ADVANCED REVIEW: ‘Wolverine: Patch,’ Issue #1

Wolverine: Patch #1 is published by Marvel Comics, written by Larry Hama, pencils by Andrea Di Vito, inks by Le Beau Underwood, colors by Sebastion Cheng, and letters by Clayton Cowles. Back in the 1980s, Wolverine spent some time bumming around the island nation of Madripoor under the guise of Patch. Running the Princess Bar, Patch would find his way into all kinds of trouble. Now, Marvel takes a look back at a new adventure from that time in Wolverine’s past.

What begins as a simple run-of-the-mill recon mission soon blows up into a much more tangled affair. With a General marshaling a mercenary army and S.H.I.E.L.D. parking a helicarrier in Madripoor’s airspace, it quickly becomes clear that Logan is in for far more than he bargained for in Wolverine: Patch #1. But luckily, Logan can take most anything the world can dish out at him.

The biggest draw of this comic is nostalgia. While I’ve read much of Logan’s original run with the Patch persona, it never was anything more than a novelty to me. But for those fans who remember Logan’s time on Madripoor fondly, this book will no doubt be a delight. And even while the core nostalgia appeal was just fine with me, it was an unexpected delight to see the classic Nick Fury make an appearance. As one of my favorite old school characters seeing Nick again at the bow of a helicarrier was a most pleasant surprise.

Beyond the nostalgia of the book, Wolverine: Patch #1 delivers a suitable start to its narrative. Plenty of questions get raised and Logan’s healing factor gets put through its paces a couple of times as the X-Man already manages to land himself in a fair bit of trouble. While there is little to complain about in this story so far, there wasn’t a lot that stood out to me either. It lays its groundwork well and Hama seems to have a good grasp on how to write this older version of Logan.

The art throughout this story manages to present the book’s narrative in a way that emphasizes the spy feel that the story is going for. From the seedy bar scene of the Princess to Logan’s excursions into the jungles of Madripoor, the lines, inks, and colors all come together to bring the journey to life quite well.

While the art does a good job with the story, the lettering is where this book’s visual presentation shines. Cowles goes all out with the sound effect designs here. Every Snikt, kapow, and crash pop off the panels. Combined with the clean execution of the dialogue and the letterer delivers a top-quality performance here.

When all is said and done, Wolverine: Patch #1 delivers a fine story that is buoyed up by nostalgia and a strong visual presentation. If the tale can build on the groundwork laid out here, it could grow into something truly great.

Wolverine: Patch #1 is available on March 23rd wherever comics are sold.