War Mother

Fred Van Lente, Tomas Giorello (Illustrator), Stephen Segovia (Illustrator), Valiant Entertainment (MARCH) Softcover $9.99 (128pp) 978-1-68215-237-9

A striking and memorable new heroine emerges in the pages of Valiant’s War Mother. Van Lente and his colleagues create a rich, futuristic, postapocalyptic world in which Ana, better known as War Mother, leads her people in a quest for survival among a myriad of threats. War Mother’s sentient sniper rifle operates via an AI program named Flaco; he’s a crucial element in the story, providing not just an opportunity for dialogue during War Mother’s otherwise solo missions but also someone to challenge her sometimes single-minded outlook. Ana deals with complications arising from morality, her family responsibilities, and her duty to her people—all while kicking some serious butt as needed. As with the best science fiction, commentary on our own society is featured throughout, but with a healthy sense of humor rather than heavy-handedness. For example, when a group called the Urbanites threatens but is eventually driven off, it’s said, “They’re gentrifying elsewhere.” War Mother compiles the character’s first comic book appearance in 4001 A.D. : War Mother #1 and issues 1-4 of the War Mother comic series. The book’s artwork is stunning—polished, colorful, and dynamic, creating a convincing and utterly immersive future environment. Combining the raw excitement of pulp adventure with thoughtful extrapolation and invention, the story collected here is complete and satisfying but leaves open the possibility of additional adventures. With luck, War Mother will return to shepherd her people through other future threats.