By now we’ve all seen the first trailer from James Mangold’s THE WOLVERINE, and besides the usual fare of slicing and dicing, this latest mutie adventure provides us with a few new exciting twists and turns in the long line of Wolvie tales.

Wolverine Can’t Heal

We’ve seen this plot twist before, haven’t we?  Our lovable hero, burdened by super human powers, suddenly becomes mortal, and through trial and tribulations, realizes the worth of his gifts. Film makers rely on this trope to create relatable flicks with convenient conflict (Spider-Man 2, Thor, The Dark Knight Rises), but I much prefer a superhero movie with the titular character’s powers intact. This device was a refreshing take on the superhero genre at one point, but it’s since evolved into a crutch.

Wolvie Can Survive a Nuke

This makes a bit more sense than Indiana Jones’s fridge bound escapades in 2007 (although a few fun-killing scientists have proved it possible), and it’s easily a bagillion times cooler. Now, Wolvie’s never had a consistent set of powers in the flicks. He’s been entirely compromised by a single bullet to the forehead in one film, and yet survived telekinitic disintegration in another. If there’s one thing I absolutely hate about super hero flicks, it’s unreliable character attributes, but I can let that tiny fanboy gripe slide on account of this awesome Nuke-surviving event in THE WOLVERINE.

Immortality Dilemma!

Living is SO hard!

Wolverine’s always been a bit of a sad sap in the comic book world. Between his century and a half of life, the death of a myriad of significant others, and a mind numbing memory problem, immortality has taken its toll on his emotions. Well, it looks like all of that grief can be put to rest, thanks to his Japanese best bud. They’ve discovered a method to end Wolvie’s life, and I’m betting it’s code-named Muramasa (after the healing factor-negating sword in the comcis)

Silver Samurai Revealed

We’ve finally seen one of the cheesiest comic book villains on the big screen, and he looks so cool! Decked out in a glimmering steel samurai outfit, the classic baddie slices and dices with Hugh Jackman in a must-see battle to the death… or near-death  (Wolvie’s immortality always ruins my favorite phrases).

Ninja Fight

Wolverine. Ninjas.

Need I say more?

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