Written by: Greg Pak
Pencils and Inks by: Mahmud Asrar
Color by: Nolan Woodard
Letters by: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover by: Skan
Published by: Marvel Comics
“Their goal is a simple one…ERADICATE ALL MUTANTS! And they’re starting their hunt with the most dangerous group of mutants on planet Earth — Old Man Logan, Sabretooth, Domino, Lady Deathstrike, Warpath and…the Hulk?! But with an army of genetic cyborgs at their disposal, this may just be the beginning…”
Weapons of Mutant Destruction: Alpha #1 sets off the next Marvel Summer crossover between Weapon X and Totally Awesome Hulk. Part 2 will be in Totally Awesome Hulk #20. Part 3 will be in Weapon X #5. The chapters will bounce back and forth between those titles until the conclusion, part 6 in TAH #22.
The Weapon X program was initially founded as a secret military operation attempting to create the perfect soldier. The program produced, among others, Wolverine, Sabretooth, Deadpool, Shiva, Mastadon, and Reaper. Now, Weapon X is back, with an all-new mission, to hunt and destroy mutantkind.
Using Adamantium cyborgs with mutant powers, attacks have already been launched against Logan, Sabretooth, Domino, Warpath, Lady Deathstrike, and Amadeus Cho. These mutants form an uneasy alliance to locate the secret laboratory that is conducting these horrific genetic experiments and shut them down.
Writer Greg Pak excels at creating team dynamics. He develops each of the individual characters well, and uses them each in honest and believable ways. It is clear that he is very comfortable with each of his characters, being the writer on both series that are crossing over for this event.
Cho is the obvious fish out of water in this team-up, and Pak makes it clear that most of the team wonders why he’s even there. Simply put, he’s there because Logan wants him. Experience has taught the former Wolverine that they’ll reach their goals much more quickly with a super-genius on board.
Art duties for this issue fall on Mahmud Asrar and Nolan Woodard. Asrar’s heavy, clean lines, with creative us of angles, panels, and gutters give a cinematic feel to the story. Woddard’s heavy, muted palette compliments the line work with an ominous, unsettling ambience.
For my money, this is the Marvel crossover of the summer. This one feels more natural than Civil War II did for me. The conflict is personal, hitting way too close to home for many of the principals.
Overall: 8.5/10
Brendan Allen has probably had more jobs than you would reasonably believe. Dog trainer? He’s done it. Flooring contractor? Yep! EMT? Army NBC specialist? Road dog for a Celtic rock band? Yes, yes, and och aye! Now he reads comics and writes about them.
