Reviewed by James Hatton (Because apparently I’m supposed to write this here)
Title: Origins & Endings – Chapter One
Published by: Marvel Comics
Writer: Daniel Way
Breakdowns: Javier Satares
Finishes: Mark Texeira
Colors: JD Smith
Letters: VC’s Randy Gentile
Cover Artist: Quesada & Isanova
Production: Deborah Weinstein
Editor: Axel Alonso
Publisher: Dan Buckley
As a writer (hey, this place publishes me.. that counts), I find that it is important to mix a few things together to piece together a smart story. The first is characters. It goes without saying that characters are mostly what motivates a story. There are exceptions, but generally speaking it takes characters to walk though your enviornments and do things which, in turn, lead to other things to make up a story.
Next is action. This doesn’t need to mean big guns in big buildings with big baddies, even though that in comics it tends to run that way. Action is anything from a character walking down the street, to solving the murder of the twelve year old girl that he had on the side.
Finally, there is plot. A plot is the story that’s told through these characters doing these actions. If you just have a bunch of random things happen at once, you may have a fine interesting piece of writing, but generally, you don’t have much that makes up a story.
All of these things, where they can be written around in one way or another, are the most basic building blocks of telling a story.
So how was Wolverine?
STORY!
Logan is looking for someone.
It’s the Silver Samarai.
He finds him.
They fight.
Everyone knows Logan remembers everything.
The end.
Now this is where that structure of story can go incredibly wrong. This book had all of those things necessary. There is the characters of Wolverine, and the random Japanese dudes he offs. Not to mention the X-Men, Avengers, and some guy from SHIELD who I’m sure I’m supposed to know by this point, but haven’t the foggiest idea who he is.
It has action. Wolvie goes to great lengths to get to the Silver Samari, and when he does.. whooooo nelly, I’m sure they have one helluva fight next issue.
Finally, there is a plot. Logan wants to find Samarai. All of this because of, we assume, some secret he learned when he remembered his past.
What this story lacks though, is an actual functioning narrative. There is no driving motivation for me to understand what’s going on or why. Not all comics need an internal monologue to get the job done, but some really do – otherwise you sit and go, “AH! There’s Logan hitting people… how refreshing.” or you sit and wonder why he’s got a FedEx box at the beginning of the book that disappears halfway though, until you recognize that it was probably where he was storing his costume.
Why was Wolvie hiding his costume in a FedEx box? Don’t most heroes just wear it beneath their clothes?
It seems that the story about Logan learning about his Origin is already getting as muddled as two or three of his last actual Origin stories. (Not, ironically, including ‘Origin’)
ART!
This book has a reaaaally nice cover. We have the John Cassaday style Wolvie hanging out in Japan with a blue hue to the entire affair. Obviously a more down home and feudal kind of Japan than the bustling Neo-Tokyo we expect in today’s world. Also doing it’s best to replicate the sepia toned covers of the original Origin story with the art of Richard Isanove and Joe Quesada.
Now lets open the book.
Now let’s close the book and reflect. Sometimes the art is bright and cheery, which isn’t exactly right – with vibrant colors and an altogether ‘not gritty tale’ feel. Other times the characterization of Wolverine looks almost Liefeldish in proportion and size. Add in he’s not sporting the costume we see on the cover. A minor gripe, yes, but can’t you get your artist on the same page as your entire mutant creation team? You just win every way.
Now I am being a TAD mean here, as the art isn’t disgusting, but it is non proportional and the colorist did a number on this book – making it hideously colorful when it would have been much nicer in a subdued kind of look.
OVERALL!
Oh, did you know Wolverine can dig a whole in the middle of a bathroom to get to a sewer? Yeah, me neither. Why does he do that instead of using the more commonly accepted manhole cover? Well, without any type of text boxes to explain to us what is going on, we are left with this constant belief that all will be explained, but nothing ever is.
Not a good way to start a book that is supposed to deal with the major ramifications of one of Marvel’s heaviest hitters.. not good at all.
