Valiant Reviews: Harbinger #3

Harbinger #3
Publisher: Valiant
Writer: Joshua Dysart
Artist: Khari Evans & Lewis Larosa
Cover: Arturo Lozzi & Matt Milla

After being on the run and making some seriously bad calls in the past two issues, Peter Stancheck has agreed to go with Toyo Harada and join the Harbinger Foundation. Here he meets the many individuals that will be in charge of his training along with the other students. The fact that he’s something of a rarity in how his powers developed has also made him the talk of the facility, and that’s not always a good thing. As he finds out when he picks a fight with one of the elder students.

The past several issues have been very intense and dark, as Dysart has introduced Stancheck and his abilities to us. With this issue we’re treated to a lot more in terms of back story, but just enough to keep you guessing as to the motives of several individuals. The flashes of origin we get about Peter are quite unsettling and sad, and even though he’s a bit of a jerk, Dysart establishes that it’s for good reason. This is probably the first time you actually feel for the guy since there was nothing redeeming about him in the first two issues of this series. There’s also the introduction of a new character at the end, and though it’s brief, you want to know what part she’ll play in all of this.

The artwork from Evans and Larosa continues to move the story and looks awesome while doing it. Though it was the flashback scenes that stand out as some of the strongest parts. The shift in the story’s tone went over well, and you just know that Peter is going to have a crappy day right after. Which leads to a great looking fight in the cafeteria where we get to see someone besides Peter show off their skills.

This creative team has delivered another great issue for comic fans, and with things still up in the air you’ll want to see where Dysart is taking this title. You know what’s great about Valiant’s relaunch? It’s lived up to the hype! Harbinger is another strong title that is worth taking a chance on if some of the others aren’t your cup of tea.

Infinite Speech
infinitespeech@comicattack.net

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