Imperium #8
Publisher: Valiant
Writer: Joshua Dysart
Artist: Scot Eaton & Brian Reber
Cover: KANO, Scot Eaton
Toyo Harada is arguably one of THE most powerful men in the Valiant Universe. So what happens when he meets up with the new and all powerful Divinity? Well, if Joshua Dysart is writing the story you get an exciting, cerebral, time manipulating conflict that truly delivers on the first meeting between these two.
When you have characters with these types of vast abilities it’s always fun to see how the writer is going to utilize the power sets and move the story along. Dysart pulls this off quite well and in a way that helps readers who may not have read the Divinity mini series understand the character along with some of his powers. Dysart also moves this beyond the usual slugfest and energy blasts making it more of battle of wills and ideology as they begin to discover each others vulnerabilities. We also get to see some events play out over again due to a time loop but it doesn’t feel repetitive as new details are revealed along the way. However, it’s what we see at the end that may or may not end up being Sunlight On Snow’s biggest mistake yet. It’s always a shame to see your favorite character screw up.
Scot Eaton keeps the story moving with some very strong action scenes and just all around great artwork. There’s some really nice sequences during the Harada/Divinity battle and even the explosions and chaos taking place while the sub is sinking. But that silent panel after Angela asks for the women in various stages of pregnancy was hilarious. Eaton nails the vibe and mood of the entire room and even the expressionless “face” of Sunlight on Snow was just perfect there. Reber’s colors are just as great from the underwater action to illuminating the characters while in the escape pods it all just comes together. Though it was slightly confusing to see a panel with Kozol covered in the color dots we used to see in older comics. It may seem like a small matter but it was visually jarring since it doesn’t happen anywhere else in the issue and I’m not sure what it’s visual purpose was.
Imperium is yet another series you should be reading from Valiant if you aren’t already. It’s not your typical team book and that’s what helps make it stand apart from others on the shelf. Dysart has been on a roll here and it all feels like it’s leading up to something huge along the way. So go ahead and put this one on your list of must reads!
Infinite Speech
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