REVIEW: Diamond Select Toys' Marvel Origins Wolverine Statue

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Don’t let the title of Diamond Select’s Wolverine Marvel Origins Statue fool you; this item has nothing to do with the clawed Canadian’s “Origins” story, in which he discovers his powers as a weak and cowardly lad. This statue is not about the origins of James Howlett’s powers, but rather, about the origins of the adamantium-clawed berserker called Wolverine. So yes, there are, in fact, a number of stories about Wolverine that could be called "origin stories"; he’s one of those complicated guys.

As with other statues in this line, what you basically get is two statues on one stand. The smaller one in front depicts Logan, buck naked apart from the uncomfortable-looking electronics attached to him. He is kneeling among wires and computer banks, his body contorted in rage and horror. “What have I become?” he seems to say, that or “Ow!” Behind him stands a vision of his future, much taller and in greyscale: Wolverine in his first superhero costume, with the short ‘ears’ and the whisker-like markings. He stares at his extended claws, a scowl upon his face.

It’s actually quite an interesting juxtaposition of images. While both of these Wolverines have a claim to the ‘origin’ idea, one being his first comic appearance and the other being the story of his adamantium bones and anger-control problems, these two Logan's couldn’t be more different.

The smaller, color one is an image from Barry Windsor-Smith’s “Weapon X” storyline, depicting this difficult time in the character’s history. Put out in the early 90s, Weapon X was the veritable epitome of the ‘grim and gritty,’ high-death-count sort of comic storytelling that was so particularly in vogue in that decade.

The costumed Wolverine, on the other hand, is from his first appearance, in “The Incredible Hulk” #180 from 1974. It was penciled by Herb Trimpe, and the Wolverine costume was based on a John Romita Sr. design. This was a simpler time in superhero comics, well before the mature storylines and ultra-violence with which Wolverine would become indelibly associated. And so this Wolverine has a much softer, cartooned appearance. With so many decades of material, and so many and varied writers producing it, it is inevitable that the iconic Marvel characters should be painted (metaphorically) in a huge variety of different ways; this is a good thing, in some folks’ minds, and a liability to others. Please feel free to argue about it on the internet, you guys!

In any case, sculpt of this statue by Greg Millington does quite a good job of capturing these disparate styles in three dimensions. The costumed Wolverine is very much in keeping with the simple, clear lines of the Romita/Trimpe design, while the Weapon X Wolverine puts the anguish and techno-chaos of Windsor-Smith’s story into sculptural form well. If anything, the color Wolverine could use a bit more chaos; the fine detail-work is somewhat lacking, and it could probably use even more computer equipment, twisting wire, and so forth. The pointy metal things coming out of his body are very nicely done, though, and extremely painful-looking. Even if you’re not a Wolverine fan, if you need a two-inch statue of a naked man in agony (and who doesn’t?), this is the statue for you.

One thing about that – you know how your non-geek friends and family members come over to your place, and they look at your figure-shelves and ask, “Who’s that guy?” “What’s that guy from?” “Who’s he?” Well, presumably you have become accustomed to this. Are you ready, though, for “Who’s that naked guy?”

That aside, this really is a good design. The basic idea of the Marvel Origins statue series – origin-story image, with grey, early-period superhero image looming above and behind it – is an excellent one. It’s memorable and affecting, here and throughout the line. It also teaches a valuable lesson: When something odd is happening to you, take a look around. If, standing behind you, there’s an enormous version of yourself, in black-and-white and a silly outfit, then congratulations – you now have superpowers! But will you use them for good or for evil? (Hint: Chicks dig evil.)

Oddly, the paint job varies widely between the two sub-statues here. The grey, costumed Wolverine is excellent in this respect, with absolutely no bleed and some excellent shading. The little Wolverine is remarkably sloppy, however. There’s really too much bleed, and the multicolored computer terminals seem to have had their colors just sort of dabbed on in places. The mass of wires in which Logan kneels is an undifferentiated green, which makes it look quite a lot like he’s on top of a huge mass of spinach. And his face – his face could be a good deal better. His eyes are not demarcated, and his mouth is a simple black scar. Now, granted, it’s hard to see his face from most angles, but still, a better job ought to have been done. We know you can do better, guys! We have evidence of it in the big grey Wolverine right here!

The box, by the way, is perfectly nice; it has pictures of the sculpture on it, and is, um, rectangular. Really, you can’t see the statue from outside, and so you’re taking it out of the box, so it doesn’t matter all that much what said box looks like, right?

Packaged with the statue is a Certificate of Authenticity, signed (by the sculptor) and numbered. So that’s nice. The number of the statue is also visible on the bottoms of the box and of the statue itself. Apparently, Diamond Select will be damned if they won’t make absolutely sure their customers know the numbers of their statues.

The Wolverine Marvel Origins Statue retails for $50-$60 right now, which isn’t bad for a statue, even a littler one – this one stands about seven inches high. It’s a limited edition of 2,500, though, so prices are likely to go up as it sells out.

The Marvel Origins statue line is a really fun idea, which has produced some very striking sculptures. And this one is no exception. Three-dimensional representations of Wolverine, either in his street clothes or one of his better-known costumes, are a dime a dozen; kudos, then, to Diamond Select for giving us a pair of less-frequently-seen, but no less interesting, periods of the mutant’s life. This statue is marred by a few design flaws, but over all it’s still a pretty good piece. People who buy anything that says “Wolverine” on it will buy this regardless, and more power to ‘em; the rest of us could do a whole lot worse.

CLICK HERE for the Marvel Origins Wolverine statue photo gallery.

Review and Photographs by Matthew Kessen

Review Sample Courtesy of Diamond Select Toys