After a triumphant return to comics in 2012 with a 50+ issue run, X-O Manowar took a much needed rest. Thankfully, the fourth Century Visigoth didn't blast a whole in the ground and bury himself for centuries, as he did at the end of Issue 9 of the original series. (Don't worry, he returned in Issue 10!) Aric of Dacia was just weary of his adventures, and needed a few months off. So Valiant gave him a vacation, and he used the break to visit another planet.
Last year, Aric and his magnificent armor came back with a bang. It was a very different series to its predecessor, and took many long term fans by surprise. But then, change ripples through not only X-O Manowar, but Valiant as well. This week we learned that two key people overseeing the creative vision of the company had left. Valiant is now wholly owned by a multimedia company. How this change in ownership and management impacts Aric's comic book adventures, and whether it hastens or slows the production of a Valiant movie or TV series, fans will have to wait and see.
X-O Manowar has been through a number of changes over the years. After the first 40+ issues of Volume 1, a new creative team took over in the mid 1990s with a "Birthquake" reboot. While the new writers and artists significantly changed the series, the management retained the original series (or Volume 1) numbering.
When that effort failed to revive public interest, due in part to an imploding comic book market, they rebooted the series more comprehensively. The ownership and management of Valiant had changed greatly since its inception in the early 1990s. The company was now owned by Acclaim, a computer game company. Acclaim brought in new writers and artists, and even deposed Aric, with a new character taking over the X-O Manowar armor. This series, what I call Volume 2, restarted the issues at #1, and had a limited run.
In 2012, a revamped Valiant arose from the ashes to introduce Aric and X-O Manowar to a contemporary audience. As I said above, that series, what I call Volume 3, lasted over fifty issues. So Matt Kindt's current series, beginning with #1, became the fourth volume of X-O Manowar. It's in stores now, and can be purchased as single issues, trade paperbacks, and as digital copies for e-readers.
This new X-O Manowar series has been compared to Marvel's iconic Planet Hulk series. Writer Matt Kindt has always wanted to write Conan the Barbarian, so he's approaching the series from that mindset. The series demonstrates a curious mixture of ideas, themes, peoples, and artistic styles, as Kindt continually changes the artist he works with for each story arc. But then, the history of X-O Manowar, and Valiant, is one of change.
Our lives are filled with ups and downs, with triumphs and defeats. Still, we do our best to survive, and enrich the lives of others. In this way, we seek to continually rise above our past, and the detritus that would impede our futures. We move forward each day, our eyes fixed on the road ahead. We take breaks, but we do not give up.
Like Aric of Dacia, we remain Valiant.
Valiant's Free Comic Book Day issue featured a short prequel story for X-O Manowar.
X-O Manowar 2017 FCBD Special
Published: May 2017
Writer: Matt Kindt
Artist: CAFU
Colorist: Andrew Dalhouse
Letterer: Dave Sharpe
Assistant Editor: Robert Meyers
Editor: Warren Simons
Title: The Three Prayers of X-O Manowar
Synopsis: Seemingly disillusioned with life on Earth, Aric is now living on another planet. Two races, the Azure and the Cadmium, are vying for power. Witnessing an act of oppression, Aric intercedes to shield the victim. After witnessing this act of protection and compassion, a woman named Schon befriends him. Troubled by his past, he confides to her that he fears he cannot mend his ways. She assures him that he can, and that he will find what he feels is lacking in himself.
