Wolverine Wednesday #84

Wolverine #6

Writer: Saladin Ahmed | Artist: Martin Coccolo | Colourist Bryan Valenza | Letters: Cory Petit

As I predicted last issue this arc is not wrapping up with the sixth issue. On the positive side of this turn of events, Ahmed does a good job of keeping the story ticking. This is done by having a good blend of action and exposition. And by bringing in two new elements to give the arc a refresh, the second of which we will touch on later. Donald Pierce is added to the mix. I feel this is a good choice of adversary as Ahmed continues his journey through the rogues gallery. Through the years he has had some tangible connection to Wolverine, even making an appearance in a movie. Visually though I found him odd, he lack a bit of dynamism. All the villains we have seen in this arc thus far are visually appealing. Also joining the proceedings we have Laura Kinney, again bringing a freshness to the plot. Going back to a point I made in an earlier issue, I think Laura showing up here adds to that heroic vibe created in the series so far. There is a strong team-up element running through this. It comes across right on the cover which I believe to be a homage to X-Men #100. On the subject of covers, even though it is Coccolo and Valenza on covers as well as interiors, I am finding the covers to be a bit crisper in the line art. Another aspect of the art that stood out was Coccolo’s Wolverine looking very stocky, almost JrJr-esque. I am pointing it out only because I don’t remember it from the previous five issues. Obviously, Wolverine is known for being short so I have no problem with Coccolo following suit. I have been hot and cold on the art, but obviously I am not going to criticise too much having no talent myself! The pacing of action sequences is one element where he shows his strengths. Like with Capullo on Revenge, he uses the trick of a solid colour background with motion lines to portray the speed of the fight scenes. As the story teams 4 heroes against 4 villains the fight scenes could get overpopulated. There are a few instances where he has the figures break the panel borders and this really works at giving the fights life. Small panels, within larger ones too are also really good at highlighting details within the bigger fight. Going back to the story. It starts off really strong. Ahmed uses his control over Wolverine’s monologue to update the reader on the previous issues while launching us into this one in a page or two. There are lots of nice story beats dotted throughout. The team-up angle moves the action along at a nice pace. Seeing Laura is always a nice treat. She has been around long enough now that even new writers are quick to get into her character. I like the yin/yang dynamic Ahmed presents between Wolverine and Laura. There is also a nice comedic beat when Laura discovers Wolverine is effectively fostering a Wendigo. Lastly, we have our final page reveal. No spoilers from me but if Ahmed is able to pull this off and make BLANK a credible threat going forward I am very interested to be along for the ride.

Ultimate Wolverine #2

Writer: Chris Condon | Artist: Alessandro Cappuccio | Colourist: Bryan Valenza | Letters: Cory Petit

I think it would be an over exaggeration to say this issue brings the series to a screeching halt. But it is certainly a different pace and direction compared to the explosive first issue, which left me very impressed and excited. This time around Condon takes us into Wolverine’s mysterious past. In my opinion, this is always a recipe for success. No matter what continuity or reality you are in, Wolverine’s past always offers up potential for a good story. Given that this is a fresh universe the untapped potential is dialled up to eleven. Condon knits together well-established parts of Wolverine’s 616 continuity with the new Ultimate Universe machinations. The issue opens up with a familiar bald, evil professor. I spoke about the accessibility of the first issue being a positive, this one falls a little short in that regard. The evil Reed Richards is used in the opening and I am not 100% familiar with his back story and I don’t know how much of his story and the wider Ultimate Universe will be explored in this series. So you do kind of have to take it with a pinch of salt. Just think of it as another mystery in the muddied life of Wolverine. What follows in the rest of the issue is essential a quick going over of this universe’s version of the Weapon X experiment testing phase. Having the villainous trio of Colossus, Magik and Omega Red pulling the string however, makes it more than a simple rehash. It also gives space to flesh out their personalities and motivations. With the story taking on the premise of a journal of the testing of Weapon X it allows to deliver on action and for Wolverine to continue to be a horror, urban myth-like being. Again like the first issue, Wolverine has no dialogue and is still the most dominant figure on the page. Like with the story, Cappuccio on art was able to make a few subtle nods and winks towards the Weapon X story. Hunting and testing in the snow is the most obvious one. Cappuccio’s Wolverine is a complete badass. Love the costume, love the mask. The way he has him ‘move’ on the page adds to the silent dominance, it helps give him character without words. The image of him brooding in his test tube/cell adds to the horror movie vibes carried over from the first issue. I have perhaps been a little critical of the colouring choices in the Wolverine series. Well, Valenza is pulling double-duty on both titles. Here he does the dark and moody really well, I like that you can see the brush strokes. So it has led me to believe the choices in Wolverine are just that, a choice. It is good to see a colourist be adaptable and not just play to their strengths. This issue is a well-constructed building block in a new series that keeps things intriguing for the reader at this early stage.

Sabretooth: The Dead Don’t Talk #3

Writer: Frank Tieri | Artist: Michael Sta. Martin | Colourist: Dono Sanchez-Almara | Letters Joe Sabino

By far this has been the best of the three issues. It is a fun and enjoyable romp from beginning to end. Amazingly it manages to move along the story that has been established so far and kind of feels self-contained at the same time. To me what made this issue a success over the others was that it didn’t feel tied to continuity in any strong way. Perhaps that is a by-product of the first two issues laying the groundwork and this existing in that mid-series point of just letting the story breathe a bit more. Sabretooth has been around long enough now that readers know his character and motivations. A story like this doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel, it just has to entertain Sabretooth has a storied life and you can effectively dump him anywhere and let him be Sabretooth. Tieri really taps into that this time out. The story is bookended by two scenes related to a Worlds Fair-type event happening in New York. This put me in the mindset of the fantastic novel ‘The Devil in The White City.’ These scenes are again packed with little Marvel Universe Easter Eggs and that has been consistent of the series. Once Dragonfire gatecrashes the story pace really picks up and for the rest of the issue it is high action. The fight actually manages to incorporate some plot points that aid the story as the pair crash into various locales around the city. I even enjoyed the humorous way the fight reached its climax. In doing so it also set up a new direction for the remainder of the series. I felt the change in pace in storytelling and the increase of more action suited the art more. You get a taste for it from the cover image. With a character called Dragonfire who possesses a certain skill set, it is right that the art choices are big. The fight between her and Sabretooth is six pages and each one is bold and well-structured. It begins with a splash page brilliantly showcasing this new character. Then the fight itself then movies through a sequence of panelled pages, half splashes, and characters breaking panel borders  – a really effective mixed bag. The flame motif has a strong presence throughout and it gives the six-page fight sequence a real definitive hue, different to anything seen in the series so far. This series is growing in strength issue by issue. This third outing is without a doubt the best so far. It is the standard that the rest of the series should strive to follow. A lot of the pieces are on the board now and with this being an uptake in proceedings it could be a very fun conclusion to things over the next few issues.

Deadpool/Wolverine #2

Writer: Benjamin Percy | Artist: Joshua Cassara | Letters: Joe Sabino

Two issues in and this is not hitting me like I thought it would, it is leaving me a little conflicted. But of course, two issues is way too early to be writing this off. I like so many of the ingredients that I do feel it is only a matter of pages before the tide changes. I am never going to complain about Maverick being along for the ride. I love the fact Percy has used him time and time again and brought him to a whole new audience. Percy created a good synergy between the three during his Wolverine series and they have solid interplay. In this issue we even get a moment of Maverick being the fall guy to Wolverine’s straight man whilst Deadpool is off elsewhere. On a personal level part of why I am not liking what is on offer, is that it feels too big, too soon. I feel a new series should ease you in, even if the characters are widely familiar. This is high-concept stuff right out the gate. Percy is strong on high concept but like I said personally I was expecting something else. Linking to this is the fact that Percy’s Wolverine run was at its strongest when the story arcs were shorter. With this arc we have the who, but we don’t have the why yet. From this point if things can be wrapped up in four issues I’ll be all turned around. Percy and Cassara are like Deadpool and Wolverine in that they have great synergy. Cassara has to be one of the top three talents working at Marvel right now. His hatching technique makes the characters feel lived in. It is almost like you can feel the dust on the pages, like the characters are breathing. The cover showcases what I am talking about better than I can describe it. I would say he has a pretty clean line style, but then with the colouring there are flecks of matter here and there that add a dimension. He is perfectly adept at going from talking heads, to comic action that Deadpool and Wolverine are accustomed to. And then boy he can match Percy when it comes to adding visuals to he high-concept stuff. While I couldn’t quite tell you why those creatures are there the satisfaction of the double-page spread to close the issue is so heavy metal! Deadpool/Wolverine so far is a mixed bag story-wise, with Cassara stealing the show on art in this issue. I expect and hope for things to change for the better in an issue or two.