One of the prevailing trends of superhero comic books in 2017 appears to be "metal." Starting with Valiant Entertainment's X-O Manowar #1 Brushed Metal variant cover from earlier this year and continuing with DC Comics' soon-to-debut Dark Nights: Metal event and its metallic foil covers, this fall will see Valiant return to the world of metal covers.

Valiant will again offer a "Brushed Metal" variant cover for a series debut -- this time September's Bloodshot Salvation #1 by writer Jeff Lemire and artists Lewis LaRosa and Mico Suayan. The Brushed Metal cover is illustrated by Suayan, and like the X-O Manowar cover, is printed on what Valiant describes as an "actual brushed aluminum metal sheet."

Bloodshot Salvation #1 Brushed Metal Variant Cover
Bloodshot Salvation #1 Brushed Metal Variant Cover by Mico Suayan.

The cover will be available to retailers who order 250 copies or more of Bloodshot Salvation #1 -- no small total, but half the ratio of the X-O Manowar variant, which was orderable at 500 copies and up. According to Valiant CEO & Chief Creative Officer Dinesh Shamdasani, the lower threshold is due to refinements in the process the second time around.

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“Our first metal cover – produced for the launch of X-O Manowar #1 earlier this year – was not only a runaway success, but a true labor of love," Shamdasani said in a statement. "It took more than a year of research and testing to source the correct materials and perfect the printing process in order to produce the first, true metal cover in the history of comics. It’s a highly specialized process that generated such a tremendous response that we’ve decided to revisit it for our most important new series of the fall. But we have not been resting on our laurels. Together with our printing partners, we’ve been able to further refine the process and reduce the cost -- a savings that we are passing on to fans and retailers with a lower threshold needed to obtain the Bloodshot Salvation #1 Brushed Metal Variant. We're very happy to announce that we'll be offering the cover at half the ratio of the first.”

EXCLUSIVE: Bloodshot Salvation #1 variant cover by Monika Palosz.
EXCLUSIVE: Bloodshot Salvation #1 variant cover by Monika Palosz.

Lemire's Bloodshot story started with 2015's Bloodshot Reborn, which helped earn Lemire an Eisner nomination for Best Writer at this year's awards, and continued into Bloodshot U.S.A.. Here's the official description of the latest series:

Ray Garrison escapes his violent past to build the one thing he never thought he’d earn: a family. But when a hateful secret from his true love’s past threatens their fragile peace, Bloodshot will be forced to run headlong into a barrage of blood, bullets, and broken bones for a revenge-fueled assault that will have crushing consequences for those he holds most dear…

His sacrifice will be her salvation.

Now: In the arms of his beloved girlfriend Magic, Bloodshot has finally found hope for the future…in the form of the couple’s unborn child. But when Magic’s estranged family – a cruel and sadistic clan of homegrown criminals – re-emerge to lay claim to their lost daughter, Bloodshot will be pushed back to the brink of madness, mayhem, and warfare…

Soon: Eight years from today, Bloodshot’s daughter has inherited her father’s incredible abilities. Hunted by a high-tech kill squad called Omen, Jessie must hone her powers…and learn how to survive before the world is swallowed whole by the darkness that now pervades America…

Earlier this year, Dave Wilson was announced to be the director of the Bloodshot film in development at Sony Pictures. The character will also appear in the Ninjak vs. The Valiant Universe webseries, as played by Power Rangers veteran Jason David Frank; a separate live-action project unrelated to the feature film.

Bloodshot Salvation #1 is scheduled for release on Sept. 20, with additional covers by Kenneth Rocafort, Monika Palosz, Tomás Giorello, Ryan Bodenheim, Greg Smallwood and Dave Johnson. Here's an exclusive look at eight interior pages of Bloodshot Salvation #1: