Wolverines 15 review

Last issue, Daken jumped out of Mystique’s jet to chase after Siphon, the Weapon X monster who stole his healing factor. X-23 pursued and the two of them tracked Siphon to a warehouse, where Blade happened to be fighting vampires. Meanwhile, a character named Portal attacked Mystique and was quickly defeated by the rest of the Wolverines. This issue continues exactly where the last left off.

Most of this issue is one big fight scene, with two monsters and two anti-heroes both fighting and arguing with each other. Despite his injuries, Daken just doesn’t give up on his quest for revenge, while Blade and Laura debate on what to do with both of them. The dialogue works very well. Laura acts as the voice of reason and empathy, something that’s increasingly apparent as she grows further from her assassin days and separates her from Wolverine. Daken on the other hand is becoming more and more like his father during the course of this series. Blade is just blade.

Meanwhile on the jet, Mystique manages to talk her way out of everyone’s questions and even wins a few converts to her cause, to the point where Shogun is even agreeing with her when Daken starts asking how they found him after his fight. It shows how brilliant of a deceiver she is, even if one character makes it perfectly clear that not everyone is fooled at the end of the issue. These moments help propel the main story along, while showing that there are still at least a few twists to come.

The art by Juan Doe in itself is good for the most part, but it’s also a jarring change from the last issue. Doe makes great use of interesting angles during the fight scene, and it’s always easy to follow. The stylistic approach doesn’t always have much detail, but it emphasizes the brutality of the action. On the downside, too many panels make it appear as if characters’ eyes are shut. Most characters also appear Asian, even though Deathstrike and Daken are the only oriental characters in the bunch. Each character is still recognizable though, thanks to their different outfits and hairstyles. These problems don’t ruin the comic by any means, but with a 2-part story like this, it would have been better with more consistent styles. In a sense that’s the biggest problem with Wolverines. Good or not, the art keeps switching between conventional and stylized art.

After a full month of Fang’s interruption, the series is back on track. This 2-part story arc is a good one if you like either X-23 or Daken. Their relationship is explored more than any issue in this series so far, and even though I’m not a fan of Daken, it’s fun to see them work together again. Blade’s cameo is thematically appropriate and welcome, and the story development also makes this important for anyone reading this series as a whole. Basically, Wolverines 14 and 15 are worth picking up if you’re a fan of Wolverine’s offspring, or you’re enjoying the Wolverines series.  Wolverines isn’t great, but it’s good enough to justify its existence and is worth checking out if you’re a Wolverine fan.