As a no-holds-barred violent massacre, there's enough here to satisfy comics fans looking for more than just gore. Just enough, I'd say, because it is a first strike from Sabretooth as the creators make a good case for Wolverine to put his arch-nemesis down. Read Full Review

We are only two issues in but everything about Sabretooth War works so far. Issue #41 did an excellent job setting things up, especially the tone of the event, and issue #42 brought the action and violence to the next level. Huge Wolverine-based events are nothing new, but the inclusion of LaValle as half of the driving force behind the story ensures that this feels bigger than something like X Lives and Deaths of Wolverine. Regardless of where this goes, the creative team is pulling all the stops and giving us one of the best-looking Wolverine stories in a long time. Read Full Review

Wolverine #42 is a gorefest, plain and simple. I won't dare go into all of the bloody details, but two issues in the "Sabretooth War" is living up to the hype of being Wolverine's most violent event to date. Read Full Review

It really is Wolverine's most violent story!

The violence continues in this issue, and a lot of it is pretty disturbing, especially with some of the kills he does in this issue. Not even children are safe from Sabretooth, and while Sabretooth is doing all of this to get at Logan, it's starting to get to me, the reader, as well. There's still eight issues to go, so there's probably going to be more cast members not named Logan who are going to die, but I'm already hoping for Sabretooth to get what's coming to him. If this comic doesn't convince people that Sabretooth is irredeemable, I don't know what will.
The art continues to astound, even as the gore is splashed across pages. We can feel Wolverine's pain, both emotional, as he experiences more loss, and physical, as he pulls an unexpected move to try to save as many people as he can before Sabretooth slaughters them all. We see more of the remaining X-Force cast have a role here, but there's still at least one missing member that has yet to be accounted for. Hopefully that will either be cleared up here, or in the remaining issues of X-Force, which have yet to be released despite this event taking place after that series has been concluded.
The issue ends on an interesting cliffhanger with Wolverine's last remaining kid at the base, and while it's doubtful that will be the end of her, Sabretooth has done his job well to shatter Logan's hope to try to break him once and for all. Let's hope the next issue continues the hype. more

Dear lord is the creative team going all out to live up to the hype of this being the bloodiest Wolverine story ever told. There are some BRUTAL scenes throughout this issue, including Sabretooth squeezing the head off a young mutant and Wolverine clawing off body parts to escape his imprisonment. This series is definitely earning its Parental Advisory rating. In a weird way, it looks great and none of it feels like torture porn. It’s all believable for a war between two bloodthirsty characters hellbent on destroying each other.

For as well done as it’s been so far, did this story need to be told though? I’m not convinced yet even though Percy & LaValle’s story has been top notch through two issues. I’m loving the family-first version of Wolverine (even if he hasn’t been a good father to date) and the utter heinous actions of Sabretooth. Everyone else, including the Sabreteeth (h/t to Aurora for the name), seems to be disposable in this story and I’m oddly ok with it as long as this stays wholly removed from the other storylines.

I’m really enjoying this mini event so far after I was a bit resistant when it was first announced. Everyone involved is ensuring this isn’t just another Wolverine vs Sabretooth showdown by pushing the envelope at every turn. The end of Krakoa means any major death is liekly to be retconned or reversed in short order but that doesn’t make the story itself any less fun to read. more