Breathing Life into a Dying Character...
Wolverine has been my favorite member of the X-Men for as long as I can remember- from watching the classic cartoon, to action figure purchases (though, to be fair, I did own a Cyclops figure, too), to comic books (Savage Wolverine was great, and got me back on board a solo Wolvie title- even though I dropped off a few issues back) and even in movies (Hugh Jackman has become universally accepted as the new face of Wolverine)- so I was a bit skeptical when I heard that Marvel was going to truly kill off my favorite (and a general fan favorite) character.
Marvel has been rapidly overtaking my monthly pull-list with a majority of my monthly titles coming from their side of the Big Two, and this event is yet another entry point into the Marvel Universe. I have been reading Original Sin (though I have yet to finish the final chapter) and also Deadpool (along with all of the recent “Deadpool Vs.” books, which have been fantastic) so I thought this would be an interesting place to jump back in with Wolverine- in at the death. So I picked up this massively oversized issue, packed full of goodies beyond just the normal single-issue story, and was ready to dive in.
Dive in I did, and I got a lot to take in for a first issue. There was a beautifully laid out opening sequence, showcasing a VERY beat-up and de-powered Wolverine making his way out of the wreckage of a major battleground, which was cut with flashbacks of Wolverine getting some insight into his limitations and weaknesses due to his regenerative powers being removed. I had heard from a couple podcasts that I listen to that featuring the villain Nuke as the big bad for this issue was out of continuity, but having not read any of the recent Captain America book, I was blissfully unaware of any mixed up timelines. He was a great choice as the opening salvo (that’s a munition-based joke) against Wolverine, because he is just a giant force of nature. I also really enjoyed seeing the rough plots and the script pieces from the main fight scene- it really helped to paint a very specific picture of who Charles Soule saw when he thought of Nuke, and that image came across very well.
This event has been a long time coming, and even though this is just one issue, it seems like it is being taken very seriously and handled very well. The main issue that remains unresolved will be the ongoing future of Wolverine in the Marvel Universe- is he actually going to be gone for good? Is this going to be a six-month tour of Wolverine-less duty? Or will it be even longer than that, possibly taking even longer than when Doctor Octopus was in the Spider-Man driver’s seat? Only time will tell, and hopefully when this “dead” hero comes back he doesn’t have a sweet 90’s mullet and some convoluted retcon as to why he was never truly dead in the first place.
This is definitely a good read for any Wolverine fans, anyone who has enjoyed the Marvel events as of late, or just someone looking to pick up a book with an awesome cover (which I, by the way, picked up the Deadpool variant cover- which was great. And who doesn’t love Deadpool on the cover of a book that he is featured in exactly ZERO percent?? That’s the same reason I picked up the Midtown Comics variant for Guardians of the Galaxy #1).
