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If I wanted to dive into the "new" Valiant Universe...

Started by GLCBrad,

37 posts in this topic

valiantman

valiantman

Posted
Posted
Rai will also need until August for Issue #9. You have time.

 

Wait -- what?

 

:ohnoez: I thought they were never late!

 

It's not late, VEI has stated they will publish 9 books a month. They've put Rai on hold to publish a couple of mini-series. Once the mini-series end then they'll resume the regular series.

Right... three years in a row, if a Valiant comic appeared in Previews catalog, then it arrived on time.

 

Rai has an "on and off" schedule (due to Clayton Crain's detailed digital art), but it has matched the Previews solicitations every time.

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CongoBill

CongoBill

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As somebody who has taken the dive into the new Valiant (VEI) universe over the past couple of months, here is my take. I haven't really been reading things in order, which you should probably do to get full enjoyment and understanding of all that's been happening in this universe, but I've been able to catch up by following various Valiant fan sites (www.valiantfans.com and www.valiantcentral.com are both good for picking up details and information) and just picking up things from the titles I have read.

 

X-O Manowar - Definitely the series to start with. This was VEI's first series and a lot of what happens in the VEI universe is set up over the first 20 or so issues of this title.

 

Rai - I really like this series and it doesn't tie in too closely with the rest of the VEI universe so you can read it without needing much knowledge of events happening in the other titles. I will say this series reads MUCH better if you read it in one (or a couple) of sittings. Reading the collected editions is definitely the way to go.

 

Unity - I'm in the middle of the Unity run right now and really like it. But it does begin after several important events that happen in X-O Manowar so you probably won't understand what's going on if you start with this title. I suspect that events in Harbinger have also influenced what's going on in this title, and I know the Armor Wars crossover takes over several issues as well.

 

Harbinger - I haven't read this title. I plan to, but I know I've missed out on some things by not reading this earlier. As others have said, if you read Harbinger and X-O Manowar first, you'll probably have all the basis you'll need to move on to other things.

 

Bloodshot - I haven't read this one either. Not sure if I will as I may just go with the new Bloodshot: Reborn series that recently started. I'd like to hear from other Valiant fans if they feel it is a "must" to read this series from the get-go. I'd like to but Valiant published a lot of books over the past few years so it's difficult to read everything to get up to speed.

 

Harbinger Wars - I read the collected edition of this. It's a crossover series that ran through other Valiant titles (primarily Harbinger and Bloodshot) so, while I was able to read it and basically understand what was going on, I'm sure it would have been better if I'd read Harbinger and Bloodshot beforehand.

 

Archer & Armstrong - This is the one VEI series I've read that I did not really like. I stopped reading after the first story arc. But I know other Valiant fans love this title and the characters so maybe it gets better after the first arc, or maybe I'm just missing something.

 

Ivar, Timewalker - New series with four issues out. I like it thus far and I don't think you need a ton of knowledge of the VEI universe to understand it.

 

Divinity - Their latest mini-series, with 3 of 4 issues out at this point. This is looking to be a big hit for Valiant. It introduces a new and very powerful character into their universe. It's also a great read, although other VEI characters (primarily, the Unity team) play a pretty big role here. It will be very interesting to see what they do with this new character. Highly recommended!

 

The Valiant - This is Valiant's most recent crossover event, although you can just read the four issues as it did not spill over into the other titles (although the events here do set up the new Bloodshot: Reborn series). Some knowledge of the VEI universe is helpful, but I didn't know a whole lot when I read it and I still enjoyed it.

 

Shadowman - I've read all issues up to #13. This series seems to stand on its own in terms of not seeing a lot of crossover with the rest of the VEI universe. I've mostly enjoyed it thus far.

 

Eternal Warrior - Haven't read yet, other than issue #5, which begins a new story arc. Eternal Warrior is obviously a key character in this universe so I'm sure it can't hurt to read this series. Issue #5 was really good and I look forward to reading the rest of that arc. Not sure if I need to go back and read issues #1-#4. I think the series ends with issue #8 (or maybe it's #9).

 

Quantum & Woody - Haven't read this one

 

Ninjak - Just started, two issues out. Really good so far!

 

Imperium - This is the new version of Harbinger. I could hardly tell what was going on in the first two issues, but issue #3 was excellent. Still, you probably want to read Harbinger before starting on this series.

 

I know there are various other titles and mini-series I haven't mentioned but that's because I haven't read them and probably won't (except for maybe Armor Hunters, which is another crossover story that heavily ties into X-O Manowar and Unity).

 

The absolute cheapest way to access most of what the new Valiant has published is to sign up for an account on www.scribd.com. It is a Netflix for books type of site, where you pay $8.99/month and you can read as much of their content (books and comics) as you want. No Marvel, DC, Image, or Dark Horse, but pretty much the entire Valiant output is here as well as a lot of other indie comics. You get a free first month for signing up so if you don't mind reading digital copies you can get caught up on everything for free if you can read it all in a month. And for $8.99/month after the first month, it's still not a bad deal at all. The only thing I don't like about Scribd is their digital comics do not have the guided view feature that you get when you order digital comics from Comixology. Since I read on my iPad mini, it took a lot of zooming in and out to effectively read the comics. But I figured it out pretty quickly. While it takes a bit of work and isn't as good as Comixology from a functionality standpoint, it's defnitely the cheapest way to get access to everything and catch up quickly.

 

I know that's a ton of information but I hope it helps. I've really been enjoying the dive into Valiant. There's a lot of stuff to read and most of it is really quite good.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

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GeeksAreMyPeeps

GeeksAreMyPeeps

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I posted this over on the valiantfans board for someone looking for a reading order:

 

This doesn't include some of the recent released, but this is my recommendation if you like binge reading (reading a long run in a row). I've tried to place the breaks between titles so you read any crossovers in the proper spot. Shadowman, Rai, and the Eternal Warrior series don't really cross over with any of the other titles, so you can read those pretty much anywhere (although I would read EW Vol 2 before Rai, as it was released first and they both take place in the same time period)

 

Binge Reading recommendation:

 

X-O Manowar Volume 1

X-O Manowar Volume 2

X-O Manowar Volume 3

 

Archer & Armstrong Volume 1

Archer & Armstrong Volume 2

 

Harbinger Volume 1

Harbinger Volume 2

Bloodshot Volume 1

Bloodshot Volume 2

Harbinger Wars / Harbinger Volume 3 / Bloodshot Volume 3 *(these three cross over; the Deluxe edition collecting all three arc might be the best way to read this)

Harbinger Volume 4

Harbinger Volume 5

 

X-O Manowar Volume 4

Unity Volume 1 / X-O Manowar Volume 5

Unity Volume 2

 

Archer & Armstrong Volume 3

Archer & Armstrong Volume 4

Bloodshot Volume 4

Archer & Armstrong Volume 5 (read this between Bloodshot Volume 4&5)

Bloodshot Volume 5

Archer & Armstrong Volume 6

 

ARMOR HUNTERS event (it might be best to read the first issue in Armor Hunters first, and read the last issue after reading everything else):

X-O Manowar Volume 6

Armor Hunters Volume 1

X-O Manowar Volume 7

Unity Volume 3

Armor Hunters: Harbinger Volume 1

Armor Hunters: Bloodshot Volume 1

 

Quantum & Woody Volume 1

Quantum & Woody Volume 2

Quantum & Woody Volume 3

Delinquents Volume 1

Quantum & Woody Must Die Volume 4

 

Harbinger: Omegas

Unity Volume 4

X-O Manowar Volume 8

 

Eternal Warrior Volume 1

Eternal Warrior Volume 2

 

Rai Volume 1

 

Shadowman Volume 1

Shadowman Volume 2

Shadowman Volume 3

Shadowman Volume 4

Shadowman End Times Volume 5

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GLCBrad

GLCBrad

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Big ups to GeeksaremyPeeps and CongoBill...that's great stuff. I am officially off to comixology to get my orgy of spending started.

 

Thanks!

 

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IntrepidXC

IntrepidXC

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Valiant really pushes their trades at conventions, including offering heavy discounts to get their books into the hands of readers

 

That's no joke. I volunteered at a VEI booth once. Dinesh had me sell a copy of every TPB published to date (about a year ago) to one guy, for $100. Happiest new VALIANT fan I've ever seen.

 

Now Atom! the sales manager wasn't so happy....

 

Needless to say Dinesh created a VALIANT reader for life. The guy I sold those TPBs to became a member of Valiantfans.com and now buys every VEI TPB that is published.

 

Have I mentioned how much I love VALIANT as a company and great group of people?

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BishopT

BishopT

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I'm sorry, I thought I was asking a sensible question that could be answered by some knowledgeable posters without searching every issue of every series on eBay.

 

Yeah, I'm lazy, so sue me.

 

Edit: alright, that gives me a better idea... so, not many, I'll take it.

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Martin Sinescu

Martin Sinescu

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That's the 1:20 and, although the 1:50 doesn't necessarily tear it up right now either, there's nothing to say that people won't start looking at the VEI stuff as "key" further down the road. The movies will surely more closely resemble the newer stuff, but right now the majority of collectors are more familiar with the OG characters, so that's what they're scooping up.

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CongoBill

CongoBill

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Aside from Divinity #1, what are the other (if any) newer Valiant books that sell for considerably more than cover, barring variants?

 

 

I don't think any of the regular edition new Valiant (VEI) books sell for much over cover price at this point. The variants -- well, many of them -- are a whole different story since some are truly scarce given the fairly low print runs of many of the VEI titles. Divinity looks to be the first VEI title to get hot on the back issue market (regular edition and variants). I think only around 10,000 copies of #1 were printed, which is pretty low compared to most Marvel and DC books.

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