X-O Manowar
Encyclopedia
X-O Manowar is a fictional superhero
co-created by writer and former Marvel Comics
editor-in-chief
Jim Shooter
, artist Bob Layton
, and Jon Hartz. Current Marvel Comics Chief Creative Officier Joe Quesada
was a key creator in the origin of X-O Manowar as seen in X-O Manowar #0. The eponymous comic book
series published by Valiant Comics
has sold more than 8 million copies to date. X-O Manowar has also starred in a video game alongside Marvel Comics's Iron Man
. X-O Manowar comics have been translated into a number of languages including German, Italian, Spanish, Norwegian, Filipino and Chinese among others.
bought Valiant for $65 million and restarted the series under the Acclaim Comics banner. The publication of the second series ceased (along with all of Acclaim's non-core business) in 2002 due to Acclaim's financial difficulties in their video game division.
Issues #1-4 of the original X-O Manowar series were reprinted in a trade paperback, X-O Manowar: Retribution, which sold over 150,000 copies. Issues #7 and #8 were reprinted as part of the Unity Saga
trade paperbacks.
In April, 2008, Valiant Entertainment released X-O Manowar: Birth, a deluxe hardcover collection collecting the first seven issues of X-O Manowar. The collection was digitally recolored and "remastered" from the original material and included a new story, "The Rise of Lydia," by Bob Layton, one the title's original artists. A press release from Valiantfans.com stated:
was a Visigoth
born in the 5th Century A.D. under Roman
rule. As a young boy, Aric witnessed the slaughter of his parents at the hands of Roman soldiers. He henceforth dedicated himself to destroying the Roman oppressors, with the help of his Uncle, Alaric I
.
Some years later, Aric took a Celt
ic slave
, Deidre, to be his consort. He grew to love her, and worshipped her god, Lugh
. One evening, he saw demons attacking members of his tribe
. Aric attacked them, but was quickly subdued and taken aboard their alien
spacecraft.
For the next seven years, Aric was held prisoner in the slave pens of the spacecraft. At a refuelling station several light years from Earth
, he befriended a man known as the "Map Giver," who looked similar to Elvis Presley
. The "Map Giver" used a discarded bone shard to carve a map into Aric’s palm that would lead him to the alien’s armory. Aric fought his way to the X-O Manowar class armor and donned the control ring. It later became clear that the "manufacturing" process of the X-O Manowar armor, which not only self-repaired, but also reproduced, involved the absorption of a sentient intelligence that then became the armor's own sentience. With this living armor he was able to escape from the alien ship and return to Earth.
Due to time dilation
, as Aric had been travelling at the speed of light
, although only a few years had passed onboard, sixteen centuries had passed on Earth. Aric thus found himself in the unfamiliar world of the 20th century. At first, Aric struggled to adjust to late-20th Century Earth. He encountered a number of Valiant Universe heroes, befriending some and alienating others. He eventually gained control of Orb Industries, a multi-national corporation formerly controlled by the Spider Aliens.
X-O Manowar played a major role in Valiant's successful Unity crossover event. In this storyline, Aric chose not to help the other Valiant heroes defeat Mothergod
(Erica Pierce), and instead built a small empire in the "lost land." Eventually, he was tricked by Mothergod and his people were slaughtered. Aric was eviscerated by a cyborg-tyrannosaurus
and became trapped within the X-O Manowar armor for ten years to heal.
Aric and the X-O Manowar armor were sent back to Aric's own time by Solar
at the end of Unity. Aric tried to convince his uncle, Alaric, to help him destroy the Romans. However, Alaric was concerned about the power that Aric had gained through the armor. Alaric and the Romans joined forces to fight Aric, but failed to defeat him.
In issue #28, the X-O Manowar armor (known as Shanhara) was destroyed. Solar went to Saturn
to recover the armor left there, after defeating the alien he battled in Solar #7. This armor chose to remain with its deceased wearer, but had sprouted a seed, which Solar took. These seeds could be used to create a new Manowar armor, but only through the sacrifice of a sentient being. Aric's friend, Paul Bouvier, who was dying from spider alien poison, consented to be sacrificed so that Aric could continue his battles with the Spider Aliens.
In the X-O Manowar Yearbook, it was explained how Gilad Anni-Padda, the Eternal Warrior
, earned the eternal enmity of Aric. Gilad was rescued from bandits by Aric, but he betrayed the location of Aric's Visigoth Camp to Roman soldiers, whose attack led Deidre to miscarry Aric's child. However, Gilad had betrayed the Visigoths as part of a conspiracy that led to the downfall of the Roman Empire
and the rise of Alaric.
in World War II
.
In this series, the X-O Manowar armor is an artifact of unknown origin that has been worn by a myriad of warriors throughout history. It essentially gives its wearer indefinite power; however, the armor slowly siphons the life essence of its wearer, damaging their mind and body. The armor attaches itself to the wearer's nervous system and cannot be removed without killing the person wearing it. It can, however, be changed to its "metal" form at the wearer's will, but the metal is permanently grafted onto the wearer's chest. (It is unknown if the armor will activate if grafted onto another part of the body.)
in the Acclaim Entertainment-developed video game Iron Man and X-O Manowar in Heavy Metal
, produced for PC
, PlayStation
, Sega Saturn
, Sega Game Gear
, and Game Boy
. In the game, X-O Manowar and Iron Man fight together against villains from both heroes' stories in order to stop them from obtaining all fragments of the Cosmic Cube
.
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
co-created by writer and former Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
editor-in-chief
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
Jim Shooter
Jim Shooter
James Shooter is an American writer, occasional fill-in artist, editor, and publisher for various comic books. Although he started professionally in the medium at the extraordinarily young age of 14, he is most notable for his successful and controversial run as Marvel Comics' ninth...
, artist Bob Layton
Bob Layton
Bob Layton is an American comic book artist, writer, and editor, who has worked for Marvel Comics, Valiant Comics, DC Comics, Future Comics, and other publishers.-Early life:...
, and Jon Hartz. Current Marvel Comics Chief Creative Officier Joe Quesada
Joe Quesada
Joseph "Joe" Quesada is an American comic book editor, writer and artist. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books, such as Ninjak and Solar, Man of the Atom...
was a key creator in the origin of X-O Manowar as seen in X-O Manowar #0. The eponymous comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series published by Valiant Comics
Valiant Comics
Valiant Comics is a comic book imprint published by various publishers since its inception with Voyager Communications, Inc. in 1989, later Acclaim Comics, Inc. Its assets were purchased from the bankruptcy of the Acclaim Entertaintment by Valiant Entertainment, Inc. in 2007.-Voyager...
has sold more than 8 million copies to date. X-O Manowar has also starred in a video game alongside Marvel Comics's Iron Man
Iron Man
Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...
. X-O Manowar comics have been translated into a number of languages including German, Italian, Spanish, Norwegian, Filipino and Chinese among others.
Publication history
X-O Manowar originally sold strongly, with sales as high as 800,000 copies for X-O Manowar #0. In 1996, Acclaim EntertainmentAcclaim Entertainment
Acclaim Entertainment was an American video game developer and publisher. It developed, published, marketed and distributed interactive entertainment software for a variety of hardware platforms, including Sega's Mega Drive/Genesis, Saturn, Dreamcast, and Game Gear, Nintendo's NES, SNES, Nintendo...
bought Valiant for $65 million and restarted the series under the Acclaim Comics banner. The publication of the second series ceased (along with all of Acclaim's non-core business) in 2002 due to Acclaim's financial difficulties in their video game division.
Issues #1-4 of the original X-O Manowar series were reprinted in a trade paperback, X-O Manowar: Retribution, which sold over 150,000 copies. Issues #7 and #8 were reprinted as part of the Unity Saga
Unity (Comics)
Unity is a company-wide crossover story published by Valiant Comics in the summer of 1992.-Overview:The Unity story comprises eighteen issues and nine comic book series, published by Valiant during August and September 1992. It tells of Erica Pierce, the Mothergod, trying to rewrite reality and...
trade paperbacks.
In April, 2008, Valiant Entertainment released X-O Manowar: Birth, a deluxe hardcover collection collecting the first seven issues of X-O Manowar. The collection was digitally recolored and "remastered" from the original material and included a new story, "The Rise of Lydia," by Bob Layton, one the title's original artists. A press release from Valiantfans.com stated:
X-O Manowar: Birth (FEB084088), published by Valiant Entertainment, is solicited in the February Previews (Volume XVIII #2) and scheduled to arrive in comic book stores nationwide on April 30, 2008. This digitally re-colored and re-mastered special edition collects the full X-O Manowar origin story from issues #0-6 for the first time ever, and includes an all-new epic "The Rise of Lydia" story by comics legend Bob Layton and a new cover by Sean Chen! Aric Dacia is a Visigoth barbarian captured by spider aliens and enslaved aboard their starship until he steals their ultimate weapon - the X-O Manowar armor. Aric returns to Earth only to find that 1600 years have past. Now the most primitive man on the planet wields the most technologically advanced weapon in existence! Features explosive art by Barry Windsor-Smith and Marvel EIC Joe Quesada and a story by legendary creators Bob Layton and Jim Shooter! The book is a full-color 192 page deluxe hardcover edition with a suggested retail price of $24.95.
Fictional character biography
Aric of DaciaDacia
In ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
was a Visigoth
Visigoth
The Visigoths were one of two main branches of the Goths, the Ostrogoths being the other. These tribes were among the Germans who spread through the late Roman Empire during the Migration Period...
born in the 5th Century A.D. under Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
rule. As a young boy, Aric witnessed the slaughter of his parents at the hands of Roman soldiers. He henceforth dedicated himself to destroying the Roman oppressors, with the help of his Uncle, Alaric I
Alaric I
Alaric I was the King of the Visigoths from 395–410. Alaric is most famous for his sack of Rome in 410, which marked a decisive event in the decline of the Roman Empire....
.
Some years later, Aric took a Celt
Celt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
ic slave
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
, Deidre, to be his consort. He grew to love her, and worshipped her god, Lugh
Lugh
Lug or Lugh is an Irish deity represented in mythological texts as a hero and High King of the distant past. He is known by the epithets Lámhfhada , for his skill with a spear or sling, Ildánach , Samhildánach , Lonnbeimnech and Macnia , and by the...
. One evening, he saw demons attacking members of his tribe
Tribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
. Aric attacked them, but was quickly subdued and taken aboard their alien
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
spacecraft.
For the next seven years, Aric was held prisoner in the slave pens of the spacecraft. At a refuelling station several light years from Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, he befriended a man known as the "Map Giver," who looked similar to Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
. The "Map Giver" used a discarded bone shard to carve a map into Aric’s palm that would lead him to the alien’s armory. Aric fought his way to the X-O Manowar class armor and donned the control ring. It later became clear that the "manufacturing" process of the X-O Manowar armor, which not only self-repaired, but also reproduced, involved the absorption of a sentient intelligence that then became the armor's own sentience. With this living armor he was able to escape from the alien ship and return to Earth.
Due to time dilation
Time dilation
In the theory of relativity, time dilation is an observed difference of elapsed time between two events as measured by observers either moving relative to each other or differently situated from gravitational masses. An accurate clock at rest with respect to one observer may be measured to tick at...
, as Aric had been travelling at the speed of light
Speed of light
The speed of light in vacuum, usually denoted by c, is a physical constant important in many areas of physics. Its value is 299,792,458 metres per second, a figure that is exact since the length of the metre is defined from this constant and the international standard for time...
, although only a few years had passed onboard, sixteen centuries had passed on Earth. Aric thus found himself in the unfamiliar world of the 20th century. At first, Aric struggled to adjust to late-20th Century Earth. He encountered a number of Valiant Universe heroes, befriending some and alienating others. He eventually gained control of Orb Industries, a multi-national corporation formerly controlled by the Spider Aliens.
X-O Manowar played a major role in Valiant's successful Unity crossover event. In this storyline, Aric chose not to help the other Valiant heroes defeat Mothergod
Mothergod
Mothergod is a fictional character from Valiant Comics. She was exposed to the same energies that turned Phil Seleski into Solar, and she gained the same energy and matter manipulation powers...
(Erica Pierce), and instead built a small empire in the "lost land." Eventually, he was tricked by Mothergod and his people were slaughtered. Aric was eviscerated by a cyborg-tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
and became trapped within the X-O Manowar armor for ten years to heal.
Aric and the X-O Manowar armor were sent back to Aric's own time by Solar
Solar (comics)
Solar is an American fictional comic book character. Originally known as Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom, he first appeared in a comic book published by Gold Key Comics in the 1960s. He has since appeared in other incarnations in books published by Valiant Comics in the 1990s, and Dark Horse Comics...
at the end of Unity. Aric tried to convince his uncle, Alaric, to help him destroy the Romans. However, Alaric was concerned about the power that Aric had gained through the armor. Alaric and the Romans joined forces to fight Aric, but failed to defeat him.
In issue #28, the X-O Manowar armor (known as Shanhara) was destroyed. Solar went to Saturn
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus , the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's astronomical symbol represents the Roman god's sickle.Saturn,...
to recover the armor left there, after defeating the alien he battled in Solar #7. This armor chose to remain with its deceased wearer, but had sprouted a seed, which Solar took. These seeds could be used to create a new Manowar armor, but only through the sacrifice of a sentient being. Aric's friend, Paul Bouvier, who was dying from spider alien poison, consented to be sacrificed so that Aric could continue his battles with the Spider Aliens.
In the X-O Manowar Yearbook, it was explained how Gilad Anni-Padda, the Eternal Warrior
Eternal Warrior
Gilad Anni-Padda aka the Eternal Warrior is the title character of a 50-issue comic book series by Valiant Comics that ran from 1992 to 1996. Eternal Warrior was relaunched with the other Valiant characters under the banner of Acclaim Comics in 1996 . Valiant Entertainment, Inc...
, earned the eternal enmity of Aric. Gilad was rescued from bandits by Aric, but he betrayed the location of Aric's Visigoth Camp to Roman soldiers, whose attack led Deidre to miscarry Aric's child. However, Gilad had betrayed the Visigoths as part of a conspiracy that led to the downfall of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
and the rise of Alaric.
Series characters
This may not be a complete list.- Aric of Dacia
- Shanhara (original X-O Manowar armor)
- Ken Clarkson (business partner and close friend)
- Spider Aliens
- Lydia (Spider Alien)
- Gregor Latinev
- Randy Cartier
- Paul Bouvier (Alloy)
- Pol-Bekhara (second X-O Manowar armor, merged with Paul Bouvier)
- X-O Commando armor
- Ax (wore X-O Commando Armor)
- TurokTurokTurok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics. He first appeared in Four Color Comics #596 , then graduated to his own title, Turok, Son of Stone...
(Blood Brother) - Alaric I (Aric's uncle)
- Deidre (Aric's wife)
- Rolf (Aric's father)
- Inga (Aric's mother)
- Gafti
- Solar (Phil Seleski)
- Toyo Harada
- HarbingerHarbinger (comics)Harbinger was a comic book series published by Valiant Comics about a group of teenage super-powered outcasts known as Harbingers. Harbinger initially featured writing and art by Jim Shooter and David Lapham...
Kids - Map Giver
- Mothergod (Erica Pierce)
- Geoff McHenryGeoff McHenry (Valiant Comics)Geoff McHenry is a fictional character in the Valiant Comics universe, created by Jim Shooter and Bob Layton . First appearing in Solar: Man of the Atom #10....
(the GeomancerGeomancers (comics)Geomancers are a group of fictional comic book characters that appeared in every major title published by Valiant Comics. The Earth has only one Geomancer at a time. When the line was rebooted by Acclaim Entertainment, they, unlike many other characters, didn't reappear in any...
) - Crescendo
- Lummox
- Krytos
- Hotwire
- Gamin
- Master Darque
- Mallik
- Gilad Anni-Padda (Eternal Warrior)
Acclaim Comics version
When Acclaim Entertainment acquired the comic series, X-O Manowar was significantly altered. The character was now a modern-day scientist named Donovan Wylie who wielded X-O armor, an ancient artifact owned by the United States government, having been captured from Nazi GermanyNazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
In this series, the X-O Manowar armor is an artifact of unknown origin that has been worn by a myriad of warriors throughout history. It essentially gives its wearer indefinite power; however, the armor slowly siphons the life essence of its wearer, damaging their mind and body. The armor attaches itself to the wearer's nervous system and cannot be removed without killing the person wearing it. It can, however, be changed to its "metal" form at the wearer's will, but the metal is permanently grafted onto the wearer's chest. (It is unknown if the armor will activate if grafted onto another part of the body.)
Video game
X-O Manowar was featured along with Marvel Comics' armored superhero Iron ManIron Man
Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...
in the Acclaim Entertainment-developed video game Iron Man and X-O Manowar in Heavy Metal
Iron Man and X-O Manowar in Heavy Metal
Iron Man / X-O Manowar in Heavy Metal is the title of a video game published by Acclaim Entertainment and developed by Real Sports and Realtime Associates for the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, Game Boy, Game Gear, and DOS in 1996...
, produced for PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
, PlayStation
PlayStation
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
, Sega Saturn
Sega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
, Sega Game Gear
Sega Game Gear
The was Sega's first handheld game console. It was the third commercially available color handheld console, after the Atari Lynx and the TurboExpress....
, and Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
. In the game, X-O Manowar and Iron Man fight together against villains from both heroes' stories in order to stop them from obtaining all fragments of the Cosmic Cube
Cosmic Cube
The Cosmic Cube, called the Tesseract in the film Captain America: The First Avenger, is the name of a fictional object that appears in the Marvel Universe. The concept was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first appeared in Tales of Suspense #79 .-Publication history:The first Cosmic Cube...
.
External links
- X-O Manowar at the Valiant Comics Encyclopedia
- X-O Manowar Comic Cover Library and Database
- Valiant Comics Fan Site
- Valiant Days, Valiant Nights - A Look Back at the Rise and Fall of Valiant