Unity #0
Art: Cary Nord
Story: Matt Kindt
Letters: Dave Sharpe
Colors: Jose Villarrubbia
Publisher: Valiant Comics
Release Date: October 15, 2014
Unity #0 is a prequel-of-sorts to Valiant’s currently revamped title and super team of the same name. This issue tells the story of an earlier team led by Eternal Warrior during the height of World War II.
SPOILER ALERT!!! ( There are spoilers ahead, so be warned)
After reading the story and thoroughly enjoying it, I found myself wondering if this issue is really necessary at all to the Unity timeline. A minor concern maybe, but one worth considering. Yes, I know that this issue is up for several Harvey’s, I know. Hear me out.
Everything is pretty much right with the story (see: Harvey nominations). You’ve got the more or less immortal and aptly named Eternal Warrior leading a “Unity before Unity” team, but with the slightly different codename Unit Y. These extra able individuals “started out as an experimental task force designed for special missions too dangerous for standard military personnel.” The WWII-era special ops teams is executed to gritty effect, so there’s that as well.
One character, Breaker, is especially endearing, as the team’s resident pacifist computer genius. Perhaps highlighting Eternal Warrior’s feelings about his friend, Breaker is the character with the most “life” in the issue. The other characters are more or less briefly presented and then whisked away. We get glimpses of their individual motivations , Alpha obviously hates Nazis for instance, but this story is what it is. The bittersweet war memory of a weary soldier.
Like I said, great standalone story, great art, no disagreement there. Still, I can’t help but ask myself “Why”, as in why did I need to know that about Eternal Warrior? Or why is this important to the Unity mythos? Without knowing Valiant’s marketing plan, I can only assume the rest of the current roster will get a similar treatment at some point in the series, and maybe this issue will make more sense in that larger framework.
If not, well at least we’ve got a great single-issue story, even if it doesn’t mean anything.
3 ½ /5 stars
By Adam Cadmon
Author Profile
- Adam Cadmon is the pen name for a man who has been writing for a few years. He’s done his share of straight-laced writing, college press, blogging, some other not very glamorous technical writing to keep the bills paid. Itadakimasu.
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