Hey, everyone… Here is my third review for this week, this time it is the next installment of X-Men Legacy.  Hope you enjoy it.

X-Men Legacy #225 (preview | thread)
Writer: Mike Carey
Art: Phil Briones

NOTE: Wolverine only appears as a generic flashback in this issue.

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Amelia Voght having an ominous dream of Xavier. She wakes to find out everyone has had similar dreams and in fact the Professor is currently walking toward the Acolytes’ base.

Xavier walks right to the door and it opens for him. He uses Unuscione’s power to shield him from the defenses after making her only think she enabled her Psi-Shield. Exodus checks Random, Tempo and Unuscione’s psi-shielding and sends them to take care  of Xavier.

They confront him but he triggers latent mental suggestions and rends them helpless. Amelia confronts him but he refuses to tamper with her mind. She decides not to stop him though. He finally makes his way to Exodus and Shapandar. Exodus wants the Sentinel to attack but she takes Xavier’s side because of the help he once gave her.

Xavier questions Exodus’ purpose of defending mutant kind and takes him on a mental journey of the past of the Acolytes. The Professor lays out his case that the only way mutants can survive is to stop fighting amongst themselves and unite in San Francisco. He throws the fact that Exodus nearly killed Hope the first mutant to be born since Decimation and Exodus leaves to consider Xavier’s words.

While he waits, Charles wakes Cargill who has been in a coma since she attacked the Professor and when she tries to attack again he threatens her with sleep. Later he is playing chess alone when Amelia comes to him. She says Exodus is going on a pilgrimage and that she and several others are going to San Francisco. They make amends but she stops him when Xavier tries to kiss her.

Exodus makes a speech about their role in the new world and then symbolically destroys their old base. In the end, Charles and Exodus stand alone when a H.A.M.M.E.R. helicopter lands nearby. Osborn exits and asks for a moment of the Professor’s time.

MY TAKE: This series is fast becoming a must read for me. Although the plots are not always the most complex, the characterizations are amazing. And what is more impressive is that Carey is not afraid to make real changes. Things that should have been done years ago. He is taking old dangling plot threads and actually dealing with them.

In this issue he deals with the Acolytes, a group that has long been obsolete and breaks them up in an interesting and meaningful way. While I never could understand Magneto needing a strike force, as powerful as he is, I could accept them existing. But since his death, there is no need for yet another group of militant mutants that want to destroy the X-Men. Even worse it kept several interesting characters languishing in Limbo.

The plot was very simplistic but the strength was in the dialogue and characterizations. Xavier’s arguments were well thought out and believable as was the Acolytes’ responses. While the the interaction between Xavier and Exodus was strong, I was most impressed by his scenes with Amelia. It was good to see their past history being addressed at last.

I have never been much of a fan of Xavier, but he is very interesting and complex here. We also get to see him cut loose with his power which is very rare. He takes apart a powerful and seasoned team as if they were a bunch of amateurs. His planning and tactics side is never really shown, so it was nice to see how well he could plot the destruction of their team.

The series changes focus next month as indicated by the ending, but I hope it keeps the same attention to personality and abandoned plots that we have been seeing. Perhaps Carey can make Danger an interesting character as well.

In the end about the only problem in the issue is the simplistic plot. Everything else is very strong with particular attention to the characters’ personalities. While I might have been hesitant about the series’ change in focus, it has so far proven to be a vast improvement.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again later in the week.

Hey, everyone… Here is second review for this week. This time it is the limited series, Fantastic Force.  Hope you enjoy it.

Fantastic Force #3 (preview | thread)
Writer: Joe Ahearne
Pencilers: Steve Kurth
Inkers: Serge LaPointe and Allen Martinez

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue starts with the team in chaos. Ultron is in pieces and Logan awakes while Psionics fights the Hysteries. Logan recognizes Wanda and Polaris but it is Dark Phoenix that throws him. Logan wants to retreat immediately but the others are not sure until Natalie X feels the power of Jean and screams for them to leave.

Banner wakes up, still bonded to Harpy, as the other two women attack. Psionics takes a shot at Polaris while Wanda blasts Banner and reduces him to his human self. Jean takes Natalie while the others flee to the hospital taking Banner and Harpy with them in their human forms. Logan interrogates Harpy by slashing Banner’s throat and having him patched up.

Natalie is fighting a psionic battle with Jean who is attempting to convert her. Phoenix allows Natalie to take control of Polaris and Wanda to prove her superiority.

Meanwhile Alex Ultron has repaired himself and the group goes to the Castle building for answers. They discover their real foe is Gaea, the Spirit of Earth who wants at least some of her people back in the future. They debate their options but are attacked before they can decide. Logan is burned down to his skeleton, Alex is wiped of his personality and Psionics has metal earth shoved down her throat.

Lightwave realizes he is immune to Gaea’s attention due to his alien nature and counterattacks blasting the Harpy who is going after Banner. This allows the team a moment to regroup. Banner figures out what brought the women there and is able to counter it. Lorna attacks him with Logan’s skeleton but stabs Castle instead. Banner finishes his device and sends the Hysteries back to their times. They take Logan back to heal but he is not adding any flesh. We see Gaea trying to tempt him and it is her suppressing his power but Logan refuses to help her.

Natalie and Ultron try to reconnect but he is simply a robot now without emotions. Gaea attempts to influence Natalie but she is not swayed. Lightwave flies off and Logan’s skeleton breaks free of his healing bath just in time to see a new threat emerge. Ego the Living Planet.

MY TAKE: This issue was nearly as good as the entire series has been, although it is starting to feel rather rushed. They cut down the series’ issue count and you can feel it here. Events are thrown at you so fast that it can be confusing and hard to follow at times. And yet it is still an entertaining and well put together story.

The plot is simple survival at this point not just for the team but for all the people that they saved from the future. They are out matched from the very beginning but they manage to fight back in interesting and unique ways. As much as I like Logan, I would be hard pressed to pick a true stand out in the issue. Everyone gets a moment or two and pretty much everyone pays a price. I particularly liked how the non-powered Banner stepped up and managed to figure out the solution.

You tend to forget that this is an alternate future group and there were rather surprising, potentially long term, consequences for most of the team. Outside of maybe Lightwave and Psionics, pretty much everyone else has been changed by the end. It is the twists and turns that make it such a page turner for me.The characters are all interesting and mostly likable. I wanted to see what happened to them and I was dismayed by how much they suffered.

The ultimate villain was something of a surprise but it makes sense. I can see Gaea going insane with the destruction or desertion of all life on Earth. It will be interesting to see how it all falls out with her next issue.

My biggest complaint, besides the rushed nature,  is the power differences. The team is really fighting people that are way beyond them and making it work. If they manage to survive Ego, I do not see what else could really be a challenge for them. It will make it hard to have believable stories should the team continue.

The art is not amazing but it is more then adequate for the task. It too felt a bit rushed and some of the panels lacked detail especially in the backgrounds. Still it works fine for the story and did not really detract for me.

In the end this is another solid issue but it would have been better if it had been given more space. This is a sprawling epic of a story and it is only being given a few issues to be told in. I hope they make another series and this time give it the time and space it deserves. Until then I am eagerly awaiting the conclusion next month.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again next week.

Hey, everyone… Here is my first review for this week. I will probably be doing another four issues. So hunker down while I start with Cable.  Hope you enjoy it.

Cable#15 (preview | thread)
Writer: Duane Swierczynski
Pencilers: Ariel Olivetti

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue begins with a triumphant Stryfe reading the information he wants from Elixir’s head and then going after Hope. He now knows who she is and what she is capable of doing and he wants her for himself.

Domino guards Deadpool who has admitted to being a trap that was meant to kill them all. Laura and Vanisher discover the source of the power blocking their time travel and it is an old friend of Laura’s, Kiden.

We get a brief flash of Cable recovering before we find out that Kiden is also hooked into Stryfe’s mind. Deadpool relates what they are seeing, Hope trying to flee from Stryfe and being quickly captured.

Bishop awakes and tries to kill Cable. He only nicks him but the blood is enough to send a berserk, brain-damaged Wolverine on the attack. Bishop leaves them to fight, with Cable trying to reason with Logan. Bishop tries to attack Stryfe again and is easily stopped.

Next we cut to Archangel flying Apocalypse to his ship where the villain rearms and outfits himself for battle. Back with the infiltrators, Laura is stuck in a quandry, kill her friend or maybe die instead. Deadpool decides he can no longer serve Stryfe and sets out alone to try and be the hero.

The fight with Stryfe continues but is going badly. Cable leads the still blood berserk Wolverine to Stryfe. Wolverine manages to do enough damage to break Stryfe’s concentration and Cable shoots first Bishop and then his clone.

Stryfe uses Wolverine and specifically his claws as a weapon and stops the attack. Just as he is about to overcome Hope’s mind, he is blasted by Deadpool and falls off a ledge. He is not killed and pops back up tearing Deadpool in half and tossing the pieces over the side.

The issue ends with Laura deciding at literally the last second to unplug Kiden. It ends with an ominous sounding BEEP.

MY TAKE: This issue continues the strong ‘Messiah War’ story arc. Although I had my initial reservations, the issues have been consistently entertaining. Stryfe was never much of a top-tier villain but he works as a strong foil here. He is powerful enough to be believable defeating the team but not so much that he is impossible to overcome.

The plot is a bit convoluted with three separate groups and goals but everything is starting to come together for the finale. It was nice to get a bit more time with X-23 and Domino’s group. The plot twist with Kiden was surprising and actually rather poignant. I highly enjoyed getting to see Laura’s more human side for once.

I was glad that Deadpool got his moment of glory after the revelations of last issue. He has been a source of amusement and much needed humor for the series. His ending was fitting, going out with a quip. I was also glad to see Wolverine still getting to be involved after the self-lobotomy. In fact even blind and brain damaged, he was the most dangerous person in the entire issue. The rest of the cast was pretty forgettable although Bishop continues to slide deeper and deeper into obsession and madness.

The plot is a continuation of the simple premise, save the girl and get back home. But it has added extra dimensions and serves as a suitable backdrop for the action. And that is really what the series is about, it is a war after all. And everyone has gotten their moments of triumph and shown just how strong a group they can be. Cable in particular has gone beyond his soldier side from his own series and shown an impressive level of grit and power.

There are very few complaints with the issue. The art style is not really one I enjoy. It works okay for the issue, but the blocky and square style does not really give the characters a chance to shine. And some of the dialogue feels like it was lifted from Terminator 3. But those are both minor points.

In the end this was a very strong issue and I am highly looking forward to reading the conclusion where we will finally get to see the Apocalypse versus Stryfe showdown.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again later in the week.

Marvel has released several previews of their September Solicitations…

• CBR has Advanced X-Solicits, including Dark Wolverine, Dark X-Men, Wolverine: Origins #40, Old Man Logan Giant-Size #1, Wolverine: Weapon X #5 and much more…
• IGN has Release Preview, with the Dark Avenger, New Avengers and a wave of Dark Reign books

Next up is the ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ box office update…

‘Wolverine’ pushed its domestic gross to $176.2 million over the weekend and positioned itself as the #128th domestic grossing film of all time, slashing past ‘Crocodile Dundee’ and ‘The Bourne Supremacy’. With international box office added in, ‘Wolverine’ has accrued $352.4 million worldwide, clocking in as the #138th grossing film of all time worldwide, placing ‘Wolverine’ just ahead of ‘The World Is Not Enough’ and ‘Ocean’s Twelve’.

In other Wolverine News…
–Bleeding Cool: Phil Jimenez Next ‘Astonishing X-Men’ Artist (details)
–CBR: X-Position with Craig Kyle & Chris Yost (details)
–Newsarama: Hero Initiative Update with Jim McLauchlin (details | Wolverine 100 | thread)
–IGN: Dark Wolverine #75 Preview (details)
–Marvel: Dark X-Men – Deadly Genesis (details)
–IGN: Dark X-Men – Exodus and Confession Revealed (details)

Probable (and Possible) Wolverine Appearances in stores on 6/17/09…
–Cable #15 (preview): Messiah War, Part 6…
–Fantastic Force #3 (preview): Dark Phoenix!
–Marvel Adventures the Avengers #37 (preview): Guest starring the All Winner’s Squad…
–Wolverine: Origins #37 (details): Romulus, Part 1…

Wolverine appeared in FOUR TITLES this past week (June 10, 2009) and once again, our very own jrpbsp writes up a series of extensive recaps and reviews…

• Wolverine #74
• Uncanny X-Men #511
• Uncanny X-Men: First Class Giant-Size Special #1
• X-Men Forever #1

I usually share my curmudgeonly impressions for the rest of the Wolverine docket at this point, but the only remaining comic this week, Amazing Spider-Man #597 (preview), is a Dark Wolverine appearance. So let me simply add that the two-part “A Mile in My Moccasins”  by Jason Aaron in Wolverine #73 and #74 is the high point of the month for me. Simply a wonderful take on Wolverine’s countless appearances with a poignancy that ‘Wolverine: Origins’ could sorely use.

TV Update: Friday night featured a brand new ‘Wolverine and the X-Men’ episode, “eXcessive Force”, dealing with Mr. Sinister (episode details)…

Comic Strip Update: Wolverine continues his guest starring role in the ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ comic strip. We pick up with Monday’s appearance in the Houston Chronicle, though the storyline started June 1st…

What do you think? Feel free to share your opinion in the comments below OR join in on the fun in the Wolverine Files Forums…

Hey, everyone… Here is my last (for real this time) review for the week. As a grand finale I am reviewing the final issue of Wolverine before the name change.  Hope you enjoy it.

Wolverine #74 (preview | thread)
Writer: Daniel Way, Jason Aaron
Pencilers: Tommy Lee Edwards, Adam Kubert
Inkers: Mark Farmer

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: This issue is broken down into the second halves of two distinct stories. The first is called ‘One-Percenter’. it opens with the Burning Son leaders in a bar discussing the fate of the woman murdered at the end of last issue. Ram is pushing for war but Horrorshow, knowing it would mean fighting his son, is urging restraint.

Logan comes in and explains that Horrorshow’s son, Junior is already dead so there is no need for a war. Horrorshow, feeling betrayed, flips out and begins beating up Wolverine before shooting him repeatedly in the chest.

The scene changes to the past where Wolverine had Junior captured and was interrogating him. The biker explained that he had been dealing drugs to Ram who then sold them to others including the murdered woman. Ram wanted Horrorshow out of the picture so the gang could go back to selling drugs and he killed the woman to force the issue. Logan, realizing Junior did not want to be helped, told him to disappear and then told his father he was dead.

Logan wakes up with his body in plain sight by the road. He figured that Ram, out of options, had left his body to be found so Horrorshow would be charged with murder. Logan makes his way back to town and deals with Ram permanently before quietly riding off.

The second tale is ‘A Mile in my Moccasins’. It opens with a few more days in the life of Logan as watched by Peter Parker. Then we cut to a bar where Wolverine is having a quiet drink as Spider-Man enters. Peter confronts Logan about his lifestyle saying it looks like he is trying to kill himself by overworking.

Logan does not want to hear it and starts dragging Spider-Man out of the bar. Peter breaks free and they face off. Before they can fight some very unlucky robbers break in. After the brief fight, Logan admits that Peter is right. He is afraid to be alone with his thoughts now that he has all the memories of the horrible things he has done. He states he needs to do everything he can to make up for old sins even if it kills him.

Peter wants a nice quiet chat but Logan gets called away by Cyclops. It ends with Logan thanking Spider-Man and walking off alone.

MY TAKE: The first story of this issue started out strong in part one but the finale was lacking something. Not that the story was bad it was just kind of pedestrian. It was meant to be a character study and a statement on family, in particular the relationship between father and son. But it ended up being muddled with no strong message either way.

Plus I felt the characterizations were rather off. Horrorshow is willing to murder his old friend without hearing his story but gives the body disposal to the man that has been working against him the whole time? Logan gives the son a pass, despite his being a drug dealer and probably worse, but hunts down and kills Ram? So basically it is okay to be a criminal if you remind Wolverine of his own son.

I know the review sounds critical, but as I said I did not hate this story. It simply felt like a typical if slightly confused Wolverine story. I am merely disappointed because it should have been a lot more.

The second story, on the other hand, was very good. The entire conversation between Wolverine and Spider-Man was well done and the characterizations were extremely strong. Everything from Peter being scared of Logan’s reaction, to Wolverine trying to drag him from the bar felt right. Wolverine’s speech at the end was particularly poignant.

I do not normally agree with trying to make company decisions, in this case Wolverine’s many teams, into story plots. But I do not mind it if the explanation makes sense and the story is good. And in this case both are true. My only complaint is the way overused robber entering the bar angle. But it is a very quick and amusing few panels so I am willing to cut it some slack.

Overall we are given a mediocre and a very good story. I am not personally looking forward to the focus change next issue but at least this last issue was strong.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again next week.

Hey, everyone… Here is my third review for the week.  This is the last definite review and it is the first taste of ‘Uncanny X-Men First Class’. Hope you enjoy.

Uncanny X-Men: First Class Giant-Size Special #1
(preview | thread)
Writers: Jeff Parker, Scott Gray & Roger Langridge
Pencilers: Craig Rousseau, David Williams, Dennis Calero, Sean Galloway, Joe Infurnari. Cameron Stewart & Jeff Parker
Inkers: Craig Rousseau, John Beatty, Dennis Calero, Sean Galloway, Joe Infurnari. Cameron Stewart & Jeff Parker

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Scott examining a piece of something and lamenting to Moira about the state of the new team. He recalls an earlier episode in the Danger Room where Wolverine, Kurt and Banshee were having fun destroying fruit. Then he found Colossus trying to farm the land and Storm causing random rain showers.

In desperation, Scott hunts for a different mutant and finds either one or many in Georgia. The team goes down there and finds a mutant spore culture. Scott wants to communicate but the team is more interested in destroying it. After a pitched battle, the smoking earth policy leaves only one small piece left. The substance Scott was trying to analyze.

Before he can despair too much, Moira decides to play tapes of each of the X-Men relating a tale of their past. Storm is first and she tells about her first solo job as a thief called Snow-top. She had to break into a heavily guarded museum and steal a box. Despite security and a rain of snakes, she is successful and proudly presents her teacher with the box. He opens it to show a picture of her family and her true name of Ororo. Although she denies them at the time she comes to realize how important her family is and treasure the picture.

Next up is Sean who relates in song and prose a tale of his encounter with three trolls. They have taken a beautiful woman and he uses his powers as Banshee to take them down. But while he is talking to the girl one of the trolls recovers and hits him on the head. All three retreat to the fairy realms. Sean follows and has to face all sorts of fell creatures to save the girl. The trolls are the last to fall and he brings the woman out of the fairy world back to the real one. But then he discovers that she is fae herself, a banshee that the trolls wanted to sing for them. The pair parts knowing they can not be together, but the banshee promises to come for Sean when it is finally his time to pass on. Though sad he finds comfort from knowing he will not die alone.

Third is Nightcrawler remembering his first day in the circus as a main attraction. His act is great and very well received though of course every assumes he is wearing a mask. As the act ends, a group of robbers enter trying to steal from the patrons. Nightcrawler heroically attacks them spurring the rest of the circus into action. One of the thieves tries to flee and Kurt follows. He stops the man who finds out to his horror that Nightcrawler is not wearing a mask. Kurt learns that in order to be in the public eye he must forever pretend to be something he is not.

Fourth is Colossus who recalls a a trip with three friends, Sergei, Viktor and Khristina. The head out for relief from the daily toils and to hopefully cheer Piotr up after the death of his brother. They visit an old mine where Sergei, showing off, falls into a tunnel. Badly hurt he cannot climb out so the others go in after him. Once down there the whole thing starts to collapse. Piotr armors up and is able to support the ceiling and eventually tunnel them out of there. Once they are safe, his friends embrace his power rather then be afraid of him. He vows to protect the world and make them proud.

Lastly Wolverine tells a tall tale of his origin as being bitten by a radioactive wolverine, trying a bunch of jobs before becoming an agent of S.N.I.K.T. He relates a bunch of farcical missions especially one in particular against his arch-enemies in B.I.M.B.O. They are trying to use the Professor’s mental power to wipe out ugly people. Wolverine saves the Professor by exposing the girls to wrinkle-causing sunlight. Xavier begs Logan to join his team and Wolverine agrees mostly after seeing Jean.

Back to the main story Scott discovers that the spore colony would have overrun three states in a week. He admits that their instincts were good and it is a positive sign for the team. The issue ends with the X-Men doing a more serious workout in the Danger Room together.

MY TAKE: Since this is, in essence, six mini stories each with different writers and artists I am going to take a moment and touch on each one. The encapsulating story was one of the weaker ones. While the First Class books have always tried to bring a sense of whimsy and fun to the comics, this one went too far into silliness. The characterizations felt way off base and there were too many continuity problems to count. The plot was simple but not bad. It felt like a standard First Class story but I do not feel that Jeff Parker has a grasp on the new characters yet. Hopefully that will change once we get into the main series.

The Storm story was one of the strongest parts. It managed to capture both her carefree thief persona as well as show her emotions and loss for her family. The plot is very simplistic and we have seen her as a child robber before, but it is still fun and her inner dialogue reads very well.

The Banshee segment was my personal favorite. The lyrical writing style is not one I normally like but it worked perfectly here to capture the plot and the emotions without making them too heavy handed. The story was a simple boy saves girl and loses girl plot but it spoke well to Sean’s personality. I particularly liked that it gave him a good reason for his code name.

Kurt’s tale was pretty good if a bit cliched. It was nice to see him enjoying the spotlight and performing under the big top but having it be robbed is a bit too simplistic. Still it showed both his courage and skills and I enjoyed his realization that he would be judged by his appearance for the rest of his life.

The story featuring Colossus was one of the weaker histories to me. I did not see the need to introduce three new best friends that we had not seen before and likely will not hear about again. The tale itself echoed Piotr’s’ first appearance with his armored form saving the day. Yet it was nice to see him being easily accepted and I personally enjoyed the acknowledgment of his grief over his brother’s apparent death.

Logan’s piece was simply too absurd to really fit in the book. While there were some amusing parts, the tone was just not right. Plus it bothered me that he would even bother making up such a tale in the first place. While I would buy a Wolverine agent of S.N.I.K.T. comic it just felt out of place here.

Overall there was enough good in here to give me hope on the series but it still does not have quite the same feel as the other First Class tales. I hope that the character problems are worked out and they have a more accurate voice  as adults in the rest of the series.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again tomorrow.

Hey, everyone… Here is my second review for the week. I will be doing at least three so expect to see them each day for the rest of the week. Hope you enjoy.

X-Men Forever#1 (preview | thread)
Writer: Chris Claremont
Pencilers: Tom Grummett
Inkers: Cory Hamscher

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Jean daydreaming about kissing Logan. In reality the X-Men are in the Blackbird trying to hunt down Fabian Cortez after his destruction of Magneto. Wolverine, Scott, Jean, Kitty, Gambit, Nightcrawler and Lockheed are riding while Rogue and Storm are flying alongside. Beast and the Professor are monitoring them from the mansion with Nick Fury supervising.

It does not take long for the jet to be shot out of the air. Nightcrawler teleports Scott and Gambit to safety while Kitty grabs Wolverine and Jean and phases them to be lighter then air to escape the jet. Storm and Rogue move to confront their attacker but he manages to sneak up on Scott, Gambit and Nightcrawler first.

Fabian enhances Cyclops optic beam and uses it to blast Gambit and Nightcrawler before blasting the still airborne Wolverine. Jean intercepts the next beam while Kitty and Logan fall to the ground. Rogue swoops in to attack Cortez but he is able drain her energy then tears her costume and uses Rogue’s ability to take out Storm as well.

We have a quick flash to the mansion where all contact has been lost. Fury offers to send SHIELD but Xavier knows it will be too late by the time they could arrive.

Scott, Gambit, and Nightcrawler start to recover but Rogue and Storm are still down. Scott has lost his visor and is essentially blind.

Cortez shows up and attacks Wolverine, draining his strength. Kitty tries to intercede but is caught in the attack. Jean uses her power and when Cortez tries to counter she manifests the Phoenix. He tries to run but is taken down by the coordinated attack of Nightcrawler and Gambit. Logan wants to kill him and Gambit agrees but Cyclops stops them insisting on turning Cortez over to the authorities.

SHIELD arrives and transports the mutants back to the mansion. Fury informs them they are going to be closely watched from here on by him. Wolverine stalks out. The issue ends with another take on the scene from Alpha with Logan being killed this time from Jean’s perspective.

MY TAKE: I can see that this comic and most likely this whole series is going to be highly divisive. I have been dwelling on it since yesterday and I am still not sure where I fall. It will probably take a few issues to get a good enough feel for the comic and make a true judgment.

On the plus side, Claremont is back in his comfort zone with these characters. He does know them well and all of their dialogue feels right. Well with the possible exception of Jean and Logan’s interactions but we will get to that later. I personally like the talk heavy style with the thought bubbles so it was good to see it. The story is simple and we have seen it all many times before so it felt familiar if a bit over done.

But it was very hard for me to simply let go the past eighteen years of stories. I kept thinking, Cortez can not do that, he is a wimp! But of course as of this point we know nothing much about him so he could have been developed that way, he just was not.

My biggest plot issues were twofold. First I do not understand why Kitty and Kurt suddenly appear. At this point they were very firmly embedded in Excalibur and there was no explanation on the sudden change of heart. Claremont obviously has his favorites but I do not understand skipping characters like Betsy and Forge that were present in the first arc to put new people in the mix.

Secondly, the sudden Logan and Jean romance was completely out of left field and only seemed to be present to give Logan’s death more impact. Outside of a few moments in crossovers there has not been a hint of romance and suddenly they are in full blown love? I do not understand it and I love the idea of them as a couple.

This series was supposedly a continuation of Claremont’s plot ideas but from what I have read and seen posted, this is not the case. While Wolverine’s death seemed to be well planned, it is being done differently and the cast has seemingly changed. That does not mean the stories will be bad, I am just curious as to why we are being told one thing and shown another.

Either way I am still keeping an open mind. Read alone, this issue was not bad although it was not amazing or groundbreaking. It remains to be seen if Claremont can overcome the baggage and deliver original and entertaining stories.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again tomorrow.

Hey, everyone… Here is my first review for the week I will be doing at least three so expect to see them each day for the rest of the week. To start with I am reviewing Uncanny X-Men.  Hope you enjoy it.

Uncanny X-Men #511 (preview | thread)
Writer: Matt Fraction
Pencilers: Greg Land and Terry Dodson
Inkers: Jay Liesten and Rachel Dodson

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with the X-Men racing to Westchester in the Blackbird trying to arrive ahead of the Sisterhood. But the ladies have a teleporter so they have a distinct advantage. However, using her powers alerts the rest of the X-Men in San Fransisco so the Mastermind sisters along with Betsy are left there as bait. Storm, Emma, Karm and Dazzler arrive moments later and attack.

Maddy, Spiral, Chimera and Deathstrike jump to the grounds of Xavier’s school to retrieve Jean’s body only to find Domino waiting for them. She manages to delay the Sisterhood just long enough for Wolverine, Colossus, Northstar and Cyclops to arrive.

Back in California, Betsy and Dazzler are fighting. Psylocke nails Dazzler with a psionic knife but Alison fights back with a city noise powered laser blast. The attack ruins half of Betsy’s face and shocks her into a partial recovery of her mind. Betsy stabs her psionic blader into her own head triggering a fight with her darker self in mindscape.

Back in New York the guys are taking the fight to the Sisterhood. Wolverine slashes Lady Deathstrike, Colossus takes out Chimera and Northstar pummels Spiral. Scott attempts to stop Maddy but his optic blast does not hurt her and she begins to merge with Jean’s body.

In the mindspace, Betsy defeats her alter ego and emerges triumphant back in her ninja body. The rest of the X-ladies beat up the Mastermind girls.

Maddy’s attempt to bond with Jean goes horribly wrong and Scott reveals that they had moved Phoenix’s body already. Without a powerful mutant to inhabit, Maddy’s power turns on her and burns her out. Without a leader, the rest of the Sisterhood flee stopping only long enough to pick up the sisters in San Fransisco.

The issue ends with Beast sneaking into Scott and Emma’s bedroom that night and informing them he is taking his Science Team on a mission. He also says he knows about both of their secrets and that he will have it out with them when he returns.

MY TAKE:  The comic was pretty good if not what I was expecting. This was another action issue and it did a pretty good job of keeping the focus on that. There were plenty of characters but not so many that it was overwhelming. There was not much plot or characterization but you do not expect too much of that in a combat oriented issue. The fight scenes were decently done even if I would have preferred to see a little bit more of what happened rather then just the consequences.

This was meant to be the climax of a fairly major story arc, however, and it did not feel like it. The whole issue felt rather rushed as if they were trying to cram two issues of fighting and conflict into one. Perhaps that is simply logical since it really had two distinctly different fights that it bounced back and forth between for the entire issue.

There were also a couple of glaring plot holes for me personally. The first is that they had to fly to Westchester and Maddy even comments that they do not have a teleporter. Last I looked Pixie was still around and in fact had been teleporting people as recently as the previous issue. Secondly, I was highly confused at how Betsy managed to fight inside her own head in her British body and then somehow wake up in another body. Defeating her dark side should not have managed to completely switch her to ninja form.

I do have to mention the annoyance I felt at the cover and solicitations as well. I did not truly believe they were going to bring Jean back this quickly but it seems crude to use her to sell more copies. In fact the whole issue seemed to be a way to return to the status quo. Sisterhood is defeated but all the women except Maddy are loose. Betsy is back in her more familiar body and Jean is still dead.

In any event, the comic itself was a pretty good read with some fun scenes and good action. I am definitely enjoying the increased focus on a smaller cast and the decrease in the amount of ongoing story lines. Not every issue can have a long and meaningful impact on continuity. Sometimes a comic is just a fun read.

Thanks for reading my review for Wolverine Files. I will be keeping to this format for the most part but please keep the comments coming and I will see everyone again tomorrow.

The ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ box office update is up first.

‘Wolverine’ pushed its domestic gross to $174.3 million over the weekend and positioned itself as the #130th domestic grossing film of all time, slashing past ‘Home Alone 2’, ‘National Treasure’ and ‘Apollo 13’.

With international box office added in, ‘Wolverine’ has accrued $350.7 million worldwide, clocking in as the #140th grossing film of all time worldwide, placing ‘Wolverine’ just ahead of ‘Back to the Future’, ‘Seven’ and ‘Hannibal’.

In other Wolverine News news…
–Bleeding Cool: (as seen above) Wolverine Sneakers from Nike (details | thread)
–The Hero Initiative: ‘Wolverine 100’ Project to Help Comic Book Creators (details | thread)
–CBR: Larry Hama Talks Wolverine… and G.I. Joe (details)

Probable (and Possible) Wolverine Appearances in stores on 6/03/09…
–Uncanny X-Men #511 (preview): Wolverine confirmed…
–Uncanny X-Men: First Class Giant-Sized Special #1 (preview): Early New X-Men…
–Wolverine #74 (details): Jason Aaron/Daniel Way split finales…
–X-Men Forever #1 (details): Claremont returns…