A time-displaced Professor X has witnessed the demise of mutantkind in the future. His only hope is to prevent this dystopian future from happening by changing the past. In order for that to happen, he needs Wolverine to reform the X-Men in the present while communicating his findings from the future. But the journey isn’t an easy one for the scrappy Canadian as the quest to gather the team continues in Wolverine and the X-Men, Volume 3: Beginning of the End with another five episodes.

“Future X”
Trapped in the future, Professor X must find a way to survive only to be captured by the Sentinels. With the help of a ragtag team consisting of Bishop, Domino, Marrow and Hellion, he plans to free himself from his jailers. In the present, Wolverine and the X-Men look for any information on Master Mold in hopes to prevent his creation.

“Greetings from Genosha”
Nightcrawler finally arrives on Genosha and receives a tour from Scarlet Witch on the happenings Magneto has created on this island. But there is more than what it seems as Dusk informs Nightcrawler of shady dealings. In escaping Genosha and reaching the X-Mansion, Nightcrawler encounters Mystique with unsatisfactory results.

“Past Discretions”
Wolverine is still searching for information about his past and his journey takes him to the daughter of Maverick. The Weapon X program doesn’t want Logan to remember anything about his team with the organization so they dispatch Sabretooth to deal with the problem. But Sabretooth isn’t the only one searching for Wolverine, as Rogue overhears Quicksilver’s mission from Magento and sets out to inform the X-Men.

“eXcessive Force”
A despondent Cyclops is still feeling the loss of Jean Grey and believes that Mr. Sinister has her. His rage blinds him from any rational thought as he takes on the Marauders to get to Sinister. But the results aren’t exactly what he expects even with the X-Men’s help.

“Battle Lines”
It’s a prison break as Magneto sends to Acolytes to retrieve some mutant prisoners. The X-Men standoff against the Brotherhood but run across a young mutant whose nightmares become real and manifest into monsters. Meanwhile, Rogue’s purpose with the Brotherhood is finally revealed.

I have been enjoying these episodes because they are extremely character driven. It also follows the quest theme that I truly enjoy where the pieces need to be collected along the way before it makes any sense. This is what happens with each episode as we learn what happened to certain characters after their year long absence from the team. While each episode can be enjoyed on its own, it also fits into the bigger picture. And it’s this bigger picture that is starting to come more in the forefront. In a sense the producers and writers really wanted this entire season to feel like a cinematic movie once all the stories are put together. I really get that sense the more episodes I watch. The animation is very well done with the voice acting matching the characters in play.

I was skeptical at first when this series came out. I wasn’t in the mood to invest time in yet another X-Men series that delves into the beginning again. Thankfully that wasn’t the case at all. Instead, the team is already established and becomes a story of rebuilding the team. Wolverine and the X-Men, Volume 3: Beginning of the End starts to reveal how to present and future are connecting with each other with the necessary puzzle pieces coming into play. Which future emerges depends on how Wolverine can anticipate the path needed to take to prevent dystopia.


______________________________________________________________


Related Reviews
The Marvel Superheroes (1966): Captain America: The Origin of Captain America & The Fantastic Origin of the Red Skull   ||  The Incredible Hulk: Origin of The Hulk & The Power of Doctor Banner   ||  The Invincible Iron Man: The Death of Tony Stark & The Crimson Dynamo   ||  The Mighty Thor: Enter Hercules & Battle of the Gods  ||   Sub-Mariner: Atlantis Under Attack & To Conquer a Crown 
Spider-Man (1967-1970): The Origin of Spider-Man & The Kilowatt Kaper 
Fantastic Four (1978): The Olympics of Space 
Spider-Man (1981): Dr. Doom Master of the World   ||  The Incredible Shrinking Spider-Man  ||  Lizards, Lizards Everywhere  ||  Spider-Man Vs. The Vulture: The Vulture Has Landed 
Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends (1981): The Origin of the Spider-Friends  ||  A Firestar Is Born  ||   Spidey Goes Hollywood  ||  The X-Men Adventure
The Incredible Hulk (1982):  Unmasked  ||  Volume 2: The Incredible Shrinking Hulk 
Spider-Man (1994-1998): Spider-Man: The Ultimate Villain Showdown  ||  Daredevil Vs. Spider-Man  ||  Spider-Man Vs. Doc Ock  ||   Spider-Man: The Revenge of the Green Goblin  ||  Spider-Man: The Venom Saga
The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008-2009): The Complete First Season  ||  Attack of the Lizard  ||  Volume Two  ||  Volume Three  ||  Volume Four  ||  Volume Five  ||  Volume Six  ||  Volume Seven  ||  Volume Eight  
Wolverine and the X-Men (2009): Volume One: Heroes Return Trilogy  ||  Volume Two: Deadly Enemies 
The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes (2010-present): Volume One: Heroes Assemble  ||  Volume Two: Captain America Reborn  ||  Volume Three: Iron Man Unleashed   ||  Volume Four: Thor's Last Stand


_________________________________________________________


***This is part of both my 2012 Funny Pages and 2012 Canadiana Write-Offs. Come join the festivities until the end of July.

CANADIAN FACT: Wolverine was born as James Howlett in Alberta and lived in Northern British Columbia in the late 19th century. No, I'm not making this up at all.





Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD