Wolverine is in need of some help and a snazzy new team name in Weapon X-Men #1, written by Joe Casey and drawn by Chris Cross. Deadpool, Cable, Chamber, and Thunderbird join Logan on a high-stakes mutant rescue mission in this exciting first issue.
Someone is hunting adamantium users and that doesn’t bode well for our favorite Canadian bub. Logan’s rightfully concerned and on his own in Paris when he’s suddenly attacked. Deadpool and Cable arrive shortly after this, but with different plans in mind. Following Cable’s lead, they aim to round out their crew and rescue another mutant from a global hot spot. There are a lot of plates spinning throughout the issue and few are what they seem to be.
Assembly Reaches a Tipping Point
Let the Team Be a Team
The balance struck in the opening of this issue is very satisfying. There’s a good amount of time dedicated to Logan and how he’s processing this new threat. It lays the character groundwork really well. But there’s also plenty of action surrounding him. There’s never a standstill moment. Readers are learning about Wolverine while plot is unfolding and things are being set up. From there, it only gets better with the addition of Deadpool, his zingy zingers, and Cable on a mission. It’s a lot of fun, and it happens early enough that it feels like the issue is really delivering on its promises.
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However, there does feel like a bit of a slowdown at this point. Wolverine, Cable, and Deadpool meet with Chamber at a bar and talk him into joining the team and helping with the mission. This feels like it didn’t need to be another conversation. They could have bumped into Chamber mid-fight and had this dialogue over action. They certainly didn’t need to have this conversation in the second bar featured in the issue. As much fun as it is to read through a team assembly, there comes a tipping point where readers stop wanting to see the formation and start wanting to see the team be a team.
A Trope That Works
Wolverine Is Down but Not Out
Once these guys land on the ground in Latveria, Wolverine is pretty quickly taken off the board. It’s surprising and alarming in a way that points to something fishy going on behind the scenes. Wolverine was poisoned and this ties into the initial threat from the opening. Someone is hunting down adamantium. This also plays into the trope of taking out a heavy hitter early in order to raise the stakes and establish a new threat. Readers see it a lot because it’s effective albeit tired. But it works here because it doubles as a way to introduce a very interesting twist.
A Fun Twist to Keep You Going
Deadpool Has a Tick up One Sleeve and a Quip up the Other
Wolverine’s suspicion of Deadpool’s arrival turns out to be warranted. Even when Logan isn’t at one hundred percent, he can sniff out when something is off. Deadpool has an agenda of his own and he’s being bankrolled by a mysterious puppet master. The reveal certainly raises some logistical questions. It might even make readers want to reread the issue, but these concerns aren’t big enough to spoil the twist. It helps that it’s an exciting one that’ll hopefully lead to some interesting ground to cover in the next issue.
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This issue is a whole lot of fun, and it really benefits from some well-established intrigue. The pacing throughout and the balance of fun action with grounded character beats makes this an exciting read. And on top of that, this collection of characters is really interesting and will surely be fun once they all get together and play off of each other. There was thankfully enough hints and previews of this in the first issue, but it also certainly feels like they’re saving the best for the rest.
