I'm compelled to review this book for one simple reason: Robert Mitchum in The Yakuza. This book is like the superhero equivalent of Mitchum's Yakuza movie from the 70s and in many ways, for me, that is all you need to say. I tell you, it's something close to perfect for a guy like me. Logan flies to Japan to help an old friend from the war who happens to be a police superintendent and needs some assistance to protect some important witnesses. Wolverine arrives too late to save his old friend, but stays to solve his murder and take revenge. It's as simple as that but it's a story told with such style from both a story and art perspective that it becomes a thing to cherish. Lapham grasps something very simple but integral about Logan. Yes we first knew him as an X-Man, but that only makes up a small proportion of his lengthy life. He's the character with so much of a past that you can drop him into whatever genre or scenario you have an itch to portray and he'll be right at home. It's never clear quite when this story is set, but in my head it's the 70's of great Hollywood thrillers, and the approximation is so spot on that I have to believe this is what has inspired Lapham. That and the knowledge that black suited Nick Fury always goes well with plaid shirted Wolverine. It's just an accepted truth that I defy you to deny. I'm sure that another factor in Lapham's decison making must have been that of, "What could David Aja really draw the shit out of?" Because that is what the man does. It's stunning and a reminder of how much the man is missed from regular, monthly books. He bounces from SHIELD flying machines, to killer robots, to ninja, to Japanese townhouses and of course Wolverine and Fury themselves with such a sense of style and artistry that every single page is worth a place on your wall. Throw in the genius that is Bettie Breitweiser and this one shot is a magnificent dose of classy excitement. I've read a couple of DC books so far this week. One was exceptional, one was a little blah, but this book is a nice antidote to all that hoopla. There's no real continuity, it's all about finding a story the creators were interested in and telling it as well as humanly possible. I'm reminded of an also excellent Howling Commandos one off by JP leon a couple of years ago, and I can't help wondering what other little treats are hidden in the offices of Marvel and DC somewhere.