Weapon X #1 Review

Marvel’s ResurrXion event is the best thing that’s happened to X-Men comics fans in years. For the first time in what feels like a good long while, it sees the Marvel Universe’s mutants put front and centre once again. Lately, the fact that 20th Century Fox owns the screen rights to the X-Men has caused problems for their adventures on the page, but thankfully, Marvel now seems happy to dabble in a bit of cross-promotion.

Take Weapon X #1, for example. Simply put, it sees an elderly Wolverine on the run as he’s being hunted by a dangerous organization derived from the program that gave him his adamantium skeleton in the first place. It surely can’t be a coincidence that this is basically the same plot as the recent R-rated smash hit Logan. Whether it’s inspired by it or not, though, this issue certainly recalls the grit and stripped-back aesthetic of that movie.

That’s not to say that Weapon X is just a comic book version of Logan (if you want that, look to Old Man Logan). The series actually has its own unique premise. With Weapon X apparently reformed and hunting down all its ex-soldiers, Logan seeks out old friends and enemies alike, such as Sabretooth and Lady Deathstrike, in order to stop them. This should be fascinating to see play out in upcoming issues – hey, we’re always up for a new team of morally-ambiguous heroes. For this opener, however, we get something surprisingly low-key.

Greg Pak’s story gets off to a steadily-paced if unspectacular start, as Logan’s situation and latest threat are established without the band of mutants actually coming together (or most of them even appearing). As it sees Logan out in the woods and the mountains on his own, a lot of it is told through Logan’s thought boxes. Through these, Pak does a good job of nailing Wolverine’s character – even in his old age, he’s always on edge and waiting for the next attack. That’s not to say there isn’t some great action this issue, though. In particular, it has a pre-credits sequence, if you will, where Logan faces off against some formidable new foes.

Another Greg, Greg Land, provides some equally reliable artwork throughout. There’s a strong visual flavour to the issue, as it mostly sees Logan hiking through the wilderness; a beast in his natural habitat. Land also proves himself the master of the pained expression, as the issue is littered with panels of Logan wincing and crying out from slashes and scrapes. Land also gets to have some proper comic book fun with Weapon X’s new enforcers – a nice touch is the unravelling skin that reveals their Terminator-like true form.

A relaunch of the X-Men comics universe wouldn’t be complete without at least one new book starring the most popular mutant ever, and Weapon X looks to be an exciting new series for the Canucklehead. If you’re either a fan of the character’s decades-long history or the iteration from the movies, this opening issue is well worth a read. If only for the promise of an interesting new chapter for the Wolverine.