Writer: Benjamin Percy
Artists: Ken Lashley, Greg Land, Jay Leisten & Andrea Di Vito
Color Artists: Juan Fernandez & Frank D’Armata
Cover Artist: Marco Checchetto
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewer: StoryBabbler
It’s the fight of the year: Predator vs. Wolverine! For centuries, the alien warrior race known as the Yautja have hunted the most fearsome beings in the galaxy as a test of honor and for sport. And now one of their hunters has chosen to hunt one of Marvel Comic’s most deadliest mutants, Wolverine. Read Predator vs. Wolverine #1 to see the beginning of this rivalry as these deadly fighters clash.
If you’re interested in this comic, series, related trades, or any of the others mentioned, then simply click on the title/link to snag a copy through Amazon as you read the Predator vs. Wolverine #1 Review.
Review:
It’s just what it says in the title – Predator vs. Wolverine! Now, I’ll be honest, this isn’t the most action-heavy issue nor is it filled with any type of horror element or anything. This comic is a more action-oriented book and focuses on establishing this multi-year feud between Wolverine and an alien Predator. One thing to note is that I’m not reviewing this on whether or not it fits into the main continuity or anything, but just on the merits of the comic’s story.
The comic starts off with a quick preview of the present-day as Wolverine is in bad shape where he’s being hunted by a lone Predator. From there the comic quickly shifts back in time to Alaska in the year 1900, with a young Logan as the main character and shows his life in the snowy wilderness. Readers are given a glimpse of what his daily routine is like and Logan’s mindset in this time as it shows some new and familiar behavior from the deadly mutant. It also shows the arrival of a youngblood Yautja hunter to the planet Earth and from there the comic shows how both of their paths collide.
Let’s start with the good. I’ll say this, the comic does a smart job at identifying which artist illustrates the different time periods from the get-go. Ken Lashley illustrates the present day pages while Greg Land draws the majority of the comic focused on the young Wolverine with Jay Leiston on inking. While Andrea Di Vito gets to draw a bit of the last few pages that directly tie into the next issue and set up the next big fight between Wolverine and the Predator, let’s call him Lycos (based on the term Lycan). Either way, Greg Land does illustrate this comic well and does a solid job with the action with the young fighters.
Now, I’ll address a couple of small nitpicks along with my concerns and hopes for future issues. My main nitpicks center around the main Predator in this series, whom I’m calling Lycos because the story never gives him a name, title or anything to distinguish him. While Benjamin Percy’s intent this issue was to show Lycos as a young warrior looking for a true challenge, he leans a little bit too much in making him a juvenile hunter which is reflected in Greg Land’s design for him. The comic mostly makes up for all of this when Wolverine finally faces the Predator and we get some nice action between them. My main concern is that Benjamin Percy won’t do enough to distinguish this Predator that much visually or in terms of his personality. That the majority of his focus will go into developing Wolverine and not the Predator and this blood feud they have with each other. However, the ending of the comic does give me hope that the next issue will be different and ramp things up.
Final Thoughts:
Predator vs. Wolverine #1 kicks off this new series as two deadly fighters clash. This issue is really about the first encounter that Wolverine has with this single hunter. Both of them are young in this issue as reflected in the art, and while the Predator doesn’t have much to do until later in the comic, young Wolverine gets most of the spotlight and a lot of the best action in the comic. The final pages of the comic do a solid job setting up the fight between the two characters for the next issue that will feel very nostalgic to fans of the first Predator film.