It seems that compared to a lot of people, I was relatively upbeat about Wolverine: Soultaker #1.  I gave it a B+.  The general consensus seemed to be that it was rather unimpressive, although perhaps I was just pleasantly surprised by getting something readable and not obviously misconceived from Akira Yoshida.

This is certainly the best thing Yoshida has done for the X-books, although given that the competition is X4 and X-Men: Age of Apocalypse, that's not saying much.  Nonetheless, it's a competent enough story which does the job without breaking any particular new ground.  Much will depend on whether you like Nagasawa's art.  I do get the impression that the story is taking itself a little bit too seriously - we surely don't need six pages of silent artwork simply to convey the fact that Wolverine went to a temple and noticed that it was guarded.

My main reservation, though, is that while Yoshida clearly has a story he wants to tell here, I'm not sure it's a Wolverine story.  He's obviously got some pseudo-mythology he'd like to share with us, about magical twins and mystic necklaces and alternate dimensions.  All well and good, but is it a Wolverine story?  His main rationale for being in this story boils down to "It takes place in Japan", which isn't the strongest in the world.  It's really crying out for a hero with a more mystical bent; this sort of thing doesn't really play to the strengths of Wolverine's character.

It's a little bit flat and a little bit forced.  But it's still entirely readable on its own terms, and personally, I'm enjoying Nagasawa's art for the most part.  He does some rather good fight scenes, and while that stuff with the temple may be far too long, it does look great.

Perfectly okay.

Rating: B

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