Wolverine #30: Wolvie And The Beast

Wolverine is angry. Well, he’s always angry, but he’s really angry this time. He’s not alone, though. In last month’s Wolverine #29, Wolverine escaped The Pit and was finally free from Beast’s control, but he still needed to deal with him. Thankfully he isn’t doing this alone. Wolverine #30 follows Wolverine and Sage as they figure out how to deal with the Beast as well as locate Jeff Banister. Sage is an excellent addition because she knows Beast is brilliant, so they have to play it cool as possible. I loved the dynamic between Sage and Wolverine. Wolverine is all brute force, while Sage is strategic and logical. It’s funny because I liked the dynamic between Wolverine and Bannister because Wolverine couldn’t slash his way through everything. Now he’s doing just that to find Bannister so he can eventually deal with Beast.

 There’s plenty of action, but this issue contrasts the action and gore-packed last few problems. Juan Jose Ryp thrives in action and gore. This isn’t the most gore-filled issue, but Ryp provides some great moments, like Wolverine opening and closing his blades while interrogating someone. When Wolverine actually uses his claws later in the issue, they are dripping thick and dark blood, which is 10x as gnarly as the bright stuff we usually see. Frank D’Armata’s colors work well with Ryp’s pencils. I noticed that the colors look best when the setting is at night or dealing with action, gore, or the vegetation of Krakoa. Lettering a book with Wolverine in it must be so much fun. There’s something so iconic about the “snikt” sound effect. Cory Petit is a solid letterer and has done a great job on this series, so the snikts and occasional snakes are the cherries on top. 

Wolverine #30 is an impressive book all around. I’d also like to mention the cover art by Romulo Fajardo Jr. and Leinil Francis Yu. They really nail the vibe that Wolverine and X-Force have been building upon. It’s also worth mentioning again that Ben Percy is great at what he does. Wolverine and X-Force are going strong and have been building on a common thread while still feeling like distinctly different series. Whether you are reading just this series or just X-Force, you aren’t entirely lost, which I’m a big fan of because I don’t always have the time to be entirely caught up on X-titles.