From the bloodied battlefields to the highest seat of imperial power, there is something rotten in Aric of Dacia’s new home… With an entire planet in turmoil, the mighty warrior once known as X-O Manowar can trust no one, especially those he holds dearest. But will the former hero of Earth rise and become the champion of his adopted planet…or will his growing horde of enemies crush him where he stands?

Apologies for the slightly later review than normal, folks, but I wanted to do something different than I typically do with this series; read the print copy first because I subscribed to the preorder bundles from my LCS but I haven’t actually done much more than admire the exclusive covers (an example to the left) and flick through to see a couple of pages that caught my eye on the review copy because Doug Braithwaite‘s uninked art is utterly fantastic, and the review copy doesn’t do justice to Braithwaite’s work nor the colours of Diego Rodriguez.

So I wanted my first read through to be on the print copy purely because of the art – and I was not disappointed.

Although this issue is a little slower in pace than some of the previous issues, it allows Matt Kindt to build toward a rather significant payoff next issue (and it’s one that you’ve been waiting for) whilst showing the kind of tactical mind that Aric of Dacia Urth has. The six issues we’ve had thus far in the series have been a great exploration of the man without the armour for us readers, but also for Aric as he discovers what kind of man he is without the sacred armour of Shanhara.

X-O Manowar #6 continues with this deep dive into the title character set against a spectacular intergalactic conflict that’s complex enough on it’s own to hold your attention without watching our hero on his internal journey. It’s truly compelling stuff, and while you’ll get a lot more from this issue if you’ve read the previous five issues, you can still pick this up and enjoy the comic in your hands.

Ultimately, if you want to get your hands on a wonderfully illustrated character driven story then you could do a lot worse than X-O Manowar.

Story: Matt Kindt Art: Doug Braithewaite Colours: Diego Rodriguez
Story: 8 Art: 9 Overall: 8.75 Recommendation: Buy

Valiant provided Graphic Policy a FREE copy for review, but my LCS sold me a copy anyway.