Bloodshot is one of the biggest characters of the Valiant Universe. Now this awesome hero is finally about to star in his first movie. So let's take a closer look at the cybernetic sharpshooter with the red dot on his chest.
The secretive military organization Project Rising Spirit created Bloodshot when it injected the body of soldier Ray Garrison with nanites, turning him into the perfect weapon. The nanomachines increase his physical strength and give him the abilities to shapeshift, heal, and interface with technology. Project Rising Spirit use him as their personal assassin, manipulating his behavior and memories until he wakes up to the realization of what they are doing. These are the ten best Bloodshot stories, ranked.
10 H.A.R.D. Corps
The first entry on this list takes place in the aftermath of the epic Harbinger Wars event (more on that later). The story begins with Bloodshot imprisoned by the leader of the Harbinger Foundation, Toyo Harada, a powerful telepath and telekinetic famed as the most dangerous man in the world.
Bloodshot's powers come from nanites in his blood, put there by the secretive group known as Project Rising Spirit who tried to control him. To strike at both Harada and Bloodshot, PRS sent in the H.A.R.D. Corps team, humans with chips in their brains that directly download powers into them. Bio-technology and corporate corruption push the nature of humanity beyond its limits in this psychologically intense comic.
9 Blood Of The Machine
While most fans are probably familiar with the modern incarnation of Bloodshot whose title launched in 2012, this story collects the first eight issues from the character's original appearance in the 90s.
Some of the art and writing feel little dated, but Bloodshot's origins are clearly presented here as a trained soldier empowered by technology to be stronger, fiercer, and deadlier than the criminals he takes down. Other classic Valiant heroes like the Eternal Warrior and Ninjak also appear in this technothriller of bloody vengeance, corporate crime, and brothers in arms.
8 The Valiant
If the title doesn't make it obvious, The Valiant is one of the defining events of the Valiant Universe. The story focuses on Kay McHenry, the Geomancer, who is being hunted by the Immortal Enemy, an ancient nightmarish monster who has preyed upon Earth's Geomancers through the millennia.
This time around, Kay is protected by two warriors: one of them is Bloodshot while the other is Gilad Anni-Padda, the Eternal Warrior, an immortal soldier who has mastered every imaginable weapon throughout time. In this harrowing tale, both men face off against a foe capable of exposing their every weakness and Bloodshot is subjected to the sorts of wounds that can never heal.
7 Bloodshot Reborn: Colorado
After the initial 2012 Bloodshot title came to a close and the character underwent some major transformations during the events of The Valiant, the character retires, taking up a job as a repairman in Colorado. With the nanites that give him his powers gone, he is no longer the killer Bloodshot. He's just an ordinary guy, Ray Garrison, determined to drown his past in a bottle of whiskey.
Unfortunately, the nanites aren't done with him yet. When mass shooters who look like him start appearing on the news, there is no escaping the pull that draws him back into the conflict he thought he'd left behind.
6 Bloodshot Island
Writer Jeff Lemire took over writing the character during the events of The Valiant, kicking off Bloodshot Reborn with the previously-mentioned story "Colorado." A master storyteller, Lemire delivered one action-packed gut-wrenching tale after another, punishing Bloodshot with the sorts of psychological damage his nanites could never hope to heal.
"Bloodshot Island" is the final story of the series, a dire tale of survival in which Ray is stranded on an island, being hunted by a superior killer, the next generation of weapon developed by Project Rising Spirit. Meanwhile, he learns he is not the only Bloodshot to have been made, just one in a long line of soldiers experimented on, all of whom are stranded with him on the island.
5 Bloodshot Salvation: The Book Of Revenge
After the end of Bloodshot Reborn, Lemire began writing a new series, Bloodshot Salvation, following the character as he struggles with the responsibilities of fatherhood while trying to protect his family from a cult of white nationalists.
The vulnerability of an indestructible man struggling to keep his family safe makes the character relatable, his mechanically augmented white face lined with worry. Bloodshot repeatedly fails to live up to his commitments, doing what he thinks he must to keep his wife and daughter safe even as he unintentionally turns out to be the one who hurts them.
4 Harbinger Wars
Harbingers Wars is the first big event story of the Valiant Universe, pitting the psiots of the Harbinger series up against Bloodshot, a man known to many of them as the "psiot killer." This tragic tale raised the stakes for both Bloodshot and the psiots as new alliances and rivalries are forged in the thick of battle.
One of the most intense parts of the whole story features Bloodshot engaged in savage combat with Toyo Harada, the most dangerous man on the planet, each one tearing into the other with all their might.
3 The Book Of Death: The Fall Of Bloodshot
The Book of Death is a major event story that focused on the Eternal Warrior, the new geomancer, and the necromantic sorcerer Master Darque. While Bloodshot is not really part of the main story, Valiant released four standalone issues to foretell how various major characters would meet their ends.
"The Fall of Bloodshot" follows the hero through the years as he outlives friends and family, one battle after another consuming his life in a tale that is both full of high-stakes adventures and sad reflective moments, culminating in an ending that fans will find hard to forget.
2 Setting The World On Fire
This is the first story of the initial 2012 Bloodshot relaunch and appears to be the main source of inspiration for the upcoming film starring Vin Diesel. This cyberpunk military thriller begins as Ray Garrison awakens to the realization that he is a living weapon whose very identity is being manipulated with pre-programmed memories. He has been fighting for his wife and son, but even these two are just part of a computer program.
When he confronts his puppet masters at Project Rising Spirit, his story truly begins, setting him down the path to being a hero...and so much more. This is where it all begins.
1 Bloodshot: USA
Lots of ordinary people want super powers. It seems like it would be fun to have enhanced strength or the ability to communicate with machines. When Project Rising Spirit turns the entire population of New York into Bloodshot impersonators, this wish fulfillment tale quickly becomes a horror story.
The final entry on this list is the culmination of the entire Bloodshot Reborn run, spinning out of the events of "Bloodshot Island." This story has it all: body horror, surprising plot twists, epic combat, and art that bursts off the page! This tale changed everything for Bloodshot and the rest of the Valiant Universe, while showing why Ray Garrison is the one true Bloodshot.