Chad: Howdy, Valiant Devotees, and welcome back to Valiant (Re)Visions! I’m Chad Bowers, and I’m joining Brandon again this week while David’s off saving the galaxy or whatever. Brandon, let’s start off with Harbinger #15, part one of the all new arc entitled “Perfect Day.” Joshua Dysart is still at the writer helm, but joining him this month is fan-favorite artist Barry Kitson on art. This is the story of the Harbinger kids’ post-Harbinger Wars vacation, and it was a pretty interesting issue, I thought. But we’ll get to me later — what’d you think?
Brandon: What can I say? I loved this issue. I loved the way we got to see all of the characters not on the run and instead taking time to enjoy themselves. I also loved the uneasy feeling I got throughout the issue. It was as if something horrible would come to be as the price to pay for such a perfect day. Boy oh boy was I correct on that last one. Little did I know just how gruesome a price there was to pay and how it all would happen.
After last issue I was really unsure what direction this book was heading. It was so entrenched in Harbinger War and had very little in the way of a push toward a new direction following it. Well, I have learned my lesson and from here on out Joshua Dysart has my complete trust. In one issue he has given us some great character development as well as launch the Renegades into what appears to be a very unsafe future. What more could you want?!
What about you Chad? What did you think of the issue?
Chad: Brandon, I hate to say it, man, but I think I had the exact opposite experience with this issue. I’ve enjoyed Harbinger quite a bit and felt like the concept really pulled together during Harbinger Wars, but this issue felt forced and more than a little off message. That really surprised me, because so much of this series is about them on the run, and that’s evidently what I like most about the book, because without it, they’re just a bunch of oddly dressed teens hanging around the beach and dancing. Ugh, teenagers.
And nothing against the team taking a breather, but this issue didn’t feel like a natural follow-up to the events of Harbinger Wars, and ultimately, it’s probably my least favorite of the series so far. I’m not buying whatever’s going on between Peter and Faith. It’s early yet, but Peter’s got issues, man. And the moment between Kris and Charlene? Not entirely unexpected, I guess, but I worry about the subtext there — with Kris apparently turning into a homicidal maniac just after her first lesbian kiss.
This is a weird one for me, BB, but maybe it’s just me…
Brandon: I don’t know. I would agree that it was different from everything else but I also think it was a nice break. The characters and readers are coming out of a brutal war and I think they were looking to throw in an X-Men baseball game if you will to slow things down and maybe give everyone a chance to breath and refocus. Coming out of Harbinger Wars there really was no direction. Now we know that there is a killer in their midst and we don’t know what’s caused it. I can see where the massive shift in tone on the book could be off putting for some but for me I instantly thought of those X-Men baseball games and that was always something I really enjoyed and miss.
As far as the interactions among the characters I didn’t really have a huge problem with any of that either. Peter and Faith’s pseudo-flirting relationship thing seemingly hit very abruptly this issue but it also kind of makes sense. As he points out she has been getting him to a better place and she has also continually been a supportive presence for Peter in this mission that they are all on. I feel like this could have been eased into a lot slower but I can see where they sort of laid down the foundation. Kris and Charlene kissing wasn’t a big deal but it felt more out of left field to me than Peter and Faith. It doesn’t fly in the face of anything though so I can absolutely roll with it. As far as any subtext goes I read it less that the lesbian kiss caused her to murder and more as yet another shot at us gingers. First we don’t have souls and now you kiss us and you kill people. Great…
Continued belowSo what did you think of the art?
Chad: I hate to be a negative “nelly” over here, man, but I wasn’t crazy about it. This is Barry Kitson’s first issue as the new, regular artist for Harbinger, and it might just be that he’s in the warm-up phase. Kitson’s been a favorite of mine since he was on the Superman books back in the day, that’s why I hate to say it, but yeah… this issue wasn’t his best work. It looked rushed, but more than that, it didn’t feel like Kitson. He’s not a Valiant Virgin (and neither are we, right? Eh? Eh?). He’s done Bloodshot and a few fill-ins here and there, and those have been pretty great, and very much in-line with what he does best. If this was a lesser artist, you could almost blame it on Harbinger’s ensemble cast, but this kind of thing is Kitson’s bread and butter. He’s done fantastic runs on the Legion, the Order, Thunderbolts, etc… He’s got team book chops, so I’m not sure what was going on with this issue. Of course, one misstep hasn’t killed my enthusiasm for Kitson on Harbinger, but I’ll be interested to see what the next issue looks like.
How about you, Brandon?
Brandon: First and foremost I dig Nelly surfacing in this. Is he alive still?
Anyway, as far as the art goes I wasn’t too impressed either. I felt like it seemed kind of rushed and lacked the energetic vibe of Kitson’s usual work. I LOVED his work on Legion. This is most certainly not that. There were some inconsistency with the art that took me out of the read. The most glaring being the page with Faith and Peter flying. On that page the first panel has Faith using a breathing mask and then it is gone. It’s a little thing but it really pulled me out of the story. I don’t know what else to say honestly other than I am sure things will get better as far as the art goes. In Kitson I believe!
So what would you give the overall book for a rating?
Chad: Overall rating would have to be 6/10. Not the book’s best showing, but obviously not the worst book out this week, either. I feel like I’m being a little hard on the issue, so it’s important to note just how much I love this series, Brandon. I’ve enjoyed Dysart’s take on the characters, the concept, and just about everything he’s done on the series. I look at this issue as kind of like a football team’s building season, y’know? Harbinger just came off of this super awesome crossover event (Valiant’s first, and hopefully not last!), and now there’s some settling back in that has to be done. So yeah, while this issue isn’t as strong as some of the previous ones, I’m still 100% vested in the series as a whole, and looking forward to seeing what Dysart and Kitson do next month.
Brandon: That’s fair enough.I’d give it a 7.5. I felt it was a fun issue but there were some issues with the art which took my final score down a tad.
Alright, moving on to our next book we have Archer and Armstrong #12! This is David’s favorite Valiant book so this is usually where he gushes like an open wound. It’ll be interesting to get another perspective. What were your thoughts on the issue?
Chad: Might wanna keep some gauze handy because I’m about to gush away, bro. All kidding aside, is there any doubt that Quantum & Woody is the best Valiant book? I mean, Quantum & Woody, as noted last week, is positioning itself to give A&A a run for its money, but it’s got a ways to go yet.
This issue brings us more General Redacted, more Mary Maria, more with the Roanokes, and the long awaited return of *SPOILER*, who should probably put some pants on next issue. Fred Van Lente is a personal favorite (see: my *mostly* monthly G.I. JOEversity talks with FVL), and he has yet to disappoint me with Archer & Armstrong. And I’m particularly in love with this arc and it’s reintroduction of some classic Valiant concepts, done so without ever smashing you over the head with nostalgia. This story could easily be a throwaway romp, but FVL’s not dodging the mythology and continues to build on the conjoined destiny of Obidiah and Aram, which I find fascinating. The whole book feels epic, but all of that gravity is masterfully underscored by the humor and odd situations, so it never feels like it’s working very hard.
Continued belowYeah, it really stands out from the crowd. Gush (mostly) over. What’d you think of it?
Brandon: I don’t know my favorite Valiant books seems to be a very fluid thing. It went back and forth between Harbinger and Bloodshot for a time but now Quantum and Woody and Shadowman are moving in on them. It’s a good time to be a Valiant fan!
Archer and Armstrong typically is a book I enjoy but never love. I loved this issue though. Everything was spot on here. The writing and art were killer and all of the little future story nuggets about the fourth Harbinger War and future relationships was awesome. All of that potential foreshadowing was fantastic. It got me excited like the old Rip Hunter chalkboards did in Pre-52. It was a great addition to an already enjoyable title. I am not familiar with any of the older Valiant stuff, aside from having read some of Quantum and Woody, so I didn’t get any of the nostalgic references but it is cool to hear that’s there. It’s nice that this book can both look backwards and forwards and still tell a narrative in the now.
Any standout moments in the issue for you?
Chad: Redacted’s big speech was pretty great. And so was the surprise turn at the end there, with Mary Maria’s eyes opening to see a new side of Armstrong. Awesome comic!
I should add just how much I’m enjoyed Pere Perez’s art on this issue, too. Clayton Henry set the bar high on this book, but every artist that’s followed has done solid work, and this is a book that asks a lot of an artist, and Perez nails it, no problems.
So report card time — I give A&A #12 a 9/10, because I had more fun reading it than I did anything else this week. What do you think?
Brandon: I also really enjoyed the issue quite a bit so I would give this bad boy a solid 8.0! Here’s hoping we see some of these future teasers in the near future!
