X-O Manowar #20

Writer Robert Venditti Artist Cary Nord

 

Introduction

 

X-O Manowar seems to be invigorated with new life after the launch of Unity. After some of the different struggles involved with Planet Death, many were probably unsure of the viability that this story was going to have in the distant future. Luckily, things started to turn around when the Eternal Warrior first made his presence known. Aric of Dacia has never claimed to be a good human being, Toyo Harada’s new squad is the first step towards him clearing the guilty conscious that has plagued the Shanhara yielder for years. His behavior may have benefited him in his original timeline, but the wielder of the X-O must slow down. The last installment of Unity had a fight that nearly lasted to the death with each major player of the team, as well as Aric himself. The fight should by all accounts leave our hero devastated and not ready to take on the impending danger that awaits him later on in this tale. This series claims to be a tie-in to Unity, and if that it is any indication, there are some heads that are about to fall.

 

Writing

 

It is odd that this chapter does not take place in the pages of Unity, due to it being so closely tied to that series. It is also worth mentioning that the cover to this issue is a great fake-out that has a spoiler to Unity that nobody will see coming. The previous installment of that chapter ended on a note that I was not keen on, fortunately a sense of power regarding a major character is seized here that makes things so much more interesting. Harada’s team may not stand a chance of fighting the X-0 Manowar. Aric combined with armor, is one of the most frightening forces of the Valiant Universe. What some may not realize about X-O Manowar right at the moment is that Unity is being treated as a large scale event. These issues are being held in the middle of the chapter are a sort of cliff note in between the other installments. Here, the big battle for the next installment of the crossover is properly set into motion. The backstory on moving people into place is still amusing, especially when there is only one actual tie-in book readers need to purchase.

 

Art

 

Cary Nord seems like he was given less time with this issue, even though the colors and models do not seem as though they are quite as abstract as the pages before. He does a good job drawing most of the players in the larger cast, with a script that is fairly busy. The colors by Ulises Arrelda has some of the problem spots here, as they are flat and do not seem to service the overall story. It makes the pencils less dynamic and interesting to look at. The art has an rushed tone with Layouts by Cary Nord, and finishers are handled by Vicente Cifuentes. I am never a fan of two artists contributing to the pencils on one book, simply because it looks like an amalgam of two separate styles. Some panels and pages can look visually striking and cause for celebration, others can fall flat at their worst. Hopefully, more attention will be paid in the future to the pencils on X-O Manowar. After the recent departure of Lee Garbett too Marvel, there have been some rush jobs on the great scripts that the scribe does not deserve.

 

Conclusion

Robert Venditti delivers another solid entry into the mythology of X-O Manowar. Cary Nord and Ulises Arrelda deliver rushed, but still interesting artwork. Do not pick this up without buying Unity #1 and #2!