Hey, everyone… Here is my fourth review. Next up in the last ‘Uncanny’ issue before the crossover. Hope you enjoy it.

Uncanny X-Men #512
(preview | thread)
Writer: Matt Fraction
Penciler: Yanick Paquette
Inker: Karl Story

Note: Wolverine does not appear in this issue.

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Beast pulling his Science team together with the addition of Warren and Betsy to travel to the past, specifically San Francisco in 1908. They are going to meet the parents of Dr. Nemesis, James Bradley, and get blood samples to study. The other members of the science team are Madison Jeffries, Kavita Rad and Yuriko Yakiguchi. They will only have thirty-two hours to complete the mission before they must return or risk death.

The scene cuts to James’ dad, Nicola, working on a device to create free, wireless electricity. He is attacked by goons wearing Hellfire garb but is saved by his wife, Catherine, who is wielding energy guns. Once they escape they contact Nicola’s sponsor, Cornelius Shaw, who informs them there is no issue and to take as long as they need. He will keep providing the money.

The Science team arrives in the past with Betsy subtlety altering their appearance mentally. They approach Nemesis’ house but he remains behind. They attempt to explain their mission but are thoroughly rebuffed by Catherine.

Shaw and his lady return to the Hellfire club where it is revealed that they are using psychics who have predicted the beginning of the super hero age. In order to stop the rise of the Overman, as they call them, they need Nicola’s device.

Meanwhile, in his lab, Nemesis’ dad manages to finish his invention. He goes to tell his wife only to learn she is pregnant.

The Science team is running out of time and ideas on how to best get their samples. They decide to split forces and try to handle the parents one at a time.

Nicola is busy presenting his completed marvel to Shaw and of course he steals it and the father. More goons attack the house and Catherine but she is saved by Archangel and two members of the Science team. She is bleeding due to complications with the pregnancy.

Nicola is taken to the Hellfire club where they reveal their plan. They have created the first Sentinel and are going to use the device to power it. Hank, Betsy and Madison attack the club but are too late to prevent the Sentinel from activating.

Nemesis attends to his mother and gets her bleeding stopped, getting the sample along the way. He informs her the pregnancy will be hard and she must rest. He leaves the room and tells the rest of the group that she will die in childbirth.

The Sentinel is in the street attacking Beast and the others. Warren leaps to action taking Betsy to shut down the Hellfire members piloting the thing. Madison, meanwhile, creates a electric weapon and fries the robot. It explodes but one of the pieces impales Nicola. Nemesis gets the sample as Nicola dies in his wife’s arms after deciding to name the baby James.

They make Catherine hide the samples in Golden Gate park because they can not take them and then the team leaps forward just before the earthquake of 1908 hits. They track the blood in the park to directly underneath the Sleeping Celestial’s foot.

Nemesis then jumps back in time to attend his mother in her birth. She dies but the baby lives. He gives his infant self to his grandparents to raise.

MY TAKE: This issue was an interesting but ultimately a disposable one off arc. The story was not bad but was ultimately forgettable. They were obviously eager to get to the big crossover and did not want to spend much time on this plot. Most of the issue was spent with new characters but we do not have enough time to see them really developed before they are killed so their deaths lack impact.

Nemesis is the standout of the story. While I have yet to warm to any of the new Science characters, you can at least start to understand him better. Though it still seems like the writer is unsure what to do with the team as a whole.

I am usually a sucker for time-travel stories but there is nothing really new here. We have a Sentinel lifted mostly from the movies and a Hellfire club we have seen before. In fact all the of characters feel like cardboard cut outs of ones we have seen before either in other comics or movies. And tying the whole thing to the San Francisco earthquake felt forced. Like they wanted to story to have a historical reference and that was all they could think of.

In the end though, the issue was not bad it was simply nothing special. We get a little insight into a new character but that is about all. The story was decent enough but it suffered from lack of space and predictability. I just wish they would have had the time and space to make a proper time travel story with real impact.

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… Here is my third review. Next up is the second issue of ‘X-Men Forever’. Hope you enjoy it.

X-Men Forever #2
(preview | thread)
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciler: Tom Grummett
Inker: C. Hamscher

SPOILERS BELOW…

Note: Wolverine only appears as a skeleton this issue.

RECAP: The issue opens with police seeing a flash in the park. They investigate and find a burning skeleton that looks suspiciously like Wolverine.

We jump to Xavier’s mansion where everyone has been knocked out by a blast. Storm arrives to a quiet house with no lights and finds the X-Men passed out on the floor. Only Xavier is awake and he is groggy. He explains that Jean was able to divert the blast to the power grid. Still it was strong enough to knock them out. The others slowly wake up except for Jean.

Scott tries to carry her to Medbay as Gambit comes in carrying an unconscious Rogue. They got hit as well. Xavier tries to scan Jean’s mind but cannot get through. Hank looks at Jean while the rest debate what to do. Hank offers to call the Avengers but Fury is already contacting S.H.I.E.L.D.

He learns about the body they found in the park which is now under S.H.I.E.L.D. control.  One of the soldiers is being pestered by a girl but she disappears before she can be questioned.

Fury seems to sense something in the hall as he goes to inform the X-Men about the body. Storm is down in the basement trying to get the power started but she is jumped by Sabretooth who tries to kill her

He slashes her but she blows him into the Danger Room where she has room to maneuver. The other X-Men jump in and attack but Storm is going nuts and wants revenge. The X-Men do not do very well against the savage, attacking individually instead of as a team. But Storm fights back and pins him to the wall before nearly fatally blasting him with lightning. The strike does not kill him, however, but blinds him.

MY TAKE: Not much happens in this issue, but we get several new plot threads and potential story lines to follow up on. The base plot is simple recovery from the blast last issue and an attack of the mansion by Sabretooth.

But there are several new questions that come up. The biggest one for me is, is that Wolverine’s body at all? We are clearly shown a broken claw and it comes up in discussion twice. Since adamantium is supposed to be unbreakable, what happened?

Next is of course what is going on with Storm. Although her thoughts seem normal her speech and actions are anything but. Add the scene with Rogue last issue and it is starting to look like maybe there is a lot more going on then we have seen.

As for the story, it is fine if you do not mind Claremont’s wordiness and rather cheesy dialogue and I do not. We see Sabretooth coming to get revenge for ‘the boy’ although we do not know how he found out Wolverine’s death, that Storm supposedly killed him or how he got to the mansion so fast. It is obvious that Claremont intends to pursue the father son connection with Creed and Logan.

I am still not sold on the addition of Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. to the series. The X-Men have always handled their own problems and now a single attack has them running for help to Fury or the Avengers? They have fought cosmic powers and gods before,  so I do not know where this sudden lack of self-confidence is coming from.

The characters feel right, naturally, since Claremont knows them well. All except for Storm who is obviously not meant to be. I am a little bothered by how blatantly things are being hammered into us by the story. Storm is very over the top here, so much so that there must be something wrong with her. Nothing else works. I would like it to be a little less plain. Same with Wolverine’s claws. We could see it in the picture so it did not have to be mentioned repeatedly.

I am still not completely sold on the series but there seems to be plenty of ideas and story to go for a long run. Each issue he is dropping little plot threads and hints and I have missed that sort of storytelling. I just hope that the writing and the characters do it justice.

In the end this was a good if not amazing issue. We are still very early in the setup process for the series but there is a lot of potential good here and just enough problems to make me worried. Hopefully the good will win out in the end.

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… Here is my second review. Continuing the big story trend, I am doing the first issue of the big crossover, ‘Utopia’. Hope you enjoy it.

Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia #1
(preview | thread)
Writer: Matt Fraction
Pencilers: Marc Silvestri with Michael Broussaro, Eric Basaldua, Tyler Kirkham, & Sheldon Mitchell
Inkers: Joe Weems with Marco Galli, Eric Basaldua, Rick Basaldua, Jason Gorder, Jay Leisten, Sal Regla, Jon Sibal & Ryan Winn

Note: Wolverine appears in only one panel this issue.

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with a march by Simon Trask and his mutant haters towards the San Francisco City Hall. They are met by Hank McCoy and a group of his friends and human rights activists who peacefully try to divert them. Unfortunately Hellion and some of the younger mutants’ tempers flare and soon there is an outright riot.

Several mutants, including Pixie  and a number of Trask’s people are hurt. Hellion blasts Trask and he and Beast are arrested. The press naturally has a field day and the X-Men hold up at their base waiting for the fall out.

The next day the mayor calls Scott and Emma in and berates Scott for not being able to control his people. At the same time Trask calls a press conference reaffirming his desire to march on City Hall and it is announced that Osborn and H.A.M.M.E.R. will be stepping in to control the situation.

That night things get worse  after a confrontation between mutants and Trask’s people, riots begin to break out all over the city. The events are escalated because some of the mutants, like Rockslide and Toad, are more interested in fighting then in keeping the peace and they have to be beaten.

Norman calls out H.A.M.M.E.R. and his Avengers to keep the peace. The Avengers are ordered to arrest any mutant breaking a law no matter how minor. The Avengers make an immediate impact, Moonstone takes down several rioting mutant women and Venom attacks Colossus who had just beaten Rockslide.

Hawkeye stops a group of protesters from entering the Embarcadero just by showing up although he laments not getting to kill any of them. Meanwhile a mob has arrived at City Hall and despite Cyclop’s arrival things are getting seriously out of hand until Ares shows up. He faces down the mob single handed.

Norman Osborn has called Emma to task for not keeping to her end of the deal and keeping the mutants under control. He tells her he is making a new plan and she is going to have to be the leader of a new team.

More H.A.M.M.E.R. troops show up and Osborn takes a personal hand calling a press conference. He identifies Scott as a person of interest to be arrested and introduces Professor Xavier as a character witnesses denouncing Summers. This man is in a wheelchair and is obviously a duplicate.  Intercut with that, we see Beast in prison being weakly contacted mentally by Charles Xavier. It ends with a picture of Emma in her new black uniform and an obviously hurt Xavier saying their powers are being taken.

MY TAKE: This is just a setup issue and it feels that way. There are no surprises to be found, everything is in the previews somewhere. The revelation with Xavier was a personal surprise but the hints were there, I just did not pick up on it.

That being said, it is effective at setting up the conflict. It does a masterful job at breaking the mutants into three factions and giving them both a mob and a bunch of police, H.A.M.M.E.R and Avengers to deal with. One of my concerns was that considering the number of X-Men it would be impossible to make it seem like legitimate struggle. But those concerns are gone.

What is better is that it all made sense. I can see Beast leading a group of mutants on a peaceful march to support their rights and I can see some of the younger kids simply wanting to lash out at someone. The core X-Men have been through this before and their concern is merely keeping people safe but even some of them have doubts.

It really came through in the kids though. Many of them want to do the right thing but simply do not know what that is. When the adults are on both sides, who do you pick? It effortlessly transformed the extended family into a bunch of divided groups that would have a hard time standing up to each other much less the Avengers.

I think the characterization was strong in general although Cyclops really steals the issue. My favorite part was his line after he got hit with a brick. Nice to see the sense of humor there.

My only real complaints are the predictability, and I do not know how that could be avoided, and the level of respect and awe Norman’s Avengers are given. For groups that are willing to attack dozens of powered mutants, I do not see them backing off because one Avenger says to. Perhaps it just speaks to their level of respect, but if so it makes Norman’s abuse even worse.

In the end we have a good comic with a strong political and social message which is rare these days. The ending is interesting enough to make me want to read more. I was a bit concerned about this series but if this level of quality keeps up it should be 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 next time.

Hey, everyone… Here is first review for the week. Going to be another heavy week so I wanted to kick things off with a bang. That said I am starting with X-Force.  Hope you enjoy it.

X-Force #16 (preview | thread)
Writers: Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Art: Clayton Crain

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with Wolverine, Warpath and Cable fighting against Stryfe. They are holding their own until their time runs out and they are struck by the attempted time reversal.

We flash to Domino and Laura who are still with Kidden. She begs X-23 to kill her but the girl can not do it. So Domino shoots her in the head and ends the time stasis that is holding them in place.

The fight has now gone against the heroes but before Stryfe can act to finish it, Apocalypse and Archangel arrive.

We get a quick flash of the others. Domino hypothesizes that the devices are still holding them in place. Vanisher immediately takes his off and is jerked to the present.

Back to the fight and Apocalypse and Warren are beating on the clone. Bishop takes the time to once again try to kill Hope but is stopped again by Cable. He manages to wound Nathan but Wolverine steps in and cuts out one of his eyes ending the fight.

Stryfe attempts to fight back but Apocalypse is much stronger now and shrugs it off, beating Stryfe down. He snatches up Hope and nearly kills Bishop before Lucas manages to time jump. The immortal mutant is going to use Hope as a host body. The others move to fight Apolcalypse for the girl, but Warren steps up and demands her as payment for sparing him.

Apocalypse hands her over and takes Stryfe as a host instead. Cable takes Hope to the future on Wolverine’s orders. Knowing they have little time to accomplish their mission in the present, they split in two teams. Wolverine, Angel and Exlir head to the U.N. and crash land. They strip off their devices and are pulled back.

Domino, Laura and Warpath are given the task to save Boomer. They cannot get far, though Domino nearly kills herself in the process. Laura sends her back and continues promising to save the girl. Crawling she makes it to the designated spot and removes her device.

MY TAKE: This was a good ending to what was a surprisingly entertaining story. The characterizations remained strong even though this was primarily an action based issue. It still felt like a fitting and satisfying end to the overall story arc. It was filled with a number of great moments and I especially liked the ending as a fan of X-23.

I’m glad we got a conclusion with at least a little emotion and some suitable character moments, but of course it was mostly about the fighting. Wolverine got an especially good moment but it really came down to Apocalypse and Stryfe. The showdown had been hyped almost since the beginning so I was really hoping to see it a bit sooner then the final issue. Still it was a pretty good brawl with Apocalypse finally getting his moment to shine. I never was a fan of Stryfe as a character so is was good to see him getting beaten like a little girl.

Though I admit to being a bit disappointed in the briefness of the fight. I really would have liked to see it last more then a few pages. Still it worked for the story and I do not see what could have possibly been cut to make room. Stryfe’s final fate was poetic justice and I was glad to see how much he was going to suffer.

There were some other good moments too, Warren standing up to Apocalypse was enough to warrant a cheer. But the big stand out in the issue was Laura. Her failing to kill her friend was a huge statement on her value of people and her being more then just a killing machine. The ending especially showed just how far she is willing to go to save people, forcing herself on when all the others, even Wolverine, had returned to the present. Enduring horrible suffering just for the chance to save a stranger and keep a promise to Domino. She is rarely shown as having a human side and I was glad to see it in this issue.

Overall this was another strong comic and it was a fitting end to a great story. I just hope that some of the plot elements from this show up in the books and we can see the fall out or maybe even a sequel to the story. I know I will enjoy it.

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.

Two major comic book conventions convened over the weekend, Heroes Con 2009 and Wizard World Philadelphia, and both had breaking news…

• CBR was all over Wizard World Philly, covering Dark Reign: The List,  the Mondo Marvel Panel, and Jason Aaron,
• Newsarama got the Heroes Con scoop on the X-Men Panel, the Return of the X-Babies, and Dark Reign: Wolverine – The List…

‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ is winding down at the box office, its domestic gross inching up to $177.4 million over the weekend, positioning itself as the #125th domestic grossing film of all time, slashing past ‘Ice Age’ and ‘Tootsie’. With international box office added in, ‘Wolverine’ has accrued $360.6 million worldwide, clocking in as the #126th grossing film of all time worldwide, placing ‘Wolverine’ just ahead of ‘Planet of the Apes’ and ‘Toy Story’.

In other Wolverine News…
–Newsarama: Marvel Comics FULL September 2009 Solicitations (details)
–Marvel: ‘Astonishing Tales #6: Wolverine/Punisher Digital Comics Exclusive (details)
-Houston Chronicle: Wolverine faces off with Dr. Octopus in Spider-Man Strip (details)

Probable (and Possible) Wolverine Appearances in stores on 6/24/09…
–Astonishing X-Men #30 (preview): Ghost Box, Part 6…
–Avengers/Invaders #12 (preview): At long last, the finale…
–Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia #1 (preview): Dark Avengers Take on the X-Men…
–Dark Reign: Elektra #4 (preview): Wolverine guest stars…
–Ms. Marvel #40 (preview): New Avengers (and Wolverine) guest star…
–New Avengers #54 (preview): A Sorcerer Supreme is chosen…
–Timestorm 2009/2099: X-Men #1 (preview): X-Men 2099…
–Uncanny X-Men #512 (preview): Wolverine appearance seems doubtful…
–Wolverine: First Class #16 (preview): Dazzler guest stars…
–Wolverine Noir #3 (preview): Make it stop…
–Wolverine: Weapon X #3 (preview): The Adamantium Men, Part 3…
–X-Force #16 (preview): Messiah War finale…
–X-Men Forever #2 (preview): Wolverine dies!

Probable (and Possible) Dark Wolverine (Daken) Appearances in stores on 6/24/09…
–Dark Avengers #6 (preview): Dark Reign continues with Daken…
–Dark Wolverine 75 (preview): Daken takes over…

Wolverine appeared in FIVE TITLES this past week (June 17, 2009) and once again, our very own jrpbsp provides a series of write-ups for…

• Wolverine: Origins #37
• Cable #15
• Fantastic Force #3
• X-Men Legacy #225

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

Marvel Adventures the Avengers #37 (preview)
“Doll Winners Squad”
Writer: Paul Tobin
Penciler: Dario Brizuela
Inker: Leandro Corral

A little more silly than the usual Marvel Adventures fare, but amusing nonetheless with Wolverine getting more than his share of comedic one-liners.

Daily Bugle 1939 (details)
“Cross-Border ‘Creature’ at Canadian Border”
Writer: J.C. York

The free ‘Daily Bugle’ handout at stores this week is from October 13, 1939 in recognition of Marvel’s 70th anniversary. Included are numerous news items about the mysterious heroes of the day. And one particular article chronicles the sightings of “a short, stocky man” glimpsed along the U.S.-Canadian border.

Definitely worth a look if your store has a copy.

TV Update: Friday night featured a brand new ‘Wolverine and the X-Men’ episode, the surprisingly good “Battle Lines”, dealing with the coming showdown between Magneto and the Sentinels (episode details)…

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 final review for this week. The last issue is ‘Wolverine: Origins’.  Hope you enjoy it.

Wolverine Origins #37 (details | thread)
Writer: Daniel Way
Pencilers: Scot Eaton
Inkers: Andrew Hennessy

SPOILERS BELOW…

RECAP: The issue opens with two prison officials discussing the day’s incidents and what they did to have Omega Red sent to their facility. Neither one has any answers.

Next we find Lavrinenno calling the Russian Defense Minister Konstantinov with important news of a Wolverine sighting. The minister asks to speak to Logan and is told by Wolverine that he is on a personal mission but needs the minister to spread false information of his sightings to throw off Romulus. In the next scene we see that Wolverine has killed Lavrinenno while on the phone.

We cut to Wolverine in a hotel room, he is tracking Victor, Romulus’ servant. Back in the prison and the only one that is willing to take Omega Red his food is an old prisoner dying of AIDS. He wants to be killed so he will not die alone. Red tells him he will not die alone but does not kill him yet.

Next we flash to two men in Amsterdam who find the Carbonadium Synthesizer in the water. One kills the other and then is immediately shot dead by police. The cop is shown to be working for Romulus.

Next we see Wolverine follow Victor onto a train, after a brief flash of Omega Red receiving his orders to attack, we see Wolverine continue tracking the blind man. The chase ends at a prison which is mostly destroyed and filled with death. We see the old prisoner’s body and the smashed door. By the time Wolverine finds the Synthesizer and realizes he has been set up, he is in the coils of Omega Red.

MY TAKE: This issue is a vast improvement over last month and one of the better issues of Origins I have read. It still has plenty of flaws, but there are some good scenes and a couple of nice attributes to the past. While the plot was simple and predictable, it made sense and was easy to follow. Romulus is more interesting in this issue, as well, since it shows how much power he has and how well he can plan ahead.

I still do not feel, however, that Way has a firm hold on Wolverine’s personality. His killing Lavrinenno served no purpose and Wolverine does not kill without a reason. I was also surprised at how easily he fell into the trap. Even when he is eager, Logan is a hunter and he has amazing instincts. But even seeing the place destroyed and dead bodies all around, he never paused until he found that Carbonadium Synthesizer.

The only real plot hole I saw was that the Synthesizer was still in the river where Wolverine threw it. It was a nice nod to the continuity but I would have thought that Wolverine would have made an effort to better secure something that is that important and valuable. Add to that it was left on the floor by Omega Red and I felt it was treated a little bit lightly.

Wolverine’s inner dialogue felt more natural in this issue and so did his overall actions with a few exceptions. Wolverine was always a proactive person and it never seemed right that he did not make more of an effort to hunt down the man that was responsible for so many of his tragedies. It was nice to see him so focused and ready to tackle the problem head on.

While I am always up for an Omega Red and Wolverine fight, his involvement in this seems a bit odd. Romulus only seemed to be interested in the feral type mutants and Omega Red is far from that. I can see why Red would be helping Romulus, the Carbonadium Synthesizer is reason enough, but not why Romulus wants his help. Maybe it will be explained in a later issue.

In the end this was a decent if not amazing issue. It was far better then most of the Origins stories and I am interested in seeing what happens next month. It is still plagued with enough problems to be noticeable but I hope we are in for a pretty good 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.

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.