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Entry tags:	comics

War Journal Entry number 390 - Uncanny X-Men 205
For some writers, decompressed storytelling is just an excuse to only come up with two stories a year by spreading each one out over six issues, instead of coming up with a new story for every single month. Stories in the old days were compressed not because the writers lacked the skill to delve deeper, but because they were concerned with making the monthly experience fulfilling.

A perfect example is “Wounded Wolf” from Uncanny X-Men #205 (May of 1986). Every single collaboration between Chris Claremont and Barry Windsor-Smith is a worthwhile piece of storytelling, but this one stands above all others as one of the best comics ever done.

They came up with a story, pulled it apart to fill up three or four issues, and then only produced the final chapter. Why? Because this was the most important part. Sure, two or three issues of Lady Deathstrike and her proto-Reavers tracking Wolverine around the globe and kicking his ass at every turn would have been a fun read, but in the final analysis it is unnecessary. The creators have faith and respect for their readers, and know that the readers can figure this stuff out for themselves.

For the first time we see Wolverine in a feral state not because he’s been brainwashed or mind controlled into it, but because he’s been so thoroughly beaten that the man has given up and the only thing clinging to life is the beast. Just enough of the man is left to realize that Katie Power, the youngest member of the pre-adolescent superhero team Power Pack, needs him to survive. She’s run across him, and is trying to help him against his enemies and with his injuries, but she lacks the power and skill to do so. She does help him, though, by provided a humanizing anchor for Logan.

A good portion of the story is told from Katie’s point of view, with Wolverine not saying anything until page 12 (and that’s in Japanese), which helps highlight his mental separation. The fact that a character can get so far in a Claremont comic without saying anything is in itself significant. The story is just two scenes long; the first three pages show Lady Deathstrike’s transformation into a cyborg with artistry that is a direct precursor to Barry Windsor-Smith’s Weapon X, while the rest is a fast-paced run to the beautifully illustrated showdown.

You owe it to yourself to track down this story, either in its original (but pricey) format, or as X-Men Classic #109, or even in one of the various collections it has been collected in such as Essential X-Men volume 6, Marvel Visionaries: Chris Claremont, or Wolverine: The Best of Wolverine.