Valiant back?

[anarky]

Just saw this at newsarama:

JIM SHOOTER WRITES NEW HARBINGER STORY FOR HC COLLECTION

Press Release

Comics legend and co-architect of the original Valiant Comics universe, Jim Shooter, has written a new Harbinger story for the upcoming Valiant hardcover collection, HARBINGER: THE BEGINNING. The deluxe hardcover by Valiant Entertainment collects the full Harbinger origin story (Harbinger #0-7) for the first time ever, and includes an all-new “Origin of Harada” story by Jim Shooter that features the first appearance of a new key Valiant character!

Harbinger #0-7 has been digitally recolored and remastered using state-of-the-art computer techniques, and the all-new “Origin of Harada” story features art by former Valiant creator Bob Hall (Shadowman).

Harbinger reinvented the superhero team genre and became one of the most successful comic series of the 1990s, selling over 5 million comic books. The classic story of Sting’s band of renegade teenagers with extraordinary powers of the mind and their battle against Japanese tycoon Toyo Harada took the comics industry by storm in 1992. Harbinger‘s first issue was named “Collectible of the Decade” by Wizard Magazine, appeared in the #1 position of Wizard Magazine’s Top Ten list for a then-record eight consecutive months, and in 2006 was named the 1990s “Comic Book of the Decade” by Sequart. It features Eisner Award-winner David Lapham’s (Stray Bullets) very first work as a talented teenager and one of Jim Shooter’s greatest stories ever.

Creator Jim Shooter has had a long and storied career in the industry. He began his professional writing career at age 13, a world record, crafting some of the seminal Legion of Super Heroes stories for DC Comics. At the age of 28, he became Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics. During his nine-year tenure, he oversaw some of Marvel’s most influential creations and storylines, such as Spider-Man’s black costume and the creation of Venom, the X-Men’s Dark Phoenix Saga, and Frank Miller’s run on Wolverine and Daredevil. In 1990, Shooter co-founded Valiant Comics, where he co-wrote and co-created some of the most popular and critically acclaimed characters since Marvel’s heyday in the 1960s, including Harbinger, X-O Manowar, Shadowman, and Archer and Armstrong, among others.

Jason Kothari, CEO of Valiant Entertainment said, “We are very excited to be collecting this classic story and giving readers the opportunity to experience it like never before, utilizing all that the latest in digital coloring has to offer and including Jim Shooter’s fascinating new story that expands the rich Valiant mythology.”

HARBINGER: THE BEGINNING (JUN073932), published by Valiant Entertainment, is solicited in the June Previews (Volume XVII #6) and scheduled to arrive in comic book stores nationwide on August 29th, 2007. The book marks the milestone return of comics legend Jim Shooter and is a full-color 192 page hardcover with a suggested retail price of $24.95.

About Valiant Entertainment

Valiant Entertainment, Inc. is a character-based entertainment company that owns and manages some of the most popular comic characters ever created across all media, including feature films, television, video games, new media, publishing, and consumer products. Since its creation in 1990, Valiant has sold over 80 million comic books, 8 million video games, and became one of the three leading comic character-based companies globally. In addition, the "Valiant characters are often called the most important characters created since the Marvel revolution of the 1960s." (Sequart, 2006) VALIANT™ characters include X-O MANOWAR®, BLOODSHOT®, HARBINGER™, ETERNAL WARRIOR™, DOCTOR MIRAGE™, NINJAK™, SHADOWMAN®, RAI™, and QUANTUM & WOODY™, among many others. Visit ValiantEntertainment.com for more information.

Interesting is that there is a company called Valiant again (even if newsarama points out it's not exactly the same Valiant), they're reprinting old stories, and Shooter's writing a new story that "introduces a key new Valiant character."

Why do you need new characters if it's still dead?

I'm not going to hold my breath, but this could be a return to the glory days that have eluded the properties since Shooter left/was fired and they started doing the gimmick cover thang.

Of course, it could suck as bad as everything Shooter's touched since he left/was fired.

[vynsane]

like "warriors of plasm"

i need to get a good run of X-0 Manowar on ebay...

[anarky]

That's exactly what I meant, vyn.

Everything Defiant did, in fact. It was horseshit. Everything built off Warriors of Plasm, but you had to construct the actual WOP comic by getting a complete set of trading cards, and even then you didn't have the cover unless you sprung for the binder.

And then all the other books had solicitations that didn't at all match what the stories were. That'd be okay if they were trying to sow false info so as not to spoil stuff. But at least be honest about what the premise and characters of the first fucking issue will be!

Shooter's apparently started two other comic companies since Defiant. Neither even got off the ground.

If this works out, though, it'll be nice to see Archer and Armstrong again. And Eternal Warrior. Man, those books fucking rocked.

[Eternal Padawan]

Jim Shooter is over 7' tall.


Valiant books were cool back in the day. Ninjak. Rai.

X-O. How fucking cool an idea is giving Conan the Barbarian, Iron Man's armor?

[anarky]

I've been discussing this with vyn elsewhere, and he brought up something interesting: nothing builds hype like a lawsuit. (It worked for Defiant, though fighting it bankrupted the company super-fast.)

So two guys get together behind the scenes after the demise of Acclaim Comics. One is the founder of Valiant. The other a trademark expert and comic fan (who has published a comic about trademarks, in fact). They cook up a scheme. Then they don't contact one another again in public, so as to not arouse suspicion.

The first guy buys back the rights to all the characters, lock stock and barrel, from Acclaim. He doesn't, however, actually file for new trademarks. It seems on the surface to be an oversight, or a stupid mistake. After all, no way in hell would he not notice in the next year or so that trademarks weren't included.

The second guy waits a year, till the trademarks expire. Then a group led by him file for (and get) the trademarks to all the names. They now have the right to use the names, whereas person A technically does not, but they do not have the rights to the characters themselves.

After setting up for a few years, the first guy's company ("Valiant 1") announces plans to relaunch the line, starting with a reprint of the origin story from Harbinger. The second guy's company ("Valiant 2") says he can't do that, as his own group owns the trademarks. But they don't actually file an injunction, or anything.

Meanwhile, copies of the hardcover from Valiant 1 are sold at Comic-Con, to verify it's the real deal. Also, Valiant 2 sells an ashcan of pinups for the seemingly ridiculous price of $40. It's all characters who look essentially the same, and not very original, using the names of characters and teams from Valiant, and with artwork by what appears to be an uncredited Jae Lee (who once worked at the original Valiant). $40 is far more than anyone in their right mind would pay--except for news websites, who want the scoop on this juicy story.

So word gets out that there's a nasty lawsuit brewing between the two Valiants. Diamond, whether knowingly or not, cancels orders for the Harbinger hardcover, requiring retailers to go directly to Valiant 1 to get it.

Meanwhile, keep in mind that no orders to stop production have been filed.

That's where we are now. How much do you want to bet that this is carefully orchestrated to get good publicity for Valiant 1, while demonizing Valiant 2, but, prior to actually going to court, they'll reach an agreement and merge into one Valiant, with the dude from Valiant 2 getting a nice paycheck out of it, and the Valiant name having been plastered everywhere for a year or more?

I'm no conspiracy theorist, but it sounds pretty likely to me.

[vynsane]

I've been discussing this with vyn elsewhere, and he brought up something interesting: nothing builds hype like a lawsuit. (It worked for Defiant, though fighting it bankrupted the company super-fast.)

the problem there is that they were sued by marvel, whereas in this case, they would be suing themselves basically. and get all the publicity in the meantime. pretty slick.

[anarky]

Exactly. And they don't even have to take it to court, so it's cheaper. Hell, they could've both told the lawyers that they don't want it to actually go to court. Or the lawyers may be in on the whole thing. I just think the less people actually "in the know," the better for them, as it's less likely word would leak out. I'm not sure if there could even be a proper investigation should anyone suspect, as I don't think it's illegal to threaten legal action.

All told, the guy at Valiant 2 has nothing to lose (not like he's a known creator who might suffer backlash). And Jim Shooter is, although an excellent writer, by most accounts the kind of pompous dick who would actually do something like this.

[anarky]

So, uh, a whole hell of a lot came out of this, eh?

I think a second collection is coming out soon, this time of the first few issues of XO. At this rate, we should be up to a Unity hardcover by the time we've wiped ourselves out and the apes have evolved into the dominant civilization.

[RoIIo Tomassi]

I wish someone would make 6" figures of these guys. How fuckin' cool would a X-O figure be? Or a Rai? Turok? Solar? Magnus? NINJAK?!?

I guess the guys from ShokkerTOYz ( you know, the guys who have been showing prototypes of Shadowhawk and the MAXX for over two years without any product in stores.) approached the Valiant people about licensing their characters and Valiant said "Nobody wants Valiant figures."


BZZZZZT. Wrong!

[anarky]

One of the things that helped and hurt Valiant in the early days was the lack of licensing. On the one hand, it kept their focus on the books. On the other hand, if someone wants to essentially pay you to advertise their product, why turn it down?

[vynsane]

I wish someone would make 6" figures of these guys. How fuckin' cool would a X-O figure be? Or a Rai? Turok? Solar? Magnus? NINJAK?!?

if 'legendary comic book heroes' continued, i could've seen some of that happening...

I guess the guys from ShokkerTOYz ( you know, the guys who have been showing prototypes of Shadowhawk and the MAXX for over two years without any product in stores.) approached the Valiant people about licensing their characters and Valiant said "Nobody wants Valiant figures."

most likely the quote was actually "Nobody wants ShockerToyz". that guy is a total raging douche of liefeldian proportions, so much so that he came to the kirkman board at imagecomics.com and tried to hint at some sort of 'invincible' partnership with his brand, and kirkman laid him out, basically saying his samples have been ugly and he hasn't so much as produced anything of merit yet. he then called kirkman himself a douch of liefeldian proportions.

[anarky]

Which Kirkman, being probably the only fan of Liefeld with any intelligence of his own, showed to Liefeld, who then preemptively banned him from his boards.

[Rollo Tornassi]

Valiant back? What makes you think they ever left? They've been dominating the comcis market since the 60's! I just bought X-O Manowar #500 last month. It was awesome! And I'm excited about the X-O Forceowar book. I like what they are doing with the public team in that book.

I think the whole Solar Man retcon is kinda stupid. Bringing his dead wife back and making it so they were married for the last twenty years? What happens to all that angst he built up? Stupid.

And who would have thought five years ago, the Magnus family of titles would be outselling the Turok stuff? Bendis is a genius and his huge crossover Future Invasion in great!

[anarky]

So, another (real) company apparently has the Gold Key heroes, including Solar, Turok, and Magnus. I guess a relaunch of the Valiant universe will not happen.

[anarky]

I figure this is too much a crapshoot to even bother quoting the article:
http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page ... e&id=32588

Who knows? There've been enough false starts over the last few years.