Wolverines

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Wolverines 20

Posted by John Klein III on January 4, 2016
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 20

Writer Charles Soule

Artist Juan Doe

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

Final Issue!

New York City.  The Law Offices of Paine & Luckberg, LLP.  Two Days Ago.  Mystique dropped off a box years ago to be delivered on a certain date.  I like how Mystique wrote her real name and her codename in quotes.

The Flordia Everglades.  Near Citrusville.  Now.  Mystique is surprised by the appearance of Man-Thing, which seems odd as it isn’t like he isn’t an unknown character.  Man-Thing rocks!  Even Portal knows who Man-Thing is.

Wolverines 20 Shogun 1

Elsewhere in the Swamp.  Shogun explains that Sinister made it so that Ogun is locked away somewhere inside Sharp’s head.

Wolverines 20 Shogun 2

Siphon is also in the room and starts attacking those with a healing factor – Sabretooth, X23 and Deathstrike.

Man-Thing is burning Mystique, as she isn’t afraid of him, she’s afraid of losing this opportunity to bring Destiny back to life.  She starts talking about her love for Destiny and he releases her.

Siphon starts draining X23’s healing factor but she cuts him deeply.  He drops them both and goes after Lady Deathstrike.  Shogun steps in and starts really letting into him – cutting even deeper.  Daken shouts that now Siphon will come at Lady Deathstrike even harsher.  Daken tries to imply that Lady Deathstrike is incapable of love.

Lady Deathstrike jumps into the fight so that Shogun isn’t on his own.  Shogun is taken down, pretty easily.

Shogun drains Lady Deathstrike’s healing factor, he comes to his senses.  Just then, Portal appears and takes Siphon with him.  Portal is impress that Mystique fought off Man-Thing.  He wants her to give him the Zhulong, a Chinese artifact.  Portal shoots the magical harpoon at Siphon, to steal Siphon’s excess energy.  Portal teleports Shiphon away.

Mystique wants Portal to teleport her to a spot in the multiverse.

Back with the Wolverines, X23 is without her healing factor for the first time.  She wonders when the pain stops, and Daken tells her that it doesn’t.  Sabretooth wants to go after Siphon, and he teleports right in front of them.  They know that Siphon has been drained again and by that, they know that Mystique must be near by.  Daken wants to use Siphon as a bloodhound to track Mystique.

Portal opens a . . . portal to where Mystique wants to go.  Once she gets there, she can break a crystal to close it.

Mystique is about to step through the portal when the Wolverines arrive.  She tells them that they don’t need them anymore and that they can leave.  Lady Deathstrike rips off Siphon’s head.  She says something completely dumb – even without their healing factors, they can still kill.  Like, of course they can – why wouldn’t they be able to?

Mystique throws a smoke bomb and no one can sniff her out.  Mystique as Daken stabs X23 to her gut.

Wolverines 20 Shogun Final Appearance

X23 stabs Sabretooth.  Sabretooth slashes Daken.  Lady Deathstrike and Shogun face off.

Mystique walks through the portal, the delivery gal gives her the box and takes off.  She opens the box and there is a letter from Destiny.  She lied to Mystique.  Mystique was never meant to bring back Destiny from the dead.  Destiny knew that, once Wolverine died, everybody would die so she created this situation that should keep Mystique alive.

Destiny wants Mystique to bring Logan back to life.  Mystique rather let the world burn and breaks the crystal, closing that door.  Which is pretty bad arse.  It does feel super cheap that this has been twenty issues of no payoff but we got some excellent Ogun moments but was it worth it?  Time will tell but I imagine come a year from now, no one would be discussing this series.

Marvel, I have to give them credit, got nineteen issues of a weekly series out on time.  This issue was delayed a week but people credit that to having been delayed for Secret War 2015 but I’m not sure why this issue didn’t come out prior to issue one of that series, that would have made more sense.

Decent series, I wouldn’t recommend buying any of the trades – or if you do, only the Sinister trades – so the first and last ones.

Wolverines 19

Posted by John Klein III on December 13, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , , . 1 Comment

Wolverines 19

Writer Charles Soule

Artist Ariela Kristantina

Colorist Sonia Oback

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

The Changling, One Hour Ago.  Mystique is watching a new section (to us) of Destiny’s video.  Destiny is explaining how crucial the final steps are, to bring her back.  There will be a lot of improvising.

Wolverines 19 Shogun 1

Poor Lady Deathstrike is holding onto Shogun.

Mister Sinister comes at Mystique, so hard.  She starts talking and he grabs her by her lying dumb mouth.

X23 wakes up Daken, he wants nothing to do with Sinister and wants to just leave.  X23 is under the impression if they all defeat him, Mystique will get them home.  As they are currently in the middle of the ocean.  X23 wants a progress report on Shogun from Lady Deathstrike, She informs the spawn of Wolverine that Shogun is dead.

Wolverines 19 Ogun 1

Ogun, in awesome page turn reveal, tells her that he leaves.  Which is so fantastic!

Lady Deathstrike thought Fang killed Ogun but he just pushed him way down.  Sharp was finally at death’s door so Ogun was able to finally do what he has been wanting this entire time, and take control over the body.  Ogun really enjoys Lady Deathstrike, which I like seeing a more romantic side of him.  If, romantic, is the right word.

Wolverines 19 Ogun 2

I really enjoy Lady Deathstrike’s disbelief of the situation.  She has two dudes, well two minds, sharing one body, fighting over her to be her gentleman companion.  Ogun’s stakes are pretty low, if he dies, he will get a new body and if Sinsiter dies, that’s one more impressive death to add to Ogun’s vita.

While talking to Mystique, Sinister gets a s-word through the chest and Mystique drops to the ground.  She shouts that everyone should get to the ship.  Which I guess wasn’t destroyed in the crash.  There was a giant explosion but everything, once the dust settled, was pretty much the same.  That’s some impressive construction!

Wolverines 19 Ogun 3

Sinister recognizes that the person he is fighting, should be the soldier, Sharp.  Ogun corrections him, Sinister is facing – The Father of Blades.  Which I imagine sounds cool on the page but I’m feeling like I have to give a lot of emphasis on it, to give it the proper weight.

Ogun claims to be the demon that caused Sinister nightmares as a child.  Sinister, in possibly the coolest line of the year, tells Ogun that he was never a child.

Ogun cuts off the fingers of Sinister’s left hand and Sinister is barely impressed.

Mystique gets the Wolverines back together and starts giving orders.  Sabretooth can’t believe he killed Junk, he has no memory of it.  Lady Deathstrike is to watch Sabretooth.  Mystique keeps calling him, Shogun, and Lady Deathstrike hints that is no longer Shogun but Mystique doesn’t have time to ask follow-up questions.  X23’s orders are to grab the contents of a red chest in Mystique’s room.  Daken is to check on Siphon.

X23 opens the chest and sees that old costumes are in it but it looks like a wedding dress, to me.

Marvel Tribute Herb Trimpe 1939 - 2015 In Memory of a Giant Among Legends

There is a great Marvel tribute to Herb Trimpe’s passing.  1939 – 2015, in memory of a Giant among Legends.  So true!

Mystique, as X23, tells Daken that they should fight Sinister.  Mystique gives Portal the Zhulong, a dagger like item that will let him teleport anywhere.  So he agrees to help her, also, he doesn’t want Sinister to kill him.

Elsewhere.  Siphon bites Daken and he puts a collar on Siphon.

Wolverines 19 Ogun 4

Ogun mistakenly tells Sinister how Ogun was so smart to take over Sharp’s body, once it was almost lifeless.  Sinister injects Ogun with the same serum that released Endo, Neuro and Skel from their sooner-than-expected expiration dates.

Sabretooth still can’t believe he killed Junk, he suspects that Mystique had a hand in that. X23 interrupts Sabretooth and Lady Deathstrike’s conversation to tell them that she is really done this time with Mystique.

Wolverines 19 Ogun 5

Siphon obsorbs Sinister’s healing factor, which I didn’t see coming!  I should have, as Sinister bragged earlier about how his healing factor rivals even Wolverine’s!  And that guy survived an atomic bomb explosion!

I like how, once the serum kicks in, Sharp takes control of the body and the mask is back to being broken.  When Ogun was in charge, the mask was for real.

Sinister doesn’t recognize Siphon.

Wolverines 19 Ogun 6

It looks like Shogun (Sharp?) cuts off Sinister’s head.  Siphon is back to being able to speak, and if he isn’t hurt – to badly – he shouldn’t have to feed for months.  So, of course, he is shot multiple times.

Shogun and Daken are not happy with this turn of events but Mystique just has Portal teleport them elsewhere.

X23, Sabretooth (who is colored blue throughout this issue, but not everytime) and Lady Deathstrike arrive on the scene.  X23 wants to know where the others were teleported too.  Portal just teleports them to that location as well.

Issue ends with Portal teleporting the two of them to the Nexus of All Realities and he warns that the Nexus has a guardian.  Which I already know who that guardian is, but the last page shows up Man-Thing!  All who know fear, burn at Man-Thing’s touch!

So that ends the Sinister plot, and I imagine the final issue leads us into Secret Wars 2015?

I can’t believe I didn’t think about how the Nexus of All Realities, in Florida, would play some role in Secret Wars 2015, that just makes sense!  I’m glad the series got back on track and it was so great to see Ogun back in charge, even for a little bit!  I can only imagine Ogun/Sharp/Shogun appear in the final issue.  Here is hoping!

Wolverines 18

Posted by John Klein III on December 11, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 18

Writer Ray Fawkes

Artist Jonathan Marks

Colorist Lee Loughridge

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

Issue opens with Junk and Shogun, back to back, as the Wolverines surround them.  Mister Sinister actually refers to them as, my Wolverines.  He is preparing to make one of his giant speeches when the Changling crashes into the lab, exploding all around it.  Amazingly, no one dies in the explosion.

X23 starts attacking Shogun, he says her release word, Mangonel, and she is no longer under the threat of any control words.  That doesn’t help much, as Sabretooth – in a blind rage – comes barreling down on them.

Wolverines 18 Shogun 1

X23 wants Shogun to release Sabretooth but Shogun needs to release Lady Deathstrike first.  She gets in a few swipes on him.

Wolverines 18 Shogun 2

Shogun gets it together enough to say Lady Deathstrike’s release word, Flamberge.  She snaps out of it, amazed that he went through with it.

Junk tries to help X23 with Sabretooth, which mostly translates as – giving Sabretooth another target to concentrate on.

Skel wakes up Endo, as he wonders where Sinister went off to.

Wolverines 18 Shogun 3

Mystique is also alive and is upset that things have gone so wrong and off course.

Shogun says Sabretooth’s release word, Ulfberht, but Mystique has blocked Sabretooth’s ability to hear.  I have to admit to being impress with the codewords, as clearly they never would have come across someone saying these words before.

X23 tries to get Sabretooth off of Junk but Sabretooth straight up rips off Junk’s head.  That guy is dead.  Skel and X23 starts wailing on Sabretooth.

I like Shogun telling Lady Deathstrike that Sabretooth’s release word is, Ulfberht.  That way, if he dies, she can say it whenever Sabretooth can hear again.  Lady Deathstrike is sort of falling in love with Shogun, as he could have made her into a puppet but chose to not do so.

Endo knocks Lady Deathsrike aside and confronts Shogun for leaving her behind with Sinister.  He may have saved the three Paradise folks but he also made it impossible for them to die.

Sabretooth shoots Sabretooth in the head, putting him down.  Well, as down as Sabretooth usually goes.  Skel says Mystique killed Endo but I can’t tell whenever that happen besides seeing the BLAM on the previous page.  Marks painted style is incredible but I can’t figure out when a quasi-important character has been killed.

Wolverines 18 Ogun 1

Lady Deathstrike even kicks Endo’s body aside and Endo lets out an agh!

Lady Deathsrike is trying to help Shogun.  He knows he is dying but Ogun will most likely just jump to another body.  Lady Deathstrike loves both of them.

Mystique unloads her gun on Skel, but isn’t sure if the bullets are even having an effect on him.  Mystique gives some orders but X23 is done listening to her.

Wolverines 18 Ogun 2

They start bickering but Lady Deathstrike tells them to stop, as he wants to hear Shogun’s last words.  She really doesn’t want to lose either of the men in her life.

He doesn’t look like a blond Logan there, right?  It is hard to tell without the distinct mutton chops.

Shogun’s final words (of the issue, maybe ever?) are that Lady Deathsrike is the toughest person he has ever met and he is glad they got the time together that they had.

Lady Deathstrike pronounces him dead and Mystique wants to get the heck out of the lab – as the issue ends.

Wolverines 17

Posted by John Klein III on December 7, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 17

Writer Ray Fawkes

Art Juan Cabal

Colorist Antonio Fabela

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

The Gulf of Mexico.  Arcadia.  Mystique isn’t thrilled that she cannot community with anybody.  Just then, three Sinister cronies appear and start attacking her.

Inside Sinister’s Lab.  Neuro is acting pretty smug while the Wolverines make short work of the cronies.  Unfortunately, there are hundreds of them, so the fight keeps coming, even though it isn’t a challenge.

Wolverines 17 Shogun A

The Wolverines rather be fighting Sinister, but he never gets his own hands dirty, unless Cyclops’ seed is involved.

Poor Junk, strangely, he is torn from fighting his former friends, even though two of them are just standing about while Neuro takes great pleasure in the bloodshed.  Shogun wants everybody to fight with all of their might.

Skel wants Neuro to end teh fight with the control words but Neuro is all about making Sinister happy, and he is quite happy.

On Board the Changeling.  The cronies know they are dealing with a shapeshifter but she still tricks them by shifting into one of them.

Meanwhile.  Sabretooth is dead killing nameless crones and jumps towards Sinister.  Sinister just electrocutes Creed back to the ground.

Skel really wants the fighting to stop, as it is needless.  Sinister could stop it with the control words, at anytime.  Sinister finally gets tired of all of the whiny and insults the treasonous and failures to entertain him.  Neuro is really offended by this.

Sinister starts teh Oblation Protocol, so the cronies burn up, separating the Wolverines from each other and surrounding them by circles of fire.

Changeling.  Mystique has taken a second crony down and starts teasing the third one.  Instead of playing along, it blows up and the ship starts crashing towards the lab.  Mystique tries to save Portal and Siphon but she has to make sure she stays alive too.

Junk reveals he has electric eel powers, knocking a few more foes but also knocking Daken out.  He shocks Daken awake and I finally noticed that Daken doesn’t have his shoulder or chest tattoo.  When did he lose that?

Shogun kicks Neuro to the face!  Skel and Endo start punching Shogun.

Sinister starts walking away but X23 shkts Sinister’s left foot, through the floor.  He takes this as a grave insult and says all of the command words at the same time.  Daken, Sabretooth and Lady Deathstrike appear to be stun.  The issue ends, with the very next page, with the Changeling crashing through the ceiling of the lab.  The three villains no longer look like they are stun, so that didn’t last long.

I’m pretty excited about the final three issues and how they are leading to something.

Wolverines 16

Posted by John Klein III on December 3, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 16

Writer Charles Soule

Enhanced Pencils Ario Anindito

Enhanced Colors Sonia Oback

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

The road to the finale begins here!

Wolverines 16 Shogun 1

The Changeling.  Six Miles Above the Atlantic Ocean.  Two Hundred Miles West of the Azores.  Issue opens with Shogun spitting blood into a sink.

Wolverines 16 Shogun 2

Shogun is spitting blood, as the Paradise folks’ expiration date is coming upon them.  Junk reveals that he is a little further along the path, as he now has tar like veins on his arms, and they are spreading.  Neither Junk or Shogun are thrilled that their time seems to be shorter than they had expected.

Wolverines 16 Shogun 3

Junk is now learning more about his powers, he just learn he has chameleon abilities.  Junk really was hoping to join the side of the heroes and maybe one day, being an Avenger.  Shogun calling Junk, brother, seems odd to me.  Maybe the real Sharp is coming out now that Ogun may be completely out of his system.  Shogun is curious about Mystique’s plan but they can’t wait for her time table.

Junk can’t believe how far off course the Paradise team has come.  They keep getting distracted by the Wolverines nonsense.  Though he makes a point of liking Fang’s adventures, which I can only imagine is a meta message, as fans have to be like me, right?  In that Fang was the detour from the book proper?

Junk calls the Wolverines, all of them, monsters, as X23 walks into the room.  Which is bad timing as she is the best one there.

Rome, Italy.  The Arcadians, the ones the Paradise folks were being experimented on for so that the Arcadians can get the good material.  They are attacking Endo (who is not dead, apparently), Skel and Neuro – which a handy editorial note that we first met this group in Weapon X Project 5.  Neuro and his crew seem to be beating back the Arcadians, rather easily.  Some more Arcadians show up and Neuro surrenders.

Epsilon, the field leader, goes on television and announces who The Arcadians are.  On the Changeling, they are watching the news coverage.  Junk really doesn’t want to leave his former allies behind in the hands of the clear enemies.

The Changeling Deck E — Detention.  Mystique is checking in on Portal, who looks a tad by Wolverine – out of costume.  Portal and Mystique don’t have any history together.  She doesn’t want him as an enemy but she wants to save a friend, which I’m sure we haven’t had Destiny hinted or mention since issue two or three.  Siphon is sleeping in the next cell.

Junk wants to go save his friends.  Shogun has to explain who the Arcadians are, to Sabretooth, even though Sabretooth was in the room when the news was being aired.  Daken brings up the good point that Neuro wouldn’t go save Junk and Shogun, so maybe they shouldn’t go after them.  Shogun has to agree with Daken but Junk doesn’t care – Neuro may be horrible but he liked Endo and Skel.

X23 offers to help Junk save Endo and Skel, as they did seem like nice people.  With X23 on board, Shogun is happy to go through with the mission.  Which makes sense, he doesn’t want to be the sole fighter so that he has to do all of the fighting and still watch out for Junk.

Mystique comes in and does the one thing one shouldn’t do with this group.  Mystique tells Junk and Shogun that they can go, but she still needs X23 for her primary mission.  So X23 is definitely going now and Sabretooth and Daken are now a go for the mission to, as screw Mystique!  Which I really like that turn of events.

Daken is definitely growing his hair out, so he is now going to look like a tall (Dark) Wolverine with a missing arm and eye.

The Gulf of Mexico.  Arcadia.  Later.  Lady Deathstrike has also joined the team, Shogun tries to talk to Lady Deathstrike but she has no interest in him now that Ogun is no longer around.  The team makes very short work of the Arcadians.  It helps that the Arcadians are fake, as they are weak shells of people, filled with foam (or something).

The team opens the door and sees the real Arcadians but they are all dead.  Mystique warns them to get out of there but they continue on.  That Mystique, she doesn’t take any hints.

Neuro shows up and reveals that Mister Sinister is behind all of this.  He wanted to get the team out into the open.  Some light blue bald Mister Sinsiter cronies show up and pop two claws each, per hand – so Sinister really used Daken’s arm to beneficial results.  The issue ends with Sinister on deck.

Wolverines 15

Posted by John Klein III on October 28, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 15

Writer Ray Fawkes

Art Juan Doe

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

Death Valley.  Siphon has X23 by the throat.  Daken, who Doe tries his best to model-fix Daken from Larroca’s attempt.  The mutton chops are still there but now Daken’s full head of hair is a narly Mohawk type of cartoon samurai sort of thing.

Daken wants Siphon to turn his attention back onto him.  It wasn’t Siphon that got X23 involved, she wanted the fight to end and now Siphon will attempt to end her.  I really like how bored with all of this, Blade is.  Blade does like X23’s style, but that is it.  Siphon keeps taking hits, making him dumber and Daken keeps getting bones broken.

Wolverines 15 Shogun 1

36,000 Feet Above.  Another great plot in this issue?  Shogun just plain being done with Mystique and her silly secretive plans.  Mystique keeps playing dumb, which is the wrong move.  She should just reveal the next step in her plan and gain a little credibility.

Wolverines 15 Shogun 2

Mystique does hint what the plan is, that it is risky but it will solve all sorts of problems.

Siphon knocks Blade outside, which causes Blade to drop his s-word.  Siphon tries to pick up the sword but loses all of his fingers on his left hand.  That Blade, he really likes to keep his swords.  X23 starts taking petty on Siphon, as his brain has been reduced to only being able to make grunts.  Daken has the chance to kill Siphon but chooses not to, Blade takes his sword back.

The Changling arrives to pick everyone, but Blade, up.

Wolverines 15 Shogun 3

Daken gets on the plane and wants to know how they knew where they were.  They had jumped out of the plane and then stole a semitruck, and got to their final destination.

Shogun tries to explain that it is the tracking devices that they have that lead them there.  Daken knows that Mystique had a hand in it.  Shogun is excited about Siphon being on board, they could learn more about healing factors.

Wolverines 15 Shogun 4

I like how Sabretooth is under the impression that Junk is the resident tech guy, but all Junk knows how to do is press the computer buttons.

Daken suspects they are all lying to him.

Two Hours Later.  Daken comes into X23’s room.  X23 instantly recognizes Daken as Mystique, she feints shock but doesn’t change shape.  X23 states that Mystique is clearly close to her timetable but threatens to ruin it by leaving.  Once X23 leaves the room, Mystique shifts back to her proper form.

I do like how X23 tells Mystique that she will never tell how she knew it was Mystique the hold time.  I wonder if she has known for a while, as in the first few issues, Mystique posed as Daken.  I believe she didn’t do it to X23, so that’s why she is probably confident in her Daken impression.

Next issue promises to have Mister Sinister back!  Probably find out if Endo actually died, in an earlier issue.

Wolverines 14

Posted by John Klein III on October 24, 2015
Posted in: Review, Websites. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 14

Writer Ray Fawkes

Artist Salvador Larroca

Colorist Sonia Oback

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

Now that the silliness of the pure Deadpool issue is behind us, we can get back on track as this series ends with issue twenty and I imagine these last six issues are going to be fruitful.  Now that Ogun may be completely out of Shogun’s head, I’m not even sure I should be buying this?  I’m sure he will bounce back, it is Ogun, that is what he do!

36,000 Feet Above Neveda.  Mystique is trying to get all of her players where she needs to have them.  I like that we get her To Do List.

  • Daken must be ready to
  • Siphon must be brought
  • X23 needs to go to De
  • Portal is Essential
  • Deathstrike must f
  • Neuro cannot retu
  • Sinister will br

Deathstrike and Sinister is purposely vague but the rest makes sense with the reading of this issue.

Mystique calls Daken, using a fake identity.  We get to the main problem with this issue.  Larroca draws Daken as if he is Wolverine.  He has a full head of hair and even worst, mutton chops.  That isn’t Daken in they very least!  The point that other characters call him, Daken, and that he is missing his left eye and arm, prevents this from being another character.  How did an editor not catch that?  Also, does Larroca think that Daken looks just like Wolverine?  I suspect that Daken has never looked like Wolverine, like ever.  Well, except for when he was Dark Wolverine but that was merely a costume choice.

Mystique tells Daken where Siphon (the green fella that stole his healing factor) is located, he jumps out of the Changling.  Mystique, as Mystique, tells X23 what is happening.

Wolverines 14 Shogun Mention

X23 jumps out of the plane.

Mystique calls Sabretooth, Shogun, Deathstrike to the bridge.

For some reason, both Daken and X23 crash hard onto the ground.  Even with their parachutes deployed, they don’t land like they’ve jumped from planes for years.  A big rig truck comes by and Daken throws the driver out, via the window.  They head to a deserted gas station.  Once inside, they see both Siphon and Blade.

I do like X23 quickly trying to get Blade to recognize her from the X-Men Volume Two relaunch with Victor Gischler’s Curse of the Mutants storyline.  Blade remembers her, not like it really matters.

Blade was hoping to kill Siphon but is okay with Daken softening him up.

Wolverines 14 Shogun 1

Sabretooth notices that two of their number are missing.  Mystique simply states they stepped out.  She has an announcement to make.  Just then, Portal (who owns a similar mask to Darkhawk) portals in and attacks Mystique.  Sabretooth punches Portal to the back of his dumb head.

Wolverines 14 Shogun 2

I really like how casually Shogun knocks Portal out.  Shogun isn’t impress at all.  He can tell Mystique was manipulating the entire situation, he sees right through her.

Mystique hints that Portal is going to be a huge help to them.

In the middle of their fight, Siphon starts quoting Miyamoto Musashi’s Book of Five Rings.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Book_of_Five_Rings

“Know your enemy, know his sword”

Blade asks who Siphon is, and I like how Siphon speaks up, revealing the origin that he knows.  He is another Paradise reject.  When he hungers, that is all he can do is feed.  Once he feds, though, he starts remembering who he use to be.  He may have been a teacher.  Siphon apologizes for stealing Daken’s healing factor, he was told that Daken was better off dead – as he is a mass murderer.  Siphon isn’t wrong on that front.

With each new cut, Siphon warns, that he uses up the healing factor power that he . . . siphoned.  When that happens, he will hunger again and be simply a monster – once again.  Blade knows monsters and commits to taking out whoever wins between Daken and Siphon.  X23 would rather that the fighting just stopped.

Siphon, now that he can be a gentleman, agrees to Daken’s duel.

“The only reason a warrior is alive is to fight.  The only reason a warrior fights is to win.”

Siphon appears to break Daken’s one arm (or make it go numb) at the elbow.

Just then, the floor breaks apart as vampires come rushing out of the ground.  Of course

Daken is on the floor, crawling back to Siphon, when X23 has had enough.  It is a sad sight.  She comes at Siphon, cuts him deeply.  He (somehow) grabs her by the throat and is about to siphon her healing factor.

The issue ends with Daken, getting to his feet, he isn’t ready to go down yet.

“Do not fear death”

I can only imagine that come issue fifteen, Daken looks back on model.

Wolverines 2

Posted by John Klein III on October 14, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 2

Writer Ray Fawkes

Art Alisson Borges

Colorists Israel Silva & Brett Smith

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

Cover Dated March 2015

I was missing this issue but Hastings was able to back order it for me, which was pretty nice!  Now the only issue of the series I’m “missing” is issue 13 but that’s an all Deadpool and Fantomelle issue, so we’re skipping that one.  Can’t believe Fawkes and Soule didn’t check in with the main cast of the title, for even a page.  They did the same for issue three, which I also don’t own, as that is a pure Fantomelle issue.

After issues 9 – 12, that seemed like they took a major detour involving Fang of the Imperial Guard, it is nice to read this issue and how the series had a clear direction.

Wolverines 2 Shogun Mention

Nevada.  Mystique is getting a status update from the previous issue.  Mister Sinister not only stole Wolverine’s statue body but also Daken’s left eye and arm.  Neuro also tells her that Sabretooth and Shogun are offline.

Destiny is who Mystique is hearing in the narration boxes.

It makes perfect sense that the two groups of characters are not working well a a team, as the Paradise folks are essentially holding the Wolverines hostage, with the codewords.

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The Wrecking Crew have made short work of Skel, Shogun and Sabretooth.  Wrecker is ready to move on, as there isn’t anything keeping them there, now that Sinister is gone.  Lady Deathstrike is still on the move.

Daken is freaking out, rightfully so.  X23 is trying to sooth him and Junk is way over his head.

Mystique starts to give Endo and Neuro orders.  I don’t miss those two characters, at all.  Mystique sends Endo inside to retrieve Daken, I guess they don’t know that he doesn’t have his healing factor.

Junk says Daken’s control word to put him to sleep, Arquebus.  X23 can’t believe Junk had the nerve to that.

Endo comes running in and gets a crowbar to the legs.  Before the Wrecking Crew and start a beat down, Mystique offers them money, to simply walk away.  If not, she will hunt down all of their family members and ruin their lives.  Wrecker accepts, as he is being paid twice for doing the one job and the crew goes.

Everyone gets on board the Changeling.  I like Junk having to ask, who is Sinister.  That makes perfect sense, really, like only a hundred people probably should know who he is, he isn’t one of those villains that gets in front of a camera.

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Shogun starts arguing with Ogun, as he knows what to do to heal Daken.  Shogun had picked up a few Regen Serums, Ogun rather just let Daken die, one less threat.

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Neuro would rather not waste one of the limited Regen Serums on Daken either, they need those with healing factors (to save the Paradise folks) so if Daken no longer has his, he is no longer essential.  X23 can’t believe the folks she is stuck on a ship with.

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Shogun does the right thing and injects Daken.

One Hour Later.  X23 has stayed by Daken’s side, so she is there when he wakes up.  Now that Logan is dead, sadly, Daken is the closest thing to family that she has.

Lapland, Findland.  Sinister’s base.  He starts running tests on Wolverine.

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The team wants to take the fight to Sinister.  Mystique warns how dangerous Sinister is, he uses time and space as weapons.

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Not only that, if he captures you, he will turn you into a mindless weapon.  Or worst, just take some DNA, and keep making clones of you that do whatever he wants.  Mystique doesn’t know where Sinister is, but Neuro does.

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Daken had a tracer on him, that was luckily in his arm, so now they know where Sinister is.

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Neuro gives the reason why they need Wolverine, as vague as it is.  Wolverine’s body apparently has the key that will free the Paradise experiments from their internal death clocks.  Neuro had uploaded all of Paradise’s research, so he knows a great deal about Sinister.

Neuro just wants to find someone first, Fantomell, who will be perfect for this breaking and entering.  We see her on the last page, so I guess I own her first appearance now.  Not like I suspect she will be a big character once this series last issue (20) comes out nor after Secret Wars 2015.  Though Soule does seem to be sticking around Marvel, and he and Fawkes seem to really like her, so maybe she will become a big character.

Wolverines 12

Posted by John Klein III on October 8, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 12

Writer Ray Fawkes

Artist Ario Anindito

Colorist Matthew Wilson

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

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The Changeling.  Deathstrike’s Chambers, So the fight has moved from Shogun’s room to Lady Deathstrike’s room.  Ogun is trash talking Shogun, so he must know what is happening here.  Ogun reveals that he and Lady Deathstrike have a partnership, built around the idea to erase Sharp.

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Fang wants to speak to Shogun.  Mystique wants Junk to set up the spectral disruptors, which one would think she would have a code word for that, so that she wouldn’t tip her hand.  Junk does so and now Fang is distracted.  Mystique has a gun, that Reed found a similar one in the Negative Zone but this gun, she got from AIM.  The gun shoots across universes, so now she can destroy the gland that contains Fang’s soul.  X23 doesn’t want Mystique to succeed but Daken holds her back.  Which is awkward, as he only has the one arm, how much leverage is he really holding over her?

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While this fight is going on, Lady Deathstrike is pushing Shogun closer to death.  Ogun prepares to make his move, while Fang is losing a fight to Sabretooth.

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Fang teleports himself and Shogun away.  Mystique and Lady Deathstrike are both upset with this turn of events.  Mystique is sure that the gland was hit so Fang is truly vulnerable.

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Galaxy Desginate NGC 4945.  An Unnamed Planet.  Ogun is distracted by the new environment but decides to soldier on.

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Fang grabs him by the head.

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Sharp is back in control again and now he can’t hear Ogun’s voice.  Fang shut Ogun down!  Sharp takes responsibility for Logan’s death.

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Shogun (I will continue using that name) recognizes that Fang is not at full strength.  Fang falls over but he has enough energy to send Shogun back to Earth or to keep him on the planet.  Which makes no sense, as the second option, requires no energy at all.

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Sharp retells the ending of Death of Wolverine 4, that he was present for.  Sharp had a brief . . . fight, seems to be too generous of a term, with Wolverine.  It was mostly a delay tactic.

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Wolverine stopped fighting and just stared down Sharp.  I like seeing Proto-Sharp, as I could barely remember his first costume design.  Sharp kept fighting but one counter later, he was knocked out. Sharp woke up to the lab destroyed, he suspects that Cornelius is dead but he isn’t.  Marvel Database confirms that Cornelius dies but I thought he got away on the helicopter.  I guess I should reread that issue.

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Fang wishes he was there for all of that.  Instead of thanking Fang for burying Ogun, he starts fighting him.  Probably as he suspects that Fang plans on resetting him so that he and Ogun are sharing the same body.  I imagine that Fang would have listen to the request to keep him the same.

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Fang fights back, revenge was never what Wolverine was about – but I recall at least ten stories where that was all Wolverine was about.

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Fang sends Sharp back to Earth.

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Lady Deathstrike wants to know where Shogun is, as he teleports back in front of everybody.  Shogun tells the gathered villains that Fang is done with them all.  Lady Deathstrike wants to know who is in charge of the body, but it is Sharp.

Barcelona, Spain.  Fantomelle is looking over her Wolverine treasures and sees Fang’s costume.  She isn’t sure how it got into her room.  Culpepper brings in another costume but I don’t recognize it.  They are putting everything in boxes as their client is on their way.

Issue ends with the client being . . . Deadpool!  I like how fans could tell it was him, from the previous two pages, with the yellow dialogue balloons.

Deadpool recognizes the costume but I still don’t.  The color scheme, more orange than yellow with blue stripes, does look familiar.  Deadpool wants to be the next Wolverine.

Wolverines 11

Posted by John Klein III on October 6, 2015
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Wolverines 11

Writer Charles Soule

Artist Ariela Kristantina

Colorist Sonia Oback

Letterer VC’s Cory Petit

Knowhere.  Years Ago.  Fang is telling X23 a story of when Wolverine got drunk, for once.  There is a moment when Wolverine, who is so drunk, that he snikted himself, but I’m not sure how that is even possible.  The claws come out of the base of his hands, which is how Daken’s one claw comes out.  They should always pop out of his back of his hands.  But whatever, it is a fun scene.

Knowhere.  Now.  X23 doesn’t believe that story, and neither do I.  Fang tires to go back and forth on referring to her as Laura or X23.  I had that problem (I still do) with addressing my in-laws as either Leslie and Dennis or Mr. and Mrs. Brannman.  Now, I just try to make clear eye contact or get their attention first.  He decides on, Laura.  Apparently, Wolverine always referred to her as, Laura, so he will honor that.  That must have been Logan’s rule, when not in her presence.

Fang isn’t here to torture Laura (I guess I will call her that, as well) like he did to Daken and Sabretooth.  Wolverine always liked her.

Fang recites a part of Uncanny X-Men 107 & 108, which I don’t own as they predate Uncanny X-Men 129.  Wolverine stole Fang’s costume, as his was pretty torn and tattered.  Laura doesn’t mention how she wore the costume, for some time, starting with Uncanny X-Men 451.  Which I don’t own but I do own 460, and she is still wearing that costume.  Where she gets a lady version of Fang’s costume, I don’t believe has ever been explained.  After that, House of M happens, and then the titles bounce around for a while until Ed Brubaker takes the title to Shi’ar space and it is unreadable for a year.

Fang explains how he wasn’t killed by the Brood.  He was, but the Lupak race are constantly born again as clones but with the memories of the previous model.  This hits close to Laura, as she is a clone.

The Changling.  Mystique explains the situation.  They can’t hide from Fang, so they have to kill him, before he can kill them.  Mystique hates this delay, as she has things to do.  This is issue eleven of a now, fifteen issue series, so there isn’t any time to waste.  Except for the all Deadpool issue that is coming.

Junk feels over his head, he isn’t Neuro, so all of this data that he has now on Fang, confuses him.  Mystique looks over the data, and dismisses Junk.

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Crew Deck.  Shogun’s Chamber.  Lady Deathstrike is ready to kill Shogun but Ogun wants her to wait.  Ogun has control over Shogun’s mouth, when he is sleeping.  He needs Lady Deathstrike to bring Shogun to the brink of death, so that he can take over the weak body.

Fang and Wolverine didn’t always get together once a year, they both had busy lives.  Wolverine had his adamantium ripped out by Magneto while Fang was busy having a family.  Wolverine joined Avengers, and Fang was busy with the Imperial Guard.

Laura has seen Wolverine’s statue corpse and Fang has also seen it, in the care of the X-Men, and he has paid his respects.  Fang is quasi-trying to figure out Wolverine’s final days.

Fang has tricked Laura, as he has been drinking something with a intensified trigger scent, which I forgot she had that as part of her story.  So Fang just really wants a fight.

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Lady Deathstrike slaps Shogun awake.  He doesn’t want to wake up to a fight but she is bored.

Colorado Rockies.  Fantomelle and Culpepper have stolen a pair of Wolverine’s dog tags.  Dogtagger, that’s who she stole it from – and he had thousands of them, but I believe that is the only one that was Wolverine’s – he wants it back and promises to not rest until he does.

Barcelona, Spain.  Later.  We see their home base, and she has three costumes – a classic yellow and blue, an X-Force (like from the cover) and another yellow and blue, maybe it is his Cassaday Astonishing X-Men costume?  There is a pair of claw gloves and a pair of towels?

Okay, I misread the scene with Fang and Laura.  He just had the glass of the trigger scent.  Laura is upset as that is the only thing that makes her into an animal.  Fang’s original goal was to have her drink it and set loose on Mystique’s team.

Now Laura and Fang are fighting in the bar.  What changed his mind was that Laura had dyed some of her hair with yellow and blue.  He mostly just wants to know why she is on a team full of monsters that Wolverine hates.

Wolverines 11 Shogun mention

She mentions that Shogun and Junk have code words.  Fang dismisses the idea of code words, but they are real threats, Shogun could kill her with a single word.  Fang throws some pills at her, which I’m not sure what they contain.  Laura tells Fang that Shogun was one of the last people to see Wolverine alive.  Fang wasn’t even looking to speak with Shogun.

Mystique is finishing telling the team, what is the plan.  Junk is hoping to stay out of it, as he isn’t on Fang’s radar.  Daken tells Mystique that once you go on an adventure with Fang, that’s all he wants.  Mystique isn’t so sure about that.  Mystique wants to destroy Fang, which of course, is when he returns with Laura and his interest has been piqued.  This, naturally, ends the issue.