Death of Wolverine #2 Review

What will Wolverine learn in Madripoor? Read on to find out.

The official description from Marvel:

IT’S THE BEGINNING OF THE END – 3 MONTHS TO DIE ENDS HERE!
• The beginning of the end is now here … THE DEATH OF WOLVERINE!
• THREE MONTHS TO DIE, the loss of Wolverine’s healing factor–all led to this, the single most important X-Men event of the decade.
• Logan has spent over a century being the best there is at what he does…but even the best fade away eventually.
• Over the years, Logan has been a warrior, a hero, a renegade, a samurai, a teacher—and so much more. But now, the greatest X-Men hero will play a role he’s never played before in this special weekly event brought to you by industry superstars Charles Soule and Steve McNiven.

Death in comics is a very taboo subject. And definitely when it comes to the big two. The main problem with comic book deaths is that they never last, with their quick return making the death itself feel meaningless. Putting that to one side Death of Wolverine has been an enjoyable event so far, and worthy of the best there is at what he does. Yes he’ll be back before the next Wolverine or X-Men film, and yes this most likely will take the edge of longevity of this story. But nonetheless I know I’ll be enjoying the ride whilst it lasts.

Charles Soule continues to do a fantastic job on the script, sending Logan in disguise to meet Viper. The super cool way in which Soule handles the build-up to this really impressed me, with the revelations and surprise appearances putting a huge smile on this fanboy’s face. One thing that I did question about Soule’s script was the inclusion of Sabretooth. Yes, Logan’s death does require the appearance of long time rival, but following his Crime Lord persona in Paul Cornell‘s run, it felt a little too sudden to make him Viper’s pet.

Steve McNiven never ceases to amaze, as when I think I’ve seen the best he has to offer, he produces one better. Once again feeling very cinematic, the detailed pencils of McNiven, along with the sharp inks of Jay Leisten give an intense atmosphere. I particularly enjoyed the disguised look that McNiven gave Logan, with it looking very cool. One thing I was in two minds over was Logan’s daydream of how his and Sabretooth’s fight would go. I did find the symbolism and colour toning from Justin Ponsor to be very powerful, and loved the classic look. But at the same time it felt strange having this in between Logan being in disguise.

Death of Wolverine continues to be a worthy final outing for Logan, as though we all know he’ll eventually return, the event itself is worth the buy. Highly recommended.