Review: X-O Manowar Volume 5 Issue 1

When I looked at the previews for the new series of X-O Manowar Volume 5 #1, I wondered if I would like writer Dennis "Hopeless" Hallum's new series. The artwork seemed significantly different from that in X-O Manowar Volume 3 written by Robert Venditti, and that in Volume 4 written by Matt Kindt. But once I had the book in my hands, the story worked. Emilio Laiso’s artwork compares nicely with that in other contemporary Valiant series like The Visitor and Doctor Tomorrow. The look and feel of the art also reminds me of Marvel’s groundbreaking series Ultimate Spider-Man. I suppose this shouldn't surprise me, as although I haven't seen it, Emilio Laiso has previously worked on Marvel's Spider-Man: Velocity series.

It shares another link to Ultimate Spider-Man, as I remember a confrontation on the Basketball court in early USM, in which Peter Parker doesn’t come off well. (I think this may have inspired a similar scene in the 2012 Spider-Man film). In writer Dennis "Hopeless" Hallum’s story, Aric has started a new life in New York City (again, reminiscent of Spider-Man). There, he tries to get to know his neighbors, and plays Basketball with local kids.

At least, he tries. While many adults in the neighborhood don't welcome him, some of the homeless accept him, and the kids think he's cool. As for Basketball, while Shanhara advises him on gameplay, Aric clearly has a way to go in mastering the game.

At the beginning of this issue, Aric defends Earth from a survivor of a recent Vine attack. But the way he does it arouses peoples’ ire. Shanhara, ever wise, reminds him that people don’t care that he’s saved them from yet another Vine attack or falling debris. Those concepts are just beyond their conception. Most people are so focused on their daily lives, that all they can perceive is how they have been inconvenienced, and their schedules interrupted. 

Nor are people overly concerned with many dangers that could potentially kill them, especially if it gets in the way of their entertainment. But that doesn’t stop Aric from defying the wrath of disappointed spectators who turn out to see a launch promoting Troy Whitaker’s newly announced commercial spaceflight program. Reporters and onlookers alike seem oblivious to the danger a ballistic missile could pose to the inhabitants of New York City, should anything go wrong with the publicity stunt. 

It also doesn’t help that, as with Spider-Man, the media seems intent on portraying his every action negatively. The way reporters label Aric as an unwanted vigilante suggests that the way the recent Vine attack went down stressed his frayed relationships with Schon (a woman he met on the Planet Gorin in Volume 4) and GATE (the Global Agency for Threat Excision) to the breaking point. But Aric’s bad press could also be explained by the influence of billionaire industrialist Troy Whitaker. We seem glimpses of plots and schemes that should come to fruition in later issues. 

Perhaps as a result of the recent Vine attack, Aric’s relationship with Shanhara has emerged stronger than ever. The sentient armor now overlays his vision with virtual screens. 

When danger threatens, his seemingly ordinary street clothes also transform into armor, allowing Aric to literally leap to Earth’s defense.

As I suggested in the beginning, this first issue of their X-O Manowar series looks to be every bit as involving as Marvel’s beloved Ultimate Spider-Man series. Writer Dennis "Hopeless" Hallum and artist Emilio Laiso work in harmony, packing each page with intriguing characters and a complex plot that gives the reader more to discover in later reads. The duo imbue the issue with a tremendous amount of heart, a welcome dose of innocence, and the belief that if you work for the good of others, people will eventually accept you.

While the latter may not be true, I think we'd all like to believe it is.

The longevity of Marvel's Ultimate Spider-Man eventually allowed writer Brian Michael Bendis to introduce the world to a new hero, young Miles Morales. In time, that character's popularity led to the film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. It may be too much to hope that this new series will convince studio heads to greenlight a big budget movie about our favorite Visigoth and his sentient armor. So for the moment, I look forward to seeing how fans react to this new series of X-O Manowar, and how Hallum and Laiso's story enriches the Valiant Universe.

Dragon Dave