X-O Manowar Unconquered #1 Review
Writer: Becky Cloonan and Michael W. Conrad
Artist & Colorist: Liam Sharp
Letterer: Troy Peteri
Cover Artists: Liam Sharp, Nimit Malavia, Will Staehle, Bob
Layton
Publisher: Valiant
Price: $3.99
Release Date: March 22, 2023
Aric of Dacia stands in a field of corpses. Beyond him, fire
consumes ruins. The Fifth Century Visigoth warrior denies his humanity. Now he
is only the weapon: X-O Manowar. What happens next? Let’s claw into X-O Manowar
Unconquered #1 and find out!
Story
The vision fades. What is replaces what may be. Aric flies
toward a comet, intending to strike it and knock it off course. Shanhara—his
sentient armor—warns he may not survive the impact. Aric doesn’t care. The
comet is heading toward Earth. Stopping it is all that matters. Thankfully
Shanhara protects him, and Aric survives the impact. They crash on a planet,
along with impact debris. They discover more than ice and rock from the comet.
All the while, people watch Aric and Shanhara, thanks to the Soothsayer.
Initially, I found all this difficult to follow. Cloonan and
Conrad throw a lot at the reader. No links with the previous X-O Manowar series
anchor us. One aspect of the plot—hitting a comet to knock it off course—seems
more informed from the movie Armageddon than NASA. Shanhara should know that
nothing would prevent debris from such an impact from reaching Earth and
causing incalculable harm. Still, the story seems rooted in the rich loam of
Aric’s history, which seems a hopeful sign.
Art
Liam Sharp's art often has a haunting, dreamlike quality.
Figures emerge from darkness or mist. We cannot readily interpret what we see.
As with such framed pieces that hang in galleries, this forces our minds to
make sense of these visions. At other times, images are crystal clear. They
take on a glossy, polished appearance. Or they appear drawn with graphite and
colored pencils. Portraits of people emerge: sometimes in color, others in
black and white. The latter resemble highly detailed photographs.
Troy Peteri enhances this artistic smorgasbord with an
appealing selection of lettering. Dialogue from speakers emerges as uppercase
black letters in white dialogue balloons. Those unseen speak through blobby
black fields with white lettering. Shanhara’s thoughts float in puffy bronze
clouds. I liked how Troy grouped the dialogue symmetrically and appreciated how
the sound effects enlivened Sharp's all too often static scenes.
Final Thoughts
X-O Manowar Unconquered #1 delves into the rich history of
Aric of Dacia. Galactic events and strange, new characters invite comparisons
with director John Boorman’s movies Zardoz and Excalibur. While much is
glimpsed only through mist and fire, this first issue promises a unique and
cosmic rebirth for Valiant’s flagship hero.
Rating: 8/10
To view the preview art and another cover see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.
