This may be a big year for superheroes in the Valiant Universe, but the publisher is also branching out. For the first time, Valiant will publish a crime noir/murder mystery series, aptly titled The Final Witness.
According to SYFY Wire, The Final Witness follows four lead characters who are brought together to solve a murder: a detective, an investigative journalist, an arsonist, and a new superhero. The series will start as a five-issue mini, but Valiant apparently has more plans in store for this new corner of its universe.
As of Monday, the publisher is keeping the book’s creative team under wraps, with the exception of editor Heather Antos. In a statement for SYFY Wire, Antos said, “This was a perfect opportunity to … meet new characters and different types of people and see how they cope with superheroed crime in a grounded way. San Francisco is a city we haven’t explored much in Valiant and for anyone who has knowledge in true crime, knows that it’s a city with a colorful past.”
Although the rest of the team has not been revealed, Antos admitted she’s been trying to find a project with both the artist and writer for some time. When she came up with the idea for The Final Witness, the duo were her first choices: “I wanted someone who had a strong understanding of pacing and tension, which make murder mysteries work, and we want the art to capture that gritty, real world vibe. If you’re a fan of the stories that happen in Gotham, then you’ll be interested in what we’re doing here.”
The Final Witness is new-reader friendly, though it is tied into the greater Valiant Universe; that said, the characters who’ve carried the line for years likely won’t appear for some time. In the interim, Valiant has released a teaser image, which shows a chalk outline near the Golden Gate Bridge. Whoever the victim is, they’re missing an important body part — the question is, where is it? And who took it?
Check out the image below and stay tuned for more info.
