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Archer & Armstrong Volume 1: The Michelangelo Code (ARCHER & ARMSTRONG (VU) TP) Paperback – Illustrated, March 19, 2013

by Fred Van Lente (Author), Clayton Henry (Artist)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 147 ratings
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  • It's history in the breaking! After years of meditation and training, 18-year-old Obadiah Archer has been dispatched to New York City to carry out the sacred mission of his family’s sect ― locate and kill the fun-loving, hard-drinking immortal known as Armstrong! But as this naive teenage assassin stalks his prey, he’ll soon find that both hunter and hunted are just pawns in a centuries-old conspiracy that stretches from the catacombs beneath Wall Street to the heights of the Himalayas. And Archer & Armstrong will have to work together if the future is to stand any chance of surviving the past’s greatest threat!
  • From the New York Times best-selling creative team of writer Fred Van Lente (Marvel Zombies) and Clayton Henry (Incredible Herc), this volume collects Archer & Armstrong #1-4!
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Previous page
  1. Part of Series
    Archer & Armstrong (2012-)
  2. Print length
    112 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Valiant Entertainment, LLC
  5. Publication date
    March 19, 2013
  6. Reading age
    13 - 16 years
  7. Dimensions
    6.5 x 0.4 x 10.1 inches
  8. ISBN-10
    0979640989
  9. ISBN-13
    978-0979640988
  10. See all details
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Archer & Armstrong Volume 2: Wrath Of The Eternal Warrior (ARCHER & ARMSTRONG (VU) TP)
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Archer & Armstrong Volume 3: Far, Faraway (ARCHER & ARMSTRONG (VU) TP)
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Editorial Reviews

Review

  • "Fantabulous" - Boing Boing
  • "This is an A+ book..." - Ain't It Cool News
  • "Funny, fast and gorgeous. Not buying this book would be the stupidest thing you could do." - IGN
  • "Seriously cool on every level." - Multiversity Comics
  • "Supremely solid and packed with potential." - Newsarama
  • "A one-two punch of action and satire... - Yahoo! Voices
  • "An extremely strong debut..." - Comic Book Resources
  • "Fresh and intriguing..." - CraveOnline

Review

  • "Fantabulous" - Boing Boing
  • "This is an A+ book..." - Ain't It Cool News
  • "Funny, fast and gorgeous. Not buying this book would be the stupidest thing you could do." - IGN
  • "Seriously cool on every level." - Multiversity Comics
  • "Supremely solid and packed with potential." - Newsarama
  • "A one-two punch of action and satire... - Yahoo! Voices
  • "An extremely strong debut..." - Comic Book Resources
  • "Fresh and intriguing..." - CraveOnline

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Valiant Entertainment, LLC; Illustrated edition (March 19, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 112 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0979640989
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0979640988
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 13 - 16 years
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.9 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.5 x 0.4 x 10.1 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 147 ratings

About the author

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Fred Van Lente

Fred Van Lente

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Fred Van Lente is the New York Times-bestselling author of comics as varied as Archer & Armstrong (Harvey Award nominee, Best Series), Taskmaster, MODOK's 11, Amazing Spider-Man, Conan the Avenger, Weird Detective, and Cowboys & Aliens (upon which the 2011 movie was based), as well as the novels Ten Dead Comedians and The Con Artist.

Van Lente also specializes in entertaining readers with offbeat histories with the help of his incredibly talented artists. He has written the multiple-award winning Action Philosophers! (American Library Association Best Graphic Novel for Teens), The Comic Book History of Comics, Action Presidents! (all drawn by Ryan Dunlavey), and The Comic Book Story of Basketball with Joe Cooper (Ten Speed September 2020).

He lives in Brooklyn with his wife Crystal Skillman, and some mostly ungrateful cats, and loves hearing from readers at fred.vanlente@gmail.com.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
147 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Keith S. Borders
5.0 out of 5 stars The Under-Appreciated Backbone of the Valiant Universe!
Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2014
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The Buddy Comic to end all Buddy Comics, Archer & Armstrong has been my favorite of all the new Valiant titles. While other Valiant titles like Harbinger and Bloodshot are very much focused on the “here and now” of their characters, the fact that one of Archer & Armstrong’s main characters has been around for 10,000 years adds a different scope to this book. With the amount of history that can be packed into an issue, you are guaranteed to be hit with many surprising revelations of this new Valiant Universe.

The premise: Obadiah Archer has been raised by his fundamentalist Christian parents with one goal in mind – Hunt down the unnamable being of pure evil that is preventing heaven on earth and destroy it. Turns out, that being of pure evil happens to be a 10,000 year old, drunken libertine who goes by the name Armstrong, and who really isn’t all that evil after all. Of course, things aren’t what they appear, Obadiah soon finds himself in cahoots with Armstrong, and our great adventure begins.

As is customary of the Valiant titles, this trade paperback is just the first part of a much larger story, and will hopefully find you wanting to join in on the whole ride. From the hidden catacombs beneath Wallstreet, to the forbidden libraries of the Vatican, then on to peaks of the Himalayas, Archer & Armstrong is a rollicking good adventure in the flavor of Indiana Jones. But let’s not forget that it is part of the larger Valiant Universe, and fairly soon parts of that Universe will be are going to be working their way into story (especially in the next trade!)

With Fred Van Lente’s comedic stylings, and Clayton Henry’s clean artwork, Archer & Armstrong sets itself apart from the other titles in the Valiant line. This is essential reading to gaining a complete picture of the overall Valiant Universe, mixed in with gripping action and a ton of laugh-out-loud moments!
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mars21
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a real dynamic duo
Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2013
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This is the modern update of Valiant's intrepid duo of the 90s. Armstrong is an immortal who'd rather spend his time drunk but holds the key to a powerful ancient treasure. Archer was trained by his parents as an assassin to kill Armstrong. But when your parents run a secret society, one of many such sects in hidden existence, everything is not as it seems as Archer discovers to his dismay. Toss in ninja nuns and things really start getting crazy.

Fred Van Lente does an admirable job taking various tidbits of history and possible conspiracies to build the hidden corners of the Valiant Universe. Though they start off fighting, Archer and Armstrong gradually start building their partnership, nay friendship as they unravel the mysteries set before them. It's done with wit and humor and some underlying human truths. Depicting this beginning of a beautiful friendship falls to Clayton Henry who does a terrific job, his facial expressions being a strong suit. His art is clean, concise, and his actions scenes are great.

I am new to the Valiant Universe, having never read the original run of this duo back in the 90s. But this book is set-up to accommodate both the new and old fan, being a fun and easy read. It may not be the violence of Bloodshot nor the moral grey areas of Harbinger, but A+A offer up it's own unique, quirky view of the ever-growing and immensely interesting Valiant Universe.
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shadow5555
4.0 out of 5 stars A journey begins with a first step and what a doozy this is
Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2013
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When VEI announced that the Valiant Universe was going to be relaunched after over a decade of being dormant, I had my doubts that they could create a strong, cohesive universe that Jim Shooter, Barry Windsor Smith (BWS) and other original artists created when Valiant launched their superhero line in 1992. So with those auspicious beginnings VEI had a lot to live up to fans' (old and new) expectations. The question is did they succeed?

A bit of backstory, I really enjoyed BWS original run on Archer and Armstrong (AA) so much that when he did the two fill in issues for Eternal Warrior and was gone for an issue or two (for both writing and art duties) and it just didn't feel right. Fast forward about 20 years and you have the latest incarnation of AA written by Fred Van Lente and art by Clayton Henry. This new AA lives up to the older stories and completely revamps the status quo by using some of the older mythology as a launching point, but having a whole new spin on it.

Van Lente's story is fast paced, to the point and takes risks, but all in a good way, we also get brief flashes of Armstrongs long life showing how he became immortal (along with his brothers Gilead and Ivar) and why everyone wants him dead (since he protects this secret from those who would abuse it) and thus begins the journey of the most unlikely pair of reluctant heroes (and eventually pals) that the valiant universe has ever seen.

Henry's artwork is fresh and bold, recognizable of the old valiant yet showing current trends, and leads the story along just fine serving its purpose to frame the narrative, all while being exciting and bold. The art is consistent with no drops in quality for each issue. Van Lente's story is a fresh take on the original story and intends to keep the mythology tight and not get tiresome or stuck in a mire of sameness as Mike Baron (the writer who took over from BWS) in the rest of his run on the book until its cancellation. AA was a love it or hate it book for many people and I see why if you read from the beginning you got the awesome BWS roller coaster ride that unfortunately ended way too soon (due to company politics back in the day) or you wondered why people enjoyed it if your only experience was with the Baron run, you'd be right, as that was a directionless slog of total bore (and coming from a Baron story, that's a shock, as I love his work on Nexus).

Regardless of what you thought of the original run of AA, you owe it to yourself to check out the revamped and in my opinion high standard set by Van Lente and Henry with this new AA series. It is everything that the BWS series was and more (and stronger I would add) due to the supporting cast and new enemies being more fleshed out and not so cliche. I will continue my reviews of the other three TPB's released as well as the Valiant Master's HCs, but out of these original four volumes AA has to be my second favorite (only to be knocked out by Harbinger, shockingly to me).

At this price it's a no brainer, pick it up...now. It's that good, if the quality continues like this for the rest of the books coming out in 2013 as well as the four original titles then Valiant is back, and I couldn't be any happier.

Note: The book would have received 5 out of 5 stars however, my copy had some serious print issues in issue 3 it was over saturated with red ink which was indicitive of printing errors, this has nothing to do with story or art, but did detract from the experience I had, none of my other books so far have had this issue, and I hope this was an isolated case.
6 people found this helpful
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Kolchak
3.0 out of 5 stars Fun but not as great as the old run
Reviewed in the United States on December 20, 2018
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It's not the old run that I thought it was...but it's almost as fun a read, it's a little more heavy handed, but there are still moments when the old glory shines through
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Top reviews from other countries

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Avid crime reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Life outside "the big two"
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 1, 2013
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I must start with a confession. Growing up I only ever read Marvel and DC stuff (mostly Marvel), so I knew nothing about Archer & Armstrong (or anything from Valiant, for that matter). However, having returned to comics as an adult, tempted back into the fold by movie adaptations etc, I've made a conscious effort to read more from other publishers. And I must say, in this case, I'm so glad I did. Archer & Armstrong just worked on every level for me. I liked the crisp art, the fast-paced plotting (compared to the "deconstruction" that drags out so many arcs these days) and the witty, clever dialogue. An original pairing of very likeable characters on a fun mission around the world. Good stuff.
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mark
5.0 out of 5 stars Just pure fun
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 11, 2013
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Oh just so much awesome Fun
He's not the antichrist he's just very drunk…
A tale with tongue firmly in cheek and so damned enjoyable
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Stan FREDO
4.0 out of 5 stars Prévoyez de la monnaie pour le pop-corn
Reviewed in France on August 19, 2013
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L'an dernier, tout un univers de héros et super-héros a été relancé aux USA avec le retour d'une firme dénommée "Valiant". Les catalogues accumulés de diverses petites maisons d'édition ont été agrégés à ceux de l'ancienne maison "Valiant" et ont donné lieu à un "relaunch" dans le cadre de comic books mensuels en même temps que de rééditions sélectives du fond de catalogue. Voir notamment mon commentaire à propos de ' Harbinger Volume 1: Omega Rising ', autre "franchise" relancée par la nouvelle "Valiant".
Ici, ce sont des personnages - Archer & Armstrong - créés pour l'ex Valiant en 1992, par des auteurs légendaires du genre "comic book de super-héros" puisqu'il s'agit de Jim SHOOTER, Barry WINDSOR-SMITH et Bob LAYTON (source wikipedia).
Se retrouvent pour la relance des personnages, deux complices de la sympathique et bientôt "culte" série de comic books consacrée par Marvel Comics à "The Incredible Hercules" (cf. ' Love and War ', 2009) : le scénariste Fred VAN LENTE et le dessinateur Clayton HENRY.
De fait, le personnage d'Armstrong n'est pas sans trait(s) commun(s) avec le demi-dieu de la mythologie grecque tel que considéré par la Maison des Idées.
Quatre comic books mensuels (l'arc complet de la "ré-inauguration") sont regroupés dans ce TPB, qui inclut toutes les couvertures, certaines étant dues à des "fan favorites" du calibre de Neal ADAMS ou de David AJA, ce dernier fournissant également des essais de costumes pour les personnages !
Le premier chapitre nous met très vite dans le sujet, en présentant l'ensemble des principaux personnages de l'arc, la toile de fond et la rencontre du jeune Obadiah ARCHER, élevé dans en cadre sectaire et sélectionné pour être envoyé à New York pour y tuer "celui-dont-il-ne-faut-pas-prononcer-le-nom" mais dont nous apprendrons qu'il s'appelle Aram alias Armstrong et qu'il a survécu à une destruction totale du monde il y a au moins une douzaine de siècles. La secte, dirigée par la mère et le père d'Obadiah (mais ils ont décidément beaucoup d'enfants) veut récupérer les parties de l'engin qui a causé le cataclysme et qu'Armstrong s'est ingénié à disperser façon puzzle de par le monde, au fil de sa longue vie.
Les choses ne sont pas ce que l'on croit qu'elles sont, va vite découvrir Obadiah, certes puceau cloîtré, mais pas idiot et de plus, sur-entraîné à tout ce que vous pouvez connaître (ou pas) comme technique de combat ou de guerre.
Entre Armstrong, le puissant immortel (pouvoir auto-guérissant), fêtard et buveur, et le jeune garçon à peine dessillé se créée une dynamique dramatico-rigolote de "buddy movie" d'autant plus nécessaire que - bien entendu - il faut récupérer les éléments de la machine infernale avant qu'elle ne tombe dans les mains d'une énorme camarilla, dans la plus grande tradition "conspirationniste" dont savent ces derniers temps (ou ces temps derniers ? Brrrr....) nous abreuver nos amis d'Outre-Atlantique (1).
VAN LENTE concocte avec une grande efficacité une remarquable série d'aventures, d'action et de mystère tandis que le solide et élégant HENRY fournit les illustrations de même niveau. Le coloriste Matt MILLA doit également être associé, pour son apport (majoritairement bleu et orangé), à cette réussite.
A l'arrivée, vous obtenez l'équivalent en comics de ces films d'action hollywoodiens qu'il fait bon aller voir, bien accompagné, dans sa décapotable au drive-in movie theatre local, un clair soir d'été finissant !
En cassant les prix (moins de 8 euros le TPB !) mais en ne transigeant aucunement sur la qualité, Valiant est en train de se tailler à la fois sa part de marché économique et sa crédibilité artistique dans une activité que l'on pensait sinon malade, du moins mise en coupe réglée par les "Deux Vieilles" (avec un peu d'Image Comics, dans la sous-catégorie "zombie"...).

(1) A quand le "DA CARAVAGGIO code" ? Notez bien, pour les droits d'auteur, que c'est moi qui ai inventé le concept ici et maintenant...
One person found this helpful
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James Keith Pitkethly
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 6, 2014
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Great novel can't wait to get the whole collection.
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Volodymyr
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 12, 2015
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Very good quality, fast delivery, amazing price a+++
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