Between the Bloodshot movie and other teases at a broader cinematic universe, Valiant Comics has made a resurgence as a force in the world of comic books. Capitalizing off the public's newfound interest in the company and its line of characters, in 2021 Valiant is rebooting one of its most popular characters with a new Ninjak series.
Debuting in Bloodshot #6, Ninjak received a spinoff soon after his first appearance. Ninjak is the secret identity of a British socialite named Colin King. The character has no inherent superpowers but instead uses his naturally honed intellect and physical prowess to work as a spy for the British intelligence agency MI6. Though Ninjak has crossed over with other Valiant characters such as Bloodshot and X-O Manowar, he is most well for his numerous solo titles. The first issue of Ninjak's solo series even managed to break one million sales. His popularity has made him a staple of Valiant Comics, and he has been rebooted numerous times along with the Valiant universe.
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Coming from the creative team of writer Jeff Parker, and artist Javier Pulido, the new series' first storyline will be titled Daylight. In an official press release, Parker stated that the new series will tap into the spy elements of Ninjak's character by having him deal with a compromised MI6. Parker also emphasized how excited he was to work with Pulido, stating, "I love how his mind works. He comes up with the most brilliant panel progressions and layouts, and very striking compositions that look so simple but you have to be a next-level talent to attempt a lot of what he does." Potential readers for the new series can see examples of Pulido's artwork in the handful of preview panels provided by Valiant below:
Parker and Pulido are both creators with distinct styles. Parker is well known for his work writing the original X-Men: First Class comic, which was a loose basis for the film of the same name, while Pulido has made a name for himself doing the art for everything from Batman to X-Men, and even to another Valiant character with his work on X-O Manowar. The preview panels display Pulido's bold lines and strong eye for visual storytelling.
Given Ninjak's popularity, it makes sense that Valiant is putting such acclaimed talent behind his reboot. Numerous comic veterans have worked on the character, like creator Joe Quesada and Eisner award-winning writer Kurt Busiek. Valiant must have a fair amount of faith in the character as he has been prominently featured in the numerous company-wide reboots of the Valiant Universe. Ninjak even briefly jumped into live-action for the short-lived web series Ninjak Vs. The Valiant Universe. Valiant has been using the release of the Bloodshot movie as a springboard to refocus their line of characters. Reboots of X-O Manowar, Shadowman, and Quantum and Woody have all launched in the last year. Coupled with the Ninjak relaunch, it appears that the former titan of comics has no intention of slowing down.
As silly as some might see the character, selling one million comics is no easy task. Given the wealth of talent behind this new incarnation, readers have good reason to be hopeful for the future of Ninjak. Look for Ninjak #1 when it releases in 2021.
Next: Bloodshot: The Un-Killable Comic Hero's Powers & Origin Explained
