- Written by: Chris Condon
- Art by: Alessandro Cappuccio
- Colors by: Bryan Valenza
- Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
- Cover art by: Alessandro Cappuccio, Frank Martin (cover A)
- Cover price: $5.99
- Release date: January 15, 2025
Ultimate Wolverine #1, by Marvel Comics on 1/15/25, recounts how the “Specimen” from the North American territories was captured and converted into the Ultimate Winter Soldier.
Is Ultimate Wolverine #1 Good?
Plot Synopsis
Ultimate Wolverine #1 begins with the titular character, who doesn’t speak in this issue, as he prepares for an airdrop aboard a military transport plane. The soldiers around him theorize about his origins and skills, but they back away in awe when the Winter Soldier, aka Ultimate Wolverine, stands up, pulls the switch that opens the jump doors, and leaps out without a parachute.
In a flashback, we see and hear that “Logan” came from the North American regions and was captured after a bombing raid between the Eurasian Republic and the rebel group known as The Opposition. Logan was brought to the Eurasian Republic Leaders – Colossus, Magik, and Omega Red – for conscription, brainwashing, and experimentation within their Directorate X program. Logan was subjected to their bone enhancement procedure that gave him unbreakable bones, and he was redubbed the Winter Soldier.
Now, the Winter Soldier crash lands into a church where members of the Opposition, led by Nightcrawler and Mystique, plan their next act of rebellion. The Winter Soldier tears through their defenses, slaughtering everyone, including Mystique. Nightcrawler recognizes the masked attacker as Logan and tries to reason with him. The issue ends with blood and contemplation.
First Impressions
Ultimate Wolverine #1 by writer Chris Condon is perfectly fine. You feel like you’re reading a proper Wolverine comic with a twist, similar to Superman’s Red Sun Elseworlds story. That said, the problem isn’t with the comic but its place in the broader Ultimates line (more on that in a minute).
How’s the Art?
The art is perfectly good. We’re no stranger to Alessandro Cappuccio’s stellar art style in Jed MacKay’s Moon Knight series, so if you like the look of Moon Knight, you’ll like the look of this issue. Plus, the violence gets appropriately gruesome as Winter Soldier’s opponents are run through in painful ways. The violence isn’t Red Band levels of gory, but Winter Soldier absolutely kills people without question.
What’s great about Ultimate Wolverine #1?
If you like your Wolverine stories that are mean, rough, nasty, and gritty, writer Chris Condon covers all the bases with a story that shows the Adamantium-clawed one doing what he does best. Logan’s path to becoming the Winter Soldier makes sense within the context of the world, barring a few blank spots, and the ending subtly suggests the Winter Soldier may not be fully under Eurasian Republic control, which is a decent enough tease.
What’s not great about Ultimate Wolverine #1?
The big flaw in the issue is the setup that’s required for this story to be possible. The very first page, which is a preface explaining the Ultimates Universe, clearly states the Maker created his personal Utopia by purging or preventing heroes from being created. Anyone who could oppose him in the future was either eradicated or neutered.
If so, why on Earth would the Maker allow mutants to be born? Why wouldn’t the Maker purge the X-gene from humanity before it had a chance to take root? How could an Opposition, comprised of mutants opposed to the Eurasian Republic’s oppression of mutants, come to pass over the course of years without the Maker’s knowledge?
In short, the story makes sense only if you ignore the Maker and how/why he created the Ultimate Universe in the first place.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Final Thoughts
Ultimate Wolverine #1 delivers a rough and tumble Wolverine under the thrall of the Eurasian Republic within the Ultimate Universe. Writer Chris Condon ticks all the boxes in creating a plausible origin for a character who is two parts Wolverine and one part Winter Soldier, and Alessandro Cappuccio’s gritty, brutal art fits the character to a tee. That said, the story only makes sense if you ignore the Maker and the origin of the Ultimate Universe.
7.5/10
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