Spilling out of [b:The Valiant|24830026|The Valiant|Jeff Lemire|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1424493161l/24830026._SY75_.jpg|44472869], Lemire begins a new era in Bloodshot's story.

The original runs of Bloodshot were pretty much, What If Wolverine Was Also The Punisher? A super soldier experiment with guns, fabricated by a secret government-related organization is given healing powers and his memory wiped so many times that he doesn't know who he is, but he knows he has to avenge his family. Protect his family. That part's unclear, as he never knew which version of his family was real.

It was intriguing, and blended well with the [b:Harbinger Wars|18128654|Harbinger Wars|Joshua Dysart|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1373226495l/18128654._SY75_.jpg|25463126]. The character resurfaced in the [b:Unity, Volume 3: Armor Hunters|23625163|Unity, Volume 3 Armor Hunters|Matt Kindt|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1417104966l/23625163._SY75_.jpg|43230697] and began to help Valiant's version of The Avengers, and then in Valiant,

Spoiler

he is returned to his human form

.

In this volume, we add two hallucinatory characters and a living sidekick into the mix, and, surprisingly, it makes the series even better. I wasn't initially sold on the hallucination characters but Lemire uses them wisely to forward the overall plot of the series.

If you enjoy Punisher, Wolverine, or good ol' vigilantes trying to stay on the Straight & Narrow 'cept they're haunted by ghosts series then this series was tailor-made for you.

So a Valiant representative told me that that this was a good jumping off point, even though I was unfamiliar with Bloodshot or Valiant in general. False. This is the second story arc featuring Bloodshot, thus the "Reborn" in the title. It also takes place in a time where apparently this character is no longer this character and just wants to be Joe Blow. And this whole volume is this Joe Blow fighting becoming Bloodshot again. And I should care because it's assumed that I, as a reader, am familiar with Bloodshot, but I'm not. I literally did not care whether or not this dude became Bloodshot again. It also failed in striking any interest with me to go back and read this character's first story arc.

The man-pain/angst was strong with this one. I also really liked his interactions with his two imaginary...er...friends. I've never read a Bloodshot comic before but I was into this one.

This was a low point for Lemire out of the stuff I've read by him, but he did what he could with the idea. The hallucinations totally saved it from being really boring. I like the art too. I've already got the next 2 graphic novels so hopefully I'll like those more. Also I never read the original Bloodshot so it might be more exciting if I had.

Pretty badass if a bit anticlimactic. Incredible artwork and sharp writing up until the 5th and final issue where it drops noticeably. Makes me want to seek out the older stuff.

Bloodshot is becoming more and more like a cross between Punisher stories where Frank has to deal with lesser vigilantes and Captain America stories where lesser Super Serum test subjects are on the loose.

Except with Jeff Lemire and Mico Suayan bringing all the unique angles Bloodshot has to the table. This edition stands fairly well on its own, opening with a recap, but I'd really advise reading the previous Bloodshot trades as well as The Valiant for the full effect of Bloodshot's internal reckoning.

This was alright, but decidedly not my thing. Three first trades in, and I'm feeling like maybe the Valiant universe as a whole just isn't really my thing, though I've got two more left from the bundle I picked up at C2E2, so we'll see.

Bloodshot was a "superhero" who killed everyone with guns. He gets turned back into a "regular" guy as the last act of his dying superhero girlfriend, which apparently happened in a previous Valiant comic though I was happy enough with the way that part was presented here. Then, he spends this whole book trying to get his weird Bloodshot powers back, because... Nanites?

I don't know, I was initially sort-of pumped that they had taken what seemed like a really dumb, grim old superhero and were going to make him deal with shit as a real, normal person. Instead, it's just nanites all the way down. I know we're within the realm of superhero comics here, but even so the "nanites" feel like a real reach to me. Like, Ray isn't really sure if the nanites are back inside of him for real yet, and there's just a little bit of nanites, but he's able to completely change his physical appearance to that of a wholly different person? Nanites!

I'm surprisingly down with Bloodsquirt and Kay, and as much as I have a tenuous relationship with narrators in comics, Ray's own inner monologue mostly feels like a constructive addition. Except. EXCEPT. WHY DID YOU PUT PLOT SPOILERS INTO YOUR OWN REFLECTIVE, NAVAL-GAZING NARRATION, JEFF LEMIRE? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU? IF YOU WANT US TO APPRECIATE THE POIGNANCY OF A MOMENT OR BECOME INVESTED IN A CHARACTER, THEN FUCKING USE YOUR WRITING TO MAKE US FEEL THOSE THINGS. DON'T JIMMY IN SOME BULLSHIT "Oh man, just wait you guys, the book is actually about this thing that I'm not being particularly subtle about anyway," YOU HACK.

My mistake was reading this Bloodshot volume FIRST, before I read The Valiant. Because Bloodshot would have made a little more sense if I’d read The Valiant first.

Although, hold the phone.

You know where they tell you the reading order for Bloodshot? On the very last page of the Bloodshot trade paperback! Which means that only after having done it wrong did I realize what the right order was. Wouldn’t that be a useful thing to put in the front of the book? “Hey, you don’t have to, but if The Valiant happens to be sitting on your coffee table and you’re planning to read it too, DEFINITELY read that shit first!”

Why even bother putting the reading order in the back of the book? Just so I know that I fucked up? So I can go through the other volume fully aware that I blew this experience for myself just by pure chance?

Ahhhh! COMICS!!!

Jeff Lemire, never letting his fanbase down =)