Sunday, July 19, 2015

Wolverine MAX, Vol. 1: Permanent Rage by Jason Starr (Text), Connor Willumson (Illustrations)

Wolverine MAX, Vol. 1: Permanent RageWolverine MAX, Vol. 1: Permanent Rage by Jason Starr

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This one ain't for the kiddies!  The f-bomb shows up and there is nudity and plenty of in your face violence.  I don't necessarily need that to enjoy a story, but I feel that the violence is part and parcel of Wolverine aka James Logan Howlett's life.  This book is a good one for people who got introduced to Wolverine via the Marvel Movie Universe and want to dive into the graphic novels about this beloved and complex character.

This starts with a boom and ends fairly the same way. The reader is just as confused as Wolverine about his situation, since he is afflicted with memory loss.  Of course, Wolverine's personal Satan, Sabertooth is there to engineer chaos and destruction and to try to convert Wolverine to his way of doing things, psychopathic behavior.  But Wolverine is no one's plaything. He's a strong-minded person, and while he doesn't always do the right thing, he is guided by an intrinsic sense of honor that keeps him from going over the edge and into the abyss where Sabertooth happily lives.

I gave this four stars because I just plain love this character. The writer gets this character, and he conveys the essence of him to readers, older and newer fans alike. However, I do have a quibble. Some of the artwork was just ugly. Wolverine is a hairy guy, let's face it. But they made him look like a grotesque troll.  And there was too many bulgy eyes and gooey entrails. Not very pretty.  yes, violence can be conveyed in an aesthetically appealing way if done right.  I could have done without that art, but I did like some of the artwork, and I especially like the chiaroscuro cover that the volume I got from the library has.   My library has a plethora of Wolverine volumes to enjoy, and I am taking my time exploring them.  This was a nice use of my hour while I was waiting for my ride home.





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