Valiant Releases Mini-Mates

One thing Valiant’s done pretty well in its new incarnation is merchandising. The original Valiant didn’t really do a lot of that, After Acclaim bought the company, a couple of properties got turned into huge successful videogame franchises (Shadowman and Turok) but you weren’t seeing a lot of people running around in Harbinger T-shirts.

One thing that’s been so great about the Valiant 3.0 is that the people in charge seem to be that rare breed of person who combines legitimate fandom with acute business acumen. Valiant’s been steadily branching out into apparel, pint glasses, wall scrolls, you name it. The only misfire so far was a retro-styled video game tie-in to Harbinger Wars that was really cool in concept, but never quite got finished.

Still, if you’re an action figure person, there hasn’t been a lot for you. There were a few plushes released last year, but that’s it. You’ll be pleased to know they’re taking a step in the right direction with the MiniMates Two-Pack.

The set features Bloodshot and X-O Manowar. I’ve never been a huge MiniMates guy, but these are really cool. They come with a lot of swappable bits and accessories. X-O’s got some energy blasts coming out of his arms, and you can swap out his helmet for some Luxurious Barbarian Hair. Bloodshot has loads of ridiculous guns and a sword, because obviously he does. Previews is rolling out an exclusive “battle-damaged” variant that, among other things, will let you trade Bloodshot’s standard head for a half-exploded one, because if there’s one thing Valiant loves, it’s exploding Bloodshot’s face to show off his healing powers.

The set will come with an exclusive comic insert and a download code of some kind for ComiXology.

This is a neat first for a cool company, and also a chance to vote with your dollars. I’d imagine that if this is a profitable venture for them, they’ll have a stronger case when they go to partner with someone who can bring us the beautifully sculpted, ridiculously-articulated figures these characters deserve.

Plus, look at ’em! Look how cute they are, all havin’ little adventures and whatnot:

The press release said these are “now on sale,” so you should head out and scope the situation for yourself. Bring this bizarre mix of cute and kick-ass into your life and vote with your dollars for more of this kind of thing.