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WOLVERINE 2001
Not Recommended (1/10)
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Marvel Comics
"The Watch"
Writer: Frank Tieri
Pencils: Matthew Marsilia
Inks: Llamas, Perrotta & Elmer
"Red Snow"
Writer: Matt Nixon
Artist: Kilian Plunkett
Colors: Avalon Studios
Letters: Comicraft
Editor: Mike Marts
Price: $2.99 US/$4.50 CAN |
The Watch: Tieri offers up another ordinary Wolverine story. There's no suspense, and there doesn't seem to be a rhyme or reason to the selection of characters. Some inconsistent art from a newcomer doesn't help matters either.
Homeless people are going missing in New York City, and when one of their number, recently befriended by Logan, is the latest to disappear, the mutant with an edge (six of them, actually) begins investigating. He happens upon an old enemy -- pseudo-vampire Bloodscream -- and his newly recruited lackey, Vermin. What Wolvie doesn't know is that both are working for someone far more sinister behind the scenes.
I'm sorry, but the character's name is Bloodscream. Bloodscream... how generic is that? Couldn't Tieri have found another old villain that wasn't so corny and ill-conceived? Bloodscream... honestly. I was disappointed to see Vermin turn up here as well. Tieri barely touches upon the character's potential. Years ago in Spectacular Spider-Man, writer J.M. DeMatteis transformed Vermin from a dull, minor Captain America foe into a tragic, touching character. It's Vermin's psyche that's makes him interesting, not turning him into Cookie Cutter Super-Villain of the Week.
Marsilia's name is a new one to me, and it seems clear from his work in this book that he's just starting out in comics (at least in mainstream comics). At first, his art boasts an interesting sketchy level of dark detail, but it loses that appeal quickly. His work comes off as incredibly rushed overall, and it seems he has a fair bit of development ahead of him.
Red Snow: Logan investigates yet another nasty monster in a generic Canadian town. We've seen this story before, and Nixon loses the reader by throwing in an obscure bit of continuity and a bizarre supporting character. And I don't mean to nitpick, but there's no actual red snow to be seen in this story. Come on... it's the story's title, fer cryin' out loud.
So a quiet Alberta town gets a new Catholic priest, and he's a sword-wielding lunatic? Oooookay. Father Braun is the only unconventional element in an otherwise cliched story, but he certainly doesn't make it more interesting or plausible. Nixon also errs by not providing more information on the monster's link to Alpha Flight continuity. Actually, the link is entirely unnecessary, as it adds nothing to the story.
Though much stronger than the art in the main story, this backup tale doesn't mark Plunkett's best work. His detailed, dark style suits the title character nicely, but save for one large panel featuring an inventive design for a hybrid monster, there's little in the piece that's all that visually engaging.
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