Writer Peter Milligan is placing a stamp on the Valiant Universe with his self-contained new series Britannia. The four issue series is coming this September, and according to Milligan will take a much darker angle on the universe than previous books.
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Recently we got to sit down with Milligan and talk about the anticipated series, and here are the five biggest takeaways.
1. “Britannia” is Valiant’s darkest and most brutal series to date
PM: I see this story as kind of Gladiator meets Druid-era Alien, and that sets the tone. Any story that has Nero and all his excesses, alongside the brutality of Roman Imperial oppression and mashes this with dark magic and horror must have a degree of darkness to it. But there’s a lot of humanity in there too, best seen in an ex-soldier’s longing for his estranged child. There’s humor also, in the cutting relationship between the chief of the vestal virgins and the dangerous, unpredictable Nero. I think this mix of the real and the fabulous, the dark and the amusing, makes it unlike most stories set in the ancient world.
2. It’s not historical fiction, it’s psychological horror
PM: I’m not consciously borrowing or importing anything and when people read this story they’ll quickly see that, though there’s a good deal of “reality” in it, it’s far from straight-forward historical fiction. I came at this from a number of directions: I suppose the seed was planted years ago when I read the I, Claudius books by Robert Graves. Amazing stuff, really brings the people and times of Ancient Rome to life. What makes BRITANNIA an interesting challenge for me is to bring the ancient characters alive as in the I, Claudius novels while seeding in some more modern and perhaps more horror-based ideas.
3. Introducing Antonius Axia, “the world’s first detective”
PM: I was interested in the ancient world’s mentality. Their way of thinking about the world. You only have to read a little about the Romans to understand how different they thought to us: this feels more noticeable because so much of their world seems recognizable: their houses, their plumbing, their organization. On an individual basis, though, these guys were forever making sacrifices to all kinds of gods. Their whole understanding of cause and effect was different from ours.
Into this world comes Antonius Axia – the “detectioner”. Antonius thinks differently from his peers. He has little or no belief or faith in the gods. He likes to see the connection between things, he has this remarkable notion of something called “evidence”.
How he came to be like this is due largely to the Vestal Virgins. The Vestal Virgins were really something. One of the reasons I wanted to write this story was so I could write about these remarkable women. Their leader, Rubria, is perhaps the only person in Rome who dares stand up to Emperor Nero.
4. In the footsteps of “The Valiant” and “Divinity”, Britannia is getting Valiant’s deluxe prestige format treatment
PM: Sometimes you want to tell a story with a beginning, a middle, and end – knowing that you are working towards a definite close can put a bit a steel into your story. You also feel as though you can take risks. [BRITANNIA] is four issues. Get in, tell a great story, and go home for tea and biscuits.
Or in Britannia’s case, maybe wine and olives.
5. A self-contained introduction to the Valiant Universe – sans superheroes
PM: Nothing in Britannia is contradicting Valiant’s larger universe, but in this first story there are no plans to include any pre-existing characters or concepts. If there’s a second series, who knows?
If your interest is piqued, you can pick up Britannia #1 in comic stores this September.
