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Wolverine (2003) (Collected Editions) #8
Wolverine: Civil War
Collects Wolverine #42-48. In the aftermath of the Stamford tragedy, Logan makes it his personal mission to take down the man responsible. No sooner does he begin his hunt, however, than he discovers someone else is stalking the same prey: a mysterious trio whose identity, and disturbing mission, will come as a shock to many! If Logan's unsettled by who these guys are, then just wait until he discovers who they answer to!
168 pages, Paperback
First published May 2, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 124 reviews
May 4, 2016
I’m usually not a big fan of solo Wolverine stories because his popularity has made him chronically overexposed, and I think that anti-hero types generally work better when they’ve got some other similar but different types to rub up against. Logan by himself is just a surly, homicidal Canadian with a bad haircut, but Wolverine with the X-Men is a guy fighting for a cause with his difference in tactics making for interesting internal conflicts.
However, this kinda works because Wolverine is a mutant, a member of the X-Men, and also an Avenger. (And just making jokes about his busy schedule doesn’t really explain that away, Marvel.) That gives him a unique perspective to this whole storyline with the government passing a law that makes any superhuman who doesn’t register and work for them a criminal. You’d think this would freak out the mutants since it’s precisely that kind of thing they’ve always feared, but since the House of M event has decimated their ranks the X-Men are just hoping to lay low on this one.
But Wolverine is determined to find Nitro, the supervillain who made everything go KERBOOM and led to the whole mess, and he isn’t letting anyone tell him he can’t do that. This puts him on a trail that leads to some interesting conflicts and alliances as well as the discovery that Nitro isn’t the only one who has things to answer for.
From a writing standpoint I was pleasantly surprised by this one because at first it seemed like reheated Frank Miller-style dialogue, but there’s actually some interesting stuff done with Wolverine’s personal code that incorporates both a sense of honor and a willingness to kill that is called into question when he's clashing with his fellow X-Men and the authorities.
The bad thing with this is the artwork which I absolutely hated. Wolverine and others look like monsters on steroids, and the artist has a thing for drawing huge open mouths that show more teeth than John Elway. Ick. I nearly dropped it to 2 stars just for that alone, but I ended up liking the story enough to keep it at 3.
However, this kinda works because Wolverine is a mutant, a member of the X-Men, and also an Avenger. (And just making jokes about his busy schedule doesn’t really explain that away, Marvel.) That gives him a unique perspective to this whole storyline with the government passing a law that makes any superhuman who doesn’t register and work for them a criminal. You’d think this would freak out the mutants since it’s precisely that kind of thing they’ve always feared, but since the House of M event has decimated their ranks the X-Men are just hoping to lay low on this one.
But Wolverine is determined to find Nitro, the supervillain who made everything go KERBOOM and led to the whole mess, and he isn’t letting anyone tell him he can’t do that. This puts him on a trail that leads to some interesting conflicts and alliances as well as the discovery that Nitro isn’t the only one who has things to answer for.
From a writing standpoint I was pleasantly surprised by this one because at first it seemed like reheated Frank Miller-style dialogue, but there’s actually some interesting stuff done with Wolverine’s personal code that incorporates both a sense of honor and a willingness to kill that is called into question when he's clashing with his fellow X-Men and the authorities.
The bad thing with this is the artwork which I absolutely hated. Wolverine and others look like monsters on steroids, and the artist has a thing for drawing huge open mouths that show more teeth than John Elway. Ick. I nearly dropped it to 2 stars just for that alone, but I ended up liking the story enough to keep it at 3.
March 15, 2012
You know it's bad when the sole voice of reason in the Marvel Universe is Wolverine. From what I've seen, Wolverine seems to be the only person in the world interested in finding the guy who actually killed all those people in Stamford, and the only guy willing to find out how he got the juice to do so in the first place. What a way to point out the absurdity of using the actions of a supervillain as an excuse to hunt down superheroes. (This kind of reaction doesn't exactly come entirely out of nowhere in the Marvel U, which has a long history of rewarding those who save the world by trying to kill them.) The result is a story that's actually pretty decent, one of the best things to come out of this whole Civil War mess.
The art, on the other hand... The back cover of the trade refers to Humberto Ramos as a fan-favorite artist. All I have to say to that is: Really? Really?
The art, on the other hand... The back cover of the trade refers to Humberto Ramos as a fan-favorite artist. All I have to say to that is: Really? Really?
January 12, 2010
Good story, not mind-blowing, but very good. Ties in nicely to the other Civil War stories that I've read. Wolverine goes after Nitro, so you can imagine that there is a nice amount of carnage going on in this book. I think most people have a part of us, maybe buried deep inside (or not very deep, in my case), that stands up and cheers when Wolverine stabs a child-killer right through the eyeball.
I didn't really care for the way Wolverine was drawn, though. Picky, I know. It's just that, at certain times, he reminded me a little of my kids Superhero Squad toys (which I think are so cute, by the way).
I didn't really care for the way Wolverine was drawn, though. Picky, I know. It's just that, at certain times, he reminded me a little of my kids Superhero Squad toys (which I think are so cute, by the way).
May 20, 2013
There are graphic novels which perfectly achieve what they set out to do. In terms of a story or artwork they may not be Watchmen or The Dark Knight Returns, but they are strong for how they tell their own story. This is one of those graphic novels.
The story lines up with the events of Civil War, in which the world is divided into semi-fascist register-all-heroes and let-all-heroes-be-free sides. In the midst of this, Wolverine, with his typical, near-laconic, attitude, sets off on a mission against the real killer, rather than those who are being used as scapegoats.
This novel particularly highlighted the idea of Civil War I like the best, the nature of how governments and organisations will twist tragedy to their own means. Would we have the wars we have without this? Would we have such war profiteering? And would we get people being scapegoated for the sins of the governments and major officials? Sadly these seem to be questions that not enough are asking or in the right forums...
May 12, 2021
Pues otro arco argumental relacionado con el evento Civil War que leo. En este caso tenemos a Lobezno haciendo lo que nadie se le ocurrió durante la pequeña Guerra Civil, que es buscar al culpable directo del Incidente de Stamford, Nitro. Pero no todo es tan sencillo, pues detrás de este explosivo villano se esconde otro tipo de villano, corporaciones interesadas en sacar dinero de los desastres, dinero de la guerra, etc.
Aunque da igual que lleve mallas o traje y corbata, Lobezno es el mejor en su trabajo, y su trabajo es desgarrar. También nos meten una pequeña facción Atlante que busca venganza por la muerte de Namorita en el incidente, y tambien buscan a Nitro por todos los medios.
Entretenido, no es una historia que vaya a recordar después de unos meses, pero como lectura rápida y como complemento a Civil War funciona. Logan a veces queda como un personaje demasiado bocazas, parece que lo sabe todo de todos, aunque claro, siempre es un gusto ver que le revientan por todos lados, como los escritores no pueden matarle al menos le pueden hacer sufrir antes de que se vuelva a curar. El dibujo de Humberto... Urg. Solo eso, Urg. A veces su dibujo funciona, pero otras veces solo es... Urggg.
Aunque da igual que lleve mallas o traje y corbata, Lobezno es el mejor en su trabajo, y su trabajo es desgarrar. También nos meten una pequeña facción Atlante que busca venganza por la muerte de Namorita en el incidente, y tambien buscan a Nitro por todos los medios.
Entretenido, no es una historia que vaya a recordar después de unos meses, pero como lectura rápida y como complemento a Civil War funciona. Logan a veces queda como un personaje demasiado bocazas, parece que lo sabe todo de todos, aunque claro, siempre es un gusto ver que le revientan por todos lados, como los escritores no pueden matarle al menos le pueden hacer sufrir antes de que se vuelva a curar. El dibujo de Humberto... Urg. Solo eso, Urg. A veces su dibujo funciona, pero otras veces solo es... Urggg.
August 21, 2008
There are two kinds of folks who write Wolverine--those that write in the "best at what I do" style, where Wolverine gets a goal in his head and sets out to reach his goal, come hell or high water, and those that don't. Those that don't frequently try for either a deeper character or more realism (on a character whose entire skeleton is a Terminator-style structure), which frankly is sometimes good but just not as much fun. Wolverine is like a force of nature that you like to see unleashed on some evildoer. Save the restrained version for working with a team, where his excesses must be curbed. Wolverine on his own should be almost a wild animal, untamed--a Tasmanian Devil (that's two fictional references now, for those keeping track) that talks better.
This, happily, is the path engaged by Guggenheim, and since it's been so long since I've read Wolvie portrayed that way, I had a fun time with this romp about the Marvel Universe trying to bring Nitro to justice.
Wolverine's Civil War trek starts by his desire to find the killer of Stamford. This seems to be something no one else wants to do, which is partly okay--it lets us see Wolverine on his own--and partly not okay, because I can easily see at least a few other heroes banding together with him to do so, or at least trying. Iron Man would really he rather not (because that would end the potential for Civil War, perhaps, and Skrull Tony(?) doesn't want that?), but he also seems to help him on his quest anyway (because there's still a little good left in power-hungry non-Skrull Tony?). Either way, Wolverine fights the baddy--and some Atlantians--and learns there's a darker truth to the tragedy, namely that for some people, it's good for business. Can he stop them, acting as a one-man army? Or this corporate foe too big for even Wolverine to handle? Well, that would be telling...
There's a few things that are odd in here--I'm not convinced even Logan can survive one of the death traps he placed in, for instance, and Iron Man's semi-assistance is a bit strange (but it does lead to a great set up). However, Wolverine's calling out of Scott and Emma for not wanting to help find a mass murderer was great and the overall writing of Wolverine was a back to basics approach that was clearly written by a man who knew the character in its best days and wrote him appropriately. I'll even forgive him the epilogue that really didn't need to be there as a result.
This is a good Civil War crossover that I definitely recommend. (Library, 07/08)
Trebby's Take: A good read.
This, happily, is the path engaged by Guggenheim, and since it's been so long since I've read Wolvie portrayed that way, I had a fun time with this romp about the Marvel Universe trying to bring Nitro to justice.
Wolverine's Civil War trek starts by his desire to find the killer of Stamford. This seems to be something no one else wants to do, which is partly okay--it lets us see Wolverine on his own--and partly not okay, because I can easily see at least a few other heroes banding together with him to do so, or at least trying. Iron Man would really he rather not (because that would end the potential for Civil War, perhaps, and Skrull Tony(?) doesn't want that?), but he also seems to help him on his quest anyway (because there's still a little good left in power-hungry non-Skrull Tony?). Either way, Wolverine fights the baddy--and some Atlantians--and learns there's a darker truth to the tragedy, namely that for some people, it's good for business. Can he stop them, acting as a one-man army? Or this corporate foe too big for even Wolverine to handle? Well, that would be telling...
There's a few things that are odd in here--I'm not convinced even Logan can survive one of the death traps he placed in, for instance, and Iron Man's semi-assistance is a bit strange (but it does lead to a great set up). However, Wolverine's calling out of Scott and Emma for not wanting to help find a mass murderer was great and the overall writing of Wolverine was a back to basics approach that was clearly written by a man who knew the character in its best days and wrote him appropriately. I'll even forgive him the epilogue that really didn't need to be there as a result.
This is a good Civil War crossover that I definitely recommend. (Library, 07/08)
Trebby's Take: A good read.
December 22, 2008
Some great drawings of Wolverine healing after having all of his flesh and muscle burned off of him. There is also a nice little story about him taking down an evil war-profiteering company that could only be in a comic book because there are no corporations who would try to use shady dealings at the misery of others just to make some money.
May 25, 2016
I've read a lot of the Civil War stories, and the good ones always make me feel like I learned another part of the bigger story. This is one of those.
Apparently, Nitro (the villain that blew up Stamford and basically ignited the Superhuman Registration Act) got away after he killed roughly 600 people. This makes Wolverine mad and he goes after him, despite Emma Frost, Scott Summers, and Tony Stark advising against him doing anything. But Wolverine does what he wants because he's the best at what he does. Long story short,
The last issue of this focuses on what happens to Logan's soul when his body dies and regenerates. It's quite sad, because he sees those he has lost, and he says that emotional pain is worse than all physical pain.
There was a lot of good character development for Logan in this, and the plot and dialogue were both pretty good. The business with Nitro really tied this well into the Civil War arc and covered previously uncovered bases in that story line. Also, Logan's perspective on the SHRA was valuable because he's the oldest superhero still alive and active, to my knowledge. He linked it to his experiences in Germany during the persecution of the Jewish population.
Overall, very good volume in this arc, although not the best. Recommended reading for Civil War.
Apparently, Nitro (the villain that blew up Stamford and basically ignited the Superhuman Registration Act) got away after he killed roughly 600 people. This makes Wolverine mad and he goes after him, despite Emma Frost, Scott Summers, and Tony Stark advising against him doing anything. But Wolverine does what he wants because he's the best at what he does. Long story short,
The last issue of this focuses on what happens to Logan's soul when his body dies and regenerates. It's quite sad, because he sees those he has lost, and he says that emotional pain is worse than all physical pain.
There was a lot of good character development for Logan in this, and the plot and dialogue were both pretty good. The business with Nitro really tied this well into the Civil War arc and covered previously uncovered bases in that story line. Also, Logan's perspective on the SHRA was valuable because he's the oldest superhero still alive and active, to my knowledge. He linked it to his experiences in Germany during the persecution of the Jewish population.
Overall, very good volume in this arc, although not the best. Recommended reading for Civil War.
September 18, 2013
I strongly dislike the art. Ramos is great on Spider-Man, Impulse, and Young Justice. But you cant have him on Wolverine. Its Too cartoony. Then again i flip thru the pages and Wolverine has Nitro on the floor screaming, begging for his life. Its intense, It has great poses, great breakdowns. But maybe that's still the writers doing ( telling the artist he wants characters doing this and that)
In the end the writing's too great. And the epilogue about his healing factor, a must-read for all wolverine fans, saved it.
-Civil War1 meeting. Nitro. Atlantis. Damage Control.
Civil War Affect: Wolverine does what he does best and goes hunting.
January 21, 2018
Book Info: This collection contains
Wolverine
issues #42-48.
Other Useful Reviews: Samuel's review
ABSOLUTE RATING: {2/5 stars}
STANDARDIZED RATING: <2/5 stars>
As the book's title would imply, Wolverine: Civil War is a limited series tie-in related to Marvel's Civil War crossover event. While the larger superhero community and enraged public confront the radical changes imposed by the superhuman registration act, Wolverine seems to have other priorities. More concerned with exacting vengeance upon Nitro, the perpetrator of the tragic Stamford massacre, Wolverine sets out on a mission to hunt down the fugitive. Undeterred by the suggestions of both Tony Stark and the X-Men to leave Nitro's apprehension to the authorities, Wolverine soon finds himself embroiled in a deeper plot, and at odds with another hostile faction whose motives are unknown.
Can't say I remember much about my evaluation of the writing or story before I initially gave up on this years ago, but it was the art that stayed with me all these years. Although I wasn't a big fan of Ramos at the time, I was subsequently very impressed with his work on Spider-Man: Big Time . And even more generally speaking, since my tastes in artwork have changed since then (further evidenced by my current enjoyment of the work of Frank Quitely), I expected that a second reading would be much more enjoyable than the first. As it turns out, I disliked the art nearly as much as I had before. It just doesn't seem totally appropriate for a Wolverine story (i.e. something darker and more violent), and the additional fact that Guggenheim's writing is so weak didn't give me many places to find refuge during this arduous experience.
I guess I'll start by saying I wasn't really a huge fan of Guggenheim's Wolverine. It's not that he wrote the character particularly poorly or anything; rather, he's the same old boring, tough-guy killer he typically is in Marvel comics. And normally, I wouldn't too much mind the typical macho, beat-'em-up attitude, but I can't really can't stand Logan's simplistic philosophizing. Not only is it largely naive and superficial, but his stubborn streak and impetuousness only further underline why he shouldn't even bother. So for most writers, I think it might be safer just to stick to the slice n' dice aspect, leaving the rumination in the background.
[What an unbelievably half-assed treatment of such a complex issue! It's actually kind of embarrassing.]
Following the Stamford incident, there are plenty of good reasons why people would be scared and angry, and why many superheroes would be hesitant to take any rash action that would further escalate an already volatile situation. Clearly, this crisis is not simply "business and usual" for the superhero community, but Wolverine still treats it as such – feebly justifying his bloodlust with pseudo-philosophical garbage. For all the decades this man has lived through, you'd think he'd have acquired the wisdom and restraint not to behave like such a child, but clearly this isn't the case. To me, this really isn't the kind of story where the protagonist must follow his heart and show the courage to do what everyone else is unwilling to, but rather, it's the story of a very angry man too blinded by his rage and his pride to treat a delicate situation with caution and tact. I haven't forgotten this is *Wolverine* we're talking about here, but his behavior still seems a bit reckless, even for him.
[Look, I know tensions are running pretty high here, and Ben probably just lost his cool. Still, he makes a good point; Wolverine has a tendency to stab first and ask questions later, so now, more than ever, would be the time for him to reign in this kind of behavior and tread lightly, if only for the sake of his superhero buddies. But does he do that? Of course not. Including Ben, this makes *three* warnings Logan had before he set off looking to kill Nitro.]
Luckily, by the second issue, Logan comes to his senses, and agrees to work with S.H.I.E.L.D. towards the capture of Nitro. But even though I no longer had to deal with the previous problem, I could find little interest in the central conflict of the plot. All I had to look forward to were bland action sequences in-between a cycle of Wolverine waking up after being repeatedly incapacitated by his enemies. Here's three examples of this (out of five) in case you don't believe me:
[Oh. Wow! "To Be Continued..." I gotta admit, that's a really solid cliffhanger, there, Marc G. We totally didn't know by now that if Wolverine could heal from getting his flesh completely burned off, he could also heal from getting his throat slit. Good work. (Yes: that is indeed sarcasm, folks, in case you weren't sure.)]
Beyond tossing in a mass murderer for a villain and assuming that's enough to get people to give a shit, the writer made no further effort to make things personal or engaging. Between Ramos' playful art, the amateurish writing, and Guggenheim's lame jokes, I don't even see how that could have been accomplished. Even when the story switches up in the third issue, and a larger plot is suggested, I'm not very curious at all as to who's behind the scenes or what they're motives are. And when they're finally identified (as is shown in the picture below), the reveal is so uninteresting that it's nearly more shocking than it was intended to be. It took four whole issues to get to that point, and I honestly couldn't understand why the writer even bothered to go for all that mystery and intrigue, and then drop the information as a cliffhanger for issue #46. What the fuck does he think the word "cliffhanger" even means?
[This image was taken from the end of issue #45, and I chopped off the dialogue box on the left so that I don't spoil things for you too much if you still wish to read this. (Again, I'm being sarcastic; you'd be missing nothing. This is just me being courteous.) Besides this being included at the end of an issue, you wanna know how I know this was intended as a cliffhanger? Just look at the dramatic scowl shrouded in shadow preceding the ominous "To Be Continued" on the bottom right, and then you tell me if I'm wrong.]
[Just a little snippet to demonstrate Guggenheim's sense of humor. I know tastes vary, but just know that the humor never truly rises above this level – despite the writer's rather frequent attempts – so feel free to use this as a rough gauge of what you could be getting into.]
So far, I think I've made the argument for around a 2.5-star rating. But when you factor in the fact that an extra 1-2 (out of 6) issues were used to tell a story worth no more than four, combined with a meaningless and redundant 7th issue exploring the near-death experiences Logan had in the previous six, you get a half-star less.
For the writer, I assume the intention was for readers to sympathize with Wolverine's pain and frustration surrounding the political and emotional implications of recent events, but this book barely touched on that at all, and Wolverine ended up seeming petty compared to his superhero peers. Furthermore, the writer significantly underutilizes the potential offered by the Civil War event, and drags on an uncreative and inconsequential story way past what is required; nothing here provides useful or interesting insight into the Civil War, and the writer just uses the event as an excuse to write another vapid Wolverine comic.
Other Useful Reviews: Samuel's review
ABSOLUTE RATING: {2/5 stars}
STANDARDIZED RATING: <2/5 stars>
As the book's title would imply, Wolverine: Civil War is a limited series tie-in related to Marvel's Civil War crossover event. While the larger superhero community and enraged public confront the radical changes imposed by the superhuman registration act, Wolverine seems to have other priorities. More concerned with exacting vengeance upon Nitro, the perpetrator of the tragic Stamford massacre, Wolverine sets out on a mission to hunt down the fugitive. Undeterred by the suggestions of both Tony Stark and the X-Men to leave Nitro's apprehension to the authorities, Wolverine soon finds himself embroiled in a deeper plot, and at odds with another hostile faction whose motives are unknown.
Can't say I remember much about my evaluation of the writing or story before I initially gave up on this years ago, but it was the art that stayed with me all these years. Although I wasn't a big fan of Ramos at the time, I was subsequently very impressed with his work on Spider-Man: Big Time . And even more generally speaking, since my tastes in artwork have changed since then (further evidenced by my current enjoyment of the work of Frank Quitely), I expected that a second reading would be much more enjoyable than the first. As it turns out, I disliked the art nearly as much as I had before. It just doesn't seem totally appropriate for a Wolverine story (i.e. something darker and more violent), and the additional fact that Guggenheim's writing is so weak didn't give me many places to find refuge during this arduous experience.
I guess I'll start by saying I wasn't really a huge fan of Guggenheim's Wolverine. It's not that he wrote the character particularly poorly or anything; rather, he's the same old boring, tough-guy killer he typically is in Marvel comics. And normally, I wouldn't too much mind the typical macho, beat-'em-up attitude, but I can't really can't stand Logan's simplistic philosophizing. Not only is it largely naive and superficial, but his stubborn streak and impetuousness only further underline why he shouldn't even bother. So for most writers, I think it might be safer just to stick to the slice n' dice aspect, leaving the rumination in the background.
[What an unbelievably half-assed treatment of such a complex issue! It's actually kind of embarrassing.]
Following the Stamford incident, there are plenty of good reasons why people would be scared and angry, and why many superheroes would be hesitant to take any rash action that would further escalate an already volatile situation. Clearly, this crisis is not simply "business and usual" for the superhero community, but Wolverine still treats it as such – feebly justifying his bloodlust with pseudo-philosophical garbage. For all the decades this man has lived through, you'd think he'd have acquired the wisdom and restraint not to behave like such a child, but clearly this isn't the case. To me, this really isn't the kind of story where the protagonist must follow his heart and show the courage to do what everyone else is unwilling to, but rather, it's the story of a very angry man too blinded by his rage and his pride to treat a delicate situation with caution and tact. I haven't forgotten this is *Wolverine* we're talking about here, but his behavior still seems a bit reckless, even for him.
[Look, I know tensions are running pretty high here, and Ben probably just lost his cool. Still, he makes a good point; Wolverine has a tendency to stab first and ask questions later, so now, more than ever, would be the time for him to reign in this kind of behavior and tread lightly, if only for the sake of his superhero buddies. But does he do that? Of course not. Including Ben, this makes *three* warnings Logan had before he set off looking to kill Nitro.]
Luckily, by the second issue, Logan comes to his senses, and agrees to work with S.H.I.E.L.D. towards the capture of Nitro. But even though I no longer had to deal with the previous problem, I could find little interest in the central conflict of the plot. All I had to look forward to were bland action sequences in-between a cycle of Wolverine waking up after being repeatedly incapacitated by his enemies. Here's three examples of this (out of five) in case you don't believe me:
[Oh. Wow! "To Be Continued..." I gotta admit, that's a really solid cliffhanger, there, Marc G. We totally didn't know by now that if Wolverine could heal from getting his flesh completely burned off, he could also heal from getting his throat slit. Good work. (Yes: that is indeed sarcasm, folks, in case you weren't sure.)]
Beyond tossing in a mass murderer for a villain and assuming that's enough to get people to give a shit, the writer made no further effort to make things personal or engaging. Between Ramos' playful art, the amateurish writing, and Guggenheim's lame jokes, I don't even see how that could have been accomplished. Even when the story switches up in the third issue, and a larger plot is suggested, I'm not very curious at all as to who's behind the scenes or what they're motives are. And when they're finally identified (as is shown in the picture below), the reveal is so uninteresting that it's nearly more shocking than it was intended to be. It took four whole issues to get to that point, and I honestly couldn't understand why the writer even bothered to go for all that mystery and intrigue, and then drop the information as a cliffhanger for issue #46. What the fuck does he think the word "cliffhanger" even means?
[This image was taken from the end of issue #45, and I chopped off the dialogue box on the left so that I don't spoil things for you too much if you still wish to read this. (Again, I'm being sarcastic; you'd be missing nothing. This is just me being courteous.) Besides this being included at the end of an issue, you wanna know how I know this was intended as a cliffhanger? Just look at the dramatic scowl shrouded in shadow preceding the ominous "To Be Continued" on the bottom right, and then you tell me if I'm wrong.]
[Just a little snippet to demonstrate Guggenheim's sense of humor. I know tastes vary, but just know that the humor never truly rises above this level – despite the writer's rather frequent attempts – so feel free to use this as a rough gauge of what you could be getting into.]
So far, I think I've made the argument for around a 2.5-star rating. But when you factor in the fact that an extra 1-2 (out of 6) issues were used to tell a story worth no more than four, combined with a meaningless and redundant 7th issue exploring the near-death experiences Logan had in the previous six, you get a half-star less.
For the writer, I assume the intention was for readers to sympathize with Wolverine's pain and frustration surrounding the political and emotional implications of recent events, but this book barely touched on that at all, and Wolverine ended up seeming petty compared to his superhero peers. Furthermore, the writer significantly underutilizes the potential offered by the Civil War event, and drags on an uncreative and inconsequential story way past what is required; nothing here provides useful or interesting insight into the Civil War, and the writer just uses the event as an excuse to write another vapid Wolverine comic.
November 4, 2008
Wolverine gets blowed up and then kills some more people (they're like, bad guys, y'know, so it's ok).
The story is entertaining (and loosely tied in with the Civil War storyline) but what really made me giggle was Wolverine's meganormous neck. Seriously. This Humberto Ramos guy can draw some interesting facial expressions and cool sequences, but Wolverine's neck is huge. I don't think he'll need his claws anymore, he'll just neck people to death.
The story is entertaining (and loosely tied in with the Civil War storyline) but what really made me giggle was Wolverine's meganormous neck. Seriously. This Humberto Ramos guy can draw some interesting facial expressions and cool sequences, but Wolverine's neck is huge. I don't think he'll need his claws anymore, he'll just neck people to death.
June 12, 2022
Wolverine, Wolverine… Como parto contigo, porque si bien seguías el camino de la venganza de forma tradicional y clásica, donde lo terminaste logrando, tenías un sin fin de ideas por explorar, pero terminaste solo vengándote de lo que pensabas y nada más. Sinceramente es de mis historias favoritas de Civil War, conjunto con las historias de Los Cuatro Fantásticos y Spiderman, porque va presentando lo que también significa una guerra, el beneficio de unos pocos. Lo dice textualmente Lobezno, este tipo de cosas no le llaman la atención, ya lo había visto en otras guerra, donde finalmente se incentiva la guerra con tal de tener ganancias de estas. Si bien la premisa es interesante, la crítica está dando por muchísimas partes, por lo tanto no es nueva, y donde podría haber sacado ventaja, que era Wolverine dar un mensaje a los superhéroes sobre que esta guerra no lleva a ninguna parte, queda en nada, es ahí mi reparo. ¿Imagínate ver Wolverine diciéndole a Capitan América y Iron Man que finalmente ninguno de los dos bandos está bien, porque los daños colaterales son tan grandes que los beneficiados no son ellos, sino otros (como Damage Control)? Pero él luego de vengar lo que quería, termina alejándose del conflicto, donde podemos justificar o no sus acciones, pero bueno, es parte de la gracia de este tipo de tramas tan delicadas, tomar posturas donde hay personas que están de acuerdo y otras que no.
October 5, 2020
Комікс намальовано Рамосом, так що за графоуні переживати не варто. В плані малюнку ти отримаєш саме те, за що заплатив - сучасну історію про супергероїв з майже ідеальною картинкою, гіперболізованою саме там, де це потрібно.
Сюжет розвивається у рамках глобальної події “Марвел”, Громадянської війни, і на відміну від фільму, у коміксах все дійсно масштабно.
Що робить Росомаха під час івенту? Звичайно ж, мститься тим, хто влаштував вибух у Стемфорді. Логана намагаються зупинити, бо ж не час для самосуду, “нада разабрацца”, а він тіка і кілька разів майже помира.
Наче поки що дуже стандартно, еге ж? Ми всі розуміємо, яким буде фінал, хай нам і підкидають кілька додаткових персонажів і додають поворотів.
Цікава тут остання частина, до Логан описує те, як кожного разу повертається до життя. І тут автори напхали релігійних символів і образів з минулого Логана, додавши світло у кінці тунелю, від якого Росомаха кожного разу робить ноги. Мало того, з часом після чергової загибелі треба битися з давнім ворогом прямо у Лімбі, щоб повернутися у світ живих. Ось це і вирізняє арку у велетенському списку історій про помсту.
Сюжет розвивається у рамках глобальної події “Марвел”, Громадянської війни, і на відміну від фільму, у коміксах все дійсно масштабно.
Що робить Росомаха під час івенту? Звичайно ж, мститься тим, хто влаштував вибух у Стемфорді. Логана намагаються зупинити, бо ж не час для самосуду, “нада разабрацца”, а він тіка і кілька разів майже помира.
Наче поки що дуже стандартно, еге ж? Ми всі розуміємо, яким буде фінал, хай нам і підкидають кілька додаткових персонажів і додають поворотів.
Цікава тут остання частина, до Логан описує те, як кожного разу повертається до життя. І тут автори напхали релігійних символів і образів з минулого Логана, додавши світло у кінці тунелю, від якого Росомаха кожного разу робить ноги. Мало того, з часом після чергової загибелі треба битися з давнім ворогом прямо у Лімбі, щоб повернутися у світ живих. Ось це і вирізняє арку у велетенському списку історій про помсту.
December 29, 2015
Here we see Wolverine go on a manhunt to find Nitro, the instigator of the Stamford incident. I should've expected a graphic novel featuring Wolverine to be gory, but wow, note to self: don't read before going to bed (haha).
But I digress... This is a tightly-woven storyline, and the only story I wondered about in its inclusion in this collection was the last one, where Wolverine talks about what it's like to die, but not cross over to the other side. But after I read it, I think I understand why it was included. This was not only about Stamford and the Civil War, but also about Wolverine's character development; showing the readers what it's really like to be Wolverine.
He's still my favorite X-Men character, and I'm glad he showed up in the Civil War thread so I had an excuse to finally read a graphic novel which featured him. No Cap, even though they seem to align ideologically, and very little Iron man; but still relevant to the Civil War plot, and definitely worth reading. Just... maybe not right before you go to bed. ; )
But I digress... This is a tightly-woven storyline, and the only story I wondered about in its inclusion in this collection was the last one, where Wolverine talks about what it's like to die, but not cross over to the other side. But after I read it, I think I understand why it was included. This was not only about Stamford and the Civil War, but also about Wolverine's character development; showing the readers what it's really like to be Wolverine.
He's still my favorite X-Men character, and I'm glad he showed up in the Civil War thread so I had an excuse to finally read a graphic novel which featured him. No Cap, even though they seem to align ideologically, and very little Iron man; but still relevant to the Civil War plot, and definitely worth reading. Just... maybe not right before you go to bed. ; )
May 17, 2014
At first I thought the artwork was weird, the proportions were odd, and every character was off-model.... But then the artwork really grew on me! It's quirky and different, and I really liked the look of Iron Man and Namor in this collection.
In this collection we follow Logan as he tracks down Nitro, the villain responsible for the Stamford disaster. Along the way he crosses paths with some Atlanteans, who are also hellbent on revenge against Nitro. Logan is forced to question his motives, how much he values vengeance, and as he tries to answer those questions, he discovers where is true allegiance lies.
As always, wolverine is a cool balance of humour and violence. The added bonus of this collection is that it deals with two Civil War side stories that kinda get ignored in all the other tie-ins.
It's really good, but not great. Certainly worth reading if you are revisiting the Civil War crossover event.
3.5/5
In this collection we follow Logan as he tracks down Nitro, the villain responsible for the Stamford disaster. Along the way he crosses paths with some Atlanteans, who are also hellbent on revenge against Nitro. Logan is forced to question his motives, how much he values vengeance, and as he tries to answer those questions, he discovers where is true allegiance lies.
As always, wolverine is a cool balance of humour and violence. The added bonus of this collection is that it deals with two Civil War side stories that kinda get ignored in all the other tie-ins.
It's really good, but not great. Certainly worth reading if you are revisiting the Civil War crossover event.
3.5/5
September 14, 2007
Wolverine, plastered on most Marvel books these days, was conspicuously absent from Civil War. This book shows his surprisingly central task in the crossover: he went after Nitro, who caused the "Stamford Incident." I'm really surprised none of the other CW books I read mentioned this. Anyway, that vendetta spins off into other dealings with Atlantis, Iron Man, and Damage Control.
Marc Guggenheim writes competent plot point-to-plot point stories, though war profiteering isn't the most engaging comic book subject. Humberto Ramos, however, cannot draw Wolverine. His neck was too small, his costume's pointy ears too small, and the size of his claws was all over the place. I don't understand why he's a "fan favorite" as the back of the book claims.
Marc Guggenheim writes competent plot point-to-plot point stories, though war profiteering isn't the most engaging comic book subject. Humberto Ramos, however, cannot draw Wolverine. His neck was too small, his costume's pointy ears too small, and the size of his claws was all over the place. I don't understand why he's a "fan favorite" as the back of the book claims.
May 30, 2012
This book has the worst art. The worst. Wolverine looks like he is part gorilla. And when I say 'part', I mean 'at least three quarters'.
Also, Wolvie's storyline in the Civil War is a bit meandering and plotless, but this pales next to the fact that there is a woman who looks like two balloons taped to a yardstick.
Also, Wolvie's storyline in the Civil War is a bit meandering and plotless, but this pales next to the fact that there is a woman who looks like two balloons taped to a yardstick.
August 14, 2015
I like the art in this, even if they do make Wolverine ten times bigger than everyone else, and his arms as thick as a plasma screen TV.
September 21, 2019
8.8 good. Good addition to the civil war series and a overall good comic. Writing was good bit the main part was the entertainment level. Just a fun civil war addition a good 1 for your shelf.
April 1, 2020
I'm still trying to catch up on my reviews, but I've been on the damned computer all day, so this is the one you're getting from me.
So I've been gradually been going through all of the Civil War related crossovers, and to this point I've found that the Ed Brubaker crossover in Captain America: The Death of Captain America has effectively been the outlier since as I have said many times before, these publisher events tend to be limiting to the creative teams writing the books. The Wolverine crossover takes on a subplot from Civil War directly as most of the action concerns Wolverine's hunting down of the super-villain Nitro, who is the character that sets events in motion in Civil War.
This collection was written by Marc Guggenheim, who basically brought the Arrowverse into being by being one of the creators of the CW's Arrow but at the time he was writing Wolverine he was best known for being a writer on Law & Order. Guggenheim doesn't really break any new ground here with Wolverine, as most writers have followed the "tough loner" format that was perfected by Claremont and Byrne and later Claremont with Frank Miller. As such, Wolverine stories tend to feel one note and this one really isn't much different.
I think that I would maybe be more interested in reading Guggenheim's take on Wolverine now that he's more established thanks to Arrow and without Civil War getting in the way. But that's not what we got here, which, while enjoyable, is totally something I've seen before.
So I've been gradually been going through all of the Civil War related crossovers, and to this point I've found that the Ed Brubaker crossover in Captain America: The Death of Captain America has effectively been the outlier since as I have said many times before, these publisher events tend to be limiting to the creative teams writing the books. The Wolverine crossover takes on a subplot from Civil War directly as most of the action concerns Wolverine's hunting down of the super-villain Nitro, who is the character that sets events in motion in Civil War.
This collection was written by Marc Guggenheim, who basically brought the Arrowverse into being by being one of the creators of the CW's Arrow but at the time he was writing Wolverine he was best known for being a writer on Law & Order. Guggenheim doesn't really break any new ground here with Wolverine, as most writers have followed the "tough loner" format that was perfected by Claremont and Byrne and later Claremont with Frank Miller. As such, Wolverine stories tend to feel one note and this one really isn't much different.
I think that I would maybe be more interested in reading Guggenheim's take on Wolverine now that he's more established thanks to Arrow and without Civil War getting in the way. But that's not what we got here, which, while enjoyable, is totally something I've seen before.
February 4, 2018
Continuing the great X-read of 2017 that has now stretched into 2018...
Okay. So I am way behind on reviewing these x-books that I have been reading. So I am going to just kind of ramble about all of them and copy/paste my thoughts. Which will make for a bit of a mess and I am sorry. Quick ramblings:
Cable and Deadpool continues to be surprisingly good though a little more scattered in these couple of volumes.
X-Men the Blood of Apocalypse was rushed in my opinion...
Phoenix Warsong was pretty decent. Melodramatic but not a bad story. (and when is a Phoenix story not melodramatic?)
New X-Men is a good series with some great characters that grow volume by volume.
Uncanny First Foursaken was not my cup of tea really.
Black Panther: The Bride was probably much better to BP readers. As part of an X-Men run, it can probably be skipped.
Wolverine Origins born in blood was not particularly memorable.
Astonishing X-Men will possibly get its own review as it is a reread and interesting as such...
Civil War was one of the first times in my life that I could say that the movie was better than the book. For the most part, it was really boring to me. The X-Men universe tie-ins were only slightly more interesting to me.
X-factor continues to be a delight.
Exiles continues to be great.
I need to get back to writing reviews of these as I finish them. Reading them in quick succession like this, I begin to forget what happened in individual books (which I suppose equally speaks to the books themselves and my memory...)
Okay. So I am way behind on reviewing these x-books that I have been reading. So I am going to just kind of ramble about all of them and copy/paste my thoughts. Which will make for a bit of a mess and I am sorry. Quick ramblings:
Cable and Deadpool continues to be surprisingly good though a little more scattered in these couple of volumes.
X-Men the Blood of Apocalypse was rushed in my opinion...
Phoenix Warsong was pretty decent. Melodramatic but not a bad story. (and when is a Phoenix story not melodramatic?)
New X-Men is a good series with some great characters that grow volume by volume.
Uncanny First Foursaken was not my cup of tea really.
Black Panther: The Bride was probably much better to BP readers. As part of an X-Men run, it can probably be skipped.
Wolverine Origins born in blood was not particularly memorable.
Astonishing X-Men will possibly get its own review as it is a reread and interesting as such...
Civil War was one of the first times in my life that I could say that the movie was better than the book. For the most part, it was really boring to me. The X-Men universe tie-ins were only slightly more interesting to me.
X-factor continues to be a delight.
Exiles continues to be great.
I need to get back to writing reviews of these as I finish them. Reading them in quick succession like this, I begin to forget what happened in individual books (which I suppose equally speaks to the books themselves and my memory...)
October 30, 2019
This was almost a perfect Wolverine story, and certainly one of the better sub-plots of Marvel Comics’ Civil War story line. Logan is tasked with chasing down and catching or eliminating the super human responsible for the mass killing that cause the public to demand a Super Human Registration Act. The villain in question can basically generate a small nuclear blast.
I won’t say more other than this. The collection gives a lot of great lines, some wonderful action beats, as well as insight into Wolverine’s perspective and insight into the problems facing mutant and other superhuman alike.
The only major complaint I have is that he survives something that I don’t think he could have survived. You may say, “doesn’t he always?” I don’t mind the survivals so long as they don’t violate the rules of his powers. The wound he heals from violates completely his established biology. It’s a small complaint that I can look past because we also get some insight into his atheism, which is neat.
I won’t say more other than this. The collection gives a lot of great lines, some wonderful action beats, as well as insight into Wolverine’s perspective and insight into the problems facing mutant and other superhuman alike.
The only major complaint I have is that he survives something that I don’t think he could have survived. You may say, “doesn’t he always?” I don’t mind the survivals so long as they don’t violate the rules of his powers. The wound he heals from violates completely his established biology. It’s a small complaint that I can look past because we also get some insight into his atheism, which is neat.
May 8, 2018
I really, really wanted to like this. I am not a huge fan of Wolverine; however, I thought the story of him hunting down Nitro would be enthralling....
What this ended up being, was like the first 1/8 him hunting down and finding Nitro, and then the rest him tracking a rather boring corporate corruption issue. Honestly, I found myself not caring even a fraction about this. It tried to put a more complicated spin on this, when it should have just been an interesting and enticing chase.
Even the early showdown with Nitro was boring and uninspiring, its over with a bang and then a fizzle
Perhaps the worse part was the repeat every...single...chapter of how Wolverine is the best at what he does.... bleh
This was disappointing and I wouldn't ever go out of my way to read it again.
What this ended up being, was like the first 1/8 him hunting down and finding Nitro, and then the rest him tracking a rather boring corporate corruption issue. Honestly, I found myself not caring even a fraction about this. It tried to put a more complicated spin on this, when it should have just been an interesting and enticing chase.
Even the early showdown with Nitro was boring and uninspiring, its over with a bang and then a fizzle
Perhaps the worse part was the repeat every...single...chapter of how Wolverine is the best at what he does.... bleh
This was disappointing and I wouldn't ever go out of my way to read it again.
August 12, 2022
Pues la verdad que esta historia me ha sorprendido muy gratamente. No le tenía muchas expectativas y ha estado genial. Es una historia de venganza donde Lobezno trata de perseguir a la verdadera chispa que inició la Civil War. No le he puesto cinco estrellas porque no se trata de un mega evento, pero tengo que decir que Lobezno cada vez me gusta más como personaje.
El dibujo está muy influenciado por el manga, y por ello no le tenía mucha fe al principio. Aunque me costó entrar en él, con el transcurso de las páginas he sabido apreciarle cada vez más. Una historia buena de Lobezno que no puede entenderse sin su arco argumental de Civil War. Tengo muchas ganas de saber cómo va a seguir la historia del personaje, y si continuará sus andaduras con los Nuevos Vengadores tal y como están las cosas en este universo Marvel.
El dibujo está muy influenciado por el manga, y por ello no le tenía mucha fe al principio. Aunque me costó entrar en él, con el transcurso de las páginas he sabido apreciarle cada vez más. Una historia buena de Lobezno que no puede entenderse sin su arco argumental de Civil War. Tengo muchas ganas de saber cómo va a seguir la historia del personaje, y si continuará sus andaduras con los Nuevos Vengadores tal y como están las cosas en este universo Marvel.
January 6, 2018
Civil war is going one between the heroes but, hey, what ever happened to the guy that killed all of those people to start this mess in the first place? Well, this story will tell you.
Wolverine goes on the hunt for Nitro, the villain responsible for wiping out an entire town and starting the super hero civil war. As it turns out, the chase isn't that simple as Wolverine uncovers an entire conspiracy involving power-enhancing drugs and government agencies.
This is one of the better Civil War side stories. At the end, we get an epilogue where Wolverine talks a little about how is regeneration works and where his mind goes when he "dies" and is regenerating.
Wolverine goes on the hunt for Nitro, the villain responsible for wiping out an entire town and starting the super hero civil war. As it turns out, the chase isn't that simple as Wolverine uncovers an entire conspiracy involving power-enhancing drugs and government agencies.
This is one of the better Civil War side stories. At the end, we get an epilogue where Wolverine talks a little about how is regeneration works and where his mind goes when he "dies" and is regenerating.
August 18, 2017
I started out reading stories of Wolverine in the 90's and before, so maybe that's why I don't care for the new version of the character. This version, one who can regrow his body after being annihilated by 500 degree blasts leaving only his adamantium skeleton behind, leaves little to cheer for. Who cares who or what he's facing if nothing can kill him? If there's nothing to lose, it's not interesting. Call him a hairier, unfunny Deadpool and be done with it.
The reference to Jean Gray's constant reviving was funny, though.
Bring back Claremont.
The reference to Jean Gray's constant reviving was funny, though.
Bring back Claremont.
June 30, 2019
I love these kids of Wolverine stories... where he has some people who need killin and everyone else is trying to get in his way.
This was a good read. The art was mostly good except the faces; too cartoony.
It reminded me a lot of Enemy of the State by Mark Millar. It had the same man against the world feel.
As far as Civil War tie ins go, this was one of the best. It actually tied in to the main arc in a way that mattered, but also stood on it’s own as a wild and fun Logan adventure.
Definite recommend.
This was a good read. The art was mostly good except the faces; too cartoony.
It reminded me a lot of Enemy of the State by Mark Millar. It had the same man against the world feel.
As far as Civil War tie ins go, this was one of the best. It actually tied in to the main arc in a way that mattered, but also stood on it’s own as a wild and fun Logan adventure.
Definite recommend.
May 26, 2021
Wolverine is going after the guy who really caused the catastrophe that kicked off the civil war.
The story itself was great. Wolverine really is the voice of reason in the whole insanity, and he is the one going around slicing and dicing.
However, I am not a fan of the art. For me, the drawings of the characters were too crude, nearly developing into caricature territory.
For my taste, the art did not fit the story, however, a more realistic style would have been quite brutal and graphic with all the violence going on.
The story itself was great. Wolverine really is the voice of reason in the whole insanity, and he is the one going around slicing and dicing.
However, I am not a fan of the art. For me, the drawings of the characters were too crude, nearly developing into caricature territory.
For my taste, the art did not fit the story, however, a more realistic style would have been quite brutal and graphic with all the violence going on.
March 3, 2017
Plot holes/problems:
1. Why did wolverine get on top of a building just to jump on Tony's back?
2. How did the syringe that wolverine through into the guys neck deposit the liquid? it needs to be pressed first.
3. How did wolverine not drown when he poked holes in the Iron Man suit underwater?
4. How did wolverine carry in data-miner when he was just wearing his suit?
1. Why did wolverine get on top of a building just to jump on Tony's back?
2. How did the syringe that wolverine through into the guys neck deposit the liquid? it needs to be pressed first.
3. How did wolverine not drown when he poked holes in the Iron Man suit underwater?
4. How did wolverine carry in data-miner when he was just wearing his suit?
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