Written by:Robert Venditti
Art by: Diego Bernard
Publisher: Valiant
As the Valiant universe undergoes its latest event, Armor Hunters, which centers on X-O Manowar, what happens to the main book? Apparently, it turns into an origin story for the Armor Hunters! On one hand, it is a little bit tedious, and kind of undermines the characters. The mystery behind the Armor Hunters has been one of the driving factors behind their characters. It helps to make them more interesting, and they seem like something that shouldn’t need backstories, or any explaining. On the other, however, it serves to explain the motivation behind the Armor Hunters’ crusade against the X-O suits. In that sense, it benefits the main narrative. So this issue ends up being a double-edged sword in that sense.
That said, it’s hard to complain about a well-written, well-drawn issue of a great science fiction series. The issue follows two specific members of the Armor Hunters, Reebo and Malgam, specifically showing us how these two characters became involved with the Armor Hunters. At the start of the issue, the two are just a pair of cocky bounty hunters, trying to get their career off of the ground. By the end of the issue, they’ve changed drastically, after a harrowing run in with an X-O suit. This issue is a powerful character study, taking two characters through an entire character arc in the space of one issue, and series writer Robert Venditti manages to pull it off, for the most part.
The two have an accelerated character arc, meaning that everything is compressed, and we miss out on a few events that sound really cool. Instead of seeing these events, they are explained away in a couple lines of dialogue. Such is the nature of a one and done story, of course, but this is a story that feels like it could have run concurrently to the Armor Hunters mini series while Aric was headlining that event, or even as a back up story over the course of 10 or 12 issues. We really just get to see the beginning and end of this story, and most of the middle is cut out entirely.
The issue also has great artwork, for the most part. The penciling, courtesy of Diego Bernard, is consistently excellent. This is especially obvious in the opening pages, which take place in a bar in “the farthest reaches of the universe.” The numerous alien species all look great, and the crowded setting is a perfect place for Bernard to flex his artistic muscles. Unfortunately, Brian Reber’s colors don’t quite match up. Everything looks unnecessarily dark, as if darker shades of colors were used in place of their lighter counterparts. In some places, this works, but in others, it makes the book look a little bit dull.
X-O Manowar #26, as a whole, is a satisfying package. It’s a solid done in one story, despite its flaws. It is one of the weaker issues of the series to date, but all in all it was still an enjoyable read.
