Wolverine: Weapons of Armageddon #2: Old Soldiers

Logan’s search for the escaped Tyler brings him face to face with David Colter, the “forgotten Captain America. As the two compare wounds and sins, they quickly find themselves in the sights of the recently unleashed Frank Simpson AKA Nuke. Meanwhile, Tyler begins to realize just what kind of monster he has truly become. 

As previews of Avengers: Armageddon have already hit the net, all that remains is building that bridge to that highly-anticipated event. As far as Weapons of Armageddon is concerned, the foundation remains a tad unsteady. Logan and Nuke’s past has been explored before in the Wolverine: Origins series, but it always helps to get a refresher. The most interesting thing here is Logan and Teri’s encounter with Colton. While Colton’s full history is explored in the pages of Zdarsky’s Captain America, readers who may not be keeping up with that book (for some strange reason) get a brief introduction here to Colton as well as what he has been up to. He is revealed to be the one attacking the PRIMEWEAPON facilities in hopes of preventing the creation of more weapons like himself. The crusade might be in vain, but that doesn’t stop him from trying. It helps build him more as a character and explores his trauma parallel to Logan. 

Zdarsky does well with this type of spy-thriller type of narrative, but there are moments in this issue that struggle to keep your attention throughout. Nuke is interestingly presented as more of a traumatized victim than as a normal antagonistic force. While this is somewhat similar to Frank Miller’s original portrayal of the character, this might not catch the interest of those who aren’t already keen on the character. Tyler also hasn’t contributed much to the story despite being the entire reason Logan is involved in the first place, but that seems to be changing next issue.

Luca Maresca’s art once again impresses, especially in the fight between Logan and Colton with its dynamic shot placement and blistering panels. There are also some good slow moments focusing on Nuke and his past. All of this is highlighted by Jesus Aburtov’s vibrant colors, but for a book like this they occasionally stand out a bit too much when they shouldn’t.