Broken Frontier

Set fifty odd years in the future, the man that was Wolverine is now a family man just trying to keep the evil land lords off his back. In a world with no heroes, a world where evil won... what place does Logan have and to what lengths will he go to protect those he loves?

Mark Millar is the idea guy. Wanted, Kick-Ass, Fantastic Four - love them or hate them or just think they are there, you gotta admit - he made them with conceptual gusto. Of course, these books are driven by big fights and the occasional explosion. This book is different. It’s not that there is no fighting or adventure here. There is, how could there not be when the world that is set up here is like a superhero version of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly starring Logan as Mad Max?

The thing that sets this book apart from his previous work is that it is subtle. Millar is concerned with giving this version of Logan a bit of dignity. In my experience with Millar, this is an unheard of development. This old man has a sense of duty to his family that is a little unusual for Marvel’s most feral mutant. Not that he hasn’t shown a sense of loyalty before, but we all know that family is different, and I don’t really remember seeing him in that setting before and being comfortable. What makes it even more unusual is that this is all coming from the pen of the publisher’s most controversial scribe.

There are moments that will make the Marvel fanboys geek out. I will refrain from revealing those. In fact, this is one book that I would say will be done a great disservice by the thumb through set. The delights within will work better if you don’t see them coming - in fact try to ignore the cover until after you have given the book a read. I would say you should just take my word and buy it, but I may have done enough of getting you to do exactly what you shouldn’t.

That being said, this may be the calmest comic that Millar has ever written. It is pure exposition - from the elder Weapon X’s entrance ala Shaolin Cowboy directed by Sergio Leone to the Thelma and Louise styled last page. What is remarkable is the character study given to Wolverine. It is thorough, compelling and like all of the short hairy guy's best tales, hints at a bigger mystery.

McNiven is one of those artists. He is clean and has a great handle on fighting, while being able to give real emotional content to the calmer panels. This is all at play here, but what impresses me the most is the setting. He gives it that wide open and infinite horizon feel that Geoff Darrow does so well in his work over at Burlyman. Dexter Vines seems to be using a heavier ink here then I recall in the past, but it gives the book a different feel from the previous work of "Team Civil War." It is at once, striking and familiar.

The cover boldly states that "Wolverine’s all-time greatest adventure begins here!" Given the author’s Barnum like penchant for hyperbole, I am sure that the internet is abuzz with statements that defend and detract from that sentiment. I’ll let that discussion take its own course, but I will offer you this - this may be Mark Millar’s best writing ever. It would be a shame if this was overlooked in the storm that is sure to have started brewing.