Wolverine #20 Finds Logan and Deadpool Teaming Up

Wolverine never takes a break. He’ll enjoy a keg of beer or a bottle of whiskey, sure, but he’s still never far from the action. The omnipresent icon of the X-Men and Marvel Comics in general just wrapped up a couple of miniseries (X Lives and X Deaths of Wolverine) in which the fabric of time and space were at risk. Now back in his solo series for Wolverine #20, his idea of “fun” is yet another mission, and he’s not alone. A certain Merc with a Mouth is trying to force his way onto Krakoa and will do whatever it takes, even hijack Wolverine’s book, to do it.

Wolverine #20 begins with a long narration, and if the yellow boxes don’t tip you off to the fact that this is Deadpool speaking, the description of Logan as a “grouchypants” and the mention of the Justice League will. I prefer the meta mercenary more in these supporting roles where he can be a foil to the others around him, but the reality of the story is not completely broken. Benjamin Percy has no problem using the character to tear through the fourth wall like its tissue paper. Deadpool, of course, visits a comics shop, and there’s a joke in this issue about X-Twitter that made me laugh out loud while also feeling personally attacked.

When the switch in point of view is eventually made from Deadpool to our titular character, Percy continues to prove that he is one of the best at capturing the gruff but earnest voice of Wolverine. He’s also great at justifying why there are specific tasks the character would prefer to do alone rather than bring in X-Force or the X-Men. Here, Logan feels a personal responsibility to retrieve a severed hand of his that the X-Desk of the CIA got ahold of earlier in this run. Shady government organizations, possible cloning, and Wolverine aren’t ever a good combination, so he’s going to put a stop to whatever it is they’re doing before it becomes an issue.

Adam Kubert, who drew the fantastic Solem arc of this series, is back on this issue and, based on solicitations for future issues, will be sticking around for a while. He continues to impress here, whether it is the comedic staging of Deadpool’s antics, the kinetic action, or even making a computer screen debrief dynamic and exciting. The opening pages utilize some especially creative panelling, outlined in purposefully not straight lines and bordered with a soft pink that goes well with the previously mentioned Deadpool monologue.

Though this does pick up some threads from earlier in the run, this isn’t a bad place to jump on board if you haven’t been reading every issue of the Krakoan era. Deadpool’s outside perspective provides a good recap of the mutants’ current place in society, and the straightforward nature of the mission makes it a fun read no matter what. And there’s a character reveal at the end of someone we haven’t yet seen in this new era of X books, and their reemergence should provide a very interesting issue next issue.