Livewire #1 advanced review: From the ashes of Harbinger Wars 2

Valiant fans have been waiting for a monthly Livewire book for a long time, and it is finally here. Everything should be great right? Right? Well, the only issue is that the much maligned event from this past summer, called Harbinger Wars 2, painted Livewire into the corner of being on the bad side.

A quick recap: Livewire wanted to save psiot kids, but she went about it all wrong. She brought down all of the power in the US, put thousands of people out of work, killed thousands more in innocent bystanders, and all because actions have repercussions. This led to Livewire being declared the number one terrorist in the world, and here’s your new book, fronted by a character that Valiant basically tore down and made so the reader could not identify with her on any level.

That’s also how this book starts. The “Secret Weapons” (Psiots possessing odd powers that don’t always seem very useful), are filling the shoes of the “reader,” and are not giving Amanda (Livewire) a pass for the damage she has done. As a matter of fact, one of the Secret Weapon’s own cousins was killed by a driver that was spooked out when the power went down. So for anyone who thought that this book would maybe gloss over the fallout from Harbinger Wars 2, don’t worry, the damage is still being felt.

Writer Vita Ayala seems to have a good handle on the character. Props to her for having to deal with that “summer event” and what could have been an even better kick off for a great character, had that “event” not been brought to fruition. I really don’t know how Livewire can redeem herself, but the debut issue is pretty good, and I’m willing to jump on for the ride to find out. The art by Raul Allen and Patricia Martin is what you got with Secret Weapons, so it feels right at home in this book. It’s a good way to bring over some semblance of the “good times” from those books that took place before the “event.”

Wrap Up

With Ninja-K, Quantum & Woody, and Shadowman soon to come to an end, Livewire will be joining X-O Manowar as the only real tent pole characters to show off the Valiant Universe for a bit of time. For Valiant fans, this book may need to be a tent pole property, but the jury is still out on whether it can be. Livewire #1 will be releasing in December.

Last Updated on February 3, 2021.