Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here… Due to a vacation, wedding and plenty of comics without much time, I am going to be doing shorter reviews for Wolverine’s appearances this week with no recaps. Next week, I will be out of the country but as soon as I get back, I will do full reviews of ‘Astonishing X-Men’ and ‘New Mutants’.

X-Force #20 (preview)
Writers: Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost
Art: Mike Choi & Sonia Oback

SPOILERS BELOW…

JRPBSP’S TAKE: This was a concluding issue for Laura’s plot about her capture and escape from the Facility and it does a decent job at that. We see Laura finally getting to cut lose a bit thanks to a smart idea of lacing the water in the sprinklers with trigger scent. She is very tough here, almost beyond belief, even before her own personal berserker rage. The scene with her pulling out her admantium claws and burning her severed arm demonstrated that well.

The best scenes, however, are given to Wolverine in the beginning. We can finally see how he really feels about X-23 and their situation. It is only a page but we get a better feel for their relationship in a few panels then we have been shown before.

I was disappointed to see that Laura never really lets her guard down much in the arc. I was hoping to see a bit more of her human side, but instead she shows how tough she is. We get a few glimpses at the end when she discusses friendship and going home, but I did want to see more of that. I would have liked a more permanent end to the Facility and Kimura too.

Still, in the end it was well-written and a fitting end to the story. Laura finally got her chance in the spotlight and she was able to carry the story well. Agent Morales was a nice addition, a very human foil to give us a real understanding on how horrible the whole situation is. I hope we see her again in a later story.

X-Necrosha (preview)
Writers: Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost; Zeb Wells; Mike Carey
Artists: Clayton Crain; Ibraim Roberson; Laurence Campbell

SPOILERS BELOW…

JRPBSP’S TAKE: This is an interesting set up for the Necrosha event where we get the beginnings of three separate stories to tie into the arcs for ‘X-Force’, ‘New Mutants’ and ‘X-Men: Legacy’. Each tale is done by the writers for those books which is smart but does lead to some confusion and disjunction in the issue.

The first story, which leads into Necrosha proper, does a very nice job of giving Selene’s history and goals while setting up a full-scale assault on the X-Men. The resurrections are fast and furious although few are unexpected. It does set things up for a massive event though with the X-Men being besieged by a hoard of former friends and enemies.

Of course, this is all a delay tactic meant to keep the mutant heroes away from the true threat. I was glad to see Selene finally arrive on Genosha island to begin her preparations for her ascension. Though I am not sure why she is spending so much time trying to take down the people that wronged her before becoming a god. I would have thought she would wait to become all powerful to indulge in petty vengeance.

The biggest problem with the story is that you have to have read the ‘X-Force’ issue that came out the same week in order to be able to follow everything. I do like making things tie together but since this is supposed to introduce the new story to people that might not have been reading ‘X-Force’, it would have been better to separate the plot a little. As it is, this could easily be titled ‘X-Force’ # 20.5.

The ‘New Mutants’ arc, “Binary”, was focused on Doug Ramsey who is instructed to take down his former friend Amara for Selene. It was nice to see Doug again although I am not sure why he is shown to be so inhuman when the rest of the Hellions seem to be pretty normal. I know we do not see their thoughts, but they do not read as robotic.

Once again, however, this story leads directly into the ‘New Mutants’ story that is released this week. Since this is a precursor to that issue, neither has to be read in order to make sense of the other. Still it felt rather extraneous to give a short introduction to a story you can read at the same time. It would have been smarter to have the first ‘New Mutants’ issue of Necrosha be next month.

It is nice to see the Hellions and Doug back in any form. They are good characters and I hope they get to stick around. There is not much to this story, but Doug’s power upgrade is impressive. He can now read and translate any sort of language including non spoken ones. It will make him much more effective if he sticks around after this story is over.

The final story, “The Foretelling”, is about Destiny working for Selene but trying to pass a message on to the X-Men via Blindfold. It is a simple tale but has potential as a setup to ‘X-Men Legacy’. Blindfold has been missing for a while and I am glad she will seemingly be the focus for the arc. I would have liked an explanation of when she got back however just as a tie in.

However, I am not certain about what the true purpose of this story is going to be. It reads like a backup plot, and since the ‘X-Men Legacy’ story does not start for a couple more months, I am afraid that there will be a lot of confusion. I would have rather seen the story set up a more in depth plot so it feels more relevant to over all story.

In the end this is an interesting start to Necrosha which does look to be an entertaining crossover. I am eagerly awaiting all of the stories, especially the main plot in ‘X-Force’. Hopefully it will pay off and have some real impact by keeping some of the revived mutants around in the future.

However, the different writers and time lines made things kind of muddled. While you can easily put “Binary” before the Necrosha story, it takes place later in the actual comic. “The Foretelling” is supposed to happen at the same time but we see Selene and her crew in her headquarters rather then where they were previously shown to be hopping all over the place. It makes it hard to see this as an single united story. While I know it has separate plot lines, when you put them in one issue they should not contradict each other.

Wolverine: Weapon X #6 (preview)
Writer: Jason Aaron
Penciller: Yannick Paquette
Inker: Michel Lacombe

SPOILERS BELOW…

MY TAKE This is the first truly original Wolverine story I have read in a long time. While it has some elements we have seen before, the idea of Logan in an insane asylum is very different and interesting. It is also such a natural fit that is a wonder why no one has done it before. Although this is little more then a setup issue, it succeeds in capturing my interest immediately. I especially like the Lovecraftian overtones in the issue.

Aaron continues to impress with his depiction of Wolverine’s personality and actions. It is nice to have at least one series that really feels like the Logan I am familiar with. The rest of the characters here are a bit too over the top to be really interesting yet. Doctor Rottwell certainly has potential but is too insane to be much more then a caricature so far.

There are definite problems with the details of the story, however. For example, having Logan write his message to himself on the outside of the door where he will not be able to see it makes no sense. Also, why would a man that is obsessed with removing and playing with human brains want a patient who has a skull you can not cut through?

I also hope that is is explained how they manage to drug and control Logan with his healing factor. Even extremely well-funded and technologically superior groups have had trouble with that, much less be able to put him to sleep with a push of a button. Since Wolverine now has all his memories, I would expect it is even more difficult to control him than before. I know this is just the first issue but since they spent a while on his so-called drugs I would have liked a hint.

In the end, this is a very interesting and original story with strong characterization of Logan. There are some details and questions that detract from the plot but only in a minor way. There is a great deal of potential here for this to be a truly memorable story. I hope it can deliver on the promise.

Wolverine: First Class #20 (preview)
Writer: Peter David
Artist: Dennis Calero

SPOILERS BELOW…

MY TAKE This issue wraps up the two-part Skrull, pre-Secret Invasion story with Captain Marvel. The Kree takes center stage and has most of the big fight scenes. While I know he was a powerful force, it does not leave Wolverine and Kitty much to do. They spend the majority of the issue running away injured or helpless and that distracts from the entertainment of the issue for me.

Kitty does have a couple of good moments but Wolverine’s one fight happens almost entirely off panel. Which also leads people to wonder, as I expect is intended, whether or not the real Logan won at all or if he was a Skrull all along. That simply serves to muddy the already confusing and overdone Secret Invasion plot even more. While that story was decent enough, I do not see the point of having it be revisited.

The plot is merely an escape story without much else going on. I do not know much about Captain Marvel but I did like him in this. He has a good balance of power and compassion. Kitty gets a few good lines and Wolverine and Kitty’s return to the mansion is amusing. But there simply were not enough of these moments to really make this anything more then an average issue.

I hope we get the focus switched back to Logan since his name is on the cover. I have no problem with Kitty having center stage either but if I wanted to read a Captain Marvel and Skrull story, I would go through the back issues. I actually like the retro feel but this was trying too hard to be relevant to current Marvel stories. At least Colossus is the next guest star so all the players will remain in the X-Men family.

Dark Reign: The List – Wolverine (preview)
Writer: Jason Aaron
Penciler: Esad Ribic
Inker: Tom Palmer

SPOILERS BELOW…

MY TAKE I have not read most of the List comics but seeing this I have to question why they were bothering to make it a series. The story is not really bad, it has some good moments and it was nice to see Logan’s faith being addressed, but it did not seem to be any different then any other one shot. Basically a throwaway story that featured Wolverine and others.

I am not personally a fan of any of the Weapon Plus elements and so I found it hard to get into the issue. It did not help that Wolverine spent most of the comic as a mindless fanatical beast. Therefore the bulk to the story fell onto Marvel Boy and Fantomex. Although they are written well and have some good lines, neither of them is interesting enough to me to carry the story and make it enjoyable. I found myself scanning ahead to see when Logan would be regaining his senses.

The plot, such as it is, was simply about keeping Osborn from getting his hands on the Weapon Plus facility, the World. It is good to have some kind of resolution to that storyline rather then leaving the place up and running for anyone to access. I did not quite get how Noh-Varr suddenly knew that Osborn was sending his agents right then to attack the place considering he left the Dark Avengers weeks ago.

Still for as much as I did not really care for the principles or the plot the writing was still very solid. Aaron has a flair for Wolverine and does a great job with dialogue and adding little touches of humor and characterization. I really liked the nod to Deathlok at the end. I just could not get over the rest of it to really enjoy the story. At best it was a decent read but one that will soon be forgotten.

X-Men Forever #10 (preview)
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciler: Paul Smith
Inks: Terry Austin

SPOILERS BELOW…

MY TAKE This is the funeral issue for Wolverine and I have to say it is about time. While I know that the team has been busy, Logan died before issue one so it has taken ten issues for everyone to gather and pay their respects. Usually you see the mourning issue immediately after a death or no more then an issue or two later. This feels almost tacked on due to its lateness.

Still it was great to see everyone gathering together and remembering Wolverine and Scott’s eulogy was particularly well done. I am also impressed that with so many guest stars it never feels overdone and many of them get their own special moments. Some of these characters are ones that Claremont invented and yet has not written in decades. They do feel a bit dated but still have their own unique voice and style and that is great to see. It makes me wish that Claremont would include some of them as regular cast members, especially the New Mutants and Excalibur.

The plot was merely about the funeral, with guests arriving and reflecting on Wolverine and on what they have lost. But it was an important enough event that it pretty much required a full issue. I was glad that the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and even the Hulk stopped by to pay their respects. It was a good way to show just how important Wolverine truly is to the Marvel Universe as a whole.

One thing did really bother me though and that was the ending with Nathan. While I never really agreed with the whole Nathan and Cable plot, by this point Scott’s child had most definitely been sent into the future and we have seen plenty of Cable as well. Even if you ignore that story, Nathan should be no more then a toddler at the oldest. But here we see him as a young boy living with Cyclop’s grandparents. It was one of those moments that completely takes you out of the entire story.

But the issue was still good, it is just annoying that they are still calling this series the continuation of the original X-Men run when pretty much nothing of continuity is being honored. I am, however, still enjoying the series for the most part and am looking forward to the next issue with Colossus. They just need to remove all references to the past events and start fresh otherwise it is too jarring.

DiG here. With jrpbsp writing so many reviews this week in abbreviated format, I’ve decided to tack on my Week-in-Review at the end of his massive post. I actually enjoy this version better, so let us know if you prefer that we bypass the recaps in the future.

Hulk #16 (preview)
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Pencils: Ian Churchill
Inks: Mark Farmer

DIG’S TAKE: Jeph Loeb is a big name in the comic book industry. Unfortunately that renown has not translated into any quality stories in the Marvel Universe the past few years.

Just look at ‘Ultimates’ 3, ‘Wolverine’ #50-55, and ‘Ultimatum’ if you doubt my assertions.

So it should come as no surprise that ‘Hulk’ #16 continues this trend.

All of the classic Loeb ingredients are there: trite dialogue, grade-school parables and plotting that would shame Jerry Bruckheimer.

The good news? The X-Force crossover seems to be at an end.

New Avengers #58 (preview)
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Pencils: Stuart Immonen
Inks: Wade von Grawbadger

DIG’S TAKE:: Brian Michael Bendis can be extremely frustrating.

On the one hand, he has made ‘New Avengers’ a must-read book for close to five years, picking his way through three major Marvel Universe-wide events, sometime nimbly, sometimes laboriously.

This particular issue is quite strong (though I would argue that ‘Dark Avengers’ is better), but every time he touches the Norman Osborn-media angle, the believability just fades away, at least for this reader.

The Wolverine connection? Daken gets his ass handed to him again.

How did this guy ever hold his own against the X-Men?

Marvel Holiday Spectacular (preview)
“If the Fates Allow”
Writer: Jim McCann
Artist: Todd Nauck

DIG’S TAKE: This year’s ‘Marvel Holiday Spectacular’ offers an X-Men holiday story with tender thoughts of the missing Kitty Pryde, whose sacrifice has, unfortunately, largely gone ignored in Marvel continuity. So while this tale is most appreciated, its sincerity does ring rather hollow…

And last but not least, don’t forget the ‘Wolverine Art Appreciation’ collection that does a very nice job of reprinting all the Wolverine Art covers from earlier in the year sans logos and featuring background on each artist and art style.

Wolverine: Origins #41 (details)
“7 the Hard Way, Part One”
Writer: Daniel Way
Penciler: Doug Braithwaite
Inker: Bill Reinhold

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: Wolverine speeds down the highway while contemplating his loss at the hands of Romulus. Coming to the realization that in order to best his enemy at his own game and save his son he has to do the unexpected. He resolves through the advice of another to destroy the throne of Romulus’ empire as opposed to the man who rules it, thus ending the potential cycle.

In order to do so he needs to collect the pieces and players of this gambit: the first approach being one Bruce Banner. Banner plays dumb, pretending to be unaware of their shared history. Wolverine informs him that he’s looking for someone else to which Bruce replies that that part of his life is over (Note: Bruce Banner was recently “cured” of the Hulk in his own title).

Logan, knowing that the best way to bring out the Hulk is to anger his alter-ego promptly attacks Banner, hoping to elicit the proper emotion and release the beast within. Enter Skaar, the Son of Hulk, the Hulk’s lovechild from another world. Coming to his father’s defense Skaar soon learns that he would be unable to kill the feral mutant due to his healing factor and unbreakable skeleton.

Wolverine makes one last remark to Banner, stating the following: “Hopin’ to keep your son from gettin’ sucked into the same nightmare you were livin’? Well, Bruce it might surprise ya’ to know… that I’m doin’ the same damn thing”. Skaar then punts him into a forest one state over.

Here he is found impaled on a tree by yet another father and son, two adult civilians. The father attempts to help Logan while the son calls 911 in order to protect his father from Wolverine, who he sees as a dangerous individual and a potential heart attack risk for his dad. The officer taking the call contacts Romulus, who then uses his connections to send the local police force to apprehend Logan.

As the police close in on him, Skaar and Bruce appear to lend a hand. The latter having changed his mind after thinking over Logan’s aforementioned words.

MY TAKE: Now this is more like it! It may not be the best issue in the world, but I’ll take something happening over a non-story like the previous issue any day. At least this I can review. While I actually rather enjoyed this particular story (especially when comparing it to #40), it was hardly without flaws.

Lets start at the beginning, Wolverine: Origins #41 opens with Wolverine contemplating, in his own words, how he “got his ass kicked in every possible way”. Did I read a different story? Was he not actually present during that fight? Did Daniel Way not read the scripts for #40 and #41 while he was writing them? In no way were the events of last issue an “ass kicking”.

Without spending too much time on the events of last issue, Wolverine not only held his own during that fight, but he was also winning it for the majority. And when Romulus walked out of there, he did so bloodied and beaten, having just barely survived the encounter. Wolverine’s statements in this issue completely contradict what we just saw in the last. Someone dropped the ball.

Another quibble would be how codependent this story is in regards to recent Hulk continuity, with nary a writer/editor’s note to be seen. I’m all for continuity, but this story assumes you’ve read Planet Hulk, World War Hulk, Son of Hulk, the recent issue in which Bruce loses his ability to become the Hulk, and the events of Incredible Hulk #602 which takes place before this story and features Daken/Skaar and Bruce/Logan interaction. To make matters worse, that final story was released in the same week as Origins #41.

It was to the point that I actually felt the need to insert my own note into the issue summary, as the Wolverine and Hulk fandoms are hardly interconnected, even with the characters shared histories.

As for my final gripe, I’m a bit perplexed by Romulus’ logic here. Why would he possibly believe sending a backwater small town sheriffs department to apprehend Wolverine would work? That said, I do love the idea of him having those sort of connections to begin with.

Switching gears, I’m starting to rather enjoy these “Wolverine gets punted across the country by super-beings” gags that have been popping up of late. They’re a bit silly, but what other character could take that sort of power and punishment and walk away from it in such a fashion? Quite amusing.

I’m glad to see the storyline getting back on track. As much as I hated that what should have been the big reveal last issue turned out to be a glorified promotional ad for this one, it actually had a rather interesting premise. Wolverine had two choices: go to one or all of his teams and ask for an assist, or go solo. Nothing particularly groundbreaking in either scenario, typical Logan behavior.

Instead the character is going out of his comfort zone and doing something a bit more radical, something the enemy presumably doesn’t have a counterplan for. As a reader I find that intriguing.

Overall it’s not a bad issue, and it’s certainly an interesting start to the new storyline that seems to seek to close out the series. It suffers from the typical logical fallacies the book often falls into, but above all else it shows promise to be a unique tale, one we haven’t seen before from Wolverine.

Unfortunately I believe this will be my last review for Wolverine Files for the time being. I always knew some day my other duties would pull me away, but I thought I would have more time. Please keep the comments coming and thanks for reading. – Ace

Another heavy week of Wolverine appearances, but first the news…

Marvel Comics have begun leaking out news of future major storylines. ComicBookResources.com has coverage of ‘X-Men: Second Coming’ (details), the final chapter of the Messiah trilogy and ‘Siege’ (details), the end of Norman Osborn’s Dark Reign…

In other news, the ‘Weapon X 100 Project’ has now hit 35 covers (details). And finally, Marvel has released a sneak preview of Dark Wolverine #80 (details), in stores November 25…

Probable and Possible (Dark) Wolverine Appearances in stores on 10/28/09…
–Dark Reign: The List – Wolverine (preview): Jason Aaron does Fantomax & Weapon Plus…
–Hulk #16 (preview): Jeph Loeb presents Red She-Hulk…
–New Avengers #58 (preview): Is Wolverine ever returning to the New Avengers?
–New Mutants #6 (preview): Necrosha continues…
–Wolverine Art Appreciation: Reprinting Wolverine variant covers from earlier in the year…
–Wolverine: First Class #20 (preview): Wolverine Team-Up starring Captain Marvel!
–Wolverine: Weapon X #6 (preview): Wolverine loses his memories in ‘Insane in the Brain’…
–X-Force/New Mutants: Necrosha (preview): Necrosha begins…
–X-Force #20 (preview): Necrosha Prologue…
–X-Men Forever #10 (preview): The funeral of Wolverine…

I’ve grown bored with the ‘Wolverine Week-in-Review’ format, so instead of merely listing the week’s (or in this case, the previous week’s) Wolverine appearances with snarky and curmudgeonly comments, I am going to try to speak more broadly to the Wolverine appearances of the week as they relate to the tapestry of the Marvel universe as it stands today.

Pretentious? Probably.

But at least I won’t be bored.

One of the problems I have with Marvel Comics today and comics in general, is that there are too many monthly titles and too many appearances for continuity to work effectively anymore. No one cares about older issues because of the deluge of current ones. When I started reading comics lo these many years ago (or to quote grandparents around the world, “When I was a kid…”), we were able to read most of the titles on the market in any given month and scour comic book stores for older issues to catch up with continuity. But those were the days of one X-Men title, one Hulk, one Fantastic Four and two Spider-Man titles a month. Continuity worked in that environment. It doesn’t now when one can find 12 Wolverine appearances in a single week. Continuity is a thing of the past, in my opinion, which means that readers no longer feel the same level of connectedness with the universe.

Why the rant? Well, it speaks to the two core Wolverine appearances of the week, Wolverine: Origins #41 (preview) and The Incredible Hulk #603 (preview). Both issues star Wolverine, Bruce Banner, Skaar (the Hulk’s son) and in spirit, Daken. But the two issues are separate stories, and seemingly separate continuities. Sure we can explain away the incongruities as we always do as comic book fans, but how can editors let these books go out in the same month? This was a perfect example of two books that should have been proactively crossing over instead of running confusingly parallel stories.

As for the issues themselves, I continue to be amazed at Daniel Way’s plotting in ‘Wolverine: Origins’. Wolverine defeated Romulus last issue but wouldn’t kill him for some feeble reasoning. So when this issue starts with Wolverine explaining that he just got his ass kicked by Romulus, I’m not sure how to react. And for someone who has befuddled Wolverine for a century, I find Romulus a rather disappointing nemesis. ‘Incredible Hulk’, on the other hand, is an intriguing tale from the mind of writer Greg Pak, with a wonderful series of twists, doublecrosses and out-of-left-field-perspectives. And the tag-team artwork by Ariel Olivetti and Giuseppe Camunculi is surprisingly well done.

‘Dark Avengers’ #10 (preview) continues to be ‘the’ book that defines ‘Dark Reign’. Mike Deodato’s artwork and perspectives makes this one of the most vibrant books coming out today, and Brian Michael Bendis is at the top of his game. While Daken plays a minor role this month, it’s still an outstanding read.

The ‘Dark Wolverine’ series started with such promise. Unfortunately, ‘Dark Wolverine’ #79 is a muddled mess, with once master-fighter Daken getting his ass handed to him by a group of D-list villains. The rest of the issue is spent on those same D-list villains trying to cut a deal with Norman Osborn, with a pinch of melodramatic and cliched sexual deviancy thrown in. I don’t know where Daken’s destiny in the Marvel Universe lies, but one hopes its not the petulant path this series is currently taking.

And finally, I missed Deadpool #900 last week, a mixed bag of  short Deadpool tales by Jason Aaron, Fred Van Lente, Mike Benson, Joe Kelly, Duane Swierczynski and others. Wolverine cameos in a single panel in what I like to call a Wolverine non-appearance appearance.

Let me know what you think of the new format in the comments below OR or simply join in on the fun at the Wolverine Files Forums…

Hey, everyone, jrpbsp here… Only one review this week so here we go with ‘X-Men: Legacy’.  Hope you enjoy it.

X-Men Legacy #228 (preview)
Writer: Mike Carey
Penciler: Daniel Acuna

NOTE: Wolverine appears only in the background in this issue.

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Roxy in Emplate’s lighthouse. The young mutant attacks him and DOA with her diamond shards but does not hurt Marius. Emplate then chases her down and feeds on her marrow.

Back on Utopia, Cyclops confronts the others about Roxy’s whereabouts. They quickly ascertain that Emplate took her, but they do not have a way to follow Bling! through the dimensional breech. Hope comes forward and says she can see the door and would be able to travel through in her Trance form. Cyclops refuses to let her go since she does not have the training. Rogue volunteers to take Trance’s power and go instead.

Since it would take a couple of hours to be able to force open the dimensional barrier, Scott agrees as long as Rogue stays in contact with the Cuckoos. She takes Hope’s hand and drains off her powers.

Roxy awakes in Emplate’s dungeon alive but feeling awful. It appears to be the same room where Penance was long imprisoned. DOA asks for time off now that Emplate has a new food source and is nearly killed for the request. It is revealed that Marius once has other servants but ate them.

Back with the X-Men, Rogue has Trance’s power and separates herself. She is able to find the doorway and slip through to Emplate’s dimension. The place is chaotic and she is attacked quickly but the creatures cannot touch her. Although at first she gets disoriented, Rogue quickly sights Emplate’s home and heads for it.

Marius goes to Roxy’s cell and explains her situation. She is trapped there and the X-Men cannot reach her. He tells her that he was exiled to that place and is limited on his movements. Before Bling! can pry too deeply, Emplate feeds on her again. He then makes his way to another chamber where he is feasted on and tormented in turn.

Rogue makes it to Emplate’s home and loses contact with the Cuckoos. She quickly finds the twisted chamber that is his bedroom. Curiosity overwhelms her and she turns on an old movie projector which shows a current scene of Scott talking to Nemesis. They are not having much luck breaking through and Cyclops wants a plan B. DOA interrupts before she can see any more.

Rogue learns that Trance’s sting cannot harm the creature but neither can he touch her directly. Unfortunately, he summons a group of extra dimensional monsters that feed on ghosts. They quickly prove that they can hurt Rogue even in Trance form.

MY TAKE: This is another well-written issue that focuses on the characters as much as the plot. Continuing directly from the Annual, we are given more on the story about Emplate and Roxy. While I am not a fan of either of these characters, they are written well and you can actually feel sympathy for them. Even Marius, who has never been shown to have much in the way of an actual personality before.

Rogue takes center stage again which is to be expected. I do like the way she is being portrayed as a smart, courageous and capable young woman. Not sure if she is going to be interesting enough to effectively drive the series, but I am enjoying reading about her so far.

The plot is pretty straightforward but it does serve to move the story along. We are given a smart and simple reason for Rogue’s involvement, and one that allows Trance to remain in the picture as well. I also enjoyed getting to see Emplate’s dimension and some of his house. It is something that is long overdue.

I am still not completely sold on this new direction for the series, however. While I do think we need a title that is focused on the younger mutants, I am not sure this really qualifies. Although Rogue has certainly changed and matured in recent months I do not really see her being someone that kids will look up to. It seems like a stretch, but at least they are taking it slow and giving the idea some time to develop. I would just rather just have a title where the youngsters are the stars.

In the end this was a solid issue and fun to read despite my not really being a fan of any of the characters. That takes very good writing and a well-developed story. I always thought Bling! was too silly to be redeemable, based on the code name alone, but she is shown to be smart, tough and resourceful here. I only hope the trend will continue and see more characters being helped through the title.

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.

Marvel released their January solicitations yesterday and we present the major Wolverine appearances below…

WOLVERINE WEAPON X #9
Written by JASON AARON; Penciled by YANICK PAQUETTE
In the crazed conclusion to “Insane In the Brain,” Logan’s stay in the whacked-out Dunwich Sanatorium finally comes to an end as his pals Psylocke and Nightcrawler show up to rescue him from the maniac clutches of Dr. Rot. But even if they can save his life, is it possible to recover what he’s lost of his sanity?

WOLVERINE ORIGINS #44
Written by DANIEL WAY; Pencils by DOUG BRAITHWAITE
“7 THE HARD WAY,” Part 4 (of 5): Wolverine’s plans have hit a snag. With Romulus breathing down his neck, Wolverine struggles to get his last piece on the board. And the fact that she’s in prison doesn’t exactly make it any easier…

UNCANNY X-MEN #520
Written by MATT FRACTION; Pencils by GREG LAND
“NATION X”: There’s a rogue Predator X stalking mutants beneath New York City and it’s down to Wolverine and Fantomex to hunt it down. There’s an island in the San Francisco Bay that the mutants call home and it’s slowly sinking — and only King Namor can save the day. And meanwhile, in San Francisco, a supermob is making life hard in Chinatown…somebody call the X-Men! Part 6 (of 8)

X-FORCE #23
Written by CHRISTOPHER YOST & CRAIG KYLE; Pencils by CLAYTON CRAIN
X-FORCE has a new mission: KILL SELENE. As Utopia burns, Wolverine and the team heads to take down the Black Queen and rescue one of their own, but they have no idea what they’re in for when they arrive on the shores of Necrosha. The biggest X-Force story yet continues as Selene’s Inner Circle begins to tear itself apart, and the truth about Wolfsbane is finally revealed. PART FOUR (of SIX)

WOLVERINE: WENDIGO!
Written by FRANK TIERI; Penciled by PAUL GULACY & PACO DIAZ
A camera crew torn limb from limb attempting to shoot footage of a mythical beast in the deepest forests of Canada. Two survivors spouting wildly diverging stories about a ferocious, white-furred monster and the mysterious stranger that came to their rescue. How are the police to make heads or tails of all of this? Let’s go to the videotape! Also featuring: “Wolverine Vs. Thor”: Want to see what happens when a jerky-chewing kanuckle-head steps up to the Asgardian God of Thunder? Let’s just say that it doesn’t involve tea and biscuits. Featuring Wolverine and Logan in their first encounter, which first debuted on MARVEL DIGITAL COMICS.

DARK WOLVERINE #82
Written by MARJORIE LIU & DANIEL WAY; Penciled by GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI
The end has come. While he is counted among the greatest gathering of villains the Marvel Universe has ever seen, one question remains: whose side is Daken really on? As part of the SIEGE on Asgard, what, or who, will he encounter in the land of the gods that will change him forever?

For the full list of comics, see ComicBookResources.com (details)…

Probable and Possible (Dark) Wolverine Appearances in stores on 10/21/09…
–Dark Avengers #10 (preview): Norman Osborn tries to keep it together…
–Dark Wolverine #79 (preview): Down goes Daken…
–Incredible Hulk #603 (preview): Skaar vs. Wolverine vs. Daken…
–Wolverine: Origins #41 (preview): ‘Seven the Hard Way’ begins…
–X-Men Legacy #228 (preview): Wolverine apppearance questionable…

Wolverine appeared in only THREE TITLES last week (October 14, 2009), though we do play catch up on an appearance I missed from the previous week.

So first up, the full-blown recap and reviews by our very own jrpbsp…

• ‘Uncanny X-Men’ #516: The Dogs of War…
• ‘X-Men Forever’ #9: Family Ties (with Wolverine flashback cameo)…
• ‘Uncanny X-Men: First Class’ #4: Girls Night Out…

As usual, I share my curmudgeonly impressions for the rest of the Wolverine docket, in this case the lone appearance I missed from last week…

Deadpool #16 (preview)
Writer: Daniel Way
Pencils: Paco Medina
Inker: Juan Vlasco

Wolverine appears as more than a mere cameo, but less than a genuine guest-starring role.

I must admit that I haven’t read ‘Deadpool’ previous to this issue, but I did thoroughly enjoy Daniel Way’s Deadpool run in ‘Wolverine: Origins’.

That said, it seems the humor is no where near as funny here, reminiscent of an achingly unfunny episode of ‘Saturday Night Live.’

I will let others weigh in on the merits of this series since Deadpool has been gaining a lot of fans, but as for this issue, while mildly amusing, it had little of the inane fun that I was hoping for…

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… For my final review this week we have ‘Uncanny X-Men: First Class’.  Hope you enjoy it.

Uncanny X-Men: First Class #4 (preview)
Writer: Scott Gray
Penciler: David Williams

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Storm being shot at by a flying squad of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. She dives quickly and is able to knock them into the Hudson River and disable them without hurting anyone seriously.

We flash back to her arrival at Jean’s apartment two hours prior. She is met by her former teammate and her friends Misty Knight and Colleen Wing. They all go out to dinner and are having a good time until the drugged food kicks in and knocks them all unconscious.

They wake up as prisoners of a woman named Nightshade. They are wearing collars that will kill the mutants should they use their powers, and Nightshade has hacked into Misty’s bionic arm and taken control of it. She has Misty grab Colleen’s throat and uses her to compel Storm to run an errand for her.

Nightshade sends Storm to the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier and Ororo uses her rogue skills and mutant powers to get inside. Storm is forced to disable a couple of guards as she makes her way to the Cybernetics Lab. She retrieves the item but sets off an alarm triggering the pursuit from the opening scene. She returns to Nightshade’s lair with the item.

Jean then uses it to transfer Misty and Colleen’s fighting skills to a new batch of  Nightshade’s Cybernauts. The villain releases control of Misty’s arm to give her creations a trial run. Unfortunately, Storm had created a thunder storm over the warehouse when she returned and it blasts through the ceiling. Knowing it will lead S.H.I.E.L.D. to them, Nightshade bolts with Ororo in hot pursuit. The others engage her robots.

Jean also got the other ladies’ fighting skills and the trio give a good accounting of themselves. Storm, meanwhile, confronts Nightshade on the docks and is able to defeat her without using her powers due to the training she had received from the Black Panther as a young woman.

Inside, the girls are losing the fight. Colleen is knocked for a loop, and Misty and Jean prepare for the final attack. Jean decides she will sacrifice herself to destroy the Cybernauts just as Storm returns with her full powers having picked the lock on her collar. She quickly ends the fight. Storm decides it would risk the X-Men and Jean’s identity to explain why she invaded the helicarrier and allows herself to take the blame.

On the Starcore One satellite, Peter Corbeau is trying to send a desperate message to Xavier using a modified Cerebro. The station has been invaded and conquered by aliens from the sun calling themselves the Knights of Hykon. The rest of the X-Men are in the Danger Room training when Charles gets the message and tells them there is a crisis.

MY TAKE: This was a fairly weak entry into the ‘First Class’ series in my opinion. While the base plot is not bad, it is simplistic and the situation is overdone. I like Storm and using her as a focus for the issue was a good idea but she definitely needed a stronger story and situation to back her up.

My biggest problem with the issue was the dated and stilted dialogue and the one note 70s-era villain. While I never really read much with the Sisters of the Dragon, this read like a bad rip off of the stereotypical ‘sister’ speech patterns. I know this is meant to be set in the past but making a comic so obviously dated is just painful to read.

They had some real problems with the keeping the script and the art together as well. There were several scenes where Colleen’s dialogue was given to Jean and vice-versa. You can figure out what was going on through the speech balloons but it is distracting and confusing on a first read through. I kept wondering if the ladies mysteriously changed clothes and hair colors somewhere halfway through the issue.

It also did not sit well with me to see Ororo referencing her time with the Black Panther as a child. I know it was retconned to have happened but it was never referenced during the time when the comic was set. It felt like pandering a bit. Plus Jean was never shown to have much in the way of hand-to-hand skills and yet here she becomes a powerful fighter. You have to be careful in these comics not to alter the established history of the comics. I do not remember S.H.I.E.L.D. having any particular problem with Storm during this time either.

In the end this was an issue plagued with dated speech and characters and filled with mistakes both in continuity and with the actual plot and art. Luckily the next story, that has been running through all of the issues to date, looks promising. The Knights of Hykon have definite potential and I have been waiting for an issue with the full team since the beginning. Hopefully it will avoid the miss steps from this story.

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… For my second review this week we have ‘X-Men Forever’.  Hope you enjoy it.

X-Men Forever#9 (preview)
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciler: Steve Scott and Peter Vale
Inker: Al Vey and Gary Martin

NOTE: Wolverine appears only in a one-panel flashback in this issue

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with ten Sentinels attacking a village in South America. They quickly detect the X-Men and change to their primary targets. Being out numbered ten to five, the X-Men pull out all the stops. Rogue quickly destroys one as do Jean and Kitty. Kurt teleports to help those on the ground and Beast goes to join him.

Meanwhile back at the factory, Zigfried Trask is confronting Fury at gun point over her grandfather’s death. Nick tries to talk her down but she shoots him instead.

The X-Men’s fight has taken a bad turn with both Beast and Kitty nearly being killed. Jean decides to end it and takes out the rest of the Sentinels with a Phoenix-like telekinetic attack. The rest of the team is either impressed or scared, or both.

Ziggy Trask starts to tell a wounded Fury about what happened to her family after he and Logan killed her grandfather. How they tried to regain honor to their family name.

Back with the X-Men, they are cleaning up after the battle. Kitty has phased inside one of the robots and seen that they were mostly hollow with construction capabilities. But whatever they were making is long gone.

S.H.I.E.L.D. arrives in the nick of time to save Fury. Daisy repels down from a S.H.I.E.L.D. transport and disarms the doctor. Before they can question her, the transport is blown up and she uses the distraction to escape. Fury prevents Daisy from going after her. The X-Men return triumphant even though they do not have a prisoner. But they have stopped the immediate threat and are prepared for the next round.

Zigfried Trask has made it to the jungle where she is being chased. She falls and flashes back to her childhood. She was mostly raised by her mother while her father worked. She remembers a trip to see him in the factory where they made the Sentinels. Of course it was the X-Men that ruined her happy childhood and she never forgave them. She gets back to her feet in time to hear a robotic voice.

We get a brief glimpse into the Consortium as they lament their loss. The two men want to take action but the woman is urging caution. She stands and we see it is Mrs. Trask, Zigfried’s mother.

Back in the jungle the doctor is surrounded by robots but they turn out to be the end result of her Sentinel project and loyal to her. She now has a army to present to her mother and use against the X-Men.

MY TAKE: This issue read like it was two separate and unrelated comics. One was an issue of the classic X-Men complete with Claremont dialogue and giant Sentinels and the other was an issue of Fury and the Howling Commandos. I have been somewhat leery of the idea of putting Nick on the squad and this issue points out, pretty plainly, that he does not really fit.

Do not get me wrong, I like Nick Fury as a character and I think he can be very interesting, but he just sticks out here too much. I can not think of a single X-Men that would need to be rescued from, or even be threatened by, a scientist with a revolver. He is also saved by some of his troops most of whom immediately die. It is almost like having X-Men’s version of the Red Shirts.

The mutant band did not have a whole lot to do in this issue. They defeated the Sentinels but that whole scene seemed to run out of steam. It read like Claremont got lazy and did not want to have to figure out how to beat the rest of the robots and just had Jean do it all at once. While the implications on her power are interesting, we have already seen the Phoenix enough that it is overdone.

I did not really see a need for all the back story on Zigfried either. I do like to have a well-rounded villain but most of her information was merely a recap for those not familiar with the Trasks. Since the audience for the book is people that want to revisit X-Men history it seemed extraneous. The revelation that Mrs. Trask is a member of the Consortium is the most interesting bit of information we get.

Once again, while this is not a bad issue, it just does not feel like a complete or well-put-together story. What screen time the X-Men get is handled well, although I am still not sold on Kitty. However, if Claremont wanted to write a Nick Fury series I am sure he could have. Since this is a X-title the mutants should be the focus and driving force of the stories with everyone and everything else taking a back seat. Hopefully, Fury has learned his lesson on field work and will be back at base in the next issue.

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… Things are hectic this week and will be next week too, leading up to my wedding and honeymoon. But I am going to try to get through the three reviews for the week starting with ‘Uncanny X-Men’.  Hope you enjoy.

Uncanny X-Men #516 (preview)
Writer: Matt Fraction
Penciler: Greg Land
Inker: Jay Leisten

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Scalphunter waking up in the dark as a captive. He is suspended over a pit filled with Predator Xs. His captors offer Greycrow a choice; do a job for them or be eaten. His answer is obvious.

On Utopia, Magneto’s appearance has caused quite a stir. He is confronted by Xavier but he addresses Scott. Magneto takes off his helmet as a show of faith. Xavier takes him up  on the lack of mental protection and attacks his mind. Magneto begins to fight back but is quickly overwhelmed. Scott steps in and orders Charles to stand down and the Professor backs off.

Back with Scalphunter we learn that his task is to deliver the Predator X creatures. Magneto reacts to the confrontation by falling to his knees and offering praise to Scott.

We then see Scalphunter is given a C-17 plane that has the monsters loaded on board. He is ordered to deliver the Predator Xs to Utopia and he is told that he was chosen because he is a mutant. The leader says that they do not want to kill mutants but rather save mutantkind.

Scott orders Betsy to keep a watch on Magneto’s thoughts and gives the man a chance to talk. He relates his events with the High Evolutionary and getting his powers back due to a machine built from the Sleeping Celestrial. But the process was a dead end and the equipment was destroyed in the process.

Magneto returned to Earth since Scott had united the remaining mutants and Magneto wanted to make sure they can go out with dignity. Scott relates the story of the first mutant birth, Hope. They are interrupted by Wolverine reporting a problem.

They have detected Scalphunter’s plane and he is requesting an emergency landing and sanctuary. Scott does not trust the former Marauder and orders the Kurt to check out the plane while the others get the noncombatants to safety. Kurt sees the Predators and immediately returns telling Scott to shoot the plane down. The issue ends with Cyclops ordering everyone to battle stations.

MY TAKE: This was a decent if underwhelming issue that dealt with two interlocking, but separate, stories. Magneto’s return is interesting but not a very engaging plot. The character development is logical but  a little bit surprising. He has always been a proud and arrogant man and seeing him on his knees and surrendering so easily just did not work very well.

The plot was basic and a kind of boring in fact. We have Scalphunter being given his mission and Magneto returning and seemingly joining the fold. But that is very little action for an entire issue. Most of the space was taken up by dialogue but not much was said that was important. Several pages were simply recaps of recent developments and many others had few panels.

I am also not sure about the sudden change in Xavier’s personality. He has always been a voice of reason and friendship and yet here he attacks first and without any true provocation. I understand that the bullet to his head changed him, but he and Magneto have always been able to talk. To see Charles refuse to believe anything but the worse of his old friend was jarring.

I am glad that Magneto has returned however. He is a very complex and original character and there are some great stories that can come from his involvement in the new status quo. If nothing else it gives the X-Men another power player and someone that can compel loyalty and obedience from some of the more radical remaining mutants. Still I would have preferred his return be a bit more in tune with his established personality.

The side plot with the new group and the Predator Xs has potential although I am not sure how much a threat five creatures will be to an island of mutants. Still it will likely lead to a more action-oriented issue next month and hopefully an bit more information on team that captured Scalphunter and set the plot into motion.

In the end this was a pretty well-written issue but one where not much happened. After I finished reading it my reaction was more in the line of ‘Is that all?’ then anything else. While it is nice to give Magneto’s return proper respect, more needed to occur in the story for it to be good. Hopefully with this setup out of the way we can get back into some more complex 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 next time.