Bloodshot #1 Review

The Summer of Valiant is still going strong!

Benjamin Bailey Avatar

Posted: Jul 9, 2012 10:20pm UTC

Bloodshot #1 is a bloody affair. There is plenty of violence, guts, and gore to keep the darker side of you satisfied. Of course, the twist is that almost all of this happens to the title character. Bloodshot has a pretty rough time in his own title. He is blown to pieces in this book again and again. Literally, blown to pieces. As you might have guessed, Bloodshot is a slightly different book when compared with the other relaunched Valiant titles; it's more intense, more violent. It's a brutal book and one that is totally worth checking out.Duane Swierczynski runs the title character through the gauntlet in this first issue. The script is incredibly well done, playing with your expectations in all the right ways. You think you have the setup all figured out only to find that, like Bloodshot, you are simply being lied to. Rest assured, this is not your typical superhero book, if it can even be called a superhero book at all. It feels more like a classic action movie. We have a hero that has been deceived and manipulated; a hero that also happens to be an unstoppable killing machine. You just now the crap is going to hit the fan and, man, I cannot wait for it. Early indicators point to it being awesome.

The book looks fantastic thanks to Manuel Garcia and Arturo Lozzi. The horrible violence inflicted on Bloodshot is visceral and huge. The entire comic isn't Bloodshot being disemboweled, so it's fortunate that the art looks great during the quieter moments, too. Garcia and Lozzi do an awesome job of conveying emotion in the characters. You can just feel Bloodshot's anger and confusion towards the end of the book. Two pages later he is torn to pieces by high-caliber bullets and you feel that, too. It's just that kind of comic.

Valiant is quickly becoming the publisher to beat and as long they keep putting out quality book like Bloodshot, it's likely to stay that way. Waiting thirty days for the next issue is going to be grueling. I'm ready for more ultra-violence and more Bloodshot. Benjamin is a writer and storyteller. He owns many leather-bound books and his office smells of rich mahogany. Follow Benjamin on Twitter, or find him on IGN.