Publisher: Valiant
Writer: Rafer Roberts
Artist: Darick Robertson
Colourist: Diego Rodriguez
Release Date: OUT NOW!
Price: $3.99

This is BIG. I mean, really BIG. I know it’s big because Valiant tell me it’s big. Of course, they may be biased.

Harbinger Renegade #1is the ideal jumping on point for the most massive event in comic book history which will lead to Harbinger Wars 2 which will culminate sometime in 2018. Yawn! Sorry, but how many times have we heard that? Zillions. At heart, Harbinger Renegade #1 continues to jump on the perpetual bandwagon of mutant hysteria/fear of strangers/aliens in our midst plot devices that have been a comic book staple since before there were comic books. Here, the mutants/aliens/strangers are called psiots; psionically-powered “harbingers” with the potential to reshape the course of human history.

Even more scary, in Harbinger Renegade #1, any and everyone has the potential to become a psiot, except in most cases it seems to involve a painful, messy and probably fatal scientific process which would seem to limit the size of the threat somewhat, but for plot purposes let’s assume that large numbers of disaffected people are willing to take that chance. Tapping into the current world zeitgeist, the denizens of the Valiant universe are up in arms about this, literally arming themselves against the real or imagined threat. The men in black (no, not Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, the other men in black, National Security) get busy contacting known psiots, for their own protection of course.

Luckily, psiot superheroine Faith is on hand to save the day when psiot powered teens cause a ruckus during their own version of fresher’s week and becomes the focal point for the formation of a group of emotionally scarred but basically good psiots who will become (fanfare here) Harbinger Renegades!

Take Valiant at their word that this is the ideal jumping on point and skip the first four pages of Harbinger Renegade #1 which gives you a detailed back-story so that what follows makes more sense. For a massive, universe-shaking event, Harbinger Renegade #1 starts a little predictably but they have two years to spice it up. The premise has always been a good one and Harbinger Renegade will stand or fall on the quality of its characters. Faith is an established fan favourite and the troubled mix of young psiots give ample scope for friction, friendship and fisticuffs.

Early days, certainly in Harbinger Renegade #1 but if you dig beneath the hype that goes with an event like this you may actually find a good, well written, well drawn comic book and who could ask for more than that?

 

 

 

Reviewer: Gary Orchard
Reviews Editor: Steve Hooker