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Valiant Comics
Type A subsidiary of Valiant Entertainment
Founded 1990
Headquarters New York
Industry Comics
For the Hal Foster comic strip, see Prince Valiant. Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) For other uses of this term see Industry (disambiguation An industry (from Latin industrius, "diligent industrious" Comics (via Latin from the Greek "" kōmikos, of or pertaining to "comedy" from kōmos "revel" Prince Valiant in the Days of King Arthur, or simply Prince Valiant, is a Comic strip created by Hal Foster.

Valiant Comics was an American comic book publishing company founded by former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Jim Shooter, writer/artists Bob Layton and a number of financial partners in 1989. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A comic book (often shortened to simply comic and sometimes called a comic paper or comic magazine) is a Magazine or Book of narrative Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of Literature or Information &ndash the activity of making information available for public view Marvel Comics is an American comic book company owned by Marvel Publishing Inc James Shooter (born September 27 1951 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American Writer, occasional fill-in artist editor, and Bob Layton is an American Comic book Artist, who has worked for Marvel Comics, Valiant Comics, DC Comics, Future

Valiant Comics was one of the largest companies in the American comic book market during the 1990s, initially packaging specialty comics and going on to sell more than 80 million comic books in its first five years. Its characters have seen print in a number of languages internationally and have been featured in video games that have sold over 10 million units.

The Valiant universe includes Archer and Armstrong, Armorines, Bloodshot, Eternal Warrior, H.A.R.D. Corps, Harbinger, Magnus Robot Fighter, Ninjak, Psi Lords, Quantum and Woody, Rai, Second Life of Dr. Mirage, Shadowman, Solar, Man of the Atom, Turok Dinosaur Hunter, Unity and X-O Manowar, among others. Archer & Armstrong was a Comic book series by Valiant Comics, with sales of 350000 books a month Armorines is a Superhero Comic book from Valiant Comics about armored marines who in the name of freedom do the United States government's dirty work Bloodshot is the title character of a Comic book series published by Valiant Comics. Gilad Anni-Padda aka the Eternal Warrior is the title character of a 50-issue Comic book series by Valiant Comics that ran from 1992-1996 HARD Corps was a Valiant Comics title which ran from 1992 - 1995 Harbinger is a Comic book series about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers, published by Valiant Comics Magnus Robot Fighter is a fictional character created by writer/artist Russ Manning in 1963 based primarily on Tarzan. Ninjak is a Fictional Comic book character that originally appeared in eponymous books by Valiant Comics, and later by Acclaim Comics The PSI-Lords are a fictional team of superbeings from the Valiant Comics universe. Quantum and Woody is an award-winning Comic book created by Christopher Priest and Mark Bright, and published by Valiant Comics between Rai (pronounced "rye" is a The Second Life of Dr Mirage is an American defunct comic book series featuring the eponymous main character created by writer/artist Bob Layton, illustrated Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. Solar is an American fictional Comic book character Originally known as Doctor Solar Man of the Atom, he first appeared in a comic book published by Gold Turok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics. Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief

Contents

History

The Valiant characters.
The Valiant characters.

In 1988, former Marvel Editor-In-Chief Jim Shooter and a group of other investors attempted to purchase Marvel Comics. Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) James Shooter (born September 27 1951 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American Writer, occasional fill-in artist editor, and Shooter's group submitted the second highest bid, but ultimately investor/entrepreneur Ronald Perelman wound up submitting the highest bid to purchase the company. Ronald Owen Perelman (born January 1 1943 is an American billionaire Investor who made his fortune buying beleaguered corporations and re-selling them later for enormous Steven J Massarsky, former manager of the Allman Brothers Band, and Shooter then convinced a venture capital firm, Triumph, to back their creation of a new comics publisher. Steven J Massarsky (died October 5, 2007) was an American Lawyer and Businessman who founded Voyager Communications, parent They founded Voyager Communications Inc. and its comic-book publishing imprint, Valiant Comics, and hired Bob Layton away from Marvel to help with its planned superhero line. Bob Layton is an American Comic book Artist, who has worked for Marvel Comics, Valiant Comics, DC Comics, Future Voyager/Valiant licensed three dormant properties from 1960s and 1970s publisher Gold Key Comics: Magnus Robot Fighter; Doctor Solar; and Turok Dinosaur Hunter. Magnus Robot Fighter is a fictional character created by writer/artist Russ Manning in 1963 based primarily on Tarzan. Solar is an American fictional Comic book character Originally known as Doctor Solar Man of the Atom, he first appeared in a comic book published by Gold Turok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics.

In 1990, Valiant launched its superhero line, mixing modified versions of the Gold Key characters with several original titles and characters such as Archer and Armstrong, Eternal Warrior, Harbinger, Rai, Shadowman, and X-O Manowar, to establish a new shared universe. Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) Archer & Armstrong was a Comic book series by Valiant Comics, with sales of 350000 books a month Gilad Anni-Padda aka the Eternal Warrior is the title character of a 50-issue Comic book series by Valiant Comics that ran from 1992-1996 Harbinger is a Comic book series about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers, published by Valiant Comics Rai (pronounced "rye" is a Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief In mid-1992, the company published a line-wide crossover called Unity. Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992. By producing unique characters, Valiant quickly developed a passionate fanbase. Through word of mouth and marketing, the popularity of the company grew. Publications like the Overstreet Price Guide and Wizard Magazine took notice of Valiant's success, specifically the escalating demand for rarer pre-Unity books that established the new universes origins and featured the first appearances of its characters.

Despite this burgeoning success, Shooter's security within the company was not ensured. His relationship with Triumph had been badly damaged and he reportedly resisted his partners' plans to position the company for a rapid sale. This dispute lead to Shooter's dismissal. Bob Layton then took over the bulk of Shooter's duties in publishing operations while Kevin VanHook became Executive Editor. Bob Layton is an American Comic book Artist, who has worked for Marvel Comics, Valiant Comics, DC Comics, Future Kevin VanHook (born 24 June, 1965) is a film-maker who began his career in storytelling as a Comic book artist and Valiant greatly expanded its comics line and soon became the #3 comic book publisher in terms of market share, behind only industry giants Marvel and DC. In 1993, the first issue of Turok Dinosaur Hunter sold 1. Turok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics. 75 million copies. This was one of a series of highly successful books that cemented Valiant's place as an industry heavyweight - Bloodshot #1 sold 900,000 copies, X-O Manowar #0 sold 850,000, Rai #9 sold 800,000, Ninjak #1 sold 500,000, etc. Bloodshot is the title character of a Comic book series published by Valiant Comics. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Rai (pronounced "rye" is a Ninjak is a Fictional Comic book character that originally appeared in eponymous books by Valiant Comics, and later by Acclaim Comics

A year later, in June 1994, Voyager Communications, Inc. was sold to the video game giant Acclaim Entertainment for $65 million. Acclaim Entertainment was an American Video game developer and publisher. Along with the rest of the comics industry, Valiant's sales soon slumped as the speculative boom collapsed, and Acclaim management took a more active role in publishing decisions.

In 1996, Acclaim relaunched the Valiant Comics line as Acclaim Comics. Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) Their primary motivation was to make the properties more suitable for use in video game development. This lead to the creation of the Shadowman and Turok Dinosaur Hunter video game franchises. Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. Turok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics.

In 1999, Acclaim began publishing Unity 2000, written by Jim Shooter, that was supposed to integrate the old Valiant universe and new Acclaim Universe. Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992. James Shooter (born September 27 1951 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American Writer, occasional fill-in artist editor, and However, Shooter used the high profile book as an opportunity to strike back at his former partners, creating a group of new villains who mimicked their looks and personalities. Additionally, Acclaim failed to market the books but, nevertheless, saw a good deal of interest on the issues that saw print. Acclaim was forced to stop the series after only three issues because of an art return fiasco with Jim Starlin (artist on the series) and a payment problem with Jim Shooter. The company ceased all publication two months later to focus on its faltering core business.

In 2004, Acclaim filed for bankruptcy and shut down its offices. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again "

Future

In 2005, Acclaim auctioned off the rights for Valiant's original characters as part of their bankruptcy proceedings. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The characters auctioned included Archer & Armstrong, Armorines, Bloodshot, Doctor Tomorrow, Eternal Warrior, H.A.R.D. Corps, Harbinger, Ninjak, Psi Lords, Quantum and Woody, Rai, Second Life of Dr. Mirage, Secret Weapons, Shadowman, Timewalker, Trinity Angels, Troublemakers and X-O Manowar. Archer & Armstrong was a Comic book series by Valiant Comics, with sales of 350000 books a month Armorines is a Superhero Comic book from Valiant Comics about armored marines who in the name of freedom do the United States government's dirty work Bloodshot is the title character of a Comic book series published by Valiant Comics. Gilad Anni-Padda aka the Eternal Warrior is the title character of a 50-issue Comic book series by Valiant Comics that ran from 1992-1996 HARD Corps was a Valiant Comics title which ran from 1992 - 1995 Harbinger is a Comic book series about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers, published by Valiant Comics Ninjak is a Fictional Comic book character that originally appeared in eponymous books by Valiant Comics, and later by Acclaim Comics The PSI-Lords are a fictional team of superbeings from the Valiant Comics universe. Quantum and Woody is an award-winning Comic book created by Christopher Priest and Mark Bright, and published by Valiant Comics between Rai (pronounced "rye" is a The Second Life of Dr Mirage is an American defunct comic book series featuring the eponymous main character created by writer/artist Bob Layton, illustrated Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. Ivar the Timewalker is a character in the Valiant Comics universe X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief After a complicated and drawn out process that involved numerous parties, Valiant Entertainment, Inc. was recognized as the new owners of the Valiant library of properties. Valiant Entertainment, Inc. has expressed an interest in bringing the characters back to their popular pre-Acclaim state.

The Valiant Entertainment launched on February 15, 2008. Events 590 - Khosrau II is crowned as king of Persia 1637 - Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common [1]

Harbinger: The Beginning

Cover of Harbinger: The Beginning from Previews Magazine.

Valiant Entertainment has released a deluxe hardcover collection of the first seven issues of Harbinger entitled Harbinger: The Beginning. The collection has been digitally recolored and "remastered" from the original material and includes a "Origin of Harada" story by Jim Shooter, the title's original writer. James Shooter (born September 27 1951 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American Writer, occasional fill-in artist editor, and

The press release from Valiantfans. com states:

This 192-page deluxe hardcover edition collects the full Harbinger origin story from Harbinger issues 0-7 digitally recolored and remastered, and also features an all-new "Origin of Harada" story written by comics legend JIM SHOOTER and illustrated by BOB HALL (Shadowman). This "Origin of Harada" story includes its own original cover and features the first appearance of a new character in the Valiant Universe! Valiant's goal is to make this deluxe hardcover edition something special for Valiant fans and a great introduction to the Harbinger saga for new Valiant fans. The book retails for $24. 95 and will be available in comic book stores in August 2007. Diamond Previews orders from comic book retailers are due July 5, 2007. Events 1295 - Scotland and France form an alliance the beginnings of the Auld Alliance, against England. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.

In March of 2008 Paramount Pictures announced that they were adapting Harbinger into a feature film to be directed by Brett Ratner. Brett Ratner (born March 28, 1969) is an American Film director and Music-video director.

X-O Manowar: Birth

Cover of X-O Manowar: Birth from Previews Magazine.

Valiant Entertainment will release a second deluxe hardcover collection in April collecting the first seven issues of X-O Manowar. The collection has been digitally recolored and "remastered" from the original material and includes a new "Rise of Lydia" story by Bob Layton, one the title's original creators. Bob Layton is an American Comic book Artist, who has worked for Marvel Comics, Valiant Comics, DC Comics, Future

The press release from Valiantfans. com states:

X-O MANOWAR: BIRTH (FEB084088), published by Valiant Entertainment, is solicited in the February Previews (Volume XVIII #2) and scheduled to arrive in comic book stores nationwide on April 30, 2008. Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common This digitally re-colored and re-mastered special edition collects the full X-O Manowar origin story from issues #0-6 for the first time ever, and includes an all-new epic "The Rise of Lydia" story by comics legend Bob Layton and a new cover by Sean Chen! Aric Dacia is a Visigoth barbarian captured by spider aliens and enslaved aboard their starship until he steals their ultimate weapon - the X-O Manowar armor. Aric returns to Earth only to find that 1600 years have past. Now the most primitive man on the planet wields the most technologically advanced weapon in existence! Features explosive art by Barry Windsor-Smith and Marvel EIC Joe Quesada and a story by legendary creators Bob Layton and Jim Shooter! The book is a full-color 192 page deluxe hardcover edition with a suggested retail price of $24. 95.

Universe

The Valiant Universe, drawn by Bernard Chang, inked by Bob Layton, Tom Ryder and various.
The Valiant Universe, drawn by Bernard Chang, inked by Bob Layton, Tom Ryder and various. Bernard Chang (born in 1972 in Montreal, Canada) is an Asian American artist/designer best known for his work in the Comic book industry and Bob Layton is an American Comic book Artist, who has worked for Marvel Comics, Valiant Comics, DC Comics, Future

The Valiant Universe is the fictional shared universe where all of the comic stories published by Valiant Comics take place. A fictional universe is a self-consistent fictional setting with unique background elements such as an imaginary history or geography and possibly fantasy or science A shared universe is a Literary technique in which several different authors create works of Fiction that share aspects such as settings or characters and that are A comic book (often shortened to simply comic and sometimes called a comic paper or comic magazine) is a Magazine or Book of narrative

Valiant Universe (VH1)

Pre-Unity

In the beginning, the Valiant Universe was a reflection of Jim Shooter's vision for an ideal comic book universe: character-driven, strong continuity with emphasis on science fiction, long-reaching consequences and internal consistency. In Fiction, continuity (also called time-scheme) is consistency of the characteristics of persons plot, objects places and events seen by the reader or It was the first company to attempt to follow a real-world timeline, where events in the comics occurred at the pace similar to their publication schedule. The company writers adhered to real-world science as much as they possibly could. No matter how powerful its characters got, they were still affected by friction, Newton's Laws of Motion, Einstein's laws of relativity, etc. Friction is the Force resisting the relative motion of two Surfaces in contact or a surface in contact with a fluid (e Newton's laws of motion are three Physical laws which provide relationships between the Forces acting on a body and the motion of the While the Valiant Universe had its share of aliens, they never used popular sci-fi conventions such as universal translators and faster-than-light travel. All Valiant Universe superheroes had powers that were derived from psionic awareness (the "power of the mind"), energy manipulation and/or technology. Valiant Comics' writers tried to emphasize the human aspect of superpowers, as well as how the actions of various superpowered individuals affected average human beings. Most Valiant heroes were not superheroes in the strict sense of the word. Some had more in common with the old-style pulp adventurers than traditional superheroes. Valiant Comics titles were set in a tight, carefully integrated fictional universe, where events in one title had indirect effects on other titles. In several cases, major characters debuted in established titles before their own titles were launched.

The Valiant Universe was created by Solar as the result of his attempt to recreate his universe after he accidentally destroyed it. Solar is an American fictional Comic book character Originally known as Doctor Solar Man of the Atom, he first appeared in a comic book published by Gold [1] As a result, a universe similar to his own emerged. Solar's psychological tendencies manifested themselves in his recreation of the universe. It was eventually discovered that several times during Valiant Universe's history, Earth was menaced by a race of spider-like aliens, who sought to use the human race for slave labor and food. The Spider Aliens are a recurring race of alien invaders in the Valiant Comics universe Their efforts were indirectly responsible for creation of several heroes, most notably X-O Manowar and Shadowman. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. The early 1990s saw the rise of psionically empowered humans called Harbingers. Harbingers are fictional characters with superhuman powers who appeared in every Valiant Comics title They were led by Toyo Harada, a powerful psionic businessman with a Messiah complex. Toyo Harada is a Comic book character who has appeared in various series published by Valiant Comics. While on the surface, he operated in a manner similar to Professor Xavier of the X-Men, he actually sought to use Harbingers to take over Earth, in order to "save the world from itself", with himself as leader. Charles Francis Xavier, also known as Professor X, is a Fictional character, a Marvel Comics Superhero known as the leader and founder of The X-Men is a team of fictional Superhero characters in Comic books published by Marvel Comics. The history of the Valiant Universe's super-powered community was greatly influenced by Geomancers, human beings who had an ability to listen to psychic impressions left on most everyday objects. Geomancers are a group of fictional Comic book characters that appeared in every major title published by Valiant Comics.

From the beginning, all Valiant Comics titles were divided into two groups: titles that were set in the 20th century (the present) and titles that were set in the 41st century (beginning with 4000 A. D. ) The heroes from the present weren't aware of the heroes of the future until the Unity crossover. Four heroes from the present—Solar, Gilad the Eternal Warrior and his two brothers, Ivar ("Timewalker") and Aram (Armstrong from Archer & Armstrong)—survived into the 41st century, but their experiences throughout the centuries had made them different from their contemporary counterparts. Solar is an American fictional Comic book character Originally known as Doctor Solar Man of the Atom, he first appeared in a comic book published by Gold Gilad Anni-Padda aka the Eternal Warrior is the title character of a 50-issue Comic book series by Valiant Comics that ran from 1992-1996 Ivar the Timewalker is a character in the Valiant Comics universe Archer & Armstrong was a Comic book series by Valiant Comics, with sales of 350000 books a month

Post-Unity

After Jim Shooter was ousted, the Valiant Universe experienced a few changes. The creative direction of the comic line was changed to fit those now in charge of Valiant Comics (Bob Layton and Kevin VanHook). Bob Layton is an American Comic book Artist, who has worked for Marvel Comics, Valiant Comics, DC Comics, Future Kevin VanHook (born 24 June, 1965) is a film-maker who began his career in storytelling as a Comic book artist and However, post-Unity sales were far higher than pre-Unity levels. In 1994, Valiant trimmed their comics line while moving to a two-issues-per-month schedule for their more popular titles (Bloodshot, Harbinger, Ninjak, Shadowman, X-O Manowar etc. Bloodshot is the title character of a Comic book series published by Valiant Comics. Harbinger is a Comic book series about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers, published by Valiant Comics Ninjak is a Fictional Comic book character that originally appeared in eponymous books by Valiant Comics, and later by Acclaim Comics Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief ). Soon after, Acclaim Entertainment, who had bought Valiant several months before, restarted the comics line with new versions of the heroes which could be used as video game properties. Acclaim Entertainment was an American Video game developer and publisher.

Armada and Windjammer divisions

In 1995, Valiant Comics created two new division imprints, Armada and Windjammer: Armada focused as the publisher's line to publish licensed properties. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 [2] Properties licensed to the Armada imprint included a series of various original Magic: The Gathering comic books, based on the popular collectible card game, while Windjammer was established as Acclaim's creator-owned line,[3] for writers and artists in the comic book industry to publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties (similar to the Image Comics concept). This article is somewhat over-complete Please do not add significant new content without first discussing it on the talk page Collectible card games (CCGs also called trading card games (TCGs or customizable card games (CCGs are played using specially designed sets of cards Copyright is a legal concept enacted by Governments, giving the creator of an original work of authorship Exclusive rights to control its distribution usually for Creator ownership is an arrangement in which the creator or creators of a work of fiction retain full ownership of the material regardless of whether it is self-published or Image Comics is an American Comic book publisher It was founded in 1992 by seven high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their Titles published under Windjammer included Neal Adams' creator owned Knighthawk, Samuree, and Valeria the She-Bat and Mike Grell's creator owned Starslayer and Bar Sinister. Neal Adams (born June 6, 1941, Governors Island, Manhattan, New York City) is an American Comic book and Mike Grell (born 1947 is a Comic book Writer and Artist. Grell studied at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, the Chicago Academy of Starslayer was an American Comic book series created by Mike Grell.

Acclaim Universe (VH2)

When Acclaim Entertainment bought Valiant Comics, the universe was completely restarted. Acclaim Entertainment was an American Video game developer and publisher. In 1996, with the previous Valiant Universe (VH1) titles all cancelled, Fabian Nicieza, a former editor and writer from Marvel Comics, was hired as senior vice-president and editor-in-chief and given the task of revamping the Valiant Comics properties. Fabian Nicieza (born Buenos Aires, Argentina, December 31, 1961) is an American Comic book Writer and Marvel Comics is an American comic book company owned by Marvel Publishing Inc As editor, Nicieza oversaw the new version, dubbed VH2 by the company, which re-imagined all of the Valiant characters such as Shadowman, X-O Manowar and Ninjak using the top comic book writers of the period including Warren Ellis, Mark Waid, Kurt Busiek and Garth Ennis. Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Ninjak is a Fictional Comic book character that originally appeared in eponymous books by Valiant Comics, and later by Acclaim Comics Warren Ellis (born February 16, 1968) is a British author of Comics Novels and Television, well known for sociocultural Mark Waid (born March 21 1962 in Hueytown Alabama) is an American Comic book Writer. Kurt Busiek (born September 16, 1960) is a Comic book Writer. Garth Ennis (born January 16, 1970 in Holywood, Northern Ireland) is an Irish Comics writer best known for the DC The line also introduced new titles such as Troublemakers, Trinity Angels and the hit comedy Quantum and Woody. Quantum and Woody is an award-winning Comic book created by Christopher Priest and Mark Bright, and published by Valiant Comics between

The most successful titles in this period were the re-imagined Turok and Shadowman. Turok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics. Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. These titles sold well and the characters were later developed into successful video game properties by Acclaim's parent company Acclaim Entertainment. A video game is a Game that involves interaction with a User interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. Acclaim Entertainment was an American Video game developer and publisher.

Originally, this new universe appeared to have little to do with the original Valiant Universe. However, later crossovers revealed that the Acclaim Universe was the result of a time paradox caused by Solar. This article refers to the Time travel paradox In novels based on the television series Doctor Who, "Grandfather Paradox" is the semi-mythical

The Acclaim Universe was similar to other superhero-based universes and wasn't as interconnected as the Valiant Universe that preceded it. Writers began to experiment with the scientific aspects of Valiant Universe and moved away from science fact and theory to science fiction.

Acclaim Comics met with initial success but by early 1999 most of the line had been cancelled. Acclaim Entertainment suffered huge losses on a number of video game titles and were cutting costs on their non-core businesses. Nicieza eventually left and staff levels were cut. The next year Acclaim attempted to merge the two universes with Unity 2000. Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992.

Jim Shooter's Valiant Universe (VH-0)

In 2000, during Acclaim's Unity 2000 crossover, writer Jim Shooter introduced yet another alternate universe, unofficially called VH-0 by fans. Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992. James Shooter (born September 27 1951 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American Writer, occasional fill-in artist editor, and In essence, it was his vision of what the Valiant Universe would have been if he had stayed with the company. According to Jim Shooter's plot, at the end of the crossover, the VH-0 universe was destroyed and most of its characters were killed and VH-1 and VH-2 were fused together into a new universe. However, Acclaim continued to suffer losses on their video games while the series suffered a number of administrative problems (art return and payment issues) and were forced to cancel the series after only the third issue.

In 2005, the rights to the Valiant and Acclaim original characters (such as Archer and Armstrong, Rai, Quantum and Woody etc) were auctioned off. Archer & Armstrong was a Comic book series by Valiant Comics, with sales of 350000 books a month Rai (pronounced "rye" is a Quantum and Woody is an award-winning Comic book created by Christopher Priest and Mark Bright, and published by Valiant Comics between The rights to the three licensed characters (Solar, Magnus and Turok) reverted to Random House, which currently owns Western Publishing and Gold Key Comics properties. Random House Inc is the world's largest English-language general trade book publisher Western Publishing, also known as "Western Printing and Lithographing Co Gold Key Comics was an Imprint of Western Publishing created for Comic books distributed to Newsstands History Gold Key

Titles

Valiant Universe

Acclaim Universe

While most characters that appeared in Acclaim Comics were altered versions of previous characters, some were created specifically for Acclaim Comics. Archer & Armstrong was a Comic book series by Valiant Comics, with sales of 350000 books a month Armorines is a Superhero Comic book from Valiant Comics about armored marines who in the name of freedom do the United States government's dirty work Bloodshot is the title character of a Comic book series published by Valiant Comics. Gilad Anni-Padda aka the Eternal Warrior is the title character of a 50-issue Comic book series by Valiant Comics that ran from 1992-1996 Clay McHenry is a character from the Valiant Comics universe He first appeared in his own series "Geomancer" where he began as a blind dead-beat ex-police officer HARD Corps was a Valiant Comics title which ran from 1992 - 1995 Harbinger is a Comic book series about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers, published by Valiant Comics Magnus Robot Fighter is a fictional character created by writer/artist Russ Manning in 1963 based primarily on Tarzan. Ninjak is a Fictional Comic book character that originally appeared in eponymous books by Valiant Comics, and later by Acclaim Comics The PSI-Lords are a fictional team of superbeings from the Valiant Comics universe. Rai (pronounced "rye" is a The Second Life of Dr Mirage is an American defunct comic book series featuring the eponymous main character created by writer/artist Bob Layton, illustrated Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. Solar is an American fictional Comic book character Originally known as Doctor Solar Man of the Atom, he first appeared in a comic book published by Gold Ivar the Timewalker is a character in the Valiant Comics universe Turok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics. Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief

Characters

There are approximately 4000 characters in the Valiant universe. Ninjak is a Fictional Comic book character that originally appeared in eponymous books by Valiant Comics, and later by Acclaim Comics Quantum and Woody is an award-winning Comic book created by Christopher Priest and Mark Bright, and published by Valiant Comics between Shadowman is a Fictional Comic book character from Valiant Comics who first appeared in May of 1992. Troublemakers is the title of a Comic book published by Valiant Comics. X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief

Main article: Valiant Comics Characters

Trading Cards

Box of trading cards from Valiant Era series 1
Box of trading cards from Valiant Era series 1

During the trading card boom of the early 90s, Valiant Comics, through licenses with the major trading card manufacturers, produced a number of trading card sets and promotional cards to highlight the comics and characters of the Valiant Universe. There are approximately 4000 characters in the Valiant universe. The major trading card sets include:

Title Year Producer No. of Basic cards No. of Chase cards
Unity card set 1992 Comic Images 90 6
Valiant Era series 1 1993 Upper Deck 120 20
Deathmate 1993 Upper Deck 110 16
Valiant Era series 2 1994 Upper Deck 140 27
Harbinger Files Unproduced

Please see Valiant Comics trading cards, for more information. Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992. The Upper Deck Company LLC (colloquially as Upper Deck and Upper Deck Authenticated Ltd Deathmate was a six-part comic book crossover between Valiant Comics and Image Comics published in 1993 and 1994. The Upper Deck Company LLC (colloquially as Upper Deck and Upper Deck Authenticated Ltd The Upper Deck Company LLC (colloquially as Upper Deck and Upper Deck Authenticated Ltd Harbinger is a Comic book series about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers, published by Valiant Comics During the trading card boom of the early 90s Valiant Comics, through licenses with the major trading card manufacturers produced a number of trading card sets and promotional cards to


Cultural Impact

The Valiant Universe had a significant impact on modern comic books. A comic book (often shortened to simply comic and sometimes called a comic paper or comic magazine) is a Magazine or Book of narrative When Valiant Comics first started publishing in the early 1990s, comic books favored flashy art and name artists over quality writing and strong continuity. In Fiction, continuity (also called time-scheme) is consistency of the characteristics of persons plot, objects places and events seen by the reader or According to Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter, Valiant Comics goal was to differentiate their books by out-writing the competition; however, in practice they have become notoriously linked to the "variant issue" craze of the 1990s and are often credited alongside Image Comics in contributing to the speculator's market of the 1990s, which ultimately led to the "Comic Book crash" and ultimately Valiant's demise. James Shooter (born September 27 1951 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American Writer, occasional fill-in artist editor, and

Valiant created a highly successful yet controversial marketing campaign based on word of mouth sales by correctly betting that higher quality stories would inspire retailers and fans to recommend Valiant. Valiant encouraged its fans to show off their pride in public, rewarding the best efforts with gold logo variant versions of Valiant comics. Even though the gold logo program is no longer in effect, the Valiant fans continue to exhibit their passion by organizing Valiant Conventions that are staged annually at the San Diego Comic Con and the New York Big Apple Con, and produce a variety of Valiant fan projects, including signed books, posters, lithographs and toys, funded entirely by fans. These items have become highly sought after by some collectors.

Parodies

Valiant parodied in Simpsons Comics in 2002.
Valiant parodied in Simpsons Comics in 2002.

Valiant Comics has been copied and parodied a number of times:

Logo History

Visual history of Valiant Comics logos.
Visual history of Valiant Comics logos. Harbinger is a Comic book series about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers, published by Valiant Comics X-O Manowar ( Aric Dacia) is a fictional Valiant Comics Superhero created by writer and former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Unity was a company-wide " crossover " story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992.

Valiant's first logo appeared on its licensed products (Nintendo and Wrestling comics) before being seen on its superhero line. In May 1991, the logo first appeared on a superhero comic when it appeared on Magnus Robot Fighter #1 but without a comic box. In January 1992, the logo first appeared in a comic box on Solar #5 and Magnus #8.

In November 1992, Valiant updated its logo changing the typeface from a fancy script to a thick bold script. This change occurred only two months after the end of the successful Unity crossover and on the back of the departure of Jim Shooter.

Immediately after the Chaos Effect crossover the logo was updated again. The type face was kept but the wording was changed to "Valiant Presents". The compass logo was diminished in size and moved from below the text.

After the sale to Acclaim Entertainment Inc. for $65 million, the logo was completely revamped. The compass logo was replaced by a large letter "V" that appeared above the wording "Valiant", which appeared in a new type face (the same went with both the Armada and Windjammer imprints).

To coincide with the Acclaim Comics relaunch in 1996, another completely revamped logo was created. This logo signified the synergy between Acclaim and Valiant, merging the letters "A" and "V" into one logo with the wording "Acclaim Comics Valiant Heroes".

More recently, following the formation of Valiant Entertainment, the compass logo has reappeared along with a variation of the original type face. The only major change is the addition of the wording "Entertainment".

On August 15, 2007 Valiant Entertainment unveiled the new Valiant logo. Events 778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, at which Roland is killed Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Designed by world famous corporate identity consultant Henry Steiner, the new logo will be used in all media and made its debut on the Harbinger: The Beginning hardcover. Henry Steiner is a world renowned graphic designer best known for his corporate identity designs

See also

References

Footnotes

  1. ^ Solar: Man of the Atom (#0-10)
  2. ^ Armada at the Comic Book DB, accessed September 6, 2007. The Nintendo Comics System was a series of Comic books published by Valiant Comics in 1990 and 1991. This is a fictional timeline of the Valiant Comics universe 3500 BC Khanit a nomadic tribesman is chosen by Earth as its first Geomancer. Events 3114 BC - According to the Proleptic Julian calendar the current era in the Maya Long Count Calendar started Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.
  3. ^ Windjammer at the Comic Book DB, accessed September 6, 2007. Events 3114 BC - According to the Proleptic Julian calendar the current era in the Maya Long Count Calendar started Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.

External links

Newsarama is an American Website that publishes News, Interviews and Essays about the American comic book Events 778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, at which Roland is killed Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.
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