In this review of Wolverine: Revenge #5, the long-awaited conclusion of the series bringing Greg Capullo into the Marvel Comics universe.
Wolverine: Revenge #5
Written by: Jonathan Hickman
Art and Main Cover by: Greg Capullo
Variant Covers: E.J. Su, Alexander Lozano
Page Count: 28 pages
Release Date: March 26, 2025
This review may contain spoilers
Wolverine: Revenge was always going to be a “cool” book. Marvel mega-power Jonathan Hickman has plenty of heat behind him, especially when coming to do a post-Krakoa “X” title. But it’s the return of legendary Greg Capullo to the “House of Ideas” off his legendary Batman run that raised everyone’s eyebrows at this mini’s announcement. With the arrival of Wolverine: Revenge #5, it can be said that this is a title that manages to make its creative heavyweight class.
In a flashback sequence that opens Wolverine: Revenge #5, Colossus and his son expound on the meaning of life and Piotr’s checkered past. Piotr expresses some regrets for his involvement in the attacks on the US but states that it was worth it for the life of his son. The book shifts back to immediately as the last issue ended, with Sabretooth and Nikolai surveying the aftermath of Wolverine’s battle with the Omega Red clones. Logan tracks down the pair to their hideout, where they decide to settle the score once and for all.
Logan taunts his arch rival before Piotr flings Sabretooth at their common enemy. Wolverine disembowels his old foe, noting the emptiness he feels afterwards. Logan then takes on the scornful Nikolai, using Forge’s de-powering projector on himself in order to make it a fair fight. Nikolai uses his aunt Magik’s soul sword to open a portal to Limbo. The pair scuffle until Nikolai gains the upper hand and what appears to be a decisive victory. That is, until after the metal-man returns to earth, in which Wolverine reveals he was playing possum. Logan posits that this apparent victory may bring peace to the boy’s soul, as the Wolverine begins his campaign to conquer Limbo.
Wolverine: Revenge #5 seems to confirm the theory that Capullo has been steering the direction of this title over Hickman’s writing. Having Logan enter Limbo and encounter a number of hellish beasties is right out of Capullo’s Spawn and We Have Demons playbook. Everything is rendered in slick, kinetic detail. It appears the whole art team (inker Tim Townsend and colourist Alex Sinclair included) is taking copious cues from the Adam Kubert look of the 90’s Wolverine and it’s radical. Vibrant reds and yellows matched with heavy inks make every panel on every page stand out.
Any skepticism of the “Red Band” branding on this book can be assuaged, as with previous issues, the violence on display is not just spectacular, but necessary to the storytelling. It would never occur to me that a one-limbed, one-eyed Sabretooth fast-ball special could look cool, yet it does.
While the book tries to rationalize its themes of cyclical violence and the folie of revenge, it actually teeters into a rather brilliant thesis. Wolverine, the cultural product, will never die. Like the titular character, the brand of Wolverine will heal and regrow to dominate the superhero zeitgeist again and again. No amount of supervillains, demons, authorial intent, editorial mandate, or even studio interference can keep this bastard down.
The Colossus-offspring-plot which has been building since last issue is left rather limp. We are told through captions that he feels guilt for what he thinks he’s done to Logan and will find redemption elsewhere, but alas this is never shown or confirmed to use. It’s a blasé finale to a character with an intriguing backstory beyond “evil Colossus Jr.”.
It would have been nice to actually see his relationship or some kind of appearance by Illyana beyond what is described in dialogue, as it’s clear Hickman has a great affinity for that character. Sabretooth’s death is rather quick (in what feels like another nod to last summer’s blockbuster hit), in a rather anticlimactic slash-em-up. The act is intentionally off panel, as Logan is left the lonely survivor of his kind of murky mutant anti-hero.
Wolverine: Revenge was a ripping, roller coaster of a book. While much of the actual plotting is conveyed more in dialogue or captions rather than being shown through the art, the relentless action more than makes up for this. Wolverine is just a fun character to look at. There are few who can draw him more adeptly and badass as Greg Capullo and Tim Townsend. It’s just a bonus that Marvel architect Jonathan Hickman is here for the ride.
