The X-23 character (or Laura Kinney, now carrying the Wolverine moniker) is one of those characters that seems too silly to work, but thanks to a slew of effective writers and artists, the adamantium-laced assassin has found quite a following within X-fandom. Enough so, in fact, to have her continuously featured in the pages of various X-books, as well as her own recent mini-series. While this five-issue prequel adventure doesn’t develop anything profound for the character’s backstory, it does provide a brisk escapade sure to satisfy Kinney’s fanbase.
Collecting X-23: Deadly Regenesis #1-5, the series focuses on the character’s recent history, filling in some of the blanks during the time she was missing from Utopia. Like her compatriots from the Weapon X program, X-23 is manipulated by a secret cadre of villains with their own nefarious ends, Kimura, a figure that once controlled Kinney, is again trying to manipulate her weapon. Pretty standard Wolverine plotting, with some acceptable character moments that allow the reader to better understand Kinney’s past and motivations.
Erica Schultz is a solid writer who doesn’t gum up the narrative with too much exposition or dialogue, letting the visuals set the pacing for the book. The book is clearly trying to tap into the X-fanbase that enjoyed the mid-2000s, and artists Edgar Salazar fits well in this “period” piece. Fans of that era’s artwork will appreciate his magazine-model rendered figures, even if his action scenes feel clunky, with character facial expressions seeming to take precedent over physicality.
Narratively, I could basically guess each plot beat within this mini. Apart from the Kingpin (who makes a surprise appearance that fits well with the X-23 mythos), it’s a by-the-number’s storyline. That isn’t to say it won’t satisfy a select group of fans, I just can’t see this having mass appeal beyond anyone already enthralled by the X-23 character.
There are a few variant covers reproduced at the end (all of which given the full-page reproduction), and two character sketches from Salazar. For a trade of this nature, the supplementals provided are fitting for the size of the book.
I doubt I will remember much from X-23: Deadly Regenesis in the years to come, but it’s a perfectly serviceable Wolverine story that plays well to the mid-2000s fans in the bleachers.
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