It’s been two weeks since ULTIMATE WOLVERINE #1 hit the shelves, and it’s already become a fan favorite. The latest addition to Marvel’s Ultimate Universe written by Chris Condon with art by Alessandro Cappuccio, this Weapon X meets Winter Soldier take on Wolverine presents a brutal, almost horror-like reimagining of the character that sees Logan transformed into a weaponized monster—a tool used by the Eurasian Republic in service to The Maker.
We talked with Condon to get the rundown on this groundbreaking issue.
CHRISTIAN ANGELES: Can you run us through what it was like getting the phone call from Wil Moss about the job?
CHRIS CONDON: It was all pretty simple. He emailed me and asked if I would like to speak on the phone. I said sure and when he called me, he asked if I was interested in writing Ultimate Wolverine. I was floored by the question but tried to play it as cool as possible. I’m not sure how well I pulled that off. But I’m a huge Wolverine fan, so I was incredibly excited at the prospect of telling a Wolverine story, especially one where we’re allowed to do whatever we want with the character and the world he inhabits as we’re not shackled to the 50-year history and continuity in the 616 Universe.
ANGELES: It seems like this is a Weapon X meets Winter Soldier storyline. Can you break down juggling that balancing act?
CONDON: I don’t really think about it so much. It’s the way in but we’re creating our own path.
ANGELES: Tell us about the mask. It’s schway cool.
CONDON: Ha! Thank you. Yeah, the mask was fun. I thought it would be really cool to amplify the whole vicious killer aspect of Wolverine in this story by embracing something from one of my all-time favorite films – Hannibal Lecter’s muzzle in The Silence of the Lambs. The combination of that and the standard pointed Wolverine mask made for a cool design. Alessandro knocked it out of the park.
ANGELES: I like the transformative horror where Logan has become this unrecognizable killing machine. What elements or stylings of horror are you pulling from?
CONDON: It’s just an innate horror within us all. Who wouldn’t be terrified of a man running at you with six knives sticking out of his fists? It’s a scary thought!
ANGELES: This is the comic that gets into the Eurasian Republic and its leaders, Colossus, Magik, and Omega Red. What should fans expect to see from these baddies?
CONDON: Expect them to be scary, ruthless, and cruel.
ANGELES: Some very colorful and beloved characters are killed in issue one. Will we see more recognizable faces and friends from the original X-Men lineup?
CONDON: You’ll see lots of folks show up. That’s one of the fun things about this universe – who’s alive, who’s dead?
ANGELES: For those who don’t know, how is this tale different from what Peach Momoko is doing in Ultimate X-Men?
CONDON: It’s different in that Peach Momoko is doing her thing and we’re doing our thing. Hers is centering on Japan with a totally unique set of circumstances and characters, while we’re dealing with one of Marvel’s preeminent characters in the as yet unexplored Eurasian Republic.
ANGELES: What’s it like to work with Alessandro Cappuccio?
CONDON: A dream. He’s amazing. I’ve not gotten a page in yet that I’m not absolutely floored by.
ANGELES: Earlier last week, you put out a tasteful statement in defense of Cappuccio’s art in regards to a message hinted by Rob Liefield about plagiarism even though he’s also said this many times about other creatives. Care to comment further?
CONDON: I think what Alessandro, still a fairly fresh name in comics, came up with is a terrific take on this classic character, feeling both historically resonant and completely unique – a hard thing to do – and I would hope that artists who came up in those same ranks would see that work and champion it, rather than try to steal its thunder.
This whole thing has put a sour taste in my mouth because I saw the concepts coming in, so I know its origins. It was a team decision to go with a red star on the chest because of the character’s allegiance to the Eurasian Republic and the red star’s association with the Soviet Union (an analog to the Eurasian Republic) and the Winter Soldier. The muzzle was because we wanted to emphasize he was a killer a la Hannibal Lecter. So it’s all baseless and, frankly, toxic. I said what I said and I stand by it.
Alessandro is the best there is at what he does and what he does is create cool goddamn comic books.
End of discussion.
ANGELES: Final question. I read you’ve confirmed 12 issues thus far. Any potential hints at what’s to come for eager readers?
CONDON: There’s a movie that came out some years ago called There Will Be Blood. I think that title is an apt description for what readers can expect…
