The book opens up with the Labyrinth decimated by the damage caused by the Eternal Warrior AKA Gilad.
As our protagonist progresses through the facility to confront the mysterious foe behind all of his endless torture during his time there, the mysterious foe sends one of his own men off with all the necessary information needed should he lose in his battle against Gilad. As Gilad makes his way passed all the mangled bodies in his wake, he finally meets The foe behind this nightmare who is revealed to be The Dying One.
Gilad and The Dying One snap at each other during their battle against one another. During their battle, Gilad seeks for the reasons why he The Dying One captured and experimented on him. It is revealed that The Dying One is also immortal, yet unlike Gilad who keeps his original form , The Dying One has to adopt new bodies and identities in order to survive beyond the mortal coils that he inhabits. As the battle ensues, The Dying One reveals that he raised Gilad’s son Kalam during Gilad’s absence , revealing that he only tried to experiment on him to see if he had any traits of Gilad’s immortal abilities, only to shakily confess that he was only a failure, unlike his father. Gilad then immediately goes for the final blow, and kills off The Dying One once and for all, or did he? As the comic concludes, Gilad burns the Labyrinth facility down, and as days pass, Eric aka XO-Manowar arrives at Gilad’s location. Upon arrival, Gilad makes a shocking request.
Wrath of the Eternal Warrior #10 was an entertaining read a nice wrap up to the Labyrinth arc of this comic. The artwork by Raul Allen really fits well with the gloomy mood, and atmosphere of the story, especially when Gilad delivers a killer blow against The Dying One. The writing by Robert Vendetti is also done well. There aren’t moments that feel like filler or out of place, like some of the stuff that you might find from the big two, and that’s a good thing. The Dying One as a villain was very interesting especially when he gives bits and pieces of how many identities he’s adopted throughout time. He had some very cool Mr. Sinister vibes, yet was unique to his own for both the character and the story’s benefit. There are some moments where The Dying One taunts Gilad by referencing Ninjak, and XO-Manowar, among a few others as opponents that he’s fought before, which made me wonder where we might see The Dying One next beyond this issue and arc. A well-paced issue, with a story I actually look forward to down the road.
Personally, I find this book refreshing since it’s more focused on story than it is gimmick. Now it’s not to get at the big two, but as of late, there has been some content but both good and bad, some are catering to the movie audiences, while others restore legacies to former and newer continuity, pleasing a variety of a long time and current fans. But so far Valiant has been delivering in content, which is always great to find and look forward to.
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