Valiant Entertainment; $3.99

There is a grand, glorious, and tried-and-true tradition of superheroes fighting each other when they first cross paths, and because of the gentle haze of nostalgia some of us forget that this has frequently resulted in mediocre, formulaic stories.

That, thank goodness, is not the case between Aric and Gilad. Oh, X-O and the Eternal Warrior fight, but writer Robert Venditti and artist Lee Garbett give us a much more nuanced tale, one in which conflict is neither their automatic default nor their only language. Instead, it’s the natural progression of the story.

With the back story beginning to fill in how they met originally before Aric’s abduction by the alien Vine, the potential for the future of this storyline is superb. X-O Manowar continues to be our favorite monthly superhero title.