Line #1 Creator/ValiantComics


1	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/valiant_comics.jpg]]
2
3	'''Valiant Comics''' was formed in 1989 by former Creator/MarvelComics Editor Creator/JimShooter, along with top artists and writers. Valiant was one of the many "creator owned" comic companies that appeared during MediaNotes/{{the Dark Age\|of Comic Books}}. The principal idea behind Valiant was to out-write the competition. It did so by [[{{Deconstruction}} deconstructing]] the various aspects of the typical comic book universe as presented by its rivals. While Creator/{{DC\|Comics}}, Creator/{{Marvel\|Comics}}, and Creator/{{Image\|Comics}} focused more on art, Valiant concentrated on aspects like exploration towards characterization, upholding continuity, and justification behind superpowers.
4
5	All of Valiant's characters' powers come from either technology, PsychicPowers, or [[FunctionalMagic magic]]. Thus they reduced the need for AppliedPhlebotinum, allowing them to pursue a more Hard Science Fiction approach than would have been possible in the [[TheVerse established universes]] of DC or Marvel. Their cast of heroes combined characters based on old [[PulpMagazine pulp-style]] adventurers with more [[NinetiesAntiHero modern]] character types. Valiant also bought the rights to and revamped [[CanonInvasion a few old characters from]] Creator/GoldKeyComics, with interesting results.
6
7	Perhaps the biggest innovation was their use of continuity. The events in the comics almost always took place during the same time frame as publication with readers expecting one month time jumps between issues. There was the rare exception to this rule, such as two back-to-back issues covering the events of the same night. In this case, the narration box would date them -- for example, both issues would be dated "December 12th, 1991" if the event began in a December issue released on the 12th. Another method they used took advantage of the more hard scifi setting, and had characters experience a jump forward of several months as a side effect of traveling faster than light. An event in one comic had immediate and lasting effects in another. Once an event happened, it was set in stone. {{Retcon}}s never happened, and ComicBookTime was averted. The Valiant universe was split into two time periods: the modern day, and the 41st century, with events in the former having effects on the latter. All in all, the formula worked, attracting many fans with its refreshing and unique style, and Valiant sold over 80 million comics in its first 5 years, becoming the third highest selling comic book company, after, of course, Creator/{{Marvel\|Comics}} and Creator/{{DC\|Comics}}...
8
9	...until 1993, when Valiant did an ill-thought-out crossover with Creator/{{Image\|Comics}} called ''ComicBook/{{Deathmate}}''. Valiant's professionalism clashed brutally with Image's notorious ScheduleSlip, and Valiant and Image's writers had no clue how to write the other company's characters. Both companies saw their reputations in tatters. ''Deathmate'' is widely believed to have been the straw that broke the comic book industry's back, setting off [[MediaNotes/TheGreatComicsCrashOf1996 the comics crash]] that the industry is still recovering from.
10
11	In the wake of the crash, Valiant's sales started to slip and the company was bought out by [[Creator/{{Acclaim}} Acclaim Entertainment]], a then-popular video game company, for $65 million, more than twice its $30 million estimated value (this wasn't because of the crash, as the company had been put on sale before it happened on the orders of the venture capital firm that owned the majority of the company). First, Acclaim launched an ill-advised soft reboot called "Birthquake". In an effort to separate the wheat from the chaff, they cancelled the lowest-selling half of all the books and signed expensive contracts with big name comic book creators to handle the remaining ones, which were tweaked to make them more suitable for being adapted into video games. When this didn't work and the creator contracts started costing the company much more than they were worth, Acclaim shut down Valiant to cancel them out and relaunched it as "Acclaim Comics". The line introduced a [[ExecutiveMeddling brand-new, "more marketable" universe]] dubbed Valiant Heroes 2, which [[ContinuityReboot completely rebooted the Valiant universe]] in a way that would make the characters even easier to adapt into video games, rendering many of them barely recognizable from their original versions. This plan produced some successful games, most notably ''VideoGame/{{Turok}}'' and ''VideoGame/ShadowMan'', but also more obscure ones like ''VideoGame/ArmorinesProjectSWARM''.[[note]]Funnily enough, this was not Valiant's first foray into the world of game comics - one of the ways in which they made sure they got bread alongside the meat of their original stuff was doing licensed Nintendo comics under the ''ComicBook/NintendoComicsSystem'', which may be where Acclaim got the idea to acquire them from.[[/note]] Ultimately, though, the declining fortunes of Acclaim Entertainment and ExecutiveMeddling led to the line's slow and painful demise in 1999, when the comic line was shut down by Acclaim, which itself went on to file for bankruptcy in 2004. The original Valiant is still fondly remembered as one of the best companies of MediaNotes/{{the Dark Age\|of Comic Books}}.
12
13	Creator/DarkHorseComics briefly held the license all the Gold Key properties -- and hired Shooter to manage them -- but, unfortunately, after about 8 issues of each, Dark Horse announced they would be cancelling the line due to low sales, as well as the rights holders wanting too much money. The Gold Key heroes most recently are licensed to Dynamite Entertainment, which has for three years been trying to give them a comeback...and has rebooted them at least three times as the characters keep switching ownership. (Classic Media got bought by Creator/DreamWorksAnimation, which got purchased by Creator/{{NBC}} Creator/{{Universal}}. This is a factor on why Valiant Entertainment takes a dim view towards trying to obtain characters rights again. Under such conditions it's difficult to get any creative momentum.
14
15	In 2012, Valiant began anew under the leadership of Dinesh Shamdasani, the head investor of the new company, Chairman Peter Cuneo, a former Marvel CEO, his son Gavin Cuneo as CFO and COO, and former Marvel editor Warren Simons as editor-in-chief. The renewed Valiant Comics, now called Valiant Entertainment, announced they would be publishing comics starring the Valiant characters, starting with four series in 2012. These would start with ''X-O Manowar'' #1 in May, followed by the release of new #1's for ''Harbinger'', ''Bloodshot,'' and ''Archer & Armstrong'' in June, July and August, respectively. Valiant made the promise of more titles depending on the performance of the initial four series, which debuted to strong initial sales and positive reactions from critics. Valiant made good on their promise in November 2012, with a new #1 of ''Shadowman''. The company's first [[CrisisCrossover major event]], ''Harbinger Wars,'' took place in Summer 2013, crossing over Harbinger and Bloodshot.
16
17	For years after the company's relaunch, the company did quite well with strong sales (at least for a recently started independent comic book company), good critical reviews and several award wins and nominations. Notably, in 2016, [[https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/2016-harvey-award-nominees-announced/ the company had 50 Harvey Award nominations across most categories]], more nominations than any other company that year. Unfortunately, things [[https://www.cbr.com/valiant-comics-layoffs-dmg-acclaim/ took a bit of a turn for the company in 2018]], when the new Valiant was bought by DMG Entertainment, with Shamdasani and the other original founders departing, and the comics became more scattershot in publication than they had previously been. Over the years, Valiant seemingly down-prioritized the actual comics, with almost no new ones being released as of 2023. In 2022, [[https://www.thepopverse.com/valiant-entertainment-comics-layoffs-skeleton-crew-publishing-bloodshot it was reported]] that the company had suffered serious layoffs and been reduced to just a skeleton crew. In June of 2023, it was announced that Valiant had partnered with an indie publisher, [[https://www.alienbooks.com/ Alien Books]], to apparently outsource the comics to them, with these new releases planned for 2024. The company has instead seemingly shifted its focus to adaptations.
18
19	In 2014, Valiant Entertainment partnered with Creator/CatalystGameLabs to publish an TabletopRolePlayingGame called ''TabletopGame/ValiantUniverseTheRoleplayingGame'' based on their comic book series. At New York Comic Con 2016, Valiant announced a brand new web series called ''WebVideo/NinjakVsTheValiantUniverse'', co-created by Bat in the Sun Productions, creator of ''WebVideo/SuperPowerBeatDown''. In later years, there were also announcements of a Dr. Mirage TV series (based on [[ComicBook/DeathDefyingDoctorMirage the current incarnation]]) being developed for Creator/TheCW, and a TV series based on ''ComicBook/QuantumAndWoody'' executive-produced by Creator/TheRussoBrothers with Creator/JoelMcHale as Woody, though neither of these has had many updates since. In 2015, they also announced they were partnering with Creator/ColumbiaPictures in order to create a Valiant Cinematic Universe. The original line-up for the setting was to have a pair of ''Bloodshot'' films, a pair of ''Harbinger'' films, and a ''Harbinger Wars'' film that would lead to a crossover between the two film series. According to leaked e-mails from Sony, the company was apparently considering [[DolledUpInstallment retooling]] the script for Creator/RolandEmmerich's ''Singularity'' to serve as a prequel. In 2018, Sony also announced that they were producing a movie about Faith Herbert of the ''Harbinger'' books. [[Film/Bloodshot2020 A Bloodshot film]] was released in 2020; due to the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic, it was released on video-on-demand very quickly after its theatrical premiere due to theaters closing. However, the original cinematic universe plan no longer seems feasible, with Creator/{{Paramount}} acquiring the movie rights to ''Harbinger'' in 2019, making the crossover difficult. In 2019, Valiant announced that they were partnering with indie video game developer Blowfish Studios to create multiplatform video games based on the comics. In 2023, the first such game was announced: a new ''Shadowman'' game (based on the incarnation from the current comics, not the Acclaim games) titled ''Shadowman: Darque Legacy''; it has been described as a third-person action-horror game and is due for release in late 2024. Valiant has also announced that they are partnering with Creator/GreenRonin to produce a TabletopRolePlayingGame based on the comics. In recent years, the video games Acclaim made based on their acquired Valiant comics have had [[UpdatedRerelease updated re-releases]] made by Creator/NightdiveStudios, who have also developed similar re-releases of games like ''VideoGame/SystemShock'' and ''VideoGame/{{Forsaken}}'', introducing them to a new generation of gamers. The first such re-release was of the first ''Turok'' game, released in 2015, followed by the other two ''Turok'' games and ''Shadowman''.
20
21	%%
22	%% NOTE TO EDITORS: Not all of the works in this index have dedicated work pages. They are included anyway on the assumption that they will have work pages eventually and to make the index markup work more smoothly.
23	%%
24	----
25	!!Comics published by Valiant Comics:
26	[[index]]
27	* ''ComicBook/ArcherAndArmstrong'' - Archer is a martial artist monk with {{Charles Atlas Superpower}}s. Armstrong is an effectively immortal brawler and drunkard. Both are being pursued by a largely incompetent cult known as the Sect as they have adventures and Armstrong tries to corrupt Archer.'''[[superscript:1, 2 (no title), 3]]'''
28	** The 2012 reboot is mostly the same, but changes Archer into the son of religious fundamentalists who are also part of the Sect, and gives Archer different powers than the original.
29	* ''ComicBook/{{Armorines}}'': Jarheads with cheap government-issue knock-offs of X-O Manowar's armor.'''[[superscript:1, 2, 3 (no title)]]'''
30	* ''ComicBook/{{Bloodshot}}'': A Mafia hitman is betrayed by his family and left for dead. His Body is found by "Project Rising Spirit" who inject him with nanomachines that resurrect him and turn him into a Japanese flag themed superhero [[LaserGuidedAmnesia who doesn't remember his past.]]'''[[superscript:1, 2, 3]]'''
31	** The 2012 reboot removes both the Japanese influences and his backstory as a hitman, instead leaving it ambiguous.
32	** The Acclaim version had Bloodshot created as a project of the Domestic Operations Authority. The "Angelo Mortalli" hitman identity was a set of false memories programmed into the nanites.
33	* ''ComicBook/{{Britannia}}'': A detective of UsefulNotes/TheRomanEmpire is ordered to investigate supernatural events in the land of Britannia.'''[[superscript:3]]'''
34	** Followed by two sequel mini-series about the same character, ''Britannia: We Who Are About to Die'' and ''Britannia: Lost Eagles of Rome''.
35	* ''ComicBook/{{Divinity}}'': A Russian cosmonaut from the Cold War is sent on a mission and returns to Earth with godlike powers.'''[[superscript:3]]'''
36	* ''ComicBook/TheSecondLifeOfDoctorMirage'': A ghostly "necromancer" who fights evil with his sexy Brazilian wife.'''[[superscript:1, 3]]'''
37	** ''ComicBook/DeathDefyingDoctorMirage'': The 2012 reboot focusing instead on an Asian paranormal investigator trying to find a way to restore ''her'' dead husband.
38	* ''ComicBook/DoctorSolar''[[note]]Known in-universe as ''Solar, Man of the Atom''[[/note]]: A freak accident gives a scientist the power to [[RealityWarper reshape reality]].'''[[superscript:0, 1, 2]]'''
39	* ''ComicBook/DoctorTomorrow'': A young boy meets his future self, a powerful superhero who rallies the present day Valiant heroes to fight a universe-destroying supervillain. '''[[superscript:2, 3]]'''
40	** Was originally introduced in the Acclaim era, where he was a superhero during World War II who aided in the war effort using technology brought from the 1990s.
41	* ''ComicBook/EternalWarrior'': [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin An immortal warrior]], one of only a handful of characters to see both the 20th and 41st centuries.'''[[superscript:1, 2, 3]]'''
42	* ''ComicBook/{{Faith\|ValiantComics}}'': An fat, nerdy young woman is given the power of flight(and psionic telekenesis, shield generation, and more), and uses them to be a superhero in Los Angeles.'''[[superscript:1 (no title), 3]]'''
43	** ''ComicBook/FaithAndTheFutureForce'': A 2017 crossover miniseries between Faith and Neela, Timewalker, where Neela recruits Faith to stop a threat against time and space.
44	** ''ComicBook/FaithDreamside'': A 2018 crossover miniseries between Faith, Dr. Mirage, and Animalia.
45	* ''ComicBook/GenerationZero'': A group of children with strange powers help investigate why a small town has suddenly become technologically advanced.'''[[superscript:3]]'''
46	* ''[[ComicBook/HARDCorps H.A.R.D. Corps]]'': A group of comatose Vietnam Vets are revived through the use of brain implants that give them the psionic powers of the Harbingers, but only one at a time.'''[[superscript:1, 3 (no title)]]'''
47	* ''ComicBook/{{Harbinger}}'': A group of super powered teens are on the run for their lives from an evil business man.'''[[superscript:1, 2 (a one shot), 3]]'''
48	* ''ComicBook/HarbingerWars2'': a 2017 crossover involving the Secret Weapons, X-O Manowar, Bloodshot, and the Renegades.
49	* ''ComicBook/{{Imperium}}'': A series focusing on Toyo Harada, the main antagonist of the ''Harbinger'' series, and his Foundation Zone after the events of ''Harbinger: Omegas''.'''[[superscript:3]]'''
50	* ''ComicBook/IvarTimewalker'': [[RuleOfThree Yet another immortal]], but this one has a map to portals that allow him to time travel.'''[[superscript:1, 2 (no title), 3]]'''
51	* ''ComicBook/{{Livewire}}'': The solo title of the character, a psiot introduced in the ''Harbinger'' series and later member of Unity. Now a fugitive, she investigates the disappearances of psiots.'''[[superscript:1, 3]]'''
52	* ''ComicBook/MagnusRobotFighter'': In the 41st century, he must protect Nor Am from the invasion of the Malev robots.'''[[superscript:0, 1, 2]]'''
53	* ''ComicBook/{{Ninjak}}'': What if Franchise/JamesBond was a ninja warrior?'''[[superscript:1, 2, 3]]'''
54	** The Acclaim reboot radically changes the character, focusing on a young teenager who gets spectacular ninja powers from a video game.
55	* ''ComicBook/NintendoComicsSystem'': A collection of licensed Creator/{{Nintendo}} comics before Valiant created their superhero universe.'''[[superscript:0]]'''
56	** ''Comicbook/TheLegendOfZelda'' has its own page.
57	* ''ComicBook/PsiLords'': In the 41st century, the descendants of the H.A.R.D. Corps have become the most powerful psionic warriors in the known galaxy.'''[[superscript:1, 3]]'''
58	* ''ComicBook/QuantumAndWoody'': A comedy about starring the world's worst superheroes. Perhaps the only series from the Acclaim Era that is fondly remembered.'''[[superscript:2, 3]]'''
59	* ''ComicBook/{{Rai}}'': Rai is the protector of 41st century Japan.'''[[superscript:1, 3]]'''
60	** The original run was briefly retooled into both ''Rai and the Future Force'' and ''The New Rai''.
61	* ''ComicBook/{{Savage}}'': A French soccer player, his supermodel wife, and their son crash-land onto a mysterious island full of dinosaurs, forcing them to fight for survival.'''[[superscript:3]]'''
62	* ''ComicBook/SecretWeapons'': A team made up of Valiant's most popular characters.'''[[superscript:1, 3]]'''
63	** [[ComicBook/SecretWeaponsValiantEntertainment The reboot]] goes in the opposite direction, with the Secret Weapons being a group of rejects from the Harbinger Foundation forced on the run after their names were leaked to the press.
64	* ''ComicBook/ShadowMan'': An African-American living in New Orleans discovers he is a powerful voodoo magician.'''[[superscript:1, 2, 3]]'''
65	** The Acclaim series, which served as the basis for their aforementioned video game, has a similar premise, except Shadowman is now a former hitman.
66	* ''ComicBook/{{Troublemakers}}'': Four children, genetically-engineered by a MegaCorp, dealing with issues of controlling their powers and going into the real world after growing up in a highly-restricted environment.'''[[superscript:2]]'''
67	* ''ComicBook/{{Turok}} Dinosaur Hunter'': A Navajo Warrior named Tal'Set who lives in the Lost Lands; a [[AfterTheEnd Post-Apocalyptic]] ScavengerWorld where "Time has no Meaning" and people armed with futuristic technology are trapped in an endless battle with a plague of Genetically-Engineered Dinosaurs.'''[[superscript:0, 1, 2]]'''
68	* ''ComicBook/{{Unity}}'': Valiant's first major CrisisCrossover.'''[[superscript:1, 3]]'''
69	** The reboot instead uses the name for their resident SuperTeam.
70	* ''ComicBook/TheVisitor'': A mysterious alien-like superhero finds himself at odds with the rest of the Valiant universe.'''[[superscript:1, 3]]'''
71	* ''ComicBook/WarMother'': A scavenger in the post-apocalyptic 41st century leads her tribe to survival. A limited series spinning out of the ''4001 A.D.'' event.'''[[superscript:3]]'''
72	* ''ComicBook/XOManowar'': A 5th century Visigothic Warrior gains an alien robotic suit and gets set though a timewarp to the modern era, where he befriends by a [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Corrupt]] [[BumblingSidekick (but incompetent)]] [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Corporate Executive]] ([[NaiveNewcomer who he doesn't know is just using him to steal his technology]]).'''[[superscript:1, 2, 3]]'''
73	** The 2012 reboot is mostly the same but removes the corporate angle, instead eventually making him TheGoodKing of a colony in Nebraska.
74	[[/index]]
75
76	'''[-0: existed before the Valiant universe-]'''\
77	'''[-1: existed in the original Valiant universe-]'''\
78	'''[-2: existed in Acclaim's reboot-]'''\
79	'''[-3: exists following VEI's 2012 reboot-]'''
80
81	----
82	!!Provides Examples Of:
83
84	* AntiHeroSubstitute: The Geomancer of the original Valiant continuity, Geoff [=McHenry=], got one after the events of the ''Chaos Effect'' crossover, at the end of which [[spoiler:he was sent flying through time and space along with Archer and Armstrong]]. He was replaced as Geomancer by his uncle Clay, who was a corrupt cop who was blinded when a deal went wrong, when Gilad showed him the book of Geomancers and it gave him their power.
85	* AnyoneCanDie: H.A.R.D. Corps changed its roster a couple times because of this.
86	* ArtisticLicensePhysics: Averted, no matter how powerful someone is, they still need to follow the laws of Newton and Einstein.
87	** Unless that person is Solar. Then FTL spaceflight, time travel, wormholes and pulling energy ''out'' of a black hole are all possible.
88	* AscendedFanboy: [[spoiler:Phil Seleski, gaining phenomenal cosmic power, recreated himself in the image of his favorite sixties comics character and eventually rebuilt the entire universe to bring in others. A pre-reboot story by Creator/DanJurgens featured Solar leaving the Earth in order to create a world closer to the one he adored in comics as a child. One where super-heroes operated openly and in a more 4-color manner, and his mortal counterpart lead a charmed, idealized life of love and contentment. It didn't end well.]]
89	* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Archer's super-power
90	* CanonImmigrant: Inverted- During the "Unity" crossover, it's revealed that [[spoiler:Torque and Kris of the Harbingers]] are the parents of [[MediaNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] hero Magnus Robot Fighter.
91	* CanonInvasion: Solar, Magnus Robot Fighter and Turok, Son of Stone were originally from Creator/GoldKeyComics, way back in the [[MediaNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks 1960s.]] {{Justified\|Trope}}, as we learn that [[spoiler:the whole universe has been recreated by Solar's subconscious, based in part on his memories of old comics he loved as a kid]].
92	* CaptainErsatz: Divinity is clearly meant to be one of Solar, who can no longer be used due to Valiant losing the Gold Key licenses.
93	** Savage is a more blatant one of Turok, for similar reasons.
94	* ContinuityReboot: As described above, the original Valiant company's reboot by Acclaim, which completely revamped all the characters and the universe.
95	** Another, much better received one, when Valiant Entertainment relaunched the line in 2012, bringing the universe back similar to how it had been when it was created and including ComicBook/QuantumAndWoody, a product of the Acclaim reboot.
96	* ContinuitySnarl: Mostly averted due to their continuity system, at least during the period from the 20th to the 30th Century. At the conclusion of the Harbinger Wars in the 30th Century the Harbingers become the mainstream human race except for isolationists hiding in Japan. No clear explanation is provided for how ordinary humans again became the norm by the timeframe of ''Magnus Robot Fighter'' and the other 41st Century series.
97	* CrisisCrossover: ''Unity'', which ran across all ongoing titles in 1993 with a #0 prologue issue, that was given away for free to draw interest, and an issue #1 serving as the epilogue. It unites the modern and 41st century characters against a woman with the power to destroy the universe, and would have had long term repercussions if Valiant had survived (most noticeably that Shadowman would have died in 1999).
98	** ''The Chaos Effect'', the company-wide crossover of 1994, a.k.a. "the Year of the Visitor". A vortex opens up in the sky above a Tibetan monastery and spits out Ivar, Timewalker, who has just witnessed something horrifying at the end of time. The titular Chaos Effect disables all electronics on Earth, creates Chaos that causes great natural disasters and releases a flood of necromantic energy. Similar to ''Unity'', it had a prologue issue (again given away for free) and an epilogue issue, this time identified as Alpha and Omega respectively, with the issues of the ongoing books tying into the event (divided into acts identified as Beta, Gamma, Delta and Epsilon) showing how the characters deal with the predicaments this causes, such as Bloodshot [[BroughtDownToBadass having to work with his nanomachines disabled]], Shadowman trying to take advantage of his necromantic energy boost to take on Master Darque and Solar's powers being scrambled so he can't use them.
99	** ''ComicBook/{{Deathmate}}'', Valiant's infamous crossover with the superhero comics of Creator/ImageComics published in 1993 and 1994 (due to Image falling way behind on their publishing). In the year 2062, when everyone he knows and loves is gone, Solar and the [[ComicBook/WildCATsWildStorm WildC.A.T.S.]] character Void, both powerful [[RealityWarper reality warpers]], cross paths in [[VoidBetweenTheWorlds Unreality]] and have spontaneous sex with each other, resulting in a new present day reality consisting of the Valiant and Image universes merged together.
100	** ''Unity 2000'' had Jim Shooter pitting the Phil Seleski Solar against the Acclaim version of Master Darque, with characters from both sides of the reboot along for the ride. The end result was to have been a new universe containing elements of both. Scheduled to run for six issues, Acclaim's troubles caused it to stop publication after three. Shooter's made the scripts for the final issues available online, and they aren't hard to find.
101	** ''The Valiant'', a 4-issue limited series during the rebooted Valiant Entertainment era written by Creator/JeffLemire and Creator/MattKindt. It's centered around Gilad, a.k.a. the Eternal Warrior, Bloodshot and Geomancer Kay [=McHenry=] while still involving other Valiant heroes. The story reveals one of Gilad's most persistent foes, a relentless monster known as the Immortal Enemy that keeps trying to kill the Geomancer of the time in order to kick off an age of darkness for the world. Having lost three such that he tried to protect over the years, Gilad gets help from the rest of Valiant's heroes to fight off the Immortal Enemy.
102	* {{Cult}}: Armstrong is hunted by one
103	* CyberPunk: The 41st century is home to continent spanning Megacities governed by Corporations, or Artificial Intelligences.
104	* MediaNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks: Valiant was founded during the dark age, and went under at around the same time as it ended.
105	* DarkAgeOfSupernames: XO-Manowar, Bloodshot, H.A.R.D. Corps
106	* DarkerAndEdgier: ''ComicBook/MagnusRobotFighter'' in the Valiant Heroes 2 era. The robots there consumed meat as part of a religious ceremony, and in the first issue Magnus and his freedom-fighting friends eat some of it. [[spoiler:Then at the end of the issue they discover it's human.]] And his father-figure, Good Shepherd, knew all along [[spoiler:and was intending for him to meet a similar fate. Free-range just tastes better, after all.]]
107	* DeathIsCheap: Mostly averted before the Acclaim era reboot. One of their slogans was actually "Valiant, where dead is dead"
108	* {{Deconstruction}}: Too many examples to count, but the biggest would have to be Harbinger. Harbinger featured a groups of super powered teens ''on the run for their lives'' from an seemingly unbeatable business man who, at least at first, seems to be an {{Expy}} of [[ComicBook/XMen Charles Xavier]]. While the man seemed to genuinely care for his subordinates, he never hesitated to mistreat them for the sake of what he felt was the greater good of humanity (which is to say, a better world that would be completely under his control). He was desperate to hunt down the protagonists because their team leader has the same powers as him - the near-unlimited telepathy and telekinesis and ability to ''activate superpowers in others''. The hero, incidentally, wasn't exactly pure either - early issues in particular showing him using powers in selfish and potentially dangerous ways. It also does a good job showing the mental and emotional toil this kind of thing would have a group of teens, constantly moving from town to town, and being the only thing keeping this guy from becoming dictator of the world.
109	* DeusSexMachina: Shadowman's ally Mama Nettie needed a regular dose of Vitamin S-E-X from the Shadowman to maintain her youth.
110	** Only in the videogame/Acclaim version of the comics. In the original Valiant Comics version, Mama Nettie was an elderly woman and quite happy with it. So much so that a minor storyline was her seeking a voodoo ritual to ''restore'' her aged form after exposure to Master Darque's necromantic power changed her back into a young woman, seeking both the return of her "crone power" (the natural affinity for voodoo magic granted by her aged form) and to escape from the youthful hormones she was plagued with.
111	*** In the Acclaim version, Nettie had nearly been killed when a dangerous man escaped from Deadside and Jack Boniface WAS killed. Nettie was badly messed up, using voodoo to keep herself alive which may have affected her mind. She was forced to change the rules to stop Tommy Lee Bones and to deal with any other threats coming through. Then again, the concept of Deadside had never even been mentioned in the Valiant books before so Shadow Man's connection to this realm was new for everyone.
112	* DifferentlyPoweredIndividual: Harbingers, which are the functional equivalent of {{Mutant}}[=s=]. However, they rarely possess any kind of outward deformities since they are anatomically the same as ordinary humans and their powers are psionic in origin.
113	* [[EmbarrassingFirstName Embarrassing Last Name]]: Doctor Mirage's real name is "Dr. Wang"
114	* EternalVillain: The Immortal Enemy also known as Mr. Flay would be an example. Mr. Flay is a monster created from the Earth that is reborn every age to hunt and kill Geomancers, representatives chosen by Mother Earth to protect the planet, and it takes on the form of each age's collective fears. The Immortal Enemy continuously does battle with the Eternal Warrior aka Gilad Anni-Padda who acts as the protector of each Geomancer. The Immortal Enemy has succeeded three times, marking Gilad with a scar each time. After each time a Geomancer is killed it marks the fall of a civilization, only for the Immortal Enemy to rest and rise again when another Geomancer reveals itself.
115	* EvilCounterpart: Doctor Eclipse for Solar, Master Darque for Shadowman
116	** And Heroic Counterpart Doctor Mirage for Master Darque
117	* EvolutionaryLevels: A rare case of this trope being both invoked ''and'' averted. While Harbingers are generally believed to be the next step in human evolution (by people who know about their existence), they are not in fact physically different from ordinary humans. Their powers are derived from elevated levels of activity in the brain which causes them to exhibit psionic abilities that produce the full range of comic book superpowers. Special [[AppliedPhlebotinum brain-stimulating cybernetic implants]] can enable ordinary humans to manifest Harbinger powers.
118	* ForeverWar: In the original continuity, the Harbinger Wars last from the 21st to the 30th Century.
119	* AGodAmI: Mothergod
120	* HeelFaceTurn: Livewire and Stronghold, two of Harada's Eggbreaker shock troops
121	* HistoricalInJoke: Armstrong built Stonehenge, [[SuperStrength alone, in one night]]. Why? Because he was drunk.
122	* {{Immortality}}: Armstrong, Eternal Warrior, and Timewalker
123	* IntercontinuityCrossover: ''ComicBook/{{Deathmate}}'' Also the Iron Man/X-O Manowar crossover, intended to advertise a new video game, then inexplicably made the hook the writers brought in for the Acclaim reboot were forced to base the new universe on.
124	* JapanTakesOverTheWorld: Being a product of the early 90s, the original Valiant continuity had elements of this. Toyo Harada, the main antagonist of the ''ComicBook/{{Harbinger}}'' book, is a Japanese CorruptCorporateExecutive whose psiot powers were activated when he survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. In the 41st century, Japan has become technologically advanced and successful enough to transfer itself and its population into a huge space station.
125	* KilledOffForReal: One of Valiant's big selling points was that any deaths that happened were final; they even used the tagline "where dead means dead" in promotional material.
126	* KnightTemplar: Toyo Harada, the primary villain, plans to "save" the world by conquering it.
127	* LegacyCharacter: Lots in the 41st century. For example the 41st century had the PSI-Lords, an organization directly descended from H.A.R.D. Corps, and Rai, who was created in the image of the 20th century hero Bloodshot.
128	* LighterAndSofter: Whereas most incarnations of Ninjak star Colin King, British secret agent ninja, Valiant Heroes 2 went in a different direction. Denny Meechum was a high school student who got magic ninja powers by solving a hidden puzzle in a video game, then had to fight all the villains from said game. Creator/KurtBusiek wrote the series in a tone very similar to that of early Spider-Man (Colin King does have a recurring role, but he's not a ninja here).
129	* MagicByAnyOtherName: Inverted. "Necromantic" and "ectotheric" energy, the basis of "magic" in the Valiant Universe, are really just variations of PsychicPowers.
130	* TheMasquerade: The existence of superhuman beings and paranormal phenomena is not public knowledge (until the Harbinger Wars start later in the 21st Century). Toyo Harada's Harbinger Foundation works to maintain the sense of urban legend about such things, and most super-powered individuals take some pains to conceal their true nature from the world.
131	** TheUnmasquedWorld: That is until the Armor Hunter Invasion and the Renegades exposing Harada to the world.
132	* McNinja: Ninjak, real name Colin King, is British.
133	* MerchandiseDriven: The whole idea behind the Acclaim era reboot was to make the characters "more suitable for adaptation into video games".
134	* MrFanservice: One issue of ''Doctor Mirage'' guest-starred a popular actor from the soap opera ''Series/AllMyChildren'', even going so far as to establish him as a former rival for Mirage's wife, Carmen.
135	* MyNaymeIs
136	* {{Nanomachines}}: The source of Bloodshot's powers, passed on to the Rai dynasty.
137	* {{Necromancer}}: Master Darque, his sister Sandria and (on the good side) Nettie and Dr. Mirage among others. Necromantic energy is a form of psionic energy released by living things when they die. Humans release more than animals, and of course Harbingers release a lot more than humans. Certain kinds of psychics can sense and channel this power to perform "magic".
138	* NinetiesAntiHero: Being active during the early nineties this was unavoidable. Bloodshot and H.A.R.D. Corps stand out. Even then, they're more subdued than most examples (having less ridiculous anatomical proportions and actual ''characterization'' probably helped) [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools and tend to be more fondly remembered than most of their contemporaries.]]
139	* OhCrap: Magnus and 1-A get one of these in ''Magnus'' #0: after (in the original run) a year or two of fighting the ''occasional'' accidental rogue robot, fairly easily mopped up, they hear the following message over the robot communications frequency:
140	-->''Do not be afraid. You are not alone. There are ten million of us.''
141	* PhlebotinumRebel: X-O Manowar; Aric of Dacia, a fifth-century Visigoth kidnapped by the Spider Aliens for study and eventual lunch, bonded with the most powerful PoweredArmor suit they'd ever grown and proceeded to kick butt.
142	* PlaceBeyondTime: The Lost Lands, a location existing outside of time and space that served as the focal point for the 1992 Unity crossover and is inhabited by creatures from all across time and space, including dinosaurs, aliens and robots from the future. This allowed characters whose stories take place in the current to team up with those whose stories take place in the 41st century, like ''ComicBook/{{Rai}}'' and ''ComicBook/MagnusRobotFighter''.
143	* PowerPerversionPotential: [[IncrediblyLamePun Played with]] in how Doctor Mirage and Carmen's sex life managed to get around his "intangible ghost" problem. Remember the movie ''Film/ModernProblems?'' Yeah, ''that'' scene.
144	** ''ComicBook/{{Deathmate}}'' was LITERALLY the bastard child of [[spoiler:Void from [[ComicBook/WildCATsWildStorm Wild C.A.Ts]] and Solar]] bumping chrome-plated uglies in-between dimensions
145	* PsychicPowers: One of the three sources of powers. Those that possessed specific psi powers were generally called [[DifferentlyPoweredIndividual Harbingers]], the next [[EvolutionaryLevels stage of evolution]].
146	** Both Toyo Harada, and Pete "Sting" Stanchek are "Omega Harbingers" with the ability to awaken these powers in others.
147	** In the 41st Century, the Harbinger-human dichotomy appears to have disappeared. After the Harbinger Wars, most of humanity has psychic potential, but most people never develop or use it.
148	* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: Sting's Harbinger Resistance
149	* RealityWarper: Mothergod, [[spoiler:Solar]].
150	* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Mama Nettie, Master Darque, Armstrong, Ivar, Gilad
151	* RobotWar: Magnus Robot Fighter [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin fights robots.]]
152	* SemperFi: The Armorines, natch.
153	* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans: Harada even calls his Harbinger shock troops the "Eggbreakers" to [[LampshadeHanging lampshade]] this attitude. Can't make a utopia omelette without 'em...
154	* VillainousIncest: Mothergod kidnapped the Valiant Universe version of her son and, once he grew up, [[ParentalIncest turned to him for comfort]]. This leaves the poor guy with some major issues and one hell of self-destructive streak. The fact that she murdered his actual mother certainly didn't help.
155	* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Toyo Harada, wealthy patron of the seemingly beneficial Harbinger Foundation
156	* WhamEpisode: For the original Valiant continuity, issue #0 of ''ComicBook/{{Rai}}'', which not only introduced [[LegacyCharacter a new Rai]], but also outlined the timeline of the Valiant universe ranging from the present day to the 41st century, when ''Rai'' and ''Magnus, Robot Fighter'' took place.
157	* XtremeKoolLetterz: Ninjak, X-O Manowar

Context Creator / ValiantComics