Britannia #1
Written by Peter Milligan
Art by Juan Jose Ryp
Colors by Jordie Bellaire
Letters by Dave Sharpe
Covers by Cary Nord, Lewis Larosa and Brian Reber, Andres Guinaldo and Michael Spicer, Ryan Lee and Allen Passalaqua, Dave Johnson
Valiant Entertainment
Release Date: September 21, 2016
Cover Price: $3.99

I’m a sucker for all things historic. Even when they aren’t really all that historic. Take this comic, for instance. Britannia #1 is a dark, twisted tale that is set in Rome during the first century. This is the dawn of the Roman Empire as we all know it. But what if the myths and legends of the deities and demigods were based on actual events? This is the state of things as our story begins.

Read on for more details.

Ninjak #1
Written by Matt Kindt
Art by Clay Mann
Inks by Seth Mann
Colors by Ulises Arreola
Letters by Dave Sharpe
Cover art by Lewis Larosa, Clay Mann, Brian Reber, Dave Johnson, Marguerite Sauvage, Trevor Hairsine & Tom Muller
Valiant Entertainment
Release Date: March 11, 2015
Cover Price: $3.99

I don’t know what I was expecting from Ninjak #1, but I was not expecting what I read in this first issue. It just goes to show that when a publisher puts some quality talent on a title with a great concept, the result is amazing comics!

Valiant Comics decided to put writer Matt Kindt on this book, and the result is nothing short of fantastic. When you have a concept that’s a mash-up of a James Bond-type spy and a super ninja, and you put a writer who’s got the chops of Matt Kindt, again, fantastic things happen.

Divinity #1
Written by Matt Kindt
Pencils by Trevor Hairsine
Inks by Ryan Winn
Colors by David Baron
Letters by Dave Lanphear
Covers by Jelena Kevic Djurdjevic, Tom Muller, Tom Muller and Trevor Hairsine, and Lewis LaRosa with Brian Reber
Valiant Entertainment
Release Date: February 11, 2015
Cover Price: $3.99

Alternative history has always fascinated me, mainly because our past is full of pivotal points in time. If we were to alter a single incident, what else would change? Similarly, time travel offers the exact same scenarios unless you are among those who believe that fate is decreed and cannot be changed. The only reason I mention this is because Divinity #1 works on the premise that during the Cold War, the Soviets were far more advanced than we Americans were. But as oftentimes happens, fledgling science has repercussions. Which leads us to our story…

Unity #2
Written by Matt Kindt
Illustrated by Doug Braithwaite
Colored by Brian Reber
Lettered by Dave Sharpe
Covers by Doug Braithwaite, Travel Foreman, Cary Nord with Len O’Grady
Valiant Entertainment
Release Date: December 11, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99

Inside the X-O armor, “Aric has single-handedly pushed the world to the brink” in Unity #2.

Aric’s invasion of Romania cannot go unanswered. He’s already destroyed a Russian carrier inside the X-O Manowar armor, and in response, the Russians are planning to send a tactical nuke in to destroy the one man army. The fallout from such an event would be cataclysmic to Romania and the world. Toyo Harada can’t let this happen. So, even though his Unity team was defeated in a matter of minutes, Harada reforms a new team that includes himself to take down Aric and avert nuclear meltdown.

Unity #1
Written by Matt Kindt
Illustrated by Doug Braithwaite
Colored by Brian Reber
Covers by Doug Braithwaite, Bryan Hitch, J.G. Jones, Travel Foreman, Paolo Rivera, Clayton Crain, Neal Adams
Valiant Entertainment
Release Date: November 13, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99

The universe’s most powerful weapon must be brought down! But how can the devastating X-O Manowar be defeated? The time-displaced keeper of the X-O Manowar armor has declared Romania his kingdom, but the world isn’t going to let this invasion happen without a fight. As the Russians plan for a nuclear attack, the world’s most dangerous man, Toyo Harada puts together a ruthless team to take out the armor in Unity #1.

I am exhausted with massive crossover events in comics. Occasionally they deliver on their promises to be a game-changing event with spectacular storytelling, but most often they end up resetting the status quo of all the characters and telling a mediocre story.