Valiant Universe: Harbinger, Unity, Rai, A&A; current state & future prospects

[Geralt of Rivia]

EDIT: Comparing first issues:
1. The Valiant
2. Imperium
3. Ninjak
4. Timewalker
5. Divinity

Taking into account that I have yet to pick up my copy of Ninjak, I agree with this list.

The Valiant has been really enjoyable, Imperium got off to a fantastic start in the heels of Harbinger and Timewalker was fun in a Whovian homage/ripoff kinda/sorta way.

However I dont know what to make of Divinity yet, seemed like Kindt was trying too hard to deliver the next Solaris/2001 mashup and didnt quite get there. But I'll read the whole mini before coming to a conclusion.

[Agent 37]

Yea, I really liked it too. I'm beginning to hate that therre isn't much to talk about in #1 issues, so I'll just make it short and sweet.
Clay Mann was a lot better than anticipated. Better than X-O 0 imo. Butch Guice was phenomenal.
It's super interesting flashing back to Ninjak's childhood, but it's even more nteresting seeing his first days as 'Ninjak.'
The new villains, Roku and that sumo-wrestler looking guy, were great. Roku is legitimately terrifying, and the mob sequences reminded me of The Raid in the best way possible.
spoilers:

There's other Ninja's under the employ of MI-6? And the reason for Ninjak's name is because.. Ninja-K!?!?

end of spoilers
Neville is awesome. He better be in every issue, because their banter is always fresh, funny, and snappy. They both respect and count on eachother in a sort of unspoken way.

And one complaint:
I didn't know what the fuck was going on during the first fight scene between Ninjak and Roku.

EDIT: Comparing first issues:
1. The Valiant
2. Imperium
3. Ninjak
4. Timewalker
5. Divinity

I totally didn't get the detail mentioned in you "spoiler" section of your post when I read issue 1. Went right over my head, haha. Cool idea.

I love the new villains, and Roku is a tremendous character so far.

I loved the first page of the book, and hope they continue little previews or info pages like that.

Issue was worth the wait for me!

spoilers:

what were people's thoughts on the "returning home from movies scene", and how Colin was "welcomed" home? It left me uncomfortable.

end of spoilers

[harashkupo]

Finaly, it's here.
I loved this issue and now I have to wait a whole month for the next one. Being the type of person that likes to binge out on comics or tv shows, this whole waiting issue by issue is a whole load of suck.

With that said, this wasn't a perfect issue but the story, characters, and art was handled so well that any negatives are completely over shadowed for me. I can't wait to see more of Roku and to dive into Ninjak's past. To see how he became the bad ass his is today. I'm not usually a fan of back-ups since the change of artists is jarring and takes me out of the story, but this time that didn't happen. I won't lie though, I chuckled at the Ninja-k part. I thought "hmm that's just like Weapon X". Not the most original but not bad either.

Somehow the art was better than I expected. There were so many scenes that made me stop reading and lose my place cuz I would just stare at a panel. The door blowing of it's hinges or the hair biting into the sword, that was especially cool. This series is off to a good start and I feel like Kindt is carving out a space for Ninjak to have a spot in this universe all his own.

[harashkupo]

spoilers:

what were people's thoughts on the "returning home from movies scene", and how Colin was "welcomed" home? It left me uncomfortable.

end of spoilers

Yeah that was a pretty dark scene. It could go two ways but I'm waiting for the next issue before I can really judge it. I will say that I'm hoping for a brutal payback scene.

[BugsySig]

Yea, I really liked it too. I'm beginning to hate that therre isn't much to talk about in #1 issues, so I'll just make it short and sweet.
Clay Mann was a lot better than anticipated. Better than X-O 0 imo. Butch Guice was phenomenal.
It's super interesting flashing back to Ninjak's childhood, but it's even more nteresting seeing his first days as 'Ninjak.'
The new villains, Roku and that sumo-wrestler looking guy, were great. Roku is legitimately terrifying, and the mob sequences reminded me of The Raid in the best way possible.
spoilers:

There's other Ninja's under the employ of MI-6? And the reason for Ninjak's name is because.. Ninja-K!?!?

end of spoilers
Neville is awesome. He better be in every issue, because their banter is always fresh, funny, and snappy. They both respect and count on eachother in a sort of unspoken way.

And one complaint:
I didn't know what the fuck was going on during the first fight scene between Ninjak and Roku.

EDIT: Comparing first issues:
1. The Valiant
2. Imperium
3. Ninjak
4. Timewalker
5. Divinity

I'd actually put Ninjak #5 on that list...maybe tied at 4 with Divinity. Imperium, Timewalker and The Valiant were all amazing first issues IMHO and I am betting BS Reborn will be too.

[TheFerg714]

However I dont know what to make of Divinity yet, seemed like Kindt was trying too hard to deliver the next Solaris/2001 mashup and didnt quite get there. But I'll read the whole mini before coming to a conclusion.

Pretty much this exactly. However, with big concepts like this there's no way to tell whether it's gonna pay off or not with just one issue. Matt Kindt is pretty great at a lot of things, but I'm not entirely convinced of his fortitude when it comes to big-brained, high-concept stuff. I guess we'll see in a few months.

Yeah that was a pretty dark scene. It could go two ways but I'm waiting for the next issue before I can really judge it. I will say that I'm hoping for a brutal payback scene.

After seeing a bit of Ninjak's personal life in Unity, and Ninjak #1, I'm starting to see the beginnings of a vast and f**ked up history and upbringing being unraveled. Ninjak is clearly not normal, and I'm so excited to see what led him to this point.

I'd actually put Ninjak #5 on that list...maybe tied at 4 with Divinity. Imperium, Timewalker and The Valiant were all amazing first issues IMHO and I am betting BS Reborn will be too.

To be fair, I'm a little biased, because canceling A&A in favor of time-traveling adventures is probably my least favorite decision Valiant has ever made, and that #1 issue didn't quite sell me on this new Van Lente vision yet. Issue 2 was better, but I'm very wary of this series. I'm giving it 4 issues to decide whether I continue buying it.
On another note, I'm betting Valiant left Bloodshot at the end of Valiant Next for a reason. That book looks stellar, and I don't think Lemire has ever written a bad book before.

[RLAAMJR.]

Comic Vine gave Ninjak #1 a perfect 5 score though: http://www.comicvine.com/reviews/ninjak-1/1900-3958/

[TheFerg714]

Hey guys, check it out, Ninjak's on the front page! There's usually one Valiant comic in the featured new releases section too. Unity's on the second page this week. So this is either a) proof that Comixology likes Valiant, or b) proof that Valiant makes a nice amount of digital money. Why can't Comixology just release the sales numbers?!?

Comic Vine gave Ninjak #1 a perfect 5 score though: http://www.comicvine.com/reviews/ninjak-1/1900-3958/

Did you like it?

[new_onslaught]

Ninjak #1 was pretty good. The art was stellar. I can't pinpoint anything bad in the writing, it just didn't hook me, but I believe there is the potential for that to happen. I will get the 1rst arc and then I'll decide if I'll keep reading. Is the 1rst arc going to be 4 or 5 parts?

[TheFerg714]

Ninjak #1 was pretty good. The art was stellar. I can't pinpoint anything bad in the writing, it just didn't hook me, but I believe there is the potential for that to happen. I will get the 1rst arc and then I'll decide if I'll keep reading. Is the 1rst arc going to be 4 or 5 parts?

We'll know when the 1st arc will end when the solicitations come out next week.

It seems like Matt Kindt books work better in trades because the 1st issue (or two) are a lot of necessary setup. I got the same feeling as you on this and Divinity. I guess it's up to Kindt to pull all these strands into an awesome story. He's done it before with Rai, Unity, and The Valiant.

[RLAAMJR.]

Hey guys, check it out, Ninjak's on the front page! There's usually one Valiant comic in the featured new releases section too. Unity's on the second page this week. So this is either a) proof that Comixology likes Valiant, or b) proof that Valiant makes a nice amount of digital money. Why can't Comixology just release the sales numbers?!?


Did you like it?

I get my comics very late because the comic shop I buy is on another island. I might get it by last week of march.

[Detox]

I enjoyed Ninjak #1 quite a bit, and Roku is badass.

[Winterboy]

I'm still waiting my copy...

[Captain Craig]

I totally loved the Ninjak #1
spoilers:

The thing with Ninja-A, Ninja-B was a new take on things. I can't recall if it was stated in the OG book or if was a fan thing but I seem to recall thinking that Ninjak was a combo of Ninja + Union Jack=Ninjak, but I'm fine with this take. It feels even more James Bond-ish, like there are multiple double 00 agents beside 007.

end of spoilers

Roku seems to indeed be a force to deal with.spoilers:

I had no real issues with the "belt", alluded to discipline scene.

end of spoilers

Going under the radar is an excellent issue of UNITY #16 featuring Gilad in a solo tale like Ninjak last issue and that Livewire gets for #17!!
This single "one shot" issue w/Gilad read better than the whole last 3 issue mini for me. I really need VEI to nail down how they are going to portray Gilad, this is what I envision being the dominant personality trait for the Eternal Warrior.

[Detox]

I'm a PBS dropout myself as it is crumbling. I will continue to read X for as long as he lasts simply because he's badass, but that's it for me. Dark Circle really doesn't appeal to me personally, and I love what i've read from Valiant so far, so i'm really excited to jump on board.

I'm still reading X as well, and if it wasn't for the "Marked for Death" story arc moving into Cap Midnight, I'd probably stop reading that too.

Did I jinx it? I feel like this is my fault.