THE HARBINGER #8 – Review

THE HARBINGER #8, from Valiant Entertainment on May 25th, 2022, brings it all home with a battle in the streets and the skies of Chicago. Can Peter Stanchek stop the Renegade from forcing the military to bomb the city?

The Details

• Written By: Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing
• Art By: Robbi Rodriguez
• Colors By: Rico Renzi
• Letters By: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
• Cover Art By: Robbi Rodriguez (cover A)
• Cover Price: $3.99
• Release Date: May 25, 2022

Was It Good?

THE HARBINGER #8 ends the series with action, a tidy conclusion, and a new status quo for Chicago. Was the journey worth the destination? Well, that depends on what you’re looking for in a story.

THE HARBINGER #8 is a technically sound conclusion for the arc. All the open threads are wrapped up, Renegade is dealt with, and Peter Stanchek is ready to move forward toward whatever comes next. The dialog is fine, the action scenes are fine, and the conclusion is in line with the rest of the series.

If you’re waiting for a shoe to drop, there isn’t one. This finale, much like the series as a whole, is just middle-of-the-road fine. There are no big mind-bending revelations, there are no emotional scenes that get you choked up, and there are no big shifts to the status quo other than everyone gets along a little bit better.

The main down point is the same down point we pointed out a few issues back – the utter lack of emotional energy. All characters, every single one, act with mild urgency. You don’t see, hear, or feel anyone Behaving like what they’re doing urgently matters to them. Their facial expressions and dialog range from neutral to the slightly annoyed side of neutral. Nobody reacts like they’re in danger, there’s no sense of stakes or that anyone doubted Peter would win the fight, and the ending is as safe and pedestrian as you could imagine.

Is this a bad comic? No, it’s technically adequate. However, this comic is forgettable.

Likewise, the art in this issue is fine. The panel layouts and composition are excellent, but everything else is as bland and uninteresting as the writing. We’ll give some credit to Renzi for injecting a little color in this issue that isn’t some shade of purple.

Keep scrolling for a closer look at the covers, or Click Here to jump right to the story description with some spoilers.

What’s It About?

[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]

To catch up on Renegade’s master plan, read our THE HARBINGER #7 review.

We begin with Peter Stanchek fully recovered from the headshot he took from Blam. He flies into the fray to stop civilians from getting killed before dealing with Renegade.

Cici and Ago coordinate rescue efforts from collapsing burning buildings. Meanwhile, Faith lands some awkwardly lettered punches to stop Thrall from driving activated psiots to do more damage. During her punching, Faith saves Blam a second time, and he walks away owing her more than one favor.

Peter and Renegade fight to a stalemate when Renegade lands a lucky hit that sends Peter to the river below. Peter accepts his power (for the third time in this series) and flies out of the river to deal with Renegade for good. We conclude the issue with acceptance and a new lease on a life that never was.

Keep scrolling for a closer look at preview images of the internal pages, or Click Here to jump right to the score.

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