Friday, September 01, 2006

Wolverine #45

Wolverine #45
Honestly, I only read this because Paul said it was good. And compared to last month's issue, it is. But still, why the hell is Namorita dead? My earlier criticism stands - if there is a null zone around Nitro, then being that she was ON TOP OF HIM wouldn't she have been in it? SO WHY IS SHE DEAD??? But that's not the point of this review.
This issue was actually pretty coherent. Some cute moments, such as Wolverine SNIKTing while wearing underwater Iron Man armor.
Quibble (minor): With his acute senses, and especially with the amplification of an Iron Man suit, wouldn't Wolvie have heard Politus' dying words? And (major) why would Nitro have even given up that little tidbit if he was about to blast Politus anyways? And why didn't his blast incinerate Politus? And what kind of name is Politus anyways? "He who is Polite?"
Quibbles aside, I liked the story. It seems my earlier guess was wrong, and actually a bit naive! Stamford wasn't a cog in the political machine, it was a MONEY MAKING OPPORTUNITY!!! Gee, I wonder how they thought that one up. Can anybody say Halliburton? Still, a nice instance of pop culture keeping its finger on America's pulse. It may turn out that I was right after all for all that. Since when was politics completely detached from the concerns of big business?
I don't like Namor calling Wolverine out as an honorless murderer. Wolvie lives by the code of the samurai, and he has more honor than somebody like Cyke, so, seriously, whatchu talkin' 'bout Mackenzie? But people say stupid things in the heat of the moment, so I'll let it slide.
Interesting lettercol as well. Apparently there have been other instances wherein Wolverine has regenerated after having been reduced to a skeleton or less...interesting that Wolverine, the original, now emulates the joke/parody, namely, Lobo. Wolverine has regenerated from a drop of blood? Man, how I miss the good old days when Claremont actually wrote good stories that made sense. Claremont was the first one to characterize Logan in any detail or depth, and it is upsetting to realize just how much he later betrayed these classic stories. Still, in light of this, you can't entirely blame Guggenheim. He's just playing the cards he's been dealt. But he could still have had better judgement - he could have consigned those awful stories to the discard pile, but instead he chose to hold onto them and use them to build his hand. Okay, I'm done running with that metaphor. Sorry.
Anyways, all said, this issue is OKAY. I'm still too pissed off too rate it any higher, and the art is woefully inconsistent, and darn near incoherent, at times. Sometimes, during action sequences, one really wishes that the linework would get tighter, rather than looser. I understand the artist trying to convey the mood of the scene through his art, but please have mercy on the poor readers who actually have to try and figure out what you're drawing, okay?
As far as Wolverine books go, I'll take Exiles (for now), but this is an OKAY second this month.
What did you think?
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