Dead Man Logan #12: Legends Never Die

Like many of you, I was somewhat skeptical in the beginning. Following the conclusion of the Old Man Logan series, how could it possibly take a full year’s worth of comics to see this story out to its natural conclusion? Could this story really be stretched into twelve full issues and not feel like it was just spinning its wheels?

As it turns out, yes. Even more to the point, twelve issues didn’t feel like long enough. I’m not ready to leave the Wastelands just yet (and luckily, we know Brisson will be returning to the Wastelands again in January). The beginning of this issue, with the final showdown between Logan and Sabretooth, felt slightly rushed as we moved quickly through it and headed for the coast but then again, this series has never been about the action. It has never really even been about the plot despite appearances. This book, dear reader, was about relationships. This book was about the legacy of one of Marvel’s most popular characters and his sordid past, his broken future. No, this book may have had some excellent action but it was a book about peace– about coming to terms with the life you’ve led, the good and the bad, and in the end, ending up like everybody else regardless.

Throughout the year long journey, we’ve seen old friends and villains as we trace Logan’s legacy throughout the Marvel Universe and beyond but it is in the characters of Bruce Jr. and Dani Cage that we see the best snapshot of Logan’s legacy. From Jubilee to Glob Hermann and beyond, we have seen Logan’s tough-guy exterior melt away to reveal the heart of a hero and in these two legacy characters, we see once again that serving as inspiration for lost youths may very well be what Logan is truly best at.

Let’s have a huge round of applause for Ed Brisson, Mike Henderson, Nolan Woodard, and Cory Petit for consistently producing fresh and exciting material for one of Marvel’s perhaps most tired characters, on time every month, with pitch perfect tone in both image and text. Like Dani and Bruce Jr., we say goodbye to Logan but head off into the sunset seeking the next adventure.