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X-O Manowar (2012) #8-10
X-O Manowar Deluxe Edition, Book 4
New York Times best-selling writer Robert Venditti (Armor Hunters, The Flash) and superstar artists Diego Bernard (Red Lanterns), Rafa Sandoval (Ultimate Hawkeye), CAFU (Rai), and Clay Mann (Ninjak) unite for a devastating cosmic showdown right here in the next deluxe volume of the series Comic Book Resources calls "grandiose and epic."
In the far reaches of deep space, the ultimate fail-safe of an extinct alien race has finally counted down to zero and the robot army called Dead Hand has been activated. The civilization that built them has fallen and, now, to combat the doomsday threat that destroyed their world, Dead Hand will complete the mission that their creators could not. Soulless and brutal, this billion-strong legion is the phantom army of a dead world and it will cleanse the universe by any means necessary. But what unthinkable menace were they created to destroy? And will Dead Hand s slow march across the galaxy spell death for countless worlds?
Collecting: X-O X-O Manowar 30-42, 0, Valiant 25th Anniversary Special
In the far reaches of deep space, the ultimate fail-safe of an extinct alien race has finally counted down to zero and the robot army called Dead Hand has been activated. The civilization that built them has fallen and, now, to combat the doomsday threat that destroyed their world, Dead Hand will complete the mission that their creators could not. Soulless and brutal, this billion-strong legion is the phantom army of a dead world and it will cleanse the universe by any means necessary. But what unthinkable menace were they created to destroy? And will Dead Hand s slow march across the galaxy spell death for countless worlds?
Collecting: X-O X-O Manowar 30-42, 0, Valiant 25th Anniversary Special
400 pages, Hardcover
First published April 4, 2017
7 people are currently reading
37 people want to read
About the author
Robert Venditti
802 books398 followersRobert Venditti is a New York Times bestselling author of more than three hundred comic books and graphic novels. Some of his works include the monthly comic book series Justice League, Superman ’78, Hawkman, and Green Lantern for DC Comics, X-O Manowar, Armor Hunters, and Wrath of the Eternal Warrior for Valiant Entertainment, and the graphic novel Six Days, inspired by the story of his uncle’s participation in D-Day. He has also adapted Rick Riordan’s global bestselling Percy Jackson and the Olympians and The Heroes of Olympus novels, as well as Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia and Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz. His graphic novel The Surrogates was adapted into a feature film by Touchstone Pictures, and his work on The Flash was the basis for season three of the CW television series.
Venditti lives in Atlanta, where he both writes and serves as a storytelling consultant for some of the most recognizable entertainment brands in the world.
Venditti lives in Atlanta, where he both writes and serves as a storytelling consultant for some of the most recognizable entertainment brands in the world.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 29, 2018
What I love about this series is how well-structured it is, where for the most part, everything has a major cause and effect and every story beat comes back as an important element later on.
Aric barely survived his battle with the deadly Armor Hunters when they came gunning for him from across the cosmos. But what he didn't know is that the Hunters had a fail-safe if they were ever defeated: a group of mindless drone killing machines called Dead Hand with the directive to decimate galaxies and realign the DNA of the population so that the Manowar armor could never have another host. Now activated, Dead Hand will first attack the Vine homeworld of Loam and then make their way to Earth.
Aside from the silly, throwaway "Armorines" arc that opens the book, everything here is exciting because of details set up earlier in the run. For example, the return of the Vine is a big deal here and I was surprised by how emotionally attached I was to them, a big contrast to my despising them as the villains in the first book. It's a testament to Venditti's commitment and storytelling talent that these things really pay off.
Dead Hand is a well-designed villain visually but I wish there was more time dedicated to developing them as a threat. I also think it was cool to get a hint of X-O Manowar being a Flash- or Green Lantern-style legacy character, once Aric teams up with other armor-bearers across the galaxy for a final showdown. Another very solid entry in this great series.
Aric barely survived his battle with the deadly Armor Hunters when they came gunning for him from across the cosmos. But what he didn't know is that the Hunters had a fail-safe if they were ever defeated: a group of mindless drone killing machines called Dead Hand with the directive to decimate galaxies and realign the DNA of the population so that the Manowar armor could never have another host. Now activated, Dead Hand will first attack the Vine homeworld of Loam and then make their way to Earth.
Aside from the silly, throwaway "Armorines" arc that opens the book, everything here is exciting because of details set up earlier in the run. For example, the return of the Vine is a big deal here and I was surprised by how emotionally attached I was to them, a big contrast to my despising them as the villains in the first book. It's a testament to Venditti's commitment and storytelling talent that these things really pay off.
Dead Hand is a well-designed villain visually but I wish there was more time dedicated to developing them as a threat. I also think it was cool to get a hint of X-O Manowar being a Flash- or Green Lantern-style legacy character, once Aric teams up with other armor-bearers across the galaxy for a final showdown. Another very solid entry in this great series.
August 17, 2017
Venditti continues the strong narrative he started in Book 1, continuing to weave together elements of Aric's past with the present. Plot threads established in previous volumes are effectively followed up in this volume and with one Book remaining, I'm confident things will wrap up on a high note. While some of the story arcs wrap up a bit too smoothly, the overall plot continues to develop in diverse ways. Highly recommend for those interested in a different kind of Super-hero comic.
September 3, 2017
Venditti's run on XO is the longest running series to come out of the Valiant renaissance, and for a reason: he constantly delivers the goods. The main antagonists in this series, the Dead Hand, are a holdover from the Armor Hunters event, but still feel original and spooky. More interaction with the Vine which results in a new status quo for Aric's (and the people of earth) as we head into the 5th (and last :( ) deluxe edition of Venditti's 50-issue run.
August 18, 2020
This is such a cleverly subversive and surprisingly refreshing series!
This is now the fourth XO book I've read in the last two months and each time I open one simply expecting a good time. That is the bare minimum requirement. But I always close each one feeling far more satisfied than anticipated.
Venditti continues to balance crazy sci-fi with ridiculous superheroics that never fail to subvert their predictable facades. And he does it all without sacrificing what makes XO Manowar so great; the character of Aric of Dacia. His struggles in adapting to this new world and a wider universe is always grounded by well-placed flashbacks to the fifth century. The "villains" or "conflicts" in every arc of this series have been intriguing and layered and seem to always resolve themselves in unique ways.
This is great.
This is now the fourth XO book I've read in the last two months and each time I open one simply expecting a good time. That is the bare minimum requirement. But I always close each one feeling far more satisfied than anticipated.
Venditti continues to balance crazy sci-fi with ridiculous superheroics that never fail to subvert their predictable facades. And he does it all without sacrificing what makes XO Manowar so great; the character of Aric of Dacia. His struggles in adapting to this new world and a wider universe is always grounded by well-placed flashbacks to the fifth century. The "villains" or "conflicts" in every arc of this series have been intriguing and layered and seem to always resolve themselves in unique ways.
This is great.
September 27, 2017
Robert Venditti continues his strong run on X-O Manowar. With numerous story threads that pay off for long time readers this volume keeps the fast pace blend of action and character development that readers have come to love from X-O Manowar. Much like the Venditti's run so far this volume comes highly recommended.
July 15, 2025
Read this asap!
Some of the best at Valiant has to offer. 5 star comic. Not kidding around. This is that good. Check it for yourself, but start at the beginning.
Some of the best at Valiant has to offer. 5 star comic. Not kidding around. This is that good. Check it for yourself, but start at the beginning.
April 7, 2017
Este tomo transcurre post los acontecimientos de Armor Hunters: Deluxe Edition.
Y está compuesto por lo siguiente:
X-O Manowar #0: que ahonda un poco en la vida de Aric durante el siglo V, y en como llegó a desarrollar la personalidad más arrebatada que se ve en la andanza inicial de la serie (X-O Manowar: Deluxe Edition, Book 1) y pone en contraparte como ha crecido el personaje desde entonces.
Enter Armorines: es tal vez el arco más flojo, siendo el típico desarrollo atrofiado de superheróe enfrenta a villano de la semana y es realmente meh.
Dead Hand: es una especie de epilogo para la saga de 'Armor Hunter' sin embargo este coletazo es uno sumamente profundo y que de hecho dispara el arco siguiente.Hay presente un genocidio y al mismo tiempo sitúa a X O Manowar como una especie de corps. Una comparación que no viene a pito de nada ya que Venditti es conocido por guionizar a Green Lantern durante el último tiempo. Siendo esta aproximación para nada gratuita. Me gusta como paulatinamente el escritor ha hecho ir evolucionando a Aric desde el líder impulsivo a uno un poco más sabio, no obstante siempre conservando esa autoridad incontestable que tienen las monarquías.
Luego de ello vendría el casamiento de Aric y Saana que es una especie de pausa en el que el arrepentimiento, el perdón y la reconciliación con uno mismo son los protagonistas, antes de explote -tal vez- el mejor arco de lo que va de serie.
Exodo: Habla directamente sobre la guerra y en como esta encuentra su raíz en la falta de comunicación. En que basta con unos pocos individuos que quiera desgarrar la paz para lograrlo - y si bien esta pasada tiene una solución algo simplona- deja enterradas las semillas que de seguro irán detonando para el final de la serie.
Y está compuesto por lo siguiente:
X-O Manowar #0: que ahonda un poco en la vida de Aric durante el siglo V, y en como llegó a desarrollar la personalidad más arrebatada que se ve en la andanza inicial de la serie (X-O Manowar: Deluxe Edition, Book 1) y pone en contraparte como ha crecido el personaje desde entonces.
Enter Armorines: es tal vez el arco más flojo, siendo el típico desarrollo atrofiado de superheróe enfrenta a villano de la semana y es realmente meh.
Dead Hand: es una especie de epilogo para la saga de 'Armor Hunter' sin embargo este coletazo es uno sumamente profundo y que de hecho dispara el arco siguiente.Hay presente un genocidio y al mismo tiempo sitúa a X O Manowar como una especie de corps. Una comparación que no viene a pito de nada ya que Venditti es conocido por guionizar a Green Lantern durante el último tiempo. Siendo esta aproximación para nada gratuita. Me gusta como paulatinamente el escritor ha hecho ir evolucionando a Aric desde el líder impulsivo a uno un poco más sabio, no obstante siempre conservando esa autoridad incontestable que tienen las monarquías.
Luego de ello vendría el casamiento de Aric y Saana que es una especie de pausa en el que el arrepentimiento, el perdón y la reconciliación con uno mismo son los protagonistas, antes de explote -tal vez- el mejor arco de lo que va de serie.
Exodo: Habla directamente sobre la guerra y en como esta encuentra su raíz en la falta de comunicación. En que basta con unos pocos individuos que quiera desgarrar la paz para lograrlo - y si bien esta pasada tiene una solución algo simplona- deja enterradas las semillas que de seguro irán detonando para el final de la serie.
May 1, 2017
An extremely strong volume of X-O with a trio of great stories.
Enter the Armorines (0, 30-32). This volumes starts off with a 0 issue that is a flashback to Aric's youth, and it's quite wonderful: a terrific character piece. The rest of the volume is about the corporate machinations of the man who creates the Armorines. This type of corporate tomfoolery is a nice callback to the corporate focus of the VH-1 X-O, but even beyond that, it's a strong story that does a great job of once more reiterating Aric's strength as a barbarian in the modern world. My only complaint regards the "Dead Hand" previews, which aren't that interesting until the end, and which muddle the flash-forward internal to this story. [8/10]
Dead Hand (33-37). A nice return of X-O to the cosmic world. It's got some exciting action but feels a little weaker than its predecessor until the middle issue, when it starts to gain some interesting emotional weight. I also felt like the relation to the Armor Hunters was a little muddled, but maybe I just need to reread the previous volume. In any case, I did eventually figure it out. Overall, this is an another exciting, well-written X-O story [7+/10].
Shanhara (25th Anniversary). The origin of the X-O Armor! A touching story that also does a great job of explaining much of the backstory of X-O and the Vine and what's happened to date. Amazing! [8+/10].
Exodus (38-42). The Wedding of X-O is another nice character piece and a great story for once more cohering together the whole VH-E universe. However, it's the main "Exodus" story that stands out in this volume. It's another great cosmic outing that is extremely tense and also does a great job of making you worry about and care for many of the individual characters caught up in this horrible interstellar brinkmanship. A wonderful story, and as with so much of the X-O series, one with intriguing repercussions going forward. [8/10]
Enter the Armorines (0, 30-32). This volumes starts off with a 0 issue that is a flashback to Aric's youth, and it's quite wonderful: a terrific character piece. The rest of the volume is about the corporate machinations of the man who creates the Armorines. This type of corporate tomfoolery is a nice callback to the corporate focus of the VH-1 X-O, but even beyond that, it's a strong story that does a great job of once more reiterating Aric's strength as a barbarian in the modern world. My only complaint regards the "Dead Hand" previews, which aren't that interesting until the end, and which muddle the flash-forward internal to this story. [8/10]
Dead Hand (33-37). A nice return of X-O to the cosmic world. It's got some exciting action but feels a little weaker than its predecessor until the middle issue, when it starts to gain some interesting emotional weight. I also felt like the relation to the Armor Hunters was a little muddled, but maybe I just need to reread the previous volume. In any case, I did eventually figure it out. Overall, this is an another exciting, well-written X-O story [7+/10].
Shanhara (25th Anniversary). The origin of the X-O Armor! A touching story that also does a great job of explaining much of the backstory of X-O and the Vine and what's happened to date. Amazing! [8+/10].
Exodus (38-42). The Wedding of X-O is another nice character piece and a great story for once more cohering together the whole VH-E universe. However, it's the main "Exodus" story that stands out in this volume. It's another great cosmic outing that is extremely tense and also does a great job of making you worry about and care for many of the individual characters caught up in this horrible interstellar brinkmanship. A wonderful story, and as with so much of the X-O series, one with intriguing repercussions going forward. [8/10]
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews