Wolverine #11 – Review

by Jason Aaron (writer), Renato Guedes (pencils), Jose Wilson Magalhaes (inks), Matthew Wilson (colors), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: Logan fights for his life against Shadow Stalker and just who is that sad looking, veiled old lady, anyway?

What’s Good:  Much as was the case last month, I’m really digging the flashback scenes.  The writing is really intimate, emphasizing the trauma the Logan leaves in his wake and Aaron manages to paint as both a childhood boogeyman and the conflicted killer that he is, all in one fell swoop.  Aaron also does a good job of making the most of the perspective of the old lady’s memory; there’s a sense of grief throughout to go with the wrongness.  It’s solid work insofar as in just a few pages, I feel like I’ve really gotten to know a character that we only just met.  We understand her motivations, her personality, and her history in a narrative that felt both sincere and visceral.  It’s hard not to empathize with her, as through no real fault of her own, her loved ones all end up being enemies or targets of Logan’s and the consequent heartbreak feels real and developed.

In the present-day, the action scenes are fun as Aaron yet again cooks up another twisted concept of a bad guy for Logan to get his ass kicked by.  Shadow Stalker is all grindhouse chic, which is something that is definitely a strong point of Aaron’s.  Her banter is also about a demented as you’d expect, what with her appearance and all, which provides a more personal battle that’s a nice shift from the Cannonfoot fight last month.

Overall, I enjoyed the artwork as well.  While I sort of have a more ambivalent relationship with Guedes’ work, I enjoyed Matthew Wilson’s colors a great deal during the flashbacks, as once again he manages to give the scenes a nice, old-timey, American feel.  Also, I do really like Guedes’ character design for Shadow Stalker.

Weekly Comic Book Review’s Top Picks

Alex’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Invincible Iron Man #505 – Well, there were only two comics for me this week, and while neither of them were at all bad, I’m going with Matt Fraction’s Iron Man.  This issue showed what I wish a lot more event tie-in arcs would do: tie in to the event in question without forgetting or putting aside dangling plot elements and characters.  A fun read all around and that showed that an event tie-in arc doesn’t have to be something to groan about.

Most Anticipated: Captain America #619 – I’ve been absolutely loving everything about Ed Brubaker’s latest arc in its tone, story, voice, and unique structure.  Not only am I excited to see how he ties it all up, but I also want to see how he deals with Bucky’s death and Steve’s return to the shield.  Big things are afoot this month for Cap and Brubaker’s been in prime shape as of late.

Other Picks: Batman: Gates of Gotham #2, DMZ #66, Mighty Thor #3, Wolverine #11

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: 28 Days Later #24 – Endings are hard, so the degree of difficulty on this final issue of the series was pretty high.  The creators really nailed it and gave us a heartfelt finale that bridges the gap between the two films and does some interesting things with two characters that I’ve grown quite fond of.  Now that the series has wrapped, be sure to check out the trades.  Runner-up: Graveyard of Empires #1

Most Anticipated: Dark Horse Presents #2 – It’s a pretty light week for my pull list, so I’ll go with this second issue of Dark Horse’s revived anthology series.  I have no idea what will be between the covers, but chances are pretty high that there will be something good on the menu.

Other Picks: All Nighter #1, Hack/Slash #5, Thunderbolts #159, Wolverine #11, Incredible Hulks #631