Rough Trade Friday: Wolverine - Civil War

Marvel Comics' oft-delayed Civil War crossover was, in my opinion, one of the most annoying series I've ever read, mainly because (unlike a lot of other crossover series) a person essentially had to read all the tie-in comics in order to understand what was going on. As a result, I was not a fan of the main series, though Civil War: Frontline was actually pretty decent and did a nice job of filling in a lot of gaps while showing how neither Captain America nor Iron Man were as right as they thought they were. However, the best thing to come out of this editorial war crime was, without a doubt, the Wolverine tie-in to the Civil War storyline.

Employing the art of Humberto Ramos (you should all know that I am a massive Ramos fan by now) and the writing of Marc Guggenheim (who, aside from writing comics like Blade, has worked as a writer for TV shows like CSI and The Practice) to weave a tale which is refreshingly... well, it's just refreshingly Wolverine. The story is set during the aftermath of the explosion which kicked off the Civil War events, but it focuses on how Logan goes against orders from both the Avengers and the X-Men to go after the man responsible for the blast. The comic's plot focuses on Logan's sense of honor, as well as how sometimes the most insidious form of evil does not come from villains with grandiose plans for world domination, but from men who simply don't care about what is right or wrong.

Wolverine- Civil War is one of those comics that I find myself recommending to just about anyone who is a comics fan, mainly because of its combination of mature storytelling and incredible style. One thing I've often disliked about Wolverine's portrayal in a lot of comics is that he's displayed as a fairly shallow character who just happens to be a major badass who can't be killed. However, Ramos and Guggenheim have managed to revitalize the character as a man who is a collection of contradictions, as well as one of the most intriguing protagonists to walk the Marvel Universe. As a result, this is a fantastic read and was naturally our first choice to recommend as weekend reading.