Sections
Penciller: Salva Espin
Inker: Cam Smith
Colorist: Jim Charalampidis
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist: Julian Totino Tedesco
Editor: Jordan D. White
Price: $24.99 US $27.99 CAN
Release Date: June 2013
Creating a definitive Wolverine origin story isn't an easy task.
Since the character rose to popularity in the late 80's a lot of creators have been desperate to add to the mythology & history of the character, retconning as and when, so inevitably there's a lot of material available to trawl through; some good, some... not, and some downright confusing.
Marvel's Season One line of Graphic Novels is “about bringing new readers to comics and comic stores around the world” and “trying to reach an audience that right now is more familiar with our most popular iconic characters from movie and TV screens” which means taking a fresh approach and using the material from the character's history in a way that will appeal to readers both old and new alike, without being tied to existing continuity.
The book begins with Heather & Mac finding Weapon X in the wild and then focuses on Logan's journey from post-Weapon X beast to regaining his humanity, finishing with his being recruited into the X-Men by Charles Xavier and there is a lot of James and Heather inbetween, practically on every page in fact.
Whilst there have been flashbacks of Logan's time between being found and joining The Flight Program it's never really been fleshed out in great detail; it's almost seemed as if he quickly regained it and went on to become a member Dept. H almost instantaneously.
Acker & Blacker use Logan's near-blank state at the start to highlight his animalistic nature and the constant battle between being man or beast is a key part of the story, the struggle of which Heather is a major contributor to and reason to change for.
The attraction between Logan and Heather that exists in the 616 is played up a lot here, in a way that makes sense; it's Heather that helps him regain his humanity and is there with him every step of the way, her maternal instinct flourishing towards the man that needs her help, the man that eventually becomes her friend and the good that she sees in him.
James Hudson is played as the company man throughout, which given the way he was written post-Byrne isn't surprising.
He seems a lot more like the Mac that allowed Wild Child in the program and created Bedlam. And while he's not evil in any sense of the word, this isn't the friend that Wolverine would eventually make executor of his will. But he's a man that clearly loves his wife, despite their differences of opinions and would do anything to protect her.
Department H is very similar to the shadowy organisation as seen in Alpha Flight Volume 2; underhanded and determined to get results for Canada however they can, with the Weapon X project one of it's own, and the writers also reach into Volume 2 for a very unexpected Director: Myra Haddock - possibly to place Mac between two women: one his wife, the other his country.
The book also seems to use a supporting character from Deadpool; Dr Killebrew who had connections to Mac in the Deadpool & Death '98 Annual, although it could just be a similarity in character appearance.
We've previously seen Espin's take on characters on the covers to Chaos War:Alpha Flight & Wolverine: First Class #5 but this is definitely a lot looser and sketchier at times, most likely to convey the beastial side of the titular character, whilst also retaining a fresh and easily universal look for people new to the medium - the characters are very distinct throughout and leave little room for confusion, though this is also helped by the very tight ensemble cast.
The fight scenes throughout the book (and let's face it the public want to see Wolverine fight!) are really well done; very dynamic images and occasional full page splashes including an amazing homage to Windsor-Smith's Weapon X series.
All in all the creative team manage to create, in my opinion, an exceptional look at the pre-X-Men life of Logan, picking through existing continuity to produce a book that alludes to his hugely packed past, giving nods to longtime readers, but at the same time doesn't force it down new reader's throats and the end result is a very accessible and interesting read that gives a great insight into the man that would eventually be Wolverine of the X-Men and his connection to the Marvel Universe as a whole, with great respect to Alpha Flight lore. This is the true beauty of the comics medium and how this story succeeds where Hollywood has arguably failed.
And without spoiling too much; a great Wolverine/Hulk fight because let's face it – we can never have too many of those!
I'd definitely like to see more from Acker & Blacker at Marvel if this is anything to go on, and highly recommend it to all 'Flight Fans.
.
vBulletin Message