Category: Wolverine

By various (Marvel)
ISBN: 978-0-7851-3569-2

Ever since his glory days in the All–New, All Different X-Men, the mutant berserker known variously as Wolverine, Logan and more recently James Howlett has been a fan-favourite who appealed to the suppressed, put-upon, catharsis-craving comic fan by perpetually promising to cut-loose and give bad-guys the kind of final punishment we all know they deserve.

Always skirting the line between and blurring the definitions of indomitable hero and maniac murderer, Wolverine soldiered on, a tragic, brutal, misunderstood hero cloaked in mysteries and contradictions until society changed and, like ethically-challenged colleague the Punisher, final sanction and quick dispatch became acceptable and even preferred options for costumed crusaders.

Debuting as a one-off opponent for the Incredible Hulk (in a tantalising cameo at the end of issue #180 in1974) the semi-feral Canadian mutant with fearsome claws and killer instincts spectacularly showed his mettle in a full-on scrap with the Jade Giant in the next issue, and has never looked back since.  Short and feisty he has always promised an explosion of visceral, vicarious ultra-violence and grim, gritty justice at every moment, and in this collection the public finally gets what the public wants.

This collection (which originally appeared as a number of one-shots and specials in 2008-2009) shows the dark and vengeful side of his nature as hunter, judge, jury and particularly as executioner.

First blood comes from Wolverine Holiday Special: ‘Swallowed the Spider’, written by Gregg Hurwitz, with art from Jerome Opeña & John Lucas has a short, mysterious stranger deal out summary justice to a murderous biker gang and the mob bosses who sponsored them one quiet New Year’s Eve, to avenge a little girl who died during one of their rampages. Swapping chilly bike for a cool automobile the hairy hero then tracks down and disposes of a rather specialised serial killer in ‘Switchback’ by Joseph Clark & Das Pastoras.

‘The Anniversary’ (William Harms & Jefte Pal) shows Wolverine’s softer side as he attempts to commemorate the death of his betrothed beloved Mariko, before crazed terrorists and their far from fundamentalist backer soon have back at his savage best, saving a airliner from fiery destruction. Mariko’s death is also the subject of the poignant vignette ‘Ghosts’, a ninja-filled reaffirmation of purpose from writer Jonathan Maberry and artist Tomm Coker,.

The painterly Das Pastoras returns to illustrate Victor Gischler’s ‘Revolver’ an action-packed, sardonic duel with a gambling demon and the book concludes with the darkly superb ‘Chop Shop’, a neat and nasty tale with hot babes, the worst kind of human scum and a brilliant new use of Wolverine’s celebrated healing factor.

Mean, sexy and utterly engaging this is the kind of hero the world too often needs, doing things the comics code would never have allowed. Not for the squeamish but a definite “must-have” for the discerning mayhem maven.

© 2008, 2009 Marvel Publishing, Inc, a subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

By Jeph Loeb, Simone Bianchi & Andrea Silvestri (Marvel)
ISBN: 978-0-7851-2256-5-2

Debuting as an foe for the Incredible Hulk in a tantalising teaser-glimpse at the end of issue #180 (October 1974) before indulging in a full-on scrap with the Jade Giant in the next issue, the semi-feral Canadian mutant with fearsome claws and killer attitude rode – or perhaps caused – the meteoric rise of the All–New, All Different X-Men before gaining his own series, super-star status and silver screen immortality; a tragic, brutal, misunderstood hero cloaked in mysteries and contradictions.

Logan’s come a long way since then; barely surviving chronic over-exposure in the process and now finds himself a solid star of the Marvel firmament. However that status is not without its own peculiar pitfalls, as such A-List players find themselves afflicted with a particularly tedious modern curse: Pernicious Recurrent Re-Origining…

A separate condition from actually retconning (where characters and continuity are dialed back to a specific point and the character is redesigned, PRR-O consists of infilling perceived cracks or gaps in the canonical history to reveal previously concealed or forgotten information.

Certainly some of these tales are utterly wonderful: Miller’s introduction of Elektra in the 1980s totally revolutionised and revitalised Daredevil and Batman probably started the whole process in 1956’s Detective Comics #235 when Bruce Wayne discovered he had seen father in a Bat-costume whilst still a toddler, but personally I cannot think of anything more pointless than constantly revising a character’s backstory rather than crafting new adventures or developments. I’m obviously in a minority on that score…

Wolverine has had a whole bunch of secret origins and revelatory disclosures in his extended, conveniently brainwashed and amnesiac life but this tome (which originally appeared as Wolverine volume 3, issues #50-55, November 2007-March 2008), at least tacks this latest round of really, honestly, for-gosh-sakes-I-mean-it true surprises to a fast-paced and engrossing recap and (purportedly) final clash between the miniscule mutant and his manic homicidal analogue Victor Creed: Sabretooth.

Scripted by Jeph Loeb and beautifully illustrated by the stunningly talented Simone Bianchi the story begins at fully gory pelt and just races on regardless…

The two fast-healing Mutant furies have clashed over and again and here Wolverine decides to end his enemy once and for all. However, his determination is somewhat distracted by recurring hallucinations and sense-memories of primeval pasts and a strangely familiar race of werewolf-like creatures that he feels a haunting kinship with…

Logan drags Sabretooth from the protective custody of his former X-Men associates in ‘First Blood’ and as new, lost memories constantly assault him, spectacularly battles Creed across half the globe, past clashes blending with current blows and fantastic images of primordial race wars in ‘Deja Vu’.

In ‘Blood on the Wind’ the murderous mutants, unable to permanently harm each other, nevertheless persist in their bloody vendetta until they reach the Black Panther’s hidden African kingdom, where old X-comrade Storm now resides as queen of Wakanda…

A temporary truce in ‘Insomnia’ only results in Sabretooth killing yet more innocents but reveals a possible solution to Wolverine’s delusions, as well as a name for the hidden foe he has sensed at the back of it all. An immortal monster named Romulus…

Moreover, there would seem to be conclusive evidence that rather than mutated humans many “homo superior” might well belong to a completely discrete, ancient species…

With a band of bestial clawed heroes (Sasquatch, Wolfsbane, Thornn and Feral) in tow, Wolverine once more tracks Creed as suppressed memories come thick and fast. In ‘Wake the Dead’ Logan recalls a Second World War exploit with Captain America excised from his consciousness by “Romulus” before Sabretooth attacks again, killing one of his hairy heroic companions…

In the inconclusively chaotic conclusion ‘Quod Sum Eris’ one blood-feud ends and another begins as Wolverine, unsure of anything, prepares to face his hidden foe. Some time somewhere, someday…

These tales are great as vicarious, gratuitous eye-candy, but to simultaneously unwrite a major portion of character history without offering context or conclusion is just inviting new and returning readers to buy different graphic novels with their rapidly diminishing mad-money.

Let’s see any healing factor fix that…

© 2003 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

By various (Marvel/Panini Publishing UK)
ISBN: 978-1-84653-422-5

The Wolverine juggernaut rolls confidently on with this bulky yet absorbing compendium of bombastic battles starring a selection of worthy adversaries as rendered by some of the biggest names in comics.

The carnage begins with a sleekly impressive turn from illustrators Paul Smith and Bob Wiacek, as the feral mutant Logan goes wild in Japan after the X-Men are poisoned at his wedding. With fellow mutant powerhouse Rogue in tow Wolverine carves a bloody trail to the Yakuza mercenary Silver Samurai and the deadly mastermind Viper in Chris Claremont’s ‘To Have and Have Not’ (from Uncanny X-Men # 173, September 1983).

This is followed by the concluding episode of the six part miniseries Kitty Pryde and Wolverine (April, 1985). ‘Honor’ by Claremont and Allen Milgrom features a big battle between Logan and an immortal Ninja magician named Ogun, but unless you’ve actually read the preceding five issues somewhere else, that’s about all you’ll comprehend plot-wise from this underrated saga which completely rewrote the character of the youngest X-Man and her relationship to the Canadian crazyman.

‘Wounded Wolf’ is a visceral, visual masterpiece from Uncanny X-Men # 205, (May 1986), courtesy of Claremont and Barry Windsor-Smith as Wolverine faces the vengeance-crazed cyborg Lady Deathstrike in a compelling tale guest-starring little Katie Power from Power Pack.

Marc Silvestri and Dan Green illustrated the first part of a classic clash with ex-Hellfire Club villain Donald Pierce (‘Fever Dream’ Uncanny X-Men # 251, November 1989) and his band of cyborg assassins the Reavers, whilst Rick Leonardi and Kent Williams finished Claremont’s brutal tale in the concluding ‘Where’s Wolverine?!?’

There’s no let-up in the extreme action and bloodletting in the untitled tale that follows as Peter David and Sam Kieth introduce the grotesque and decidedly warped Adamantium Assassin Cyber in an eight chapter, 64 page saga that originally ran in the fortnightly anthology Marvel Comics Presents (1991) whilst John Byrne, Jim Lee and Scott Williams pit the old Canuckle-head (albeit incredibly briefly and please don’t make explain that peculiarly inept nick-name) against toxic Cold War living weapon Omega Red in the first part of a much longer tale that begins in ‘The Resurrection and the Flesh’ from X-Men #4 (January 1992).

From the same month in Wolverine #50, Larry Hama, Marc Silvestri and Dan Green’s ‘Dreams of Gore: Phase 3’ reveals tantalizing snippets from Logan’s past life as secret agent when he fights a rogue computer program and a past lover in a choppy but oddly satisfying tale, whilst ‘The Dying Game’ (Wolverine #90, February 1995) by Hama, Adam Kubert, Mark Farmer and Dan Green, although not the final battle between Logan and his arch-foe Sabretooth it was proclaimed, is certainly one of the most cathartic and impressive.

‘Better than Best’ by Tom DeFalco, Denys Cowan and Bill Sienkiewicz (Wolverine #123, April 1998) finds a physically depleted Logan imprisoned and tortured by two of his oldest foes Roughouse (a giant troll) and Bloodscream (a vampire) in an unusually insightful tale of perseverance and the grudge matches conclude – once more unsatisfactorily I’m afraid – with parts one and two of the three part epic ‘Bloodsport’ by Frank Tieri, Dan Fraga and Norm Rapmund (Wolverine #167 and 168, October-November 2001). Herein the mutant mite competes in a gory martial arts/superpowers tournament against such second-raters as Taskmaster, Puma and the Terrible Toad just so he can confront Viper and the man he cannot defeat, the telepathic serial killer Mr. X.

The old, old plot still has plenty of punch here but I find it incomprehensible to have 18 pages of data-files and biographies of Wolverine’s foes pad out the book whilst omitting the 20 or so pages that would end the story! Visually this book contains some of Wolverine’s best moments, but I’ll never understand sacrificing story-content for pictures and punches…

© 1983, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2009 Marvel Entertainment Inc. and its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved.

By Howard Mackie, Mark Texeira & Harry Candelario (Marvel)
ISBN: 0-7851-0022-9

From that dubious period of “Grim ‘n’ Gritty” super-heroics in the early 1990s comes this slight but entertaining fast-paced pairing of Marvel’s (then) most savage champions which originally ran as the lead series in the fortnightly anthology Marvel Comics Presents #64-70, although dyed-in-the-wool continuity buffs should be warned that the connection to the company’s crossover event Acts of Vengeance is oblique – if not downright tenuous.

From his insalubrious bar on the pirate stronghold of Madripoor the globe-trotting mutant Wolverine is lured back to New York by a blatantly inept attack carried out by ninjas belonging to vampiric super-villain Deathwatch. Meanwhile Dan Ketch, human host of the fearsome Ghost Rider, finds one of his oldest friends also the target of similar ninjas.

The heroes’ paths cross with a karate instructor whose family also has a grudge against the criminal mastermind and all converge on the life-leech’s skyscraper headquarters for a surprise or two and a climactic showdown…

This yarn is just a stylish excuse for a big chase and huge fight – and that’s not necessarily a bad thing – so on those terms, this is a visceral, vicarious, effective use of the creators’ talents, with the added bonus of the introduction of yet another mutant superstar-in-waiting (I think he’s still waiting, even now) in the form of the unstoppable martial arts manhunter code-named Brass.

Sometimes no-frills cathartic comics combat is all you want from graphic narrative, and if you ever get that feeling this might be the book to buy…
© 1990, 1991, 1993 Marvel Entertainment Group. All rights reserved.

By various

(Marvel/Panini UK)  ISBN 1-905239-42-4

(A BRITISH EDITION RELEASED BY PANINI UK LTD)

Here is a great big book of mutant mayhem to introduce new readers to the world of Wolverine. Although not what I’d call masterpieces, and certainly not a section of the choicest cuts, this volume has good, solid action, lots of great art and many big name creators on board. If you are new to the X-scene this is a handy package to bring you up to speed without breaking the bank.

The first tale comes from Uncanny X-Men #139 and 140 (1980), with Chris Claremont and John Byrne at their creative peak, telling a gripping story of a reconciliation with Wolvie’s previous team, Alpha Flight that turns into a hunt for a carnivorous monster called Wendigo. This is followed by Shattered Vows (Uncanny X-Men #172-173, 1983), as the diminutive mutant prepares to marry a Japanese princess but runs afoul of prejudice, evil mutants, and the Yakuza. The excellent Paul Smith deftly underplays the art to superb effect and Claremont once again supplies the script.

Vicious Circle by Peter David and Todd McFarlane, comes from Hulk #340 (1988), and is fondly regarded by fans as one of the few times both characters truly lived up to their savage reputations, and this is followed by Ann Nocenti and John Bolton’s Hunter and Prey, originally published as a back-up strip in Classic X-Men #25 in 1988. It highlights the primitive side of Logan in a primal triangle involving a bear, an obsessive hunter, and our hero, in an arctic wilderness.

Next up is a classic tale from Uncanny X-Men #268 (1990), Madripoor Knights, a contemporary tale which also flashes back to World War II. Here a pre-claws and adamantium skeleton-ed Logan teams with Captain America and the Black Widow (sort of), whilst beating the stuffings out of arch-Nazi Baron Strucker and the ever insidious ninja gang, The Hand. Claremont’s story is illustrated by the then rising star Jim Lee.

The longest story in the book is taken from Wolverine’s own comic (vol. 1. issues # 150-153, published in 2000) as writer/artist Steve Skroce constructs an epic confrontation against insurmountable ninja odds when Wolverine has to rescue his adopted daughter from the clutches of a Yakuza gang-lord or become the unwilling weapon in a battle for underworld supremacy of Japan. Blood Debt is seventy-seven action-packed, gore filled pages that nevertheless manages to maintain enough decorum to keep an all-ages rating, something of a mutant miracle in itself.

Accompanying these tales are featurettes and commentary culled from the pages of the fan magazine Wizard, covering such diverse topics as Wolverines Greatest Foes, blueprints for his skeleton, the best and worst costumes of the last thirty years, and even “what if Wolverine had been a woman?”

© 1980, 1983, 1988, 1990, 2000, 2006 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

By various & Jim Lee

(Marvel/Panini UK)  ISBN 1-905239-41-6

(A BRITISH EDITION RELEASED BY PANINI UK LTD)

Since Jim Lee launched himself into the comics arena a lot has changed – and he’s been responsible for a large part of it. So a retrospective volume makes sense for any publisher which owns a large portion of his output. This thick tome contains some of his earliest work for Marvel (Alpha Flight issues #58-60, written by Bill Mantlo and inked by Al Milgrom) wherein he learned the trick to drawing huge casts of characters, and his first real successes (Punisher War Journal #6-7, written by Carl Potts), a visceral team-up of the Punisher and Wolverine, before concentrating on the X-Men runs that made his name and prompted his bid for independence.

From Uncanny X-Men #256-258 (scripted by Chris Claremont) comes a hi-octane, turbulent and perhaps over-blown battle with arch “Yellow Peril” stereotype The Mandarin, whose part in a super-villain pact has him attempt to destroy the misunderstood mutants as part of the “Acts of Vengeance” comic event. Don’t worry about it. There’s lots of semi-naked, exotic women, ninjas, big guns and shouting and hitting – just what every fan at the end of the 1980s demanded. And there’s plenty more where that came from in the last story-arc, reprinting X-Men #4-7, scripted by John Byrne and Scott Lobdell from Lee’s plots. This one features a glimpse into Wolverine’s past as a spy and the menace of Omega Red, a commie mutant whose touch can kill. Have no fear, though, the levels of angsty, hyper-tense testosterone remain at critical levels through-out.

Jim Lee’s work at Marvel shaped a generation of artists and his popularity directly led to the artist breakaway that resulted in Image Comics and a revolution in the industry. Although the work is a little unrelenting in tone, these stories are important and should be seen by a newer, wider audience. They’re quite well drawn, after all.

© 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 2006 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved.