Predator vs. Wolverine #3 is juggling a lot of balls. First, it sets the stage for the final fight between Wolverine and the Yajuta that’s hounded him for centuries. Then it adds a wrinkle by flashing back to Logan’s Weapon X days – where the Yajuta seeks his Adamantium skeleton for its weapons. Finally it turns around to Logan’s days training under the swordsmaster Muramasa, where a supposed haven of peace is thrown under the interstellar hunter’s shadow.
Any other writer would have buckled under the pressure, but thankfully Benjamin Percy isn’t any comic book writer. Taking a page from the X Lives/X Deaths of Wolverine storyline, Percy’s script expertly zips between timelines, showcasing how each of the conflicts between Logan and the Yajuta have played out. The beauty of a character like Wolverine is that his mysterious past – as well as the longevity afforded to him by his healing factor – means you can write a variety of stories. Spy, samurai, superhero…all of it fits Wolverine, and all of those aspects have helped him in his fight against the Predator. Percy also remembers that Logan himself is a hunter; his preparations for the final fight against the Yajuta will send a chill down Wolverine fans’ spines.
With each shift in time comes a different artist; Ken Lashley, as usual, handles the present sections while Hayden Sherman illustrates the Weapon X sequence and Kei Zama does the Muramasa era. Of the three, it’s Lashley who’s the standout – his opening sequence features Logan pinned underwater while the Yajuta closes in on him. Each panel pushes in on Wolverine’s face; though he’s wearing his mask the panic in his eyes is clear, until finally he lets loose a berserker roar – along with his claws. Sherman’s artwork pushes the “Parental Advisory” to its limit – especially when Logan comes face to face with one of the Predator’s deadliest weapons – while Zama illustrates a ballet of beautiful violence in a fight between Logan & Muramasa. The color work from Juan Fernandez and Alex Guimaraes drenches everything in varying hues, chief among them the rust red and neon green of its titular combatants’ blood.
Yet for everything that happens, I feel like the issue could have used a few more pages to expand upon its story. Compared to the Team X and the young Logan sequences in the previous two issues, this installment falls a bit short. After all, if you’re slapping down $5.99 for a book, it should definitely have a bit more heft to it.
Predator vs. Wolverine #3 sets the stage for a final fight between its titular combatants, though it could have used a few more pages. There’s only one more issue to go, but I hope that this isn’t the end of the Predator battling the Marvel Universe. There are plenty of other heroes (and villains) the Yajuta could mount on its wall.
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