Tom Brennan Joins Valiant as Assistant Editor

Valiant Entertainment has announced that Tom Brennan, formerly of Marvel, is joining them as assistant editor. His tenure begins with the launch of Ivar, Timewalker, which releases January 21st. Tom Brennan has been an editor at Marvel for 6 years, handling many of their blockbuster characters (including Amazing Spider-Man) as well as a lot of their fan-favorite and critical-darling titles (Hawkeye, Daredevil, and Moon Knight). Marvel’s been going gangbusters in terms of sales during his tenure, and they’ve also gotten acclaim for doing a lot of things right – There was a soft relaunch that created jumping-on points for new readers WITHOUT messily rebooting the whole universe, for instance. There’s been the trend of subtly drawing themes, characters, and designs from their movie universe without trampling the story the comics were already telling. There’s been a genuine push towards greater diversity, both in their books and in their creators. (Try Ms. Marvel and Captain Marvel, for a start.)

Obviously, Marvel is an enormous company, and steering it takes more than one person. But Marvel has undeniably been killing it during his tenure, and his name is on a LOT of the reasons why. Given Valiant’s much smaller size, it’ll be interesting to see how and where his voice emerges. Valiant, of course, is no stranger to Marvel talent. The company was originally founded in the 90’s when Jim Shooter left the House of Ideas, taking Bob Layton, David Micheline, Barry Windsor-Smith, and a host of others with him. Several of Marvel’s current creatives have also taken up duties with Valiant, including Ivar, Timewalker creators Fred Van Lente and Clayton Henry.

Brennan himself had this to say: “Being a part of Valiant Entertainment might just prove that I’m the luckiest guy in comics. Watching Valiant not just survive but thrive in one of the toughest climates in publishing history was always inspiring, but to be a part of it is incredibly exciting. Moreover, Warren Simons is an editor I’ve looked up to for my entire career. This place is full of heart and hustle. I am so incredibly grateful to Dinesh Shamdasani, Fred Pierce, Gavin Cuneo and the whole crew for this warm welcome. I’m happy to be here and ready to get to work!”