Exclusive: Valiant Is Ending 'Unity' With An All-Comedy Special

There are a lot of ways to end a comic book series, but when the book is built around superheroic action, that's usually the way it goes out. Big explosions, superhero punch-outs, and at least one dramatic death tend to be the elements in the big final issue formula. But when Unity comes to an end in December with #25, following the world-shattering events of Valiant's big Book of Death crossover, that's not how it's going out.

Instead, they're doing an oversized All-Comedy special, featuring Valiant mainstays like Matt Kindt and James Asmus, and bringing in The Daily Show's Elliott Kalan, The Late Show With Stephen Colbert's Daniel Kibblesmith, and the comics writing debut of Tom Scharpling --- and that's just the tip of Unity's final issue iceberg.

Fans will probably be most familiar with Scharpling as the voice of Greg Universe on Cartoon Network's Steven Universe, but for those of us who are die-hard fans of The Best Show, the long-running radio show and podcast that he's been doing with comedy partner Jon Wurster for almost 15 years, his arrival in comics is definitely a pretty exciting one --- and even though it's a remote possibility, I'd be very interested in finding out how X-O Manowar and Ninjak have affected the town of Newbridge, New Jersey.

And apparently Valiant feels the same way. Editor Alejandro Arbona offered up this quote:

"When the opportunity came to celebrate UNITY's 25th and final issue with an oversized anthology of wall-to-wall humor, I was in heaven. We put the call out to some of the funniest creators we know...including a few who were totally new to Valiant! That's how determined we were to pack this thing chockablock with great comedy, and send off the title with a love letter that would be as hilarious as it was moving. I, for one, can't wait until you see what Michael Kupperman has up his multi-talented sleeve. And if you've ever listened to The Best Show or seen the comedy of Scharpling and Wurster, you know Tom Scharpling is working up something unbelievable for his Valiant debut. We've got writers from The Daily Show, The Nightly Show, and Late Night with Stephen Colbert gracing these pages, along with a murderer's row of comics-comedy superstars."

As for the rest of the roster, it's a staggeringly impressive list of comedy talent, one that makes the unexpected move to end Unity with a laugh seem like a pretty solid bet. Here's the full solicitation from Valiant:

UNITY #25 (FINAL ISSUE HUMOR SPECTACULAR!)
Written by MATT KINDT, JAMES ASMUS, DONNY CATES, JUSTIN JORDAN, ELLIOTT KALAN, DANIEL KIBBLESMITH, MICHAEL KUPPERMAN, ELIOT RAHAL, TIM SIEDELL, TOM SCHARPLING, TY TEMPLETON, and MORE
Art by MATT KINDT, KANO, MICHAEL KUPPERMAN, RAFER ROBERTS, TY TEMPLETON, and MORE
Cover A by KANO
Cover B by MATT KINDT
Cover C by FRED HEMBECK
Cover D by MICHAEL KUPPERMAN
$4.99 | 48 pgs. | T+ | COMING IN DECEMBER!

In the wake of BOOK OF DEATH, Valiant's elite superteam is no more…and Valiant is recruiting a who's who of all-star guests to bid them a fond farewell!

Valiant is proud to announce UNITY #25 – a super-sized, 48-page finale for Valiant's best-selling superteam, starring X-O Manowar, Livewire, Ninjak, Bloodshot, Divinity, Faith, Quantum and Woody, the Death-Defying Dr. Mirage, and pretty much the whole darn Valiant Universe!

Arriving in December, the UNITY #25 final issue humor spectacular will feature stories and shorts from a colossal roster of Unity veterans and comics comedy VIPs, including Matt Kindt (DIVINITY), James Asmus (QUANTUM AND WOODY), Donny Cates & Eliot Rahal (The Paybacks), Elliott Kalan (The Daily Show), Kano (THE DELINQUENTS), Daniel Kibblesmith (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert), Michael Kupperman (Tales Designed to Thrizzle), Rafer Roberts (ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #25), Tim Siedell (The Nightly Show), and Ty Templeton (Batman Adventures) – plus the comic book debut of comedian and radio host Tom Scharpling (The Best Show)!

New York Times best-selling writer and Valiant superstar Matt Kindt presents the final chapter of his acclaimed two-year run on Valiant's premier superteam…and then all-out chaos ensues as Valiant says goodbye and passes the reins to an all-star line-up of writers, artists, and humorists to chronicle the unusual, the offbeat, and the never-before-seen tales of the team that became a legend in their own time…the one and only Unity!

Think Bloodshot only joined the team long enough to fight the Armor Hunters? WRONG! Discover his newly declassified Unity missions! You saw Faith help Unity fight their opposite counterparts, The United… Now find out find out how else she assisted the team! Remember that time Quantum and Woody's goat joined the most elite assemblage of heroes that the Valiant Universe has ever known? No, well it happened! WE PROMISE.

Featuring covers by Valiant superstar Kano (QUANTUM AND WOODY), multiple Eisner Award nominee Matt Kindt (Mind MGMT), legendary cartoonist Fred Hembeck (Marvel Age), and Eisner Award winner Michael Kupperman (Tales Designed to Thrizzle), the Valiant Universe's most formidable team of heroes collides with a massive cast of comedy all-stars this winter in UNITY #25 – a 48-page free-for-all on sale in December!

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