|
by Dave Scrimgeour and Kevin McCluskey    Writer- Barry Windsor-Smith Artist- Barry Windsor-Smith Letterers- Jim Novak & Barry Windor-Smith Editor- Terry Kavanagh SynopsisThe X Weapon is on the loose, and The Professor could be doing with a hand to recapture him. Dave So, Chapter 8 of Weapon X, issue 80 of Marvel Comics Presents. Now, at this stage, I'm wondering why the choice was made to make this such a small, compacted issue, rather than having them a bit bigger. It is very much like a chapter in a novel, broken down into small segments. Kev It is just like a serialised novel, isn't it? The format continues to work for me though, I have to say. Dave Yeah, as we have it, each segment contains just a little event in this story. It is cleverly written that way. Kev Yeh, it's very well constructed. Dave Anyway, the cover is quite good. It's pretty self explanatory. Kev Yeh, the cover's great. Logan looks horrific, animalistic, and the colours really pop, what with the lights, and the shapes of them, as well as the blood from Logan's victim. And we get Cap in the corner box this month. Dave Yeah, it’s a great contrast to the darker image on the first page. Cap looks like he's chasing down old Wolvie. Kev Ha, ha! Cap's not small, he's just far away. Dave It's a great splash page on page 1, very menacing looking, and the caption boxes heighten the tension. Plus, I love the blue colour throughout it, taking us back to James Cameron’s look for 'Aliens' that we spoke about earlier, which really helps with the sense of threat.  Is that Craig Charles or John Fashanu on commentary here? Kev That blue is amazing. It really helps the image of Wolverine and his victim leap off of the page. It's a superb splash page. It's really dynamic and visceral. This is what we've been building to, and it's what we've been waiting for. The shit has hit the fan. We've been rooting for Logan to get his revenge this entire time, haven't we? Dave Oh yes. In fact, it is well overdue. It seems that The Professor is alarmed by this situation, when he says, "Yes who does indeed," with regards to who has control over Logan. Payback is a bitch, as they say. Kev It certainly is. Yeh, I’m not buying that The Professor is unable to shut this down. I think he is allowing all this to unfold. I think this is all part of his experiment. Dave He is that devious. He probably would pull a stunt like this. Plus, have you noticed that he has started referring to him as "Logan" not "Weapon X?" That panel on the bottom of the 2nd page, of Logan ripping the soldiers apart, is eye-catching. A demonstration of his brutal power and ferocity.  It's like an ultraviolent version of Dirty Dancing, isn't it? "So, we'll just let it go. Don't be afraid to lose control, no." Kev Yeah, that's another great panel, alright. Ah, is this the first time The Professor has actually referred to Logan by name? That's interesting that he chooses now, when Logan is at his most machine-like and animalistic, to suddenly start humanising him. Dave I'm not sure if he has before, but most of his references to him have been "Weapon X." It just makes you wonder, why the change in attitude? Kev It's definitely jarring enough to make you take notice of it, isn't it? Is it just because he's already starting to relinquish control of the Weapon X program, and distance himself from the consequences of it somewhat? Especially now that we potentially have an even more controlling, albeit hidden, hand at play here. Dave Or could be, he has now to answer to his boss. Kev That's what I'm thinking. Dave I like how Logan is still, "Mr Logan" to Miss Hines though. Kev She is definitely the most sympathetic of all the Weapon Xers by this point, yeh. Dave Logan looks completely zombie-like walking up those halls. He has become like Michael Myers. The interaction with the soldiers on the headsets, plus the dialogue back and forth with Cornelius, Hines and The Professor, lends a verbal pace to the building tension. On the 3rd page, that panel of Logan with a dark red background is great. He really looks like he is completely gone, emotionally, by this stage, like there is no humanity left in him. And at the bottom panel, we finally see The Professor speaking to his superiors.  Starring Zelda from Terrahawks as Logan. Kev Barry Windsor-Smith is really amping up the horror element of Logan here, yeh. He really is like Michael Meyers, isn't he? Not least in that he has become an unstoppable killing machine. And single-minded of purpose at that. The fact that this could now easily be construed as a slasher movie is not lost on me either. Michael Myers meets The Terminator. Which was influenced by 'Halloween' anyway. Dave Also, on page 3, Logan gets a red background, signalling danger, whereas Cornelius gets the blue background for his panels, and The Professor gets a green coloured background. Very distinctive and effective. Kev Yeh, Windsor-Smith's use of colour as another storytelling device is exemplary here. Dave The colours are superb. Logan just makes mince meat (quite literally) of the soldiers and it's all told in just four panels. In facr, Page 4 is yet another awesome set of panels, as they show Logan in this kind-of claustrophobic type environment. Kev Yeh, I love that panel at the top of page 4. It's so striking. The panel at the bottom of the page isn’t half bad either.  The Mutants. Slice and dice, and all that. Sorry, wrong comic. Dave The "cinematography," if you know what I mean, on this page, is outstanding. Kev Yeh, it reminds me a little of 'Aliens' as well. And not just because of the Cameron blues, but because of the radio chatter and the screams, as the martial guards are being eviscerated in a tunnel too. Dave Exactly. It adds to the rising tension, with an added element of horror as well. Kev This really is a kind-of sci-fi (body), horror, isn't it? Dave Yes, but interestingly, the hero of our story is the one causing the terror, and our only sympathetic characters are Cornelius and Hines, really. But seeing as they are a part of this monstrous experiment, who deserves the sympathy in this story? Kev It's all various shades of grey, isn't it? Or perhaps, rather shades of red, with the amount of blood and viscera being spilled here. Dave 'Weapon X, AKA Shades of Red: A Romance Story For Complete Sadists.' Kev Ha, ha! I can't see it catching on, or being as successful as 'Fifty Shades Of Grey.' Dave Cornelius does provide some much needed humour in reference to The Professor on page 5, "I think he's off his trolley." And The Professor is still wanting to know if his superiors have made this happen. Kev Yeh, any deference to The Professor that Cornelius may once have shown, has been swept aside by this point. And The Professor quotes his superiors here when he refers to the rest of the Weapon X program staff as "dead wood" to be cleared by Logan, who is coming for his revenge against The Professor now. This has all backfired on The Prof. and gone horribly, horribly wrong for him. Dave It seems, from the conversation, that Logan was set loose to wipe out Cornelius and co, but as you say, it has backfired, and his primary target is The Professor. Kev Almost like The Professor was arrogant, conceited and naive enough to actually believe that he, himself, wasn't a part of this "dead wood," when all he really is, is just another loose end to be tied up. Dave I like that bottom panel on page 6, of Logan coming up through the floor, catching The Professor off guard.  Oh, FFS, Logan! I've just had that Karndean flooring put in! Kev Yeh, it reminds me of how Death's Head infiltrated the Dragon's Claws' base, The Nest in the 'Death's Head' comic. Dave It's some entrance, eh? And that tall panel on page 11, of the soldiers, really highlights the danger of their situation. The blood red is a perfect choice in colour.  "8 meters. 7. 6. It can't be. That's inside the room." Kev Definitely. It helps humanise those soldiers a little as well. All those guys will have family of some sort, and they are quite literally being led to the slaughter. Dave And they know it. Plus, Hines’ reaction on page 11 shows how much serious shit they realise they are in, along with The Professor’s screams. Again a great contrast with the blood red to the blue backgrounds. Kev Yeh, the sheer horror of the predicament they have placed themselves in is becoming all too clear to them now. And we also have the moral dilemma for Cornelius and Ms. Hines; should they possibly put their own safety in jeopardy in order to assist The Professor? Dave And on the first panel of the last page, we see the damage caused by Logan as the soldiers finally enter the room. It’s a real blood and guts show. Kev Yeh, it certainly is. Dave I do like that build, as The Prof is given his glasses, realises he has lost his hand, then decides to ditch referring to him as "Logan," and goes back to calling him "Weapon X." Kev Ah, good point. Plus, he also calls for Logan's head, which is not going to go over too well with his superiors, who I would imagine have far too much invested in "Weapon X" at this point, to just allow The Professor to have him executed. Dave The Professor is finally coming apart at the seams (no pun intended), and it will be interesting to see where this story leads to, finally. It has only taken nine issues. Kev Ha, ha! "....only nine issues." Nine mini issues though, to be fair. Do you feel that this chapter has been a turning point for the story though? And do you feel that it has taken too long to get here? Dave I will say that Windsor-Smith is very thorough in his storytelling, as he certainly went to great lengths to show us the Weapon X programme in all its horror and sadism, but it is definitely a turning point in this story. I liked this issue. What did you make of it? Kev I loved it. It felt like a release after all the build up. It was great to see Logan let loose, and to see him exact a certain amount of revenge on his captors. Particularly The Professor. Dave Yep, and it was, visually, a great story. A real step up in pace. Kev Definitely. Windsor-Smith certainly upped the pace, and the ante, with this chapter. (D) & (K)  "Give the man a hand."
0 Comments
|
Back issues
October 2024
|
RSS Feed