Ten most important VALIANT issues

[StarBrand]

I think you need to establish most important for VALIANT the company or most important to the VALIANT Universe?

Also surprised no only one person has mentioned Unity #0, the free issue that kicked off the greatest event crossover of all time (sorry Secret Wars and Crisis fans).

I’d also say Harby 1, Harby 0, Magnus 5, Magnus 12, Rai 0, EW 4, XO 1, Solar 10, and my personal favorite Harby 25.

Sometimes I like people to interpret my questions. That can lead things in a direction I hadn’t thought of that is often interesting.

[Chiclo]

Bottom 10
Deathmate tourbook
Deathmate Preview Green
Deathmate Preview Pink
Deathmate Preview Orange (which is same as Pink)
Deathmate Prologue
Deathmate Blue
Deathmate Black
Deathmate Red
Deathmate Yellow
Deathmate Epilogue

I'd not be so hasty. Deathmate Black is the first appearance of Gen 13 and the Orange Preview still bound in Previews magazine also has a bound Plasm 0. There are 730 or so VH1 issues and a selection of VH2, surely one can find a few to offset those two. I suggest VH2 Ninjak or later VH1 X-O Manowar.

[Tony_H]

I'd say that from both a reader's perspective and a historic perspective, the most important set of Valiant issues is the entire original Unity series. It's the best superhero crossover arc I've read (regardless of publisher), because, essentially, it's a SF novel fanned out across several comic-book titles. Plus, it seems like everybody uses the terms pre-Unity and post-Unity when discussing VH1, and I think many fans would agree that it's the most ambitious, most successfully-executed, and most consequential storyline produced during any Valiant era.

[StarBrand]

Unity was sooo great! Valiant really caught fire after its release.

[myron]

Unity was sooo great! Valiant really caught fire after its release.

The lead in to unity was the bait...it was tasty and juice and full of comic book goodness.

Unity was the setting the hook...

[BugsySig]

Rai 0 (11/92,Valiant)
Harbinger 1 (1/92,Valiant)
Eternal Warrior 4 (11/92,Valiant)
X-O Manowar 1 (2/92,Valiant)
Solar, Man of the Atom 10 (6/92,Valiant)
Magnus Robot Fighter 1 (5/91,Valiant)
Harbinger 0 Pink Variant (1992,Valiant)
Shadowman 1 (5/92,Valiant)
Solar, Man of the Atom 1 (9/91,Valiant)
Bloodshot 6 (7/93,Valiant)

That’s a pretty good top 10. Of course they’re almost all pre-Unity and therefor lower print runs, which makes them more valuable as well. But hard to argue those beyond maybe Unity 0 and Magnus.

[BugsySig]

Rai 0 (11/92,Valiant)
Harbinger 1 (1/92,Valiant)
Eternal Warrior 4 (11/92,Valiant)
X-O Manowar 1 (2/92,Valiant)
Solar, Man of the Atom 10 (6/92,Valiant)
Magnus Robot Fighter 1 (5/91,Valiant)
Harbinger 0 Pink Variant (1992,Valiant)
Shadowman 1 (5/92,Valiant)
Solar, Man of the Atom 1 (9/91,Valiant)
Bloodshot 6 (7/93,Valiant)

That’s a pretty good top 10. Of course they’re almost all pre-Unity and therefor lower print runs, which makes them more valuable as well. But hard to argue beyond those except maybe Unity 0 and Magnus 5.

[aj583]

For me, based on importance, desirability, and impact:

Magnus 1 (1st V1, 1st Magnus)
Solar 1 (1st Solar)
Harbinger 1 (1st Harbinger team)
X-O Manowar 1 (1st X-O, flagship character)
Solar 10 (1st EW)
Unity Red (1st Issue Unity)
Archer & Armstrong 0 Gold (1st A&A)
Eternal Warrior 1 Gold Flat (error Gold #1 issue)
Harbinger 0 (THE book in the 90s)
Rai 0 Glossy (1st full Bloodshot, V1 future)

Key prototype grail books like Bloodshot 0 Platinum, Solar 3 Gold not eligible.

Honorable mention Eternal Warrior 4 and X-O Manowar 68.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[kjjohanson]

I'm thinking of this as a combination of collectibility and story importance. My list:

1. Harbinger 1 (First appearance of several major characters; I think eventually this will be thought of as “first Faith; first Renegades”)
2. X-O Manowar 1 (First appearance of a major character)
3. Eternal Warrior 4 (First appearance of a major character and an important antagonist)
4. Solar, Man of the Atom 10 (First appearance of a major character)
5. Magnus Robot Fighter 5 (First appearance of a major character)
6. Shadowman 1 (First appearance of a major character)
7. Archer & Armstrong 0 (First appearance of two major characters)
8. Solar, Man of the Atom 3 (First appearance of a major character)
9. Shadowman 8 (First appearance of a major character)
10. Rai 0 (First full appearance of a major character)
11. * Quantum & Woody 1 (I know, not the original universe, but this has the lowest print run of any of the major characters in the dead continuities.)

Honorable Mentions:
• X-O Manowar 4 (Since there have been multiple Shadowmen as title characters and historically within the continuity of each iteration of Valiant, I think the first appearance of Jack, un-named and in a non-speaking role, and, importantly, before he was Shadowman, is less important than the first Shadowman, even if the issue does also feature the first meeting of X-O and the Renegades.)
• Archer & Armstrong 8 (Important first appearance, but Ivar has not been as significant in the books as his two brothers, and far too many copies out there.)
• Bloodshot 6 (Important first appearance, but not in costume, and far too many copies out there.)
• Harbinger 15 (Important first appearance, but essentially a cameo, and Livewire has been significantly redesigned, and far too many copies out there.)
• Harbinger 10 (Important first appearance of a group of characters, but far too many copies out there.)
• Shadowman 16 (Important first appearance, but Doctor Mirage has been significantly redesigned, and far too many copies out there.)
• Magnus 7 (First appearance of the X-O armor, but it’s not the Manowar armor, and unlike Shadowman, the importance of X-O Manowar has as much to do with Aric and the man out of time aspect, as it does to do with the capabilities of the armor)
• Magnus Robot Fighter 1 (First appearance of the Valiant universe, but it’s essentially in this comic no different from the previous Magnus universe)
• Unity 0 (First company-wide crossover)
• * Quantum & Woody 3 (First Goat)

[StarBrand]

Good stuff.