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WOLVERINE: THE ORIGIN #5
"Origin, Part V of VI: Revelation"
Mildly Recommended (5/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writers: Paul Jenkins, Bill Jemas & Joe Quesada
Pencils: Andy Kubert
Colors: Richard Isanove
Letters: Comicraft
Editor: Mike Marts
Price: $3.50 US/$5.75 CAN |
Though I was
one of those applauding Marvel for the bold choice of telling Wolverine's origin
as a turn-of-the-century period piece, that was before I realized we'd be
spending all six issues on a story that moves about as fast as campaign finance
reform. I have to give Marvel credit for entrancing numerous Wolverine fans with
a story that boils down to a young boy discovering himself in British Columbia,
but the amount of conflict in the series is woefully low, and these events that
supposedly shaped Wolverine seem to have only the most superficial relation to
his eventual personality. The book is beautiful to look at, as it should be
given the months it has taken to put it together, but it seems a bit empty.
Mostly, Origin seems to be an example of giving the fans exactly
what they didn't want. What makes Wolverine's origin at all interesting isn't
how he grew up, really, but all the events that shaped a normal boy into what he
became. Clearing up the various memory implants and showing how he went from
being young James to being "the best he is at what he does" is a laudable goal,
but showing how he spent his relatively mundane teenage years is crashingly
dull. It's like filming a summer blockbuster movie with the techniques of an
arthouse movie... it may well be an unexpected choice, but that doesn't
necessarily make it a good one.
However, it's not the story
premise that completely bores me, it's that we've taken five issues to get this
far into Wolverine's life, and we really haven't learned much about him. The
main conflicts in this issue are the inevitable romantic triangle and a
confrontation with a man who isn't Wolverine's equal, in physical power or
guile. There's not much tension as a result, and though there are some powerful,
emotional moments, including the image of Wolverine protecting a child with his
own body or the reaction when he first finds Rose engaged in a kiss with another
man, I don't feel like we're being shown anything that really shaped the man
Wolverine would become. Especially when he doesn't remember any of it.
On an art level, the book was
impressive right off the bat, and continues to impress. The digital painting
style gives it an unusual look without making it look fuzzy or unfinished, the
way digital inks sometimes can. Though I could have done without the oft-quoted
"Tyger, Tyger" poem over the visuals, the opening scene of Wolverine running
with the wolves is pretty spectacular. The beast within Wolverine is visible in
every panel, and pairing him up with wolves and other impressive beasts really
helps to impress upon the reader that Wolverine is as much an animal as a man.
Honestly, I didn't really expect Origin to interest me much, as I'm not that
big of a Wolverine fan in general anyway. But I'm continually surprised at the
positive buzz the series has earned amongst Wolverine fans, who don't seem to
mind that the series is low on actual revelations and heavy on atmosphere.
Perhaps for some it doesn't matter what the answers are, as long as they are
revealed. Or perhaps my lack of interest in the character means that the rather
slow and intricate details of his childhood hold little interest for me, no
matter how well they're done.
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