The first Harbinger Wars event was epic! Can Valiant continue with Harbinger Wars II?

Written by: Matt Kindt
Art by: Tomas Giorello
Published by: Valiant Comics
Price: $3.99

Back in 2013, Valiant Comics released an event that changed the Valiant Universe forever in Harbinger Wars. Now, Valiant is back at it again with Harbinger Wars 2 (HW2), a brand new event written by Matt Kindt and drawn by Tomas Giorello.

There are multiple stories going on in HW2 with Psiot Peter Stanchek on the run from the organizations of G.A.T.E. (Global Agency for Threat Excision) and Omen, which is a paramilitary organization that utilizes Major Charlie Palmer’s team, called H.A.R.D. Corps. H.A.R.D. Corps is used to find and eliminate Psiot threats. Meanwhile, Stanchek is trying to activate as many dormant Psiots as he can to join in the coming war for equal rights for Psiots. While all of this is going on, Aric a.k.a. X-O Manowar, is working with G.A.T.E. in the recovery efforts from the blackout attack on the United States from Livewire. Where will all these stories intersect? Only time will tell.

In one of my last reviews, I talked about how much I love the storytelling from Matt Kindt and once again it shines in this book. His command of all the characters is fantastic. I mentioned how he was the perfect writer for X-O Manowar and it shows here but I have to say that the character that really shines is Peter Stanchek. You can see that this is a man who has spent most of his life on the run and most of his life burdened with his psiotic gifts. I look at Stanchek as another version of Professor Xavier. He has hope for the future but he does not see himself in that future and that is what really sticks.

I will also say that the art by Tomas Giorello is great. It sets the tone for not only every scene but the entire event as a whole. Seeing Stanchek on the run you really get a sense of urgency in all of his encounters with people. When X-O Manowar is helping clean things up, you smile at how heroic he looks and how he is willing to lay his life on the line to help people who are suffering. The action set pieces look incredible and they move at breakneck speed until you have to catch your breath by the end.

I can see that HW2 is going to be one of the biggest events in comics and it definitely comes off as such.

5 Activated Psiots out of 5.