A woman of color who happens to be a scientist and time traveler? Neela Sethi is using her physicist skills to save history and she needs Faith Herbert’s psiot talents to help do it. The one unpredictable thing that happens to a superhero – the bad guys have won. They banded together and grounded the Zephyr (Faith’s hero persona). Now all she has is her secret identity. But like a true hero all Faith can think about are the ones who are being victimized without her presence. However, she has a chance to don that white outfit and live out a dream. For someone like Faith, who’s been deeply immersed in the Doctor Who universe since childhood her Whovian fantasies are becoming reality. Imagine traveling through space and time and being promised to end back up where you were picked up. That doesn’t often happen. Companions of the Doctor, in that long running BBC series tend to end up dead, disfigured, or worse off than when they started. Captain Jack can never die, Rose Tyler ends up in an alternate universe with a lesser version of the 10th doctor. Donna can never remember her amazing adventures or else she will literally burn up. Even encounters with the Doctor can end up disastrous. In one episode a man ends up a butt. Still, they find love and have amazing adventures. With that artist Stephen Segovia shows the look of a true fanatic. As Neela extends her hand Faith’s wide eyes shed tears. In this case Faith is going to more than a companion.
In issue one of ‘Faith and the Future Force’ writer, Jody Houser is taking a page from Valiant Comics’ history with her take on preserving the present by going into the past and possibly the future. ‘Rai and the Future Force’ has two histories. What both have in common is that Rai, with the genetic makeup of a bloodshot, attempts to keep New Japan from being taken over completely by technology. Essentially ending the human race. He does this in various ways with descendants of the heroes of the Valiant universe, including psiots and harbingers. Time is shifting at a quicker pace this time and Neela’s not sure if Faith can help. After all she may theoretically be the best person to save the future, or she may end up like one of Doctor Who’s companions.
Houser has successfully mixed pop culture within a fictional context, without it being hokey. It’s completely appropriate for Faith to geek out when she meets Neela. The time loop, gathering allies, it’s all a part of what makes Valiant an amazing read. They take from their past, but instead of regurgitating the same story, there’s a new spin on it. You’re rooting for this team to succeed. Humanity’s survival is at stake. What’s most intriguing is the catalyst that sets this journey off. The debate that has gone on for generations has been done and it’s unraveling time. With Ivar the Timwalker, in his miniseries Neela nearly ended her existence by the creation of her way of time travel. Did her invention endanger the timeline, or was it a person who had the power to make a what if scenario come true?
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