Brandon Yates
Apr 5, 2003, 02:56 pm
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/hulkwolv4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/hulkwolv4t.jpg" align=left alt="Hulk/Wolverine: Six Hours #4"></a>Reviewer: Brandon Yates, brandonyates@zentertainment.com
Quick Rating: Above Average
Story Title: 6 Hours, part 4 of 4
There's only once chance to save Kyle Thatcher, and it means that Wolverine will have to go toe to toe, once again, with the Incredible Hulk!
Writer: Bruce Jones
Cover by: Simon Bisley
Art: Scott Kolins
Lettered by: Dave Sharpe
Colored by: Lee Loughridge
Editor: John Miesegaes
Supervising Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
Well, that was one way to end it I suppose. In a way, this mini-series has been a bit of a rollercoaster ride, except the high points were merely "okay." But we at least get the one thing that many of us were waiting for, which is a knock-down drag-out brawl between Wolvie and the Hulk.
Shredder, the villain of our feature, and Wolverine duke it out on a boat, while, back on land, Bruce Banner tries to alleviate Dying Kyle's suffering with an antidote that he may have dropped somewhere. The one thing that Jones has consistently pulled off well is Kyle's plight. Each issue, thanks to Scott Kolins' attentive artwork, we see a physically degenerating Kyle succumbing to the poisonous snake bite that he received in the first issue. The whole premise of this series has been solid at its core, it's just the Mainstream Pow! Wow! Supa Hero window dressing that detracted from it every chance it got.
Is there something in the air in the Canadian wilderness? Because all of the characters (except Margie. Maybe it's a male thing) acted like children all the way through. Shredder, once a professional badass has turned into a schoolyard bully who wants Wolverine to admit that "mine are the deadliest claws around!" Whatever floats your boat buddy, just get on with the story. Thankfully, Logan cuts the Shredder's time short and gets back to trying to save the boy.
I liked how Jones subtley illustrated Banner's inner rage, making him irate in all interactions with Logan. At first one would think that the good doctor was being a big jerk, calling Logan an idiot and yelling at him for no reason all of the time but we Incredible Hulk readers know the deal. Oh yes.
Perhaps it was a development that I should have seen coming from light years away but I was somewhat surprised when the only hope for Kyle came in the form of the Hulk's blood. Not Banner's, mind you. The transformation would have to take place. Hence, Hulk/Wolverine fighty time. That's where the art comes in, and I have to say that I see a marked improvement between the first three issues and this conclusion, as Kolins delivers a much stronger, more detailed rendering of the action. I love the technique he used to emphasize the two 'sides' of Doc Banner, having him wear one-way glasses for all the time that he was calm, then giving us a peek at his bulging, cracked red eyes right before his inner-Ferrigno rips through the surface. It's still not Flash quality, but it's clear that his heart is in that book, a passion that cannot be duplicated on a whim. But, for what it's worth, he came closer than I thought likely.
One last "huh?" moment comes at the end with some more juvenile behavior between our heroes, almost like a last minute attempt to turn this into a comedy, but that minute passed long ago; probably the only moment that passed in actual Real Time (was that a failed mechanic or what? Can't hate them for trying though). Sam Kieth's Wolverine/Hulk mini-series set itself up as a half-serious, half kooky mind romp from the start (and it was actually funny) so it's not that that tone doesn't work for the characters. Jones chose to poison some kid, toss in a couple of drug dealers and have Shredder murder the cast of Cocoon. Any kind of humor attempted would have to be hilarious or else it would (and did) come off as forced and distracting.
Hulk/Wolverine wasn't terrible by any means, but was it worth $11.96? Eh, probably not. I would, however, recommend the first and last issues if only to see some genuine Hulk action. We Incredible Hulk readers need to get it where ever we can find it. Oh yes.
ART:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpg
STORY:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpg
Buy this issue online now from X-World and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=460&cat=HULK%2FWOLVERINE%3A+6+HOURS+)
Quick Rating: Above Average
Story Title: 6 Hours, part 4 of 4
There's only once chance to save Kyle Thatcher, and it means that Wolverine will have to go toe to toe, once again, with the Incredible Hulk!
Writer: Bruce Jones
Cover by: Simon Bisley
Art: Scott Kolins
Lettered by: Dave Sharpe
Colored by: Lee Loughridge
Editor: John Miesegaes
Supervising Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
Well, that was one way to end it I suppose. In a way, this mini-series has been a bit of a rollercoaster ride, except the high points were merely "okay." But we at least get the one thing that many of us were waiting for, which is a knock-down drag-out brawl between Wolvie and the Hulk.
Shredder, the villain of our feature, and Wolverine duke it out on a boat, while, back on land, Bruce Banner tries to alleviate Dying Kyle's suffering with an antidote that he may have dropped somewhere. The one thing that Jones has consistently pulled off well is Kyle's plight. Each issue, thanks to Scott Kolins' attentive artwork, we see a physically degenerating Kyle succumbing to the poisonous snake bite that he received in the first issue. The whole premise of this series has been solid at its core, it's just the Mainstream Pow! Wow! Supa Hero window dressing that detracted from it every chance it got.
Is there something in the air in the Canadian wilderness? Because all of the characters (except Margie. Maybe it's a male thing) acted like children all the way through. Shredder, once a professional badass has turned into a schoolyard bully who wants Wolverine to admit that "mine are the deadliest claws around!" Whatever floats your boat buddy, just get on with the story. Thankfully, Logan cuts the Shredder's time short and gets back to trying to save the boy.
I liked how Jones subtley illustrated Banner's inner rage, making him irate in all interactions with Logan. At first one would think that the good doctor was being a big jerk, calling Logan an idiot and yelling at him for no reason all of the time but we Incredible Hulk readers know the deal. Oh yes.
Perhaps it was a development that I should have seen coming from light years away but I was somewhat surprised when the only hope for Kyle came in the form of the Hulk's blood. Not Banner's, mind you. The transformation would have to take place. Hence, Hulk/Wolverine fighty time. That's where the art comes in, and I have to say that I see a marked improvement between the first three issues and this conclusion, as Kolins delivers a much stronger, more detailed rendering of the action. I love the technique he used to emphasize the two 'sides' of Doc Banner, having him wear one-way glasses for all the time that he was calm, then giving us a peek at his bulging, cracked red eyes right before his inner-Ferrigno rips through the surface. It's still not Flash quality, but it's clear that his heart is in that book, a passion that cannot be duplicated on a whim. But, for what it's worth, he came closer than I thought likely.
One last "huh?" moment comes at the end with some more juvenile behavior between our heroes, almost like a last minute attempt to turn this into a comedy, but that minute passed long ago; probably the only moment that passed in actual Real Time (was that a failed mechanic or what? Can't hate them for trying though). Sam Kieth's Wolverine/Hulk mini-series set itself up as a half-serious, half kooky mind romp from the start (and it was actually funny) so it's not that that tone doesn't work for the characters. Jones chose to poison some kid, toss in a couple of drug dealers and have Shredder murder the cast of Cocoon. Any kind of humor attempted would have to be hilarious or else it would (and did) come off as forced and distracting.
Hulk/Wolverine wasn't terrible by any means, but was it worth $11.96? Eh, probably not. I would, however, recommend the first and last issues if only to see some genuine Hulk action. We Incredible Hulk readers need to get it where ever we can find it. Oh yes.
ART:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpg
STORY:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/wolnone.jpg
Buy this issue online now from X-World and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=460&cat=HULK%2FWOLVERINE%3A+6+HOURS+)