X-O Manowar #23

Robert Venditti - Writer

Diego Bernard - Penciller

Alejandro Sicat - Inker

Brian Reber - Colorist

Dave Sharpe - Letterer

CAFU & Tom Raney - Cover

 

X-O Manowar’s top priority at the moment is gearing up for the massive Armor Wars event, but can the series retain a certain tone even while seeding a massive event storyline? The answer is a bit of a give and take, as it is slightly disheartening that X-O cannot build a distinctive tone outside of Valiant since is has the burden of being the driving force of the superhero publisher. A comparison can be drawn to a massive DC property like Batman, who drives many events in the company, yet retains a quality solo title. Author Robert Venditti follows the same philosophy here, as the main X-O series has been consistently enjoyable for the duration of it’s shipping schedule.

 

Many status quota changes have affected Aric lately that have caused him to rise to prominence as a true king. As a result that reckless abandon that Aric once was is not capable of also serving MI-6, which has made the Visigoth king grow up considerably since the first chapters of this series. Recent issues have explored his relationship with the British Intelligence Agency, and some of the psychological effects the results have had on the character. A scene towards the beginning shows a clear regression in Aric that is slightly disheartening, and certainly not king-like. An exploration deep into the fallout of the recent battle of the Vine homeworld is made, where a new discovery soon occurs. The effects of this have some dramatic implications for the rest of the story that puts the book in an intriguing new direction. The questions of how the discovery relates to the coming Armor Wars event will likely be at the forefront of the readers mind when the tale concludes. This book in and of itself is slightly skeletal, and only features a tease at things to come, but these teases are engaging.

 

Diego Bernard is a great new rising star at Valiant. His pencils are so effortlessly wondrous, as they showcase great facial expressions and interesting action sequences. This is the ultimate give and take between great storyline and clean line work, as the action moves along nicely and readers never feel as if they are simply reading a comic book. There are many limitations in this medium, but Bernard does a great job stirring the imagination so the reader can fill in the rest of the blanks in the tale. A sequences towards the end of this tale shows off a slight amount of motion that a comic can capture so well. Paying close attention to an action that happens in seconds is a great effect that comic books have picked up in the last decade or so, and a great trick that is used to full effect here. Action scenes also have an organic flow, and a strong motion that drives the title.

X-O Manowar #23 is a good book that is ultimately bogged down by some questionable editorial choices. It would be very interesting to have X-O Manowar in the position to be the focal point of the Valiant Universe kicking off new events, but at the moment, the new event storyline feels like a master that this book has to serve.