Savage Avengers #2: Gloriously Mindless Violence In The Savage Land
by Josh Davison
[*Mild Spoilers Ahead!]
We meet the first of Kulan Gath’s acolytes the in the Savage Land. That acolyte has become the Priest of Sickles, and he now works to kill the unkillable: the Wolverine himself. After Logan drives the Priest of Sickles off, he tries to revive Brother Voodoo to no avail…it seems. Elsewhere in the City of Sickles, Conan the Cimmerian seeks the amulet that he intends to trade for a better weapon. He finds it, but it rests upon the breast of Kulan Gath himself.
Savage Avengers #2 finds this yet-to-be-formed team rampaging through the City of Sickles and slaughtering the acolytes of Kulan Gath and the Hand. It’s another bloody issue, as Gerry Duggan and Mike Deodato Jr. seem to be having a bit of fun with that “Parental Advisory” label on the front.
While there isn’t an action set-piece as good as the Wolverine vs. Conan fight in #1, Wolverine’s brutal battle against the Hand is pretty damn entertaining, especially as they fill Logan with arrows and he continues to stand.
I don’t mean this as a criticism, but there is something gloriously dumb about Savage Avengers. We have Wolverine, Conan the Barbarian, and Brother Voodoo fighting a Conan-esque sorcerer villain in the Savage Land, and we know they will soon be joined by the Punisher, Venom, and Elektra. In short, it’s all a setup for a lot of mindless action and intense violence, and I’m definitely here for it.
Mike Deodato Jr. has been a longtime favorite artist of mine, and he puts in a lot of good work in this comic. He’s quite good at depicting more intense and brutal violence, and that talent serves the comic very well here. There’s plenty of slashings, stabbings, and bleeding spread throughout. Frank Martin backs it up with a darker and grimmer color palette that is nonetheless balanced out by some brighter shades.
Savage Avengers #2 is a fun and mindless action romp through an ancient city in the heart of the Savage Land. We get to see Wolverine tear through Hand ninjas and death cultists while Conan investigates the ancient temple. It’s a solid read and one worthy of a recommendation. Check it out.
Savage Avengers #2 comes to us from writer Gerry Duggan, artist Mike Deodato Jr., color artist Frank Martin, letterer VC’s Travis Lanham, cover artist David Finch with Frank D’Armata, and variant cover artists Simone Bianchi with Simone Peruzzi; Nick Bradshaw with Richard Isanove; Mike Deodato Jr. with Frank Martin, and Tomm Coker with Michael Garland.
Final Score: 8/10
