Old Man Logan is one of those comics that I didn’t think would work as an ongoing story. While I loved Mark Miller’s storyline I never thought it would be something Marvel would turn into an ongoing, much less something that exist in the current Marvel Universe. But I guess I should never say never as Marvel used Secret Wars as an opportunity to integrate Old Man Logan into the current Marvel Universe.
For their part the team of Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino have maximized Old Man Logan’s potential to explore a version Wolverine that has literally lost everything. The opening storyline, “Beserk,” so far has given us a tour of the current Marvel Universe and shown us how this version of Logan sees it. Now that tour leads Logan to finding himself in Hawkeye’s crosshairs. Will this visit turn out friendly or will it be disastrous? Let’s find out
Creative Team
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Andrea Sorrentino
Colorist: Marcelo Maiolo
Story Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
Synopsis: Logan wakes up in an apartment in Brooklyn, New York with an arrow pointed at his face. He sees that the one pointing the arrow is Hawkeye (Kate Bishop). Logan says he thought the apartment was Clint Barton’s. Kate says that she is house-sitting while Clint is away on a mission.
She then asks why Logan looks so old as she thought he was dead. Logan says that, while she won’t believe him, he is from the future. Kate isn’t too surprised and Logan thinks it’s odd she isn’t in shock. Kate explains that she has been through a lot and knows how the X-Men have their own brand of adventures.
Kate sees that Logan has some sort of list on his arm and wonders what that is about. Logan says it’s a “Grocery List.” Kate goads Logan to tell her what the list really is.
Logan goes over how in a few years the villains will get their act together and kill all of the heroes. Kate wonders if Mysterio, Black Butcher and Bruce Banner’s name on his list have something to do with this future. Logan says that by killing those on his list he can make sure that his future does not happen.
Kate ask Logan why he came looking for Clint. Logan says that Clint was one of the few heroes to survive the villains attack, though he was left blind by Avalanche.
Logan finishes his story and says that his healing factor is finally kicking in. Logan gets up to leave but as he walks out he suddenly passes out.
Logan wakes up to find himself in the water. He swims up to find himself playing with Scott and Jadie at the beach, while his wife watches him. Logan playful throws his daughter using the fastball special. Jadie gets out of the water scarred and calls her dad.
Logan comforts Jadie saying he is sorry. Jadie says that she wasn’t hurt or anything but that when she went under water she saw a monster. Logan dives down and finds the corpses of Spider-Woman, Hawkeye (Kate Bishop) and an X-Men in the water.
Logan apologizes to his family as he did not realize the beach was the location where the Battle of Atlantis took place. Jadie asks if they are all dead. Logan says that they are and reassures his daughter that as long as he’s around no one can hurt her. Jadie asks if that is a promise and Logan says it is.
Logan suddenly wakes up after sleeping for 33 hours. Kate gives Logan some coffee and comments that his healing factor has made him look better. When Logan comments on the coffee, Kate wonders if there was Starbucks after the villain uprising.
Logan asks Kate if he believes his story now. Kate says she might but that they won’t find Bruce Banner anywhere since he has disappeared but so she wonders if Mysterio is next on his list. Logan says he is and that he has a big score to settle with Mysterio.
Kate informs Logan that she knows where Mysterio since she has access to SHIELD’s database. Logan wonders why Kate is helping him out. Kate says that she has been bored since Clint left and wants to shoot something with her bow. Logan says he works alone but Kate wan’s to hear none of it and rather than going down a long argument where Logan lets her join him she says to grab his jacket so they can go.
As Logan and Hawkeye jump from rooftop to rooftop Kate asks Logan about the future. Logan jokes that he ends up killing her in five minutes from now after she annoys him too much. Hawkeye laughs it off and then ask Logan about the identity of the new female Thor. Logan question Hawkeye on the female Thor which makes Hawkeye wonder if there was one in his timeline. Logan says he can’t remember but that there are a lot of costume changes so he might of missed that one.
Logan and Hawkeye arrive at an abandoned electronics shop. Logan says they should go inside right away before Mysterio knows they are there but Hawkeye thinks they should wait a second. Hawkeye then brings up the fact that Logan doesn’t remember there being a female Thor and that Avalanche is dead even though Logan says he blinds Clint. Logan brushes off those facts by reiterating that costumes are always changing and so do owners. Hawkeye tries to get Logan to question if the timeline he is in right now is different from the one he came but Logan doesn’t want to think about it anymore.
Logan breaks down the door to the electronics shop and finds to two guys drinking. Logan yells at the two to tell him where Mysterio is. They both say that they don’t know anything about Mysterio. Logan and Hawkeye decide to attack the two guys. After subduing her guy Hawkeye is shocked to witness Logan cut off the hand of the other guy. The guy Logan attack cries that he and the other guy just found the place and they don’t know anything about Mysterio.
Hawkeye shoots an arrow near Logan and yells at him to stop. Hawkeye says that Logan has gone too far but Logan says he is doing exactly what he said he was coming to do. Hawkeye says that she thought they were only going to rough people up but not slaughter them.
Hawkeye then says that she has no problem shooting Logan with arrows. Logan states his healing factor works and quickly destroys her bow with his claws. Hawkeye kicks Logan in the face and flips towards the door so she can let the guys they attack get away.
Logan slams Hawkeye against the wall. Hawkeye ask if he is going to kill her. Logan says he is trying to save them all. Logan let’s go of her and Hawkeye says that all the heroes are still alive and that they can help him. Logan walks out saying he does things alone.
Logan walks through an alleyway and as he jumps onto a balcony his hands get hit by a trashcan lid. As Logan gets up to see who hit him Steve Rogers orders Logan to stand down. End of issue.
The Good: Old Man Logan #3 does a good job of showing us how this old version of Logan deals with the conflict between what he knows and what the present day status quo is. Jeff Lemire is able to make this conflict the key into making this version of the character stand out from other ongoing Wolverine series we have had. This also gives us an opportunity to see how the rest of the Marvel Universe reacts to this version of Logan, which Lemire uses in full effect in Old Man Logan #3.
Bringing Kate Bishop into the fold was a great decision as fans of the original Old Man Logan arc know that the original Hawkeye, Clint Barton, played a big role in the story. It allowed Lemire to touch on one of the remaining friendship that Logan had post-villain uprising without having to bring in the old version of the character into the story. Lemire gave clear signs that just talking to a Hawkeye opened Logan up more than he would have if it was someone else.
For her part, Kate did a good job playing off the grumpy Logan. Much like Clint, Kate is a character that doesn’t mind joking. At the same time Lemire made sure to treat her seriously as Kate was used to ask questions readers have had since the Old Man Logan series was announced. While it may seem like Lemire just used Kate as a prop to ask these questions she was never treated as such. Lemire made sure to write Kate in a way that the character sounded like how she normally talks.
And while Kate is a character that has been around for a while she is still a young hero in the Marvel Universe. With Kate still being young we were able to get a character that could react to the extreme actions Logan takes to find those on his list. Seeing how Kate reacted was a good reminder of how Logan’s actions throughout his history aren’t something that other heroes can stomach.
These interactions with Kate also brought up Logan’s own issue to the forefront. Logan’s dream sequence nicely highlighted why Logan has returned to his lower attitude. Not only was it a reminder of how Logan was able to build a family in that hell hole but also how the whole villain uprising still haunts him. The sequence also helped to remind the reader how Mysterio is the villain that did the most damage to Logan and why he would be at the top of his list.
The ending left us in a good place to lead us into the end of this story arc. While I don’t see this ending leading us to big fight between the two old timers Steve Rogers is the perfect character to get Logan out of his own way. At least that is what I hope since this series does need something more than Logan running down his hit list to have longevity.
As much as I enjoyed the story what really stood out in Old Man Logan #3 is Andrea Sorrentino stellar artwork. Sorrentino artwork is just fantastic as he delivers a style that is feels unique to Old Man Logan. The style also plays well with how much darker this version of Logan is and how his actions can shock even characters like Kate Bishop. And even with how well executed the action was what made the artwork really standout was the talking head scenes. Sorrentino made you feel the pain and confusion Logan went through during the entirety of his team-up with Kate. Even Steve Rogers had an intimidating aura when he was standing over Logan that worked to keep the reader hooked.
The Bad: I had no problems with this issue
Overall: Old Man Logan #3 delivered another compelling look into Marvel’s newest man out of time in Wolverine. This older version of the character has opened up a lot of opportunities for Jeff Lemire and Marvel to explore a Logan that does not have a God-like healing factor and comes from a time where he lost everything. Those are the opportunities that Lemire and Sorrentino are making full use of in both the writing and artwork. And now that Kate Bishop and Steve Rogers are forcing Logan to face the reality of his situation hopefully we are in store for something even bigger. Overall if you are a Wolverine fan I can’t recommend Old Man Logan enough. This is a comic all fans of the character should be adding to their collection.