Wolverine Origins: Savior Review

Writer: Daniel Way

Artist: Steve Dillon

Recently I have been going through my Wolverine stories, re-reading and reviewing them in chronological order, fitting events in along the way. I have more recently started reviewing the Wolverine: Origins series, with this being my second review, as well as my ninth review of a Wolverine trade.

Plot

Wolverine is about to begin searching for his son, but before doing so he must find something to neutralise him in case he becomes violent, so he plans on finding the Carbonadium Synthesizer.

Review

This was a good story, but not as good as the first volume, and overall slightly mediocre. Daniel Way did a decent job of continuing his Wolverine story, as although it didn't have as much excitement, or energy as the first volume, it was still interesting, with some brilliant developments. I personally loved how he managed to tie up the loose ends following the Origin storyline, that changed Wolverine's origin to have him born with bone claws, with this story showing why all them pre-Weapon X stories show him without claws. The pacing of the story however was slightly slow, and when I expected something big to happen, it would fade out, making us wait longer. The story did however have some excitement, and I loved how Way showed the emotion in Wolverine throughout, as although I still wasn't completely happy with how Wolverine was depicted in the flashbacks, it was slightly better than last volume.

Although I always try my best to enjoy Steve Dillon's artwork, looking for the pro's rather than the con's, it's not easy, and once again he did an average job of the artwork. I've went into detail why I don't like Dillon's art in the past, and the main thing is how he draws faces, and women, as the way he draws mouths make characters look slightly awkward, and plain, whilst he makes women look way too plain, and not feminine enough. I did however once again enjoy how he drew Wolverine, and with him being out of suit for most of the story. I also really enjoyed how he drew the Team X flashback sequences, and Omega Red, with them both being very dynamic, and exciting. The layout of Dillon's art was also very good, adding a lot of depth to the story, as well as highlighting the important parts of the sequences, making them feel even more dramatic.

The first volume would reveal that Wolverine has a son, with this story being the beginning of his search for him. This in my opinion was the best thing that Daniel Way has ever done for comics, as although it wouldn't pay off in this story, the introduction of Wolverine's son was amazing. I was however slightly disappointed that we don't get a proper introduction of the character we'd all come to know as Daken in this story, but it was interesting to see that Wolverine had planned ahead, planning on getting the Carbonadium Synthesizer in case he was hostile, which he most likely would after what Emma Frost saw.

Due to the Carbonadium Synthesizer being involved this would open up the door for Omega Red to join the story, with the classic X-Men/Wolverine villain needing the Carbonadium Synthesizer to help remove the Carbonadium that's inside him, and ultimately killing him. Omega Red would be an interesting addition to this storyline, and the fighting between him, and Wolverine throughout was amazing, as although it wasn't quite as brilliant as I expected, it was still very exciting, and entertaining, adding a lot of drama, and suspense to the story.

Another X-Man in the form of Jubilee would also make an appearance in this story, with both her, and Wolverine's former Team X teammate Maverick loosing their powers following the House of M. Now I personally would have loved to have seem more of both these characters in this story, but it was nice to see them make an appearance, and they helped the story to flow smoother. I also loved how Way showed the connection that Wolverine has with Jubilee, and why he's so mad about what happens to her in this story.

This series has had a lot of cameo appearances so far, and Black Widow would be yet another addition. I was happy to see Black Widow in this story, and loved how it showed a origin to how her, and Wolverine first met. I did however feel that this slowed the story down a lot, as although it was interesting to see, it was rather dull, and boring, taking away from the main objective of the story. I did however also like how this showed more of how Wolverine has built allies over the years through his good deeds, and how it all comes back to help him when he needs it too.

Final Verdict

This was a decent story, but slightly mediocre, and nowhere near as good as the first volume. It would however continue the story brilliantly, as although it was slow at times, it has some brilliant development points. It also had more brilliant cameos, and some excitement, with the fighting between Wolverine, and Omega Red being amazing, even if not phenomenal. After all this I'd still recommend this story, but wouldn't recommend rushing to get it, unless you plan on getting the entire series.

Rating: 6/10

The next Wolverine book I'll be reviewing will be Wolverine Origins: Swift and Terrible.