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Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1 is a new spin on… Blade

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Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1

A powerful new drug is unleashed on Japan and has set the underworld ablaze! There’s only one force strong enough to stop the B-S… and he’s not looking for an invitation to start kicking butt! Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1 is a new origin, new starting point, in a new Valiant Universe, but feels rather familiar…

Written by Mauro Mantella, Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1 is the first release in Alien Books’ new Valiant Universe. It’s a fresh start with a new take on the character perfect for new readers and long time fans should enjoy it too. The basics are there but there’s some differences like Bloodshot being Marvel’s Blade. Yes, Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1 kicks things off with Bloodshot taking on Vampires in a comic where you can hear the techno music pumping as the Vampires gets dusted.

But honestly, it kind of works. The comic has the basics of a nanite fueled super soldier killing individuals, saying cool shit, and performing all sorts of over the top action. It’s basic Bloodshot but without the military weapon focus, currently. And, Mantella delivers a world that’s at least something new for a Bloodshot comic. Vampires apparently co-exist with humans generally living in the Arctic and doing some jobs here and there. There’s talk of a Vampire Nation, again something Blade recently dealt with. Really, put Blade into the comic and it wouldn’t be that different. So, if you’re good with that, then you’ll enjoy this. But, the comic isn’t original in its ideas or execution.

The art by Fernando Heinz Furukawa is good. With art assists by Juan Pablo Massa, color by Brushu Studios and Rocio Zucchi, and lettering by Ezequiel Inverni, the comic has a style that works really well. Bloodshot’s design is great, the vampires are interesting, the location is very detailed, and the action flows nicely. Add in colors that pop, some solid lettering work that nails the voice, and interesting page layouts and you have a comic that looks really good. There’s actually some really solid specific panels and a few pages that stand out, overall, it looks great that captures the new take on the character quite well.

Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1 is a new start for the rather classic character. The setting and concept is a little different but the basics are there. In short, if you dig action, it nails it but it’s nothing original. But, it’s action and a concept that’s rather familiar and unoriginal. Still, it’s a starting point and there’s more to come for the rest of the Valiant Universe.

Script: Mauro Mantella Art: Fernando Heinz Furukawa Art Assists: Juan Pablo Massa
Color: Brushu Studios & Rocio Zucchi (aka DEWNOIR) Letters: Ezequiel Inverni
Story: 7.0 Art: 8.0 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Pass

Alien Books provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle

Preview: Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1

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Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1

Script: Mauro Mantella
Art: Fernando Heinz Furukawa
Art Assists: Juan Pablo Massa
Color: Brushu Studios & Rocio Zucchi (aka DEWNOIR)
Letters: Ezequiel Inverni
Main Cover: Rodolfo Migliari (A – Reg)
Variant Covers: Nahuel Grego (B – Wraparound), Dennis Calero (C – Connecting), Fernando Heinz Furukawa (D – Design), Rodolfo Migliari (E – Full Art), Nahuel Grego (F – Wraparound Virgin), Dennis Calero (G – Connecting Full Art)
On Sale Date: 8/13/25
Rated Mature
32-page, full color comic
$4.99 U.S.

A NEW ERA OF SUPERHERO STORYTELLING BEGINS HERE!

Designed as the ULTIMATE jumping-on point, the Valiant Beyond line of comics are ABSOLUTE must-reads that will ENERGIZE your love for superheroes!

A powerful new drug is unleashed on Japan and has set the underworld ablaze! There’s only one force strong enough to stop the B-S… and he’s not looking for an invitation to start kicking butt!

It’s Bloodshot like you’ve never seen him before in this all-new cutting-edge series from rising star writer Mauro Mantella (BLOODSHOT UNLEASHED: RELOADED) and artist Fernando Heinz Furukawa (Dragon Age, Starcraft: Ghost Academy)!

Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1

SDCC 2020: Mandrake the Magician is back in Mandrake’s Legacy

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Hearst-owned King Features Syndicate, Red 5 Comics, and StoneBot Studios will cast a spell on readers this October as they present a new take on the classic comic strip Mandrake the Magician in an all-new comic book series. More than 85 years after the original comic strip’s debut, this expansion of the Mandrake universe stars a new generation of heroes as they face off with familiar foes.

Hitting store shelves on October 28, the modern-day Mandrake, aka “Mandy,” will make her debut in the YA comic series Mandrake the Magician: Mandrake’s Legacy. The series will be complemented by a free, must-read webcomic. The project is helmed by one of today’s most innovative writers, Erica Schultz, a comic book writer, editor, letterer, and instructor best known for her work on Marvel’s Daredevil and the award-winning crime series M3. She currently writes Forgotten Home for ComiXology Originals and teaches with The Kubert School and with ComicsExperience.com. The cover art will be provided by the talented Amelia Vidal (Marvel Studios & Boom Studios) and the series will also offer vibrant variant covers from artist Evelin Unfer. The beautiful and detailed interior art is credited to artists Diego Giribaldi, Juan Pablo Massa, and Moncho Bunge.

Mandrake the Magician: Mandrake’s Legacy follows 17-year-old Mandy Paz, a magician-in-training who aspires to someday be just like the legendary Mandrake. She suspects her inborn magical powers must have something to do with her mysterious parentage, but so far, her mom’s lips are zipped, and she has to work out the whole magician thing with the help of her BFF, LJ. While she is learning to command her superpowers, she’s also navigating college applications, mean girls, the high school talent show, a magic mirror, a kidnapping and … monsters? Mandy’s world is about to get a whole lot weirder and way more enchanted.