Creative Staff:
Story: Dennis “Hopeless” Hallum
Art: Emilio Laiso
Colors: Ruth Redmond
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
What They Say:
Who wins in a fight: X-O Manowar or a cybernetic tech monster formed out of lava? In order to prevent catastrophe, will Aric hand over the X-O armor to a new ally?
The Review
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Man has to walk before they can run and the same applies to superheroes. They need their training wheels before they ready to save the world. It’s a long and tedious process but they have to start somewhere. For X-O Manowar, that road starts with dealing with an erupting volcano on a tiny island. It may not be the most glamorous way to start but it’s an important heroic deed to the people of the island. It would have been great if there was one more panel focused on the girl who was watching him. It would drive home the point that he is becoming a worldwide superhero.
He continues working with Troy Whitaker to build a reputation. As part of his mentorship with Troy, he goes on many of these minor missions. This is all an annoyance to X-O Manowar as he wants to be on the global stage. Troy sends him on these minor missions so that he could build up a reputation so that he can be trusted by the people when it’s time for the major leagues. This doesn’t sit too well with X-O Manowar who wants to continue the battle against the Ukraine criminals. Troy has the right idea with X-O Manowar but falls to the trope of being an ignored master.
Behind the mask, there is a human who wants a sense of normalcy. X-O Manowar wants the everyman life of having a family. He acquired a makeshift family out of the people he has saved. Unfortunately, he revealed his identity to the media. This opens the door to boundless chaos as he will soon discover.
Emilio Laiso and Ruth Redmond keep things fresh with a new variation of X-O Manowar’s suit. It’s a great direction as it’s willing to break the status quo. But It’s too early in this run to have X-O Manowar getting a new suit. This series has only been going for three issues. It doesn’t allow for time to know about the first suit.
In Summary:
Superhero beginnings are full of mistakes but are bound to be entertaining. Those mistakes are the stepping stone for what type of hero they will become. X-O Manowar commits the biggest mistake in the book as he reveals his actual name in front of the camera. Dennis Hopeless has the right idea in pairing X-O Manowar with Troy. Their relationship as master and pupil is going as well as anyone would expect.
Grade: B
Age Rating: Teen+
Released By: Valiant Comics
Release Date: December 23, 2020
MSRP: $3.99
