Wolverine appeared in ELEVEN TITLES last week (August 26, 2009), admittedly not the eleven I predicted in Wolverine News…

So without further ado, let’s get to the reviews by our very own jrpbsp…

• Wolverine: Origins #39: A Really Hot Time…
• Wolverine: First Class #18: Multiple Choices…
• X-Force #18: Disarmed…
• Dark Avengers #8: And the Seas Shall Rise…

As usual, I will share my curmudgeonly impressions for the rest of the Wolverine docket…

Dark Wolverine #77 (preview)
Writers: Daniel Way & Marjorie Liu
Pencils: Giuseppe Camuncoli
Inks: Onofrio Catacchio

Interesting story with lots of twists, double agents and even triple agents.

And next issue promises to raise the stakes even more.

I, for one, can’t wait. I don’t even like Daken…

Dark Reign: Elektra #5 (preview)
Writer: Zeb Wells
Pencils: Clay Mann
Inks: Mark Pennington

Wolverine plays a fairly substantial role in this miniseries finale, but I can’t say that I find the lead character very endearing by the end of the issue.

Has anyone been reading this from the beginning? If so, please add your thoughts in the comments…

Hulk #14 (preview)
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Pencils: Ian Churchill
Inks: Mark Farmer

Horrendously corny dialogue, one-dimensional characters, and juvenile plots that makes you wonder if the writer cares at all about these characters.

In other words, classic Jeph Loeb.

Ugh.

TimeStorm #4 (preview)
Writer: Brian Reed
Pencilers: Eric Battle & Jon Bosco
Inkers: Drew Hennessy, Alex Silva & Nelson Pereira

Another miniseries finale and I’m still not sure of the point of the story. But at least Wolverine gets two solid pages of dialogue…

Dark X-Men: The Beginning #3 (preview)
Writer: Jason Aaron
Art: Jock

Jason Aaron gives us a fun-filled short story with “Get Mystique (Slight Return)”.

And the best part is the ending, “To be continued…”

New Avengers #56 (preview)
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Pencils: Ian Churchill
Inks: Mark Farmer

Cover appearance only Wolverine, but Dark Wolverine does cameo…

As for the final Wolverine ‘appearance’, jrpbsp will be reviewing X-Men Forever #6 later in the week. While Wolverine doesn’t appear, his presence is certainly felt.

Shifting gears to animation, we had another new episode of ‘Wolverine and the X-Men’ this past Friday, Backlash dealing with Master Mold. For full details, see the Marvel.com preview…

As always, share your opinion in the comments below OR or simply join in on the fun at the Wolverine Files Forums…

Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here…Here is my fourth and final review for the week, ‘Wolverine: Origins’.  Hope you enjoy it.

Wolverine: Origins #39 (details | thread)
Writer: Daniel Way
Penciler: Scot Eaton
Inker: Andrew Hennessy

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Wolverine hanging over a vat of molten steel, a prisoner of Wild Child. Kyle is planning to kill Logan by lowering him into the vat feet first.

Wild Child reveals that Romulus’ plan was to give his position to the last one standing amongst the contenders and everyone that Wolverine had killed played into that role. Wolverine is not happy to learn he has been a pawn all this time.

Before Kyle can give Logan his metal bath Omega Red interrupts and attacks. The fight between Red and Wild Child buys a little time and allows Wolverine to escape by swinging himself into the molten metal wrists first.

Kyle sees Logan flee and takes his attention away from Omega Red, which proves to be a fatal mistake. Red drives his tentacles through Wild Child’s body and then tosses him into the vat.

Two weeks later Wolverine is in a warehouse in St. Petersburg where the Black Widow has left the Muramasa Blade. Wolverine calls her to tell Natasha to hide it even from him when Arkady interrupts again. Logan tells Red he is not going to fight for Romulus’ position but after Omega Red mentions Daken, Wolverine is ready to do battle.

He throws the blade into Omega Red’s chest where it immediately begins to kill the Russian. As he is dying, Red asks if the Muramasa can even kill Romulus and Wolverine says it can. Only to find out that the man is standing right behind Logan looking to put the statement to the test.

MY TAKE: This issue was pretty mediocre as per the norm for the series. Very little happened plot-wise except for the revelation that all of these different characters were competing for Romulus’ empire even if they did not know it. Yet it still contained two deaths of long established characters with very little fanfare or noticeable impact.

All that happens in the issue is that Wolverine escapes and gets hold of his blade. But somehow in that little bit of time, Romulus decides to go from being the hunted to confronting Logan, after he gets his sword. That makes no sense to me. I could understand a confrontation if Red was the last one that needed to die, but Daken is still out there.  Alternately if Romulus just wanted to confront Wolverine finally, it would have made more sense to do it when he was not holding a sword that could kill anything.

Of course my biggest problem with the issue was killing off Wild Child and Omega Red. Both have long histories in Marvel and deserved a better send off then they got. I can understand Kyle fitting into the plan more or less, but I still do not know why Red would have even been involved. He is not from North America nor does he have any feral mutations. It seems like he was brought in just to be killed off and that is a bad thing for any story.

The big reveal of Romulus’ face was not really a surprise either. Assuming he is indeed Logan’s brother, that has been predicted pretty much since his name started showing up. While it is nice to see the plot getting tied up, the ending had a certain anti-climatic feel. Especially since he looks like a more buffed version of the villain from ‘Wolverine: The End’ except for yet another configuration of claws.

Which brings me to a minor nitpick, how does a foot long claw manage to sprout from someone’s thumb? There is no way to house it in the wrist and the thing is longer then his entire hand. Of course that goes along with having Wolverine’s hands being bandaged two weeks after he burned them. Even in the old days he would have long been healed.

Even with all of those complaints, this was not too bad of an issue. I can actually see some good ideas and some nice plots in here that should have made for a decent read. But the execution of those concepts leaves a lot to be desired. There are simply too many plot holes and miscues to ignore. Which is a shame because I like the idea of someone controlling Wolverine’s life and making bad things happen to him. It just was not done well in my opinion.

In the end we have an issue that has been built up to for a long time but which ends with a shrug rather then a gasp. I was more surprised at the callous way that Omega Red and Wild Child were killed then the reveal about Romulus. Hopefully we will get some answers next issue and it will help make sense of this whole story arc.

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 time.

Wow.

• Silicon Valley Insider: Disney to Acquire Marvel in $4 Billion Deal
• Comic Book Resources: Disney Acquires Marvel Entertainment

More details as they become available.

Wow.

UPDATE: Hollywood Reporter on the Disney-Marvel conference call this morning…

SECOND UPDATE: Comic Book Resources adds more details from the conference call and Joe Quesada…

THIRD UPDATE: Deadline Hollywood Daily provides analysis of the Disney-Marvel deal…

Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here…Here is my third review for the week. Since there are no titles that I need to do next week I will be breaking this up a bit. But for now here is ‘Dark Avengers’.  Hope you enjoy it.

Dark Avengers #8 (preview | thread)
Writer: Matt Fraction
Penciler: Luke Goss
Inker: Rick Magyar, Mark Pennington & Luke Goss

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP (for previous chapter of ‘Utopia’, see ‘Uncanny X-Men’ #514): The issue opens with Dani in Las Vegas making a deal with Hela to become a Valkyrie. Back in San Francisco, Emma’s X-Men have taken down Trask and spend the next week endearing themselves to the city while Cyclops sits and waits.

The Dark X-Men get a look at the Omega Machine and Cloak and Dagger are really upset with the pain it causes its subjects. Meanwhile, Osborn is very happy with the new team and is ready to pull the Avengers out of the city as a show of good faith.

The X-Men Science team finally finishes their work underwater and fire up the engines starting the process of powering up the machines.

We flash to Alcatraz island where Dark Beast is putting Hank McCoy through the Omega Machine to power up Omega. He goes to get another subject only to find that they are all gone. X-force has arrived and used Illyana to teleport out all the prisoners. Dark Beast screams for backup and Omega comes running while the rest of Emma’s team mobilizes.

Scott gives the command and they raise up what looks to be Asteroid M in the middle of the bay and Pixie starts moving the mutants to their new home.

Omega and Dark Beast face X-Force and are carved up quickly. The rest of the team arrives and Daken starts making threats about killing them all. He is taken down from behind by Emma while Namor deals with Mimic. Illyana makes one more teleport trip to take everyone out. Emma convinces Cloak and Dagger to come along as well.

Scott holds a press conference on his new island home with Emma at his side. He says that they have left the mainland but will not be pushed or prosecuted any more. He throws down the gauntlet for Osborn who accepts, taking the remaining Dark X-Men and his Avengers on the attack.

MY TAKE: This issue was surprising but in a good way. I expected it to be more about fighting but there was actually quite a bit of plot development. The story was pretty simplistic, most of the issue was simply about getting their people free and to the new base, but it was still filled with important plot points. I do hope that the next issue is a bit more streamlined. There were so many locations and character jumps that it felt rushed.

I am not sure that I really understand the significance of living on an island versus the shore, nor do I think it is smart considering Genosha, but it is an interesting concept. Having a mutant homeland is something that has been explored any number of times but takes on an added dimension with small numbers of living mutants. I wonder if we will see the reactions from the rank and file X-kids about their new living arrangements.

My favorite part was Dani’s brief scene at the beginning. I have always liked her character and without powers it has not been easy to keep her involved. But with the Valkyrie abilities it will put her back in the mix. I am confused about the significance to Scott, however. Perhaps he wants a god to fight a god? I do not see how she would be a match for Ares. Maybe it will be explained next issue.

I am not the least bit surprised that Emma and Namor turned out to be good and betrayed their companions, but I was pleased to see that Cloak and Dagger came along as well. They are two very underused and hopefully this will led to them getting a bit more screen time and development.

The weakest part of the issue was the characterizations. So much was happening that we did not really have time for introspective moments and that always hurts an issue in my opinion. Several characters seemed to be reduced to caricatures, especially on the villain side. I am not sure if that can be helped with the sheer volume of people being used, but it does make it harder to relate to their stories.

In the end this was a solid if somewhat hurried issue. They had a lot of ground to cover and did it pretty well but I am still of the opinion they needed to either add more issues or reduce some of the story. As it was, Trask’s defeat did not even get to happen on page after the build up last issue. But it was still a fun read and I am eagerly looking forward to the big fighting finale.

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 time.

Hey, everyon, jrpbsp here…This is the second review for the week, ‘Wolverine: First Class’. Hope you enjoy it.

Wolverine: First Class #18 (preview)
Writers: Peter David
Art: Francis Portela

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Kitty contemplating her role in life as a young mutant genius and X-Man. She is interrupted by Jamie Madrox. She kicks him into a fountain before she realizes who it is. Madrox reabsorbs the dupe that was created and explains to Kitty the reason he was there. He is looking for one of his duplicates that ran away.

Meanwhile, Logan is making a sandwich in the kitchen when Madrox walks in saying he is looking for a runaway dupe and needs a place to act as his base for a while. Of course moments later Kitty and her Jamie walk in. The one with Logan outs himself as the duplicate and screams in fear that he is going to be killed.

The real Multiple Man says that the dupe is just a part of him and goes to absorb him but Kitty feels sorry for the second Jaime and phases him out of the room. They make it to the woods with Logan and Madrox in pursuit. The duplicate does not want to involve Kitty so he knocks her out and flees.

Logan offers to take Jamie into the city to hunt himself down and Kitty forces them to take her along. Kitty and Jamie argue in the car about whether the dupe deserves a chance to be free. Multiple Man argues that it is a part of him and he is responsible for the dupe while Kitty says he is a person and has the same right to live as anyone.

The other Jamie, meanwhile, is enjoying his freedom in the park. They arrive in the city and after Logan destroys an illegal movie vendor’s stand, they are back to hunting down the dupe.

The second Madrox gets stopped by a frantic women who asks for his help since he is dressed like a super hero. There is a fire and her little sister is trapped inside. The dupe goes in but gets pinned by a ceiling beam. The others arrive and Kitty saves the girl while Logan rescues the dupe. Outside, the other Jamie is dying and is confronted by Madrox who finally understands his duplicates are real people.

The dying Jamie offers to shake hands and gets absorbed, then they all head back to the mansion. Madrox makes four more duplicates and sends them out into the world to learn and then hopefully come back and share their knowledge with him. He now trusts them to do the right thing.

MY TAKE: This was an extremely good issue, in fact I believe it is the best one since Peter David started writing the series. The characterizations were very good and while the plot was simple it dealt with some very deep and interesting themes. I especially liked the inclusion of Madrox and the ties into the X-Factor series. This issue is essentially a prequel to that book which is also written by PAD, but I do not think you would lose anything if you are not reading X-Factor.

I was highly impressed with the overall theme of knowing and trusting yourself that we see both from Kitty and Jaime’s perspectives. Some of the parts were a little heavy handed but it was still very well done. It is a topic that is difficult to handle well and to do it in a younger focused comic is amazing. Simple moments like seeing the dupe enjoying the park were very effective at driving the point home without getting preachy.

I also need to make a comment on the fun page where Wolverine busts up the movie pirate on the streets. After the leak of the Wolverine movie it is nice to see it being addressed even if in a humorous manner.

About the only complaint I had was that some of the arguments felt a little repetitive and over done and the fire was a bit too convenient a plot device for the ending. But both of those are very minor complaints in what was a very entertaining and even thought provoking issue.

In the end this was a great and well-written issue with strong characters and a deep message. It is especially impressive for an all ages title and it gives me great hope for the rest of the series under PAD. It seems that each of his comics has been better then the previous one. If the trend continues this could end up one of my favorite titles.

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 time.

Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here…I will be doing several reviews this week. Since it is a overload week, I am not sure exactly how many but at least four I expect. So let’s get started with ‘X-Force’. Hope you enjoy it.

X-Force  #18 (preview | thread)
Writers: Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost
Art: Mike Choi & Sonia Oback

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with H.A.M.M.E.R. departing with X-23. They leave two soldiers behind with orders to kill Boom Boom. One them is starting to get a little frisky when Proudstar shows up and kills him. He takes out the other goon as well and is tending to Tabitha as he sees the sudden light show.

Domino is racing to the source of the disturbance only to find Archangel and Wolverine have things under control although Noriko, Elixir and Keller are all down. They transport the youngsters to a nearby safe house and try to figure out what happened to Laura.

X-23 is being transported by H.A.M.M.E.R. They land in the Facility where Kimura and the scientists are waiting to take custody of her.

We get a brief interlude with Rahne and her Wolf Prince fighting the Frost Giants. Hrimhari is doing a good job hurting them and orders Wolfsbane away but she refuses, wanting to stay and fight at his side.

Another scene change and we find Caliban, Eli Bard and Wither at a grave in Salem Center. They somehow raise the occupant and we see it is Doug Ramsey.

Back at the X-Men headquarters, Surge, Foley and Hellion are being tended by Beast. Wolverine tackles Cyclops and pins him to the ground telling him if anything happens to the kids it is his fault. Cyclops takes responsibility and Logan fills him in on a bit of their mission to the future. He leaves to try and find Laura.

Wolverine, Domino and Proudstar interrogate Tabitha and she remembers the name S.H.I.E.L.D. Division C. That sparks something to Logan and he orders the Cuckoos into Cerebra. We then see Laura being rudely awakened by Kimura. One arm has already been cut off and Kimura is applying a chainsaw to rest of her.

MY TAKE: This is mostly a clean up and a set up issue but it is still a strong start to the next brief arc. As always the writing and characters are well done and though I personally do not like the direction things are going, I hope it will lead to some good stories coming up. It seems to be a smaller and more personal story that is beginning, which is a welcome buffer between Messiah War and Necrosha.

Wolverine is particularly strong in this issue and it is nice to see him holding Scott responsible for his decisions and to see Logan’s concern for Laura. Most of their relationship has been subdued or off panel and hopefully we will get to really see his feelings as the storyline progresses.

I am a bit surprised at the amount of disturbing bits that were included. We see attempted rape, torture and murder in this issue alone which is unusual mainstream books.  It is all handled well and done in a way that is not too blatant or over the top and it does fit with the overall tone. Still you have to wonder if this series is heading into MAX territory or if people are going to be shocked and stop buying it. I am a big fan of Laura so her torture was especially hard to read.

The Necrosha story also starts here with a well-publicized resurrection. I am certainly torn on bringing Doug back although I have no idea how lasting this will be. I am interested to see the explanation of how the powers are being combined to work on raising the dead and why Ramsey should be first.

Still, I would have preferred that they wait to start the new story until the current one is wrapped up. The biggest problem I had with this issue was the severely fragmented focus. It jumped both scenes and stories every few pages which made it harder to relate to. I understand that this is the nature of a transition but they could have left out a few scenes in order to focus on the central issue of saving the young X-Men and searching for X-23.

In the end it was a strong if a bit dark comic. The story and characters continue to be well done and it is nice that everyonel generally gets the focus shined on them. While I do not really like the way it ended, I am hopeful that this will create a stronger bond on the team, especially between Wolverine and Laura and lead to a couple of great issues before the next big event.

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 time.

Not a lot of Wolverine news this week, but there are a boatload of Wolverine and Dark Wolverine appearances…

• CBR: Daniel Way, Marjorie Liu Talk Dark Wolverine and Kittens (details)
• Houston Chronicle: Wolverine in ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ Strip, Sort Of (details)

Probable (and Possible) Wolverine Appearances in stores on 8/26/09…
–Dark Avengers #8 (preview): Utopia continues…
–Dark Wolverine #77 (preview): Daken takes on Ares…
–Dark X-Men: The Beginning #3 (preview): Wolverine appears or does he?
–Hulk #14 (preview): X-Force Takes on Red Hulk…
–Ms. Marvel #44 (preview): Wolverine may cameo in the War of the Marvels…
–New Avengers #56 (preview): New Avengers vs. Dark Avengers?
–Timestorm 2009/2099 #4 (preview): Timestorm finale?
–Wolverine: First Class #18 (preview): Wolverine Team-Up with Multiple Man…
–Wolverine: Origins #39 (details): Wolverine vs. Omega Red…
–X-Force #18 (preview): Not Forgotten continues…
–X-Men Forever #6 (preview): Wolverine is still dead…

Wolverine appeared in only TWO TITLES last week (August 19, 2009)…

So without further ado, let’s get to the reviews by our very own jrpbsp…

• Wolverine: Weapon X #4: It’s Clawing Time…
• X-Men Legacy #227: God Power (Sans Wolverine)…

As usual, I will share my curmudgeonly impressions for the rest of the Wolverine docket, in this case…

Marvel Adventures the Avengers #39 (preview)
Writer: Paul Tobin
Penciler: Horacio Domingues
Inker: Craig Yeung

Horacio Domingues is not a bad artist. I’ve seen some of his work online. But for some reason, the art is shockingly bad for this issue. So bad that I really had problems getting through the story.

And not a particularly good story either, with Wolverine revealed as a hot dog aficionado.

The only good news, for me at least, is that this monstrosity of series has finally been canceled.

We also had yet another new episode of ‘Wolverine and the X-Men’ this past Friday, Code of Conduct with surprising twist on the Silver Samurai and Mariko storyline. For full details, see the Marvel.com preview…

As always, share your opinion in the comments below OR or simply join in on the fun at the Wolverine Files Forums…

Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here…Here is the second review for the week, ‘X-Men: Legacy’. Hope you enjoy it and see you next week.

X-Men: Legacy  #227 (preview)
Writer: Mike Carey
Penciler: Dustin Weaver
Inker: Ed Tadeo

Note: Wolverine does not appear in this issue

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with a recap of Ariel teleporting Trance to the headquarters of the X-Men. Unfortunately when she arrives back, Trance is nowhere to be seen. Trance’s powers apparently interfered with the ‘port and she was dumped somewhere in the city.

She is immediately confronted by a H.A.M.M.E.R. squad but with her powers out of control, Trance blasts the three men. One of them is still conscious enough to call for help after she runs.

Rogue, Gambit and Danger get the call to go find her with Mindee mentally guiding them to the location. They come across the wreckage of her power flare and are forced to bull their way through.

Trance stumbles across some regular people and begs them to call the X-Men for help. She explodes again before they have a chance to, but Rogue and her group find her moments later anyway. Rogue still has some of the power she borrowed from Ares and is able to approach Trance with Gambit and Danger guarding her back.

Moonstone is taking down a few rioters when the call comes in for support. Suspecting this is her chance for a rematch, she tells them she will take care of the problem.

Rogue has managed to get close to Trance and is in the process of talking her down. She believes that the taser just allowed Trance to let go of her unconscious power restrictions rather then cause the partial separation and urges the girl to power down.

Moonstone arrives before Trance manages to help herself and takes down both Danger and Gambit easily. She blasts Rogue butthe mutant is able to take the shot and knock the Dark Avenger through a truck. But that pretty much uses up the last of Ares’ ability and so Moonstone starts to beat up Rogue.

Trance has managed to get herself under control and interrupts the fight giving Rogue a moment to breathe. Moonstone phases through the next attack but Trance’s alter ego is still able to hit her. When she solidifies Gambit blasts her which buys them enough time to escape with the help of Pixie.

Back at base Scott commends Rogue on her efforts. He tells her that he has a plan and that it is time to start fighting back.

MY TAKE: Like pretty much all tie-ins, this was a simple story with no real impact on events in the main titles. But it still manages to be a good and well told story despite its limitations. The plot is simplistic but it is peppered with good character moments and insight.

Trance is the focus of the issue and even though I did not know too much about her, you start to feel affection and compassion for the character after only a few pages. It is hard to take a mostly undeveloped character and make her both sympathetic and likable during the course of an issue but Carey manages it. Already I can see her becoming a useful and popular member of the series’ supporting cast when it takes its new direction next issue.

Of course character development is always one of the strengths of this series. The other is taking plot threads and unused characters and making them viable. To that end I hope Ariel continues to make the occasional appearance in the book. She is a character that never really got a chance to be seen in the larger Marvel universe and she definitely has potential.

Being a tie-in issue, the plot is the real weak point. Nothing of any really impact can be revealed here since it is not part of the main story. So the entire comic has to take place on the fringe and therefore has no real meaning. I do think it does a good job at beginning the change of focus but beyond that this is pretty much a non-event.

In the end though the characters make up for the lack of plot and this still manages to be a good comic. The fight scenes were also done well and it was nice to see someone writing the Avengers as beatable villains again. Still, I will be glad when we get more in depth and focused stories next month. With the strong characterizations I am eagerly waiting to see what Carey can do with the underdeveloped young characters on the fringe of the X-universe.

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 time.

Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here…I have a couple for this week so we’ll start off with a bang. Here’s ‘Wolverine: Weapon X’. Hope you enjoy it.

Wolverine: Weapon X  #4 (preview)
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Ron Garney

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with the Blackguard’s Chief Financial Office being retired in a way that leaves no need for severance. Several H.A.M.M.E.R. agents show up at the scene, although the official story is suicide, they know it was murder.

One of the agents, Gertrude, receives a call from Maverick and fills him in on the details. They exchange a little information but North manages to slip away before she can confront him.

He receives another phone call but this one is from Wolverine. He tells Logan that all the Blackguard execs are being secluded in a Caribbean resort but Wolverine is already there. He has killed the men, except for the last one who he is currently drowning in a punch bowl of champagne. The man talks and giving Maverick information over the phone.

The Blackguard CEO is running scared. With a couple of his Strikeforce X soldiers, including their leader, he makes a run for it. Maverick already has the place scoped out and gives Wolverine the information when they run. Logan crashes his motorcycle into their car  slashing the CEO’s face and disabling the vehicle.

Their leader attacks Wolverine starting a vicious and savage battle of blood and claws that is only halted briefly when a school bus drives by. On the walk to a more secluded place, the other man tells Logan that he saw him fight once and that was the inspiration for his current transformation.

The other Strikeforce X solider is getting the CEO to safety when Maverick confronts him. Since North has a gun he is confident of his ability to win at a distance until the soldier fires his laser claws into Maverick’s chest.

Wolverine’s fight continues with Logan seeming to be the better man. They take a break where the leader asks Wolverine about the ending to the book he is reading obviously surmising that he will not survive the fight. One more pass and he is down although Wolverine collapses moments later only to be found by H.A.M.M.E.R. agents.

MY TAKE: This is another great issue even though it is mostly focused on combat rather then plot. But sometimes mindless action has its own entertainment value and that is what this issue was, entertaining. The fight scenes, especially the main fight between Logan and the Strikeforce X leader, were well drawn and executed. You could feel the frantic pace and the  powerful blows during the sequence. The splash page was especially well designed. When you have scenes without dialogue the art has to work and it certainly did.

My favorite part of the issue, however, was the phone call between Maverick and Logan. The whole scene was extremely well crafted with great banter between the two. It only got better when you found out where Wolverine was calling from. There were nice little personal details in the conversation that gave it an extra boost like North’s lineage and Wolverine’s movie preferences. The latter of which could be a homage or even a poke at Old Man Logan.

Of course there are some flaws as well. The biggest, as noted, was the overall lack of plot. It was just a series of conversations designed to move the action forward and get to the big battle scene. While this is certainly an action oriented title, I would have liked to see a little more how the CEO went from high and mighty to running scared after Wolverine executed his people. After all he had one of his execs killed in the first scene and did not care. Because Wolverine can kill some suits, the big boss is terrified? It did not make a lot of sense.

My only other problem was pretty minor, namely why did North call his H.A.M.M.E.R. friend from the same building? He has never been shown to be reckless or hasty and it was a phone call. He could have made it from another country or at least routed it so it looked like that was where he was. It seemed uncharacteristic for him to take a risk like that for no real gain.

But even with a couple of small issues, this was a very strong and enjoyable book. It read fast but it was hard not to get a silly grin at the dialogue and action pieces. Thankfully this series continues to show Wolverine respect as a character and gives him strong action and fun stories. I am eagerly looking forward to the conclusion of the story arc.

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 time.