Review by Karl Verhoven

Is there something distasteful about a protracted lead-in and major marketing event surrounding the death of even a fictional character? It’s a boat that’s long sailed whatever your view.

Paul Cornell is the writer who sets things in motion, with what was originally a monthly serialisation extended over 25 issues. The eventual endgame was initially concealed as Wolverine confronts a serial killer able to regenerate their body. It’s strange, but Wolverine’s slashed up stranger, yet what the killer actually is isn’t as simple. The short version is that it manages to remove Wolverine’s ability to heal instantly, which is key to his effectiveness. Imagine popping those claws again and again through already healing tissue. After a while, though, the Watcher turns up, and that’s always the sign of something big about to occur.

As Wolverine goes from denial to acceptance, attempts are made to fix his condition, but to no avail. Cornell never takes the obvious route, and despite knowing the outcome, his work still reads as creative. In Alan Davis, Mirco Pierdfederici, Ryan Stegman and Pete Woods, Cornell’s also matched with expert storytellers with attractive styles. Not everyone illustrating Cornell’s plots is as accomplished, but the lesser artists don’t draw as much.

The main event only lasts four chapters, excellently drawn by Steve McNiven (sample art), who doesn’t just supply standard Wolverine action poses, but applies thought to the way Wolverine would be in drawing how he sits, stands, or fights. However, he doesn’t seem to realise Wolverine’s shorter than average. Charles Soule’s plot steers clear of mawkish sentimentality and a gathering of Wolverine’s friends and instead takes him to a lonely destination where enemies come calling. Mystique is a notable absentee, and we learn why in the following material, but otherwise it’s the score settling most people will want to see. Wolverine’s last words? “Nngh”.

Soule’s also responsible for a fair portion of what follows, and his best is what in paperback was The Weapon X Program, a decent military thriller investigating more recent events at the project responsible for Wolverine’s adamantium skeleton. The Logan Legacy content is too patchy, serving as a tryout for assorted creators then new to Marvel.

Cornell’s prelude material was absent from Death of Wolverine: The Complete Collection, and so were chapters from assorted X-Men titles in which Wolverine’s former colleagues consider his passing. The succession of fond memories and salutations is generally predictable, but Greg Pak departs from expectation by having Storm visit ninja Yukio, whose relationship with Wolverine was complicated. Their encounter is low on mourning and high on conflict.

While collecting an event between two covers, the quality is variable, and you’d be better off looking out the Death of Wolverine paperback and starting on Cornell’s work with Hunting Season.