We start with our hero reminiscing (while needlessly wearing tattered...cloth, I guess...) about days gone by and experiences on the sea. This leads us into story at an undetermined time in Wolverine's past. Logan is plagued with dreams of floating, golden babies, which is strange enough. He ends up on a cruise (lord knows why; he sticks out like a sore thumb with that hair [maybe the babies told him to...]...) and meets up with these pregnant women. After a short conversation, one of the women dives into the pool and is quickly (and brutally...) murdered in broad day light. No one saw the murderer, but ol' Wolvie has some suspicions. The party breaks up and Logan dons his brown and yellow costume (my personal favorite costume of his...) and gets down to business. Meanwhile, one of the other women is killed and strung up in the elevator. We then finally see our killer; he's a monster with a lot sharp teeth, sharp spikes, and sharp claws. They fight briefly and the monster slices an elevator cable (innocents in danger...), forcing Wolverine to stop fighting and grab both ends of the loose cables (more on that later...). The monster escapes and, following a brief frackus with security, Wolverine rushes to the last woman's room just as the monster does. He tackles the monster into the water and they fight, all the while the giant rotors (the 'screws', as mentioned in the issue...) get closer. The monster gets sucked into them and is chopped to bits while Wolverine swims away. The issue ends with Logan and the last woman sharing a heartfelt moment...
I've had a copy of this comic book for longer than I can remember. It was a coverless copy even when I received it back in the very early 90's and its condition shows its love. Tara bought me a cherry copy a couple years back, which meant a lot (if you don't know why, I can't teach you...), so now I don't have to be nearly as gentle with the original as I have been. As far as the contents go, the story is alright (written by mega-veteran Hulk author, Peter David...). It's in the vein of a suspense monster movie, but quick (it IS a comic book issue, after all...) so there is little in the way of development and more of a headlong plunge into the final battle. The art, though, varies from really good to absolutely great. This came out during my favorite era of comic art, so I dig a little Marc Silvestri on the cover and Larry Stroman did a bang up job on the rest of it, giving the relative realism of the time while still putting his own spin on it. The inker, Dan Green, should definitely be given a shout out as there is a ton of great panels where the inking was everything. There is great mood in the panels and very simple shots keep up the pace until the end...
Not that I have no problems with this issue. As a kid, I totally bought that Wolverine would just crouch there in rags. I would have thought, 'Oooh, I wonder who Wolverine just fought? I bet it was Sabertooth and Lady Deathstrike!'. As an adult, however, it seems a little pointless. I'd imagine he'd just rip them off by the time this panel happened and/or changed clothes, though I know why they used it. It's very evocative of the character. Next, the scene in the elevator. Regardless of how strong Wolverine really is, I don't buy that he can hold an elevator car aloft without it slipping through his hand (check the singular status...). It's not a question of his bones; it's just not possible for someone at his assumed power level to do this. Not buying it at all. Further, the battle in the water needs to be addressed. My problems are twofold: 1) Adamantium is heavy (it was once said that he had 300 pounds of adamantium laced to his bones...) so, even with Wolverines augmented strength, he'd have to constantly swim to stay afloat. Augmented strength does not give augmented buoyancy. And B) Why didn't Wolverine get sucked into the rotors with the monster? I can suspend my disbelief for the floating thing, but this completely defied conventional logic and physics. Sure, it wouldn't have killed him, but he doesn't have anti-rotor pheromones or whatever. I may be getting picky as I age, but these just seem a little silly, even in the realm of comic book physics...It's a very groovy one-shot Wolverine comic. It does not serve to forward any of the Wolverine plotlines of the time, but that's ok. #44 served more as a break in the storyline to develop the character a little and branch out from what was happening then (we were knee deep in the mind wiping cover up and the Shiva program and all back then...). Silvestri was the primary artist at the time (and still did the cover and first page...), but I would imagine this was an effort to allow another artist shine and give Mr. David a crack at writing a Wolverine story. This is definitely one of those issues I still pick up and read to this day, even though I know the entire thing by heart. It is well drawn, well written, and well paced. I feel I can draw a lot from this particular issue and apply to my own comic projects. If you see me and I happen to have it around, give a read and tell me what you think...
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