Review: X-O Manowar #14
Creative Team:
Writer: Robert Venditti
Artist: Cary Nord
Color Artist: Moose Baumann
Cover Artist: Arturo Lozzi, and Matthew Waite
How We Got Here: Prince Aric of Dacia was set to be the heir to the Visigoth empire. Things changed when he became overzealous in the field of battle and as a result many of his own people died in combat. When he returned to the Visigoth camp he discovered that many of their women and children were gone. Gathering a small group of warriors he planned a sneak attack on the Roman camp at nightfall but what he encountered was far different.
As they approached they saw strange vehicles and armored men come out. Aric led the attack and killed a few of the creatures in the process, but in the end he was overpowered and taken captive. When he awoke he was no longer on Earth, but instead he was now a slave on the space ship of an alien species known as the Vine. Where his fellow captives accepted defeat Aric was willing to risk his life in order to survive. The heart and fire of a warrior that earned him respect on the battlefield led his peers to follow him yet again as they overpowered the Vine soldiers.
He enters into a royal ceremony where the Vine are worshipping their god, a sacred armor known as, Shanhara. The sacred armor according to the prophecy was to be worn again but every time a Vine soldier was deemed worthy they died in the process. When Aric charged to fight them he bonded with the armor. Instead of dying he was able to possess it. After destroying the ship he was on Aric flew back to Earth intending to return home.
When he got back on Earth, he discovered centuries passed since he was captured. His people were no longer around, and the world has changed completely. But if that wasn’t enough the Vine plan to destroy Earth because of Aric’s possession of the Shanhara armor. Knowing this threat he returns back to space to fight the Vine, and ends up on their home planet Loam to battle.
The Issue: The Planet Death storyline comes to a close as Aric unites the slaves on Loam to rebel against the Vine. Where he acted out of rage and/or impulse in the past, now Aric shows his potential as a true leader. Appealing to the commonality between he and the other captives in their fight for freedom despite his having the armor. Unlike his other challenges this time the numbers were in his favor. And because of this he succeeded not only in freeing the other captives, but also the Vine who was ruled with an iron fist by their own kind.
While the battle was going on, the Priest of the Vine appealed to his people about their belief of Shanhara. His appeal isn’t heard as he is told that the Shanhara didn’t pick Aric because he was special but because he was Vine, and they weren’t capable of wearing the armor. That the stories told about it were mere myths created to explain it. Despite this revelation he decided to believe because the proof was before him as Aric freed everyone.
Aric and the rest of the captives left after their victory head back to their respective home planets.
What I Liked: The best part of this issue was easily the Priest being told that the prophecy behind the Shanhara armor wasn’t true. Earlier in the series it is established that many of the Vine are no longer religious and have lost faith while this Priest still believes. And here we’re brought to a powerful moment that is truly up for interpretation. Was everything behind the Shanhara really a myth that they built just to explain the armor? Is it true that Aric really wasn’t the chosen one? It really is interesting. The only thing about this that isn’t up for interpretation is that as far as we know the armor killed the Vine we saw try to wear it, while two humans were able to wear it. This part resonated with me so strongly but it was such a small part of the book.
What I Didn’t Like: Didn’t like is a little strong. It’s just this entire story arc was very predictable. There was no drama. At no point did it feel like there was anything at stake for Aric. So as a result we got a really boring arc. This issue in itself just featured him reaching out to the others establishing solidarity and winning. This is a series that has lost a lot of momentum since the Planet Death storyline has started. With it headed back to Earth and the next issue featuring the Eternal Warrior it should pick back up. At least there’s hope.
Grade:
Coatesvillain
Just a guy who was into this nerd stuff before it's popular. Now that is I'm just happy I have people to talk about it with.
