Comics
‘Armor Hunters’ Will Be Valiant’s Big Event In Summer 2014
Valiant is one of the few publishers around who has been successfully pulling off events. I don’t mean in terms of sales, but in terms of following through on their promises an delivering quality crossovers with their biggest heroes. The publisher teased it last week, but “Armor Hunters” will officially be their next event, kicking off in June of 2014 with the first issue of the mini-series.
The event will see a “surgical strike team” coming from the edges of space who want nothing but to destroy the stolen X-O Manowar armor. It all sounds quite Marvel to me, but I’m sure Robert Venditti and Doug Braithwaite will stray from that cosmic insanity.
Official Press Release:
The most ambitious crossover event of 2014 begins in ARMOR HUNTERS #1 (of 4) – the FIRST ISSUE of an all-new, four-issue mini-series by New York Times best-selling writer Robert Venditti (X-O Manowar, Green Lantern) and superstar artist Doug Braithwaite (Unity, Justice)!
When Aric of Dacia returned to Earth with the stolen X-O Manowar armor of an alien race, he thought he finally found a weapon to guard the peace and kingdom he’d struggled so long to secure. But now, a relentless and surgical strike team from the farthest reaches of space – sworn to exterminate the armor and all like it – have found their final target. The ARMOR HUNTERS are coming. They will hunt. They will trap. They will kill. And they will rid the universe of the X-O Manowar’s incalculable destructive power…even if it means taking the Earth with it.
“2014 will be a year of all-new jumping-on points for Valiant, and ARMOR HUNTERS #1 is the perfect place to start. Robert Venditti and Doug Braithwaite are two of the finest storytellers in the medium. They’ve shaped the Valiant Universe, and we couldn’t be happier to have them architecting ARMOR HUNTERS,” said Valiant Executive Editor Warren Simons.
“X-O Manowar is about to find himself at the center of a firestorm embroiling all of Valiant’s most powerful heroes. Believe us when we say that, in an era of events, the scale, scope and intensity of ARMOR HUNTERS will be the biggest and most daring undertaking we’ve ever attempted,” said Valiant CEO & Chief Creative Officer Dinesh Shamdasani.
ARMOR HUNTERS #1 (of 4) kicks off Valiant’s landmark 2014 crossover event in June. Then, ARMOR HUNTERS continues with two brand new story arcs beginning in UNITY #8 by New York Times best-selling writer Matt Kindt (Mind MGMT, Justice League of America) and rising star Diego Bernard (Eternal Warrior); and X-O MANOWAR #26 by Venditti and Eisner Award-winning artist Cary Nord (Conan). And look for even more Valiant heroes to join the fight against Valiant’s first full-scale alien incursion as the summer continues. Further details will follow in 2014.
Next summer, bend the knee…or take the head when Valiant unleashes an all-new starting point for the year’s most acclaimed comic book universe, beginning in ARMOR HUNTERS #1 (of 4) by superstar creators Robert Venditti and Doug Braithwaite!
The supernatural world of Korean folk horror movie Exhuma grows larger with the arrival of prequel spinoff webtoon Maengjong this weekend, Variety reports today.
Naver Webtoon debuts Maengjong on May 30.
The series hails from Haemuri (Olgami) and will trace the high school origins of how shaman duo Hwarim and Bonggil, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun in the 2024 film, came together to face occultish threats.
The story is set to begin when “Hwarim, who has been concealing her identity following a childhood encounter with a snake spirit called Jin, crosses paths with Bonggil at their school.”
Variety notes that Exhuma director Jang Jae-hyun participated in the project’s early concept stage.
“We are presenting ‘Maengjong,’ a new series capturing the appeal of the horror-occult genre, ahead of the full summer season,” said Lee Jeong-geun, Naver Webtoon’s Korea webtoon content leader. “With the high school story of Hwarim and Bonggil, who left a strong impression in the film ‘Exhuma,’ enhanced by Haemuri’s characteristic tense direction, we expect it will be a welcome work for genre fans.”
“It is meaningful that the spin-off story of ‘Exhuma,’ loved by many audiences, expands by meeting the new grammar of webtoon,” said Lee Hyeon-jeong, managing director of the film business division at Showbox, which distributed the film. “We hope it will be a fresh experience for both film fans and webtoon readers.”
Exhuma was a breakout hit in 2024, becoming the first Korean occult film to surpass 10 million ticket buyers and the country’s highest-grossing film of the year. I wrote in my review that “the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.”
The bond between Hwarim and Bonggil was one of the film’s highlights, making this prequel webtoon a must for fans.
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