Valiant Launches Tumblr with Bloodshot Preview

Always on the lookout for new ways to engage fans, Valiant has launched a blog on Tumblr. The new site has started with a today-only preview of the inked art for the upcoming Bloodshot Reborn #1.

Tumblr’s a bit of an odd duck. It can be a great place for creators and fans to mingle and converse on a deeper level than Twitter and a more personal level than Facebook, but the site definitely has a strong personality, and meshing with that could be important to the future success of the blog.

So far, in addition to posting the Bloodshot preview, they’ve reblogged some fanart, reviews, and buzz from other comics-based Tumblr pages. In the future, they have more previews and behind-the-scenes looks lined up for their upcoming titles.

As for the Bloodshot preview itself, it looks beautiful. Mico Suayan is normally a cover artist, and he seems to be bringing that detail to bear on the interior art. Jeff Lemire’s script is missing, as are several “censored” panels, but the gist seems to be Bloodshot grappling with PTSD in a run-down hotel. Which, frankly, makes a lot of sense to me. Comics deal with a lot of violent conflict, but it’s not often that they deal with the physical and emotional fallout. Valiant, with its character-driven focus, is better than most at this, but Bloodshot Reborn looks like it could be another banner title in an already-outstanding stable.