Customer Reviews

Essential Wolverine, Vol. 1 (Marvel Essentials)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Having read a couple dozen of Marvel's "Essential" series, I've seen the gamut from excellent to awful. Generally, what makes the comics good are exactly the things you'd expect: good, consistent writing and art, strong characters and a decent supporting cast. (This last feature seems to often be the deciding factor for excellence: it's a reason the Essential Spiderman volumes have been exceptional, while the Silver Surfer was not on the same par.) By these standards, the Essential Wolverine is a top-notch book.

Wolverine is, of course, one of the X-Men, but there came a certain point when he became something more than that. I personally feel that he emerged from being a rather one-dimensional character back in the early `80s during the early issues of the "New" X-Men. In particular, during a storyline around issue 130, the rest of the team had been defeated by a band of villains known as the Hellfire Club, but Wolverine, a character who seemed to be the least powerful, came back to rescue his teammates. He did so in a violent manner, with little qualms about killing or maiming, making him a distinct contrast to many other heroes. Later, Frank Miller gave Wolverine even more of an edge in a mini-series and added the first person narration that was rare at the time but is now commonly associated with this superhero.

Not all team characters can stand on their own in their own book, but, as this book shows, Wolverine can. It helps that this volume features a roster of Marvel all-stars: Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Peter David, John Buscema, Archie Goodwin and Klaus Janson (no third-stringers in this bunch). The stories start off during a period when the X-Men had faked their own deaths, and Wolverine goes off to the fictional principality of Madripoor, an East Asian city-state somewhat akin to Singapore. It also bears more than a passing resemblance to the Casablanca of movie fame, a city filled with various lowlifes and people seeking refuge from other places.

Wolverine has a connection with Madripoor going back years and feels quite comfortable in this seedy town. He adopts an alias of Patch (which fools less people than he thinks) and gets involved in various capers, starting with the theft of an evil sword. This introduces some of the major supporting characters, particularly Jessica Drew (the former Spiderwoman turned private eye) and her partner, ex-actress Lindsay McCabe. This caper also gets Wolverine tangled up with old enemy Silver Samurai, but not in a fully adversarial way.

Other stories get more characters introduced, particularly the various crime lords of Madripoor and the coldly pragmatic Prince. Probably the most interesting foe in this volume is Roughhouse who starts off as a simple tough guy villain but develops into someone far more interesting by the final issue. Most of the stories span over several issues, with the last two taking six and seven issues respectively.

As stated earlier, the Essentials volumes vary in quality, but this book is one of the best. With great characters and storytelling, this volume easily rates five stars and, if you enjoy comic books, this is one really fits the definition of "essential."

I know many have complained about the format this book is in (cheaper paper stock and the black/white issue) but I felt that my enjoyment of the stories inside wasn't troubled by the lack of colour at all. Even though the original books had been in colour, 'Essential's black and white gives it an almost 'Sin City' feel, making the gritty stories of Wolverines first issues in his own series all the more grittier. As for the paper stock, if getting all these issues in one book for less than 20 bucks means cheaper paper, then sign me up. All around, this book is a great read for Logan fans and a fantastic bargain for the collector.

Back in the early `90s I used to collect the Wolverine series from Marvel Comics, but these early issues were a little before my time, so it's great to finally get my hands on them in this collection. The Wolverine solo series was always a little bit different from most Marvel Comics in that it was more like a detective or spy series where some of the characters just happened to have super powers. While in the X-Men comics Logan would travel through time and space fighting alien races, in his own magazine he was usually firmly grounded here on earth, roughing up low-life thieves and killers.

This collection reproduces issues 1 to 24 of the Wolverine series in black and white. It features some of the best artists who worked for Marvel back in those days. John Buscema's art (issues 1-8 and 10-16) comes across beautifully in black and white, resembling something out of the glory days of newspaper comics, like the work of Milton Caniff or Roy Crane. John Byrne (issues 17-23) is another excellent Marvel artist, though his work does suffer a little here from the lack of color. Gene Colan also illustrates one issue (#9). Veteran inkers Al Williamson, Bill Sienkiewicz, and Klaus Janson each contribute their own unique skills to the finished art.

The writing overall is very good, but there's nothing here that's going to go down in history as an iconic story in the Marvel mythology. Chris Claremont (issues 1-8 and 10), sets the foundation for the series by establishing Logan in Madripoor, a seamy, crime-ridden island city-state somewhere in southeast Asia. The Wolverine that Claremont presents here is a lot like Humphrey Bogart's Rick in Casablanca. By offering well-intentioned assistance to a motley crew of supporting characters, he finds himself continually confronted by danger and intrigue. Peter David's run on the series (issues 9 and 11-16) is less successful. His six-issue Gehenna Stone story is basically a long, slapstick chase sequence punctuated by frequent fist fights. The collection finishes off strong, however, with an excellent seven-issue adventure by Archie Goodwin, drawn by Byrne (issues 17-23).

In issue #10, we are introduced to Wolverine's love, Silver Fox, and her murder at the hands of Sabretooth. This story line was featured in the 2009 Wolverine movie, in a much altered form. Here it's just a one-shot story, with little indication of the importance these events would play in Wolverine's future adventures. In later issues writer Larry Hama and artist Marc Silvestri would further develop the Sabretooth/Silver Fox backstory. In their hands Wolverine becomes a sort of Jason Bourne figure, uncovering repressed memories of his paramilitary past. The Hama/Silvestri stories are collected in volumes 2 and 3 of The Essential Wolverine, and I think they're superior to what's included here in volume 1. Still, there's obviously some value to starting at the beginning, and those who enjoy the inimitable character of Wolverine will find much to appreciate in this worthwhile collection of comic art.

Covering the first two years of Wolverine's solo series this book pits Wolverine against pirates, demon swords, the Hulk, vampires, Nazi war criminals and drug lords. With stories by Chris Claremont, Peter David and Archie Goodwin you know you're in competent hands.

Set during a time when the world believed the X-Men were dead, Wolverine spends most of the book in his secret identity as 'Patch' (which is Wolverine, but wearing an eye patch). Somehow this manages to fool his old friends, former teammates and enemies. I spent most of the book shaking my head at how this was the dumbest disguise since Clark Kent put on a pair of glasses. Fortunately once Wolverine finally puts on his costume the cast of the book give a sigh of relief they don't have to pretend to be fooled anymore.

None of the stories are great, they're mostly straight up adventure stories not really tied to continuity. But they're fun and reasonably clever. This book introduces settings like Madripoor (think of Hong Kong but with the sleaze and crime turned up to 11) and has interesting supporting characters.

For a low price you get almost 2 years of comics so it's a solid buy if you're looking for some Wolverine goodness.

You get the first 23 issues of the Wolverine ongoing series (Vol 1), much of it written by Chris Claremont (Issues 1-8, 10). This series came out when I was in the 5th Grade, and I collected each issue as they came out. I still have most of them horded away in boards and bags in a box, but it's great to have all of the stories in one book that I'm not worried about keeping in mint or near mint condition.

The stories are some of the best Wolvie stories ever told. That sounds like a big claim, but in my opinion it's true. There's a battle with Sabretooth, a story with The Hulk (gray hulk), and some great artwork. The cover of the first issue is one of my favorite Wolvie images ever.

The only downside to the Essential Wolverine is the lack of color. But you could never get 552 pages of color Wolvie for the price of this book. Actually I'm quite surprised this version is as cheap as it is. Compare this to the price of 550 pages worth of other TPBs. Going with the B&W is what makes this affordable.

A must for any Wolvie fan.

I've never liked the character of Wolverine. He always seemed like a poor excuse to have a character representing ego instead of id in the X-Men. He never worked for me as a team player.

In this collection we have the first 23 issues from Wolverine's own title. Wolverine relocates to a steamy, seamy, far east city with the dichotomy of great riches and great poverty. Wolverine unsurprisingly gravitates to the slums.

Wolverine as a solo act works much better. Assuming the persona of "Patch" frees him of the constraints of being a team member and frees the reader to enjoy his brand of mayhem much more. Though a solo book, a reasonable cast of supporting characters is developed including Jessica Drew, various denizens of different strata of Madripoor society and a couple of good villains Bloodsport and Roughhouse. Roughhouse in particular plays a recurring role and is developed to a surprising extent and a surprising conclusion.

Also included is a very fine guest appearance by the grey hulk with great comic effect. The artwork is above average throughout the issues, the scripting well done and they both work together for an enjoyable reading experience.

The one caveat I had is that this is the first Essentials that I had binding problems. In fact the paper totally separated from the cover. Nothing came loose, but the entirety of the book came away from the cover when the glue let go.

A nice cheap collection of the beginning of Wolverine's run as a character popular enough to hold his own as a solo character. His adventures and wandering aren't too bad at all, and a good way to recover these easily.

Generally speaking, this is not the X-Wolverine.

ok, first and foremost i dig wolverine much major..he's marvels coolest and most complex character (as batman is dc's), but having said that he can be great or bad depending on the writer( again, like batman). is he a trite hack and slash anti-hero or a fallen samurai trying to control his inner demons and discover his origins?..see what i mean?..anyhow this large book reprints in B&W on newsprint the first 23 issues of his solo book, kinda like the manga format japanese comics use. the 1st story arc is by claremont and buscema. the story is vintage claremont, placing mood over story whenever possible and involves wolvie's new home of madripoor and it's power struggles. buscemas art is great but the janson inks give it a crude-ity that ain't always pretty, though williamson inks some of it much better. theres a 2-part story with the hulk where claremont scores big-very funny. after a few filler issues, including a great one with sabertooth, peter david takes over the writing duty and pulls off a good 6 part arc, "the gehenna stone", about a mystical stone, vampires, globe-hopping, demons and lotsa well-placed humor, with fine art by buscema/sienkiewicz. after that there's an overlong tale by goodwin/byrne/janson that starts out ok, but goes too far out with a tale about cocaine tainted by a demon-thing from the eternals. sound corny?--it is..and byrnes art run through the janson inks looks really rough..anyhow, this is an okay intro to wolverine and a great value for the $, but wolvie's had better stories by better creators. worthwhile reading.

This book is great! It contains a lot of 'Patch' stuff including Mr. Fixit and the Gehenna Stone. The Essential Wolverine has all of the wry humor, passion, and straight out action that Wolverine is famous for. I highly recommend!

Most of this volume centers on our hero while he's living in Madripoor and on hiatus from X-Men duties. He goes by the name of Patch and lives contentedly in the urban jungle. Inevitably, his peaceful (for him) existence is interrupted and the fun begins.

There are three storylines in this book. The first two are first-class tales that cleverly wind around our hero's personality and the supporting cast. Spider-Woman Jessica Drew and sidekick Lindsay McCabe appear and play vital roles. They bring in the focus of the first storyline: a tormented sword that many people wish to possess. The gray Hulk plays a role in an ongoing gang war and is manipulated to perfection by our hero. The two characters play beautifully off of each other. The writing is absolutly flawless! The Hulk and Wolverine storyline features some laugh-out-loud moments.

The second storyline is a fast-paced tale featuring ancient evil pitted against Logan and his eclectic supporting cast. With usual grumpiness, humor, and guts, he faces it head on. Anything beyond that would be telling too much.

The book could have easily ended there and been excellent. Instead, Marvel chose to include an uninteresting and drawn-out story about tainted cocaine and an obscure South American country. The storyline deteriorates and meanders. The artwork is even worse. It looks as though the inking was accomplished with large, individual blots instead of smooth lines. The overall impression was that it was not a complete waste of my time, but it was also irritating.

As for the quality of the book itself, it has its positives and negatives. The black-and-white is very complelling. Considering the color comics of that period, the bw printing is a definite plus. The detail is excellent. The paper isn't the highest quality, but you can really see the action and the fine artwork (when it actually qualifies as fine). Any nebulous action was originally drawn that way, but it's all crystal clear compared to some modern comics. My major gripe is the cheapness of the binding. The book came apart when I was reading it, and it has lots of loose pages. Those things being said, I'm glad I bought this volume. "Essentials" sounds like bare bones, but this volume has plenty of meat to it.