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Brian K. Vaughan and Eduardo Risso take on the world’s most famous mutant!

For those of you who have actually read my reviews of various X-titles (particularly Astonishing), you know that I’m not the biggest fan of Wolverine (except really in Astonishing... gotta love that Whedon). Yeah, it’s great to have a Clint Eastwood tough-guy type on the team, but some of his “I’m the best at what I do” and “You’re in over your head” stuff just gets stale after a long time. However, he has gotten a lot more interesting lately with his recovery of his memory. He’s still got the attitude, but at least he knows where it’s coming from. So, now we have a lot of interesting storytelling when it comes to reviewing the events of his past, and it’s from this that we get the genius Brian K. Vaughan and Eduardo Risso collaborating on a three-part mini-series simply titled Logan, where we get to delve more into his past, specifically his days in Japan during World War Two.

It opens in the present day with Logan going back to Japan to confront… someone. Basically it’s a big flaming skeleton. As to its identity, I’m assuming, since it’s a BKV comic, it probably won’t be revealed until the last page of the next issue. Then we step back to Logan awaking in a Japanese military science base with an American soldier, Lt. Warren, who had just been transferred from a prison camp. Warren’s squad had been decimated and he is the only one remaining with a real mad-on for the Japanese, while Logan was trying to blow up a train in Burma when that mission went south and he ended up there.

Through Logan’s cunning and killer instincts, they both escape only to meet a farm girl on the road. Warren is convinced that she, as well as all Japanese, is the enemy and must be killed. Logan knows better and tells Warren to take a hike… or else. Warren very reluctantly does so, and Logan goes with the girl, Atsuko, to her home. And in traditional BKV fashion, there comes a reveal on the very last page that is very unexpected.

I’m very excited that Vaughan is writing a Wolverine tale. It’s always great when a genre-bending writer does something new and provocative with a long-established character. I’ve been reading Vaughan’s stuff almost obsessively since I got all the Y: The Last Man and Runaways trades. While the work he did on those series is phenomenal, the stand-out is his work on Doctor Strange: The Oath because it’s the same vein as Logan is: Taking a well-known character and adding his unique and wonderful spin on it. Risso’s art is really terrific as always. He does a great job of rendering character, shadow and detail.

Let me take a moment to sound off, though, on the black and white variants. They suck. Stop it. If I want black and white, I’ll read Sin City or The Crow. Don’t take a comic with color in it and drain it. The color is there for a reason.

Along with Brubaker and Whedon, Vaughan has a real strong sense of what makes a great cliffhanger, and while this issue doesn’t end with a real cliffhanger per se, it is truly mind-blowing. It is, however, a little too short (kinda like Logan himself). I would have liked a little longer of an issue, like a 48-pager or something. But that’s really the only downside. Also I’m kinda bummed that this will only last for three issues, because I would love to see more of Vaughan’s work on the Canucklehead. Still, it’s a great read.

Logan #1
Storytellers - Brian K. Vaughan and Eduardo Risso
Written by Vaughan
Art by Riss o
Colors by Dean White
Letters by VC’s Joe Caramagna

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