 15.
Where to start? First, if you read this issue and my previous post about Torque's debut, then you already figured out why this is here.
Either way, I'll explain.
BIG SPOILERS
After a devastating war between the Renegades, Bloodshot, H.A.R.D. Corps and Harada (HARBINGER WARS), we expected this next issue and arc to be somewhat of a filler, i.e. by the end of it, not much would have changed since the beginning of the arc. It felt right, since these kids went through a tornado of s*** since they ever set foot on the street. I wanted my fav psiot kids to relax, be silly and generally speaking, chill the frack out.
As I start my reading, I immediately enjoy the setting and tone of the book: everyone is happy, joking and bonding. I love character moments like this.
The book goes on and soon things get... rather uncomfortable. On the surface everything's cool but then Kris (the only non-psiot teen in the gang) starts quietly freaking out at some weird menace we are not yet seeing.
Towards the end of the comic, she finds Torque alone and both of them share this intimate, fuzzy moment, that makes John Torkelson abandon his self-projected alter ego. The figures we see lying in a bed is that of Kris and a skinny, disabled kid.
And it is pretty obvious that they are about to get physical.
But then she smashes his head with a skateboard, yelling "This is friggin' amazing!". End of issue.
No wonder I couldn't get this comic out of my head for days.
Why is this book here?
Because it sums up perfectly the attitude of new VALIANT. The story is the engine of the books, and the best idea wins, as the guys themselves say.
A bit of backstory: everyone who read the previous incarnation of Valiant knew that Torque died really soon and that he was not that important as a character, save for being one of the parents of Magnus, along with- you got it- Kris; as a result, many people expected him to be alive for a long time in this current incarnation, mostly because he was/is such a great dude in Dysart's hands.
He was NOT supposed to die, right?
Wrong. And even if it's all an allucination (as I'm typing, we have no idea if Torque's alive), this issue belongs here because the shock was- That. Darn. Good.
I read comics for stuff like this.
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