Hello, and welcome to another week in Ye Olde School Café! This week, we’ll be checking out the conclusion of Barry Windsor-Smith’s great story – Weapon-X! Last week, we learned that this secret organization plotted to kidnap and experiment on a man named Logan. It took a few goons with tranquilizer darts and an epic beating to subdue Logan, but they succeeded. Logan was then placed in the hands of Dr. Cornelius and “The Professor.” They began to experiment on him and augment his already superhuman physique. Most of the people that were assisting didn’t realize it, but Logan isn’t a normal man; they would soon realize just how “special” he is. So far, the testing has resulted in a doctor being cut to ribbons by Logan, who was in a mindless rage at the time. At this point, the staff comes to the understanding that Logan is certainly not all he seems at first glance. Now, the Professor has a private conversation with Dr. Cornelius, and tells him that Logan is a mutant, and that’s why he was chosen for this project.
The Professor and Dr. Cornelius set up another test for Logan. The test begins, but suddenly Logan lurches forward and grabs the female assistant by the throat. The Professor then orders Logan to let her go, and miraculously he does. The guards enter and pump Logan full of enough tranquilizers to stop an elephant. He slumps back down on the table, and then the Professor tries to grab a gun and shoot him. The monitor that’s hooked up to Logan’s brain shows that Logan was thinking about piercing the Professor’s head with his claws. Everyone agrees to call it quits for the day. The next day, testing resumes, and Logan is put to an even tougher test. The Professor and Dr. Cornelius put him out in the wilderness and have a pack of wolves attack him! At first, Logan doesn’t move, but when the wolves begin to really pour it on, Logan goes berserk and tears them all apart. The team is aroused at the performance of their “weapon.”
Back in the lab, the team is still observing Logan and trying to understand everything about him and how they can keep him under control. The Professor still feels uneasy about being able to control Logan, especially after being nearly choked to death by him days earlier. Cornelius tells him not to worry, and the Professor then pours his coffee on Logan’s face as he walks away. The next day, Logan is put to an even bigger test. He’s now facing a Grizzly Bear, and he is even sharper than ever. After two quick slices, he decapitates the beast. Cornelius and the Professor are both impressed. The Professor then tells Cornelius that it’s time for the next level. He says that he wants Logan to hunt the most dangerous prey of all – man. Cornelius doesn’t want to entertain the idea, but the Professor tells him that they must. They note that Logan’s levels are higher than usual, and basically off the charts even for him.
As the team of doctors brings Logan inside, and Cornelius, the Professor, and Dr. Hines are all talking about the day’s events, something goes terribly wrong. Logan’s levels are so high, that the sedatives can’t shut him down. He begins to tear apart all the men in the room, and then turns his attention to the security force. They continually try to shut down Logan using the sedatives and the mind control. It doesn’t work either, because Logan is too jacked up, or because, as the Professor alludes to, someone else is “in control.” Logan eventually makes his way to the control room, and Cornelius has a weapon that he fires directly at him. It drops him for a second, but then he gets back up and guts Cornelius. The Professor gets his right hand chopped completely off, but he and Hines get away to another room. Logan follows, and has a chance to kill Hines but doesn’t. Maybe because of her compassion towards him, or maybe for some other reason we aren’t aware of, but either way, she lives while Logan turns his attention to the Professor. Logan stalks him through the complex, and the Professor tries every trick in the book, but in the end, Logan grabs him. Then after putting his claws through his abdomen, puts them through his skull.
Afterwards, Logan is seen leaving the complex, and he’s attacked by a mountain cat. He easily slays the beast, and then proceeds to be confronted by security. Was the previous battle all a ruse just played out in his mind? Apparently so, but Logan is no one’s fool, so he kills the security people and heads right for the control room. The three doctors are stunned to see three claws slicing through the door. As Logan walks naked through the wilderness, we see a conversation between Hines and Cornelius about the enigmatic Professor and his ulterior motives. It seems as if they finally realized he was playing at a much larger game and for an undisclosed master.
Well, that’s it! Knowing what we all know about Logan now is pretty cool, even though in my opinion, taking away the shroud that surrounded Logan’s past has made him somewhat less interesting. All that’s been revealed about him in the last 10+ years has really seemed to be slightly convoluted if anything. This book (a collection of shorts from Marvel Comics Presents #72 -84) really does stand the test of time, though, and revealed just a spec of what is/was Logan’s past, and that’s what made it a fantastic read! See you next week!
Billy Dunleavy
billy@comicattack.net
