In this review of Ultimate Wolverine #8, the Opposition encounters a new obstacle in their mission to rescue captured mutants from the Eurasian Republic. And this roadblock flies.
ULTIMATE WOLVERINE #8
Writer: Chris Condon
Art and Main Cover: Alessandro Cappuccio
Variant Covers: Andrea Sorrentino, Ryan Brown
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: August 6, 2025
Ultimate Wolverine #8 opens with Logan finally coming to an epiphany regarding his identity, abandoning the Winter Soldier by defacing his uniform. Logan and his squad (dubbed “Strike Force X”) depart for Snake Island. In a Metal Gear Solid-eque sequence, the team infiltrates the island’s defences, with Gambit exploding a minefield by charging it’s soil. Kitty Pryde tries to unlock the facility, only to find the bodies of the dead being its sole inhabitants.
The group investigates deeper into the facility, finding evidence of metal feathers impaled in some of the bodies. Eventually, the group reach the last survivor of the island, a be winged man crying in the fetal position. Kitty tries to appeal to the broken man, with Logan warning her that something about the situation smells funny (literally). Angel suddenly snaps, sending deadly bladed feathers towards the heroes. Kitty is able to phase safely, but Beast, Abigail Brand and Wolverine are caught in the line of fire. The surviving heroes counter attack, incapacitating Angel.
Logan resolves to grant Angel mercy, despite his murderous indiscretions, with Wolverine concluding that if he could find redemption, so could Angel. Logan makes his way further into the facility, following the sound of Director Prostovich’s voice somewhere in the dark. He finds a terminal, where it turns out she is on a live two-way feed. Prostovich is delighted to discover her pet project is still alive, before Logan destroys the terminal, vowing to kill the director in the near future.
With Ultimate Wolverine #8, we finally see Wolverine (the real Wolverine) back in action. Cappuccio really sells the transformation of the character both through his actions (giving mercy to Angel, despite the death of his comrades) as well as design. The “de-programmed” version of the Winter Soldier suit is different enough from prior iterations while still feeling authentically Wolverine. White on a super-suit is an underrated addition, and I love the ruggedness of it. That being said, while I get why he loses the face mask, I will still miss it.
The introduction of this universes’ Angel is a familiar blending of the Walt Simonson “Horseman Death” version as well as the Fox film incarnation, but to an even more tragic and deadly degree. Condon and Cappucio do a great job of demonstrating how frightening yet pitiful he is. While he is mostly used as a plot device, both in order to up the stakes but also to show how Logan differs from his Winter Soldier programming. While some may feel this cheapens the character, I would say at the very least he’s a plot device I hope we continue to see.
This is is yet another example of why Ultimate Wolverine is the best Wolverine title in years. Ultimate Wolverine #8 perfectly demonstrates the strengths of the character and defines his growth in an organic and consistent fashion.
In just eight issues, I buy not only this guy’s change of heart from mindless killer to man of action, but also that he is just as much Wolverine as the 616 version. He’s fierce without being over brutal or gross, because at the end of the day Wolverine is a superhero. Just because he’s “the best there is at what he does, and what he does isn’t very nice” doesn’t mean he isn’t nice all the time.
