Wolverine hunts down the Muramasa blade in Wolverine #6, by writer Benjamin Percy, artist Victor Bogdanovic, colorist Matthew Wilson, and letterer Cory Petit. Part three of X Of Swords, this book sets up Logan’s quest to find the sword that can kill him before Arrako’s champion can. It’s greatest strength is that it doesn’t feel like a crossover comic at all.

This book is weird in that it’s told in flashback, but readers don’t really get that right away. It starts out with Wolverine talking about Hell in Hell and then shows him on Krakoa, telling off the island’s avatar, saying it wanted this war and the only reason he was fighting it was because of the good thing the mutants had there. From there, it explains the origin of the Muramasa blade and shows Wolverine going to the one man who may know where to find the man who forged it- Silver Samurai. Cut to Arrako and War and Pestilence free Solem, the champion meant to fight against Wolverine to find the Muramasa sword for them. In Japan, Wolverine goes around, getting information on where to find Muramasa before following the trail to a Shinto temple controlled by a renegade faction of the Hand. He finds what he sought out… and more.

X Of Swords is a big, bloated, ‘90s X-Men-esque crossover, and that can be a problem because it derails what the books it crosses into were doing before it started. That was a problem with last week’s X-Factor #4- it wasn’t an issue of X-Factor at all, just a cog in the wheel of the X Of Swords story. Wolverine #6 also could have fallen into the same trap, but Benjamin Percy keeps it from doing so. Even divorced from the X Of Swords drama, this could just be an issue of Wolverine, with Wolverine trying to find the man who made the Muramasa blade and getting ready to fight the Hand. That’s how strong Percy’s writing is and it makes this issue a joy to read. Readers of the X-books are pretty much forced to endure X Of Swords for the next two months, and this issue doesn’t feel like a crossover issue. It just feels like a regular issue of the book, and that’s a huge asset.

Of course, it has to gloss over some stuff to do the X Of Swords heavy lifting, like Wolverine’s Japan trip, things that long time fans of the character would want to see. Wolverine gets to reunite with the resurrected Mariko in this issue, which would have gotten more page space if it wasn’t for the pages taken up setting up Solem, but Percy still gives the moment the respect it deserves. An intriguing development for the X Of Swords stuff is Wolverine accusing Krakoa of wanting this war- the island wanted the External Gate opened and was angry when it was destroyed. It wants this fight, and it wants the mutants to fight for it, which is very interesting, as the island hasn’t really been portrayed as an active part of anything for all of Dawn Of X so far. It also shows Wolverine for who he’s always been- he’ll fight the war he doesn’t want to fight to protect what he loves, but he isn’t going to trust the island ever again.

Victor Bogdanovic’s art is good throughout. His style has some Capullo flourishes to it, even if his linework isn’t as strong in every place. He does a great job with his character acting, though, getting across the emotion on the page admirably. There are so many great visuals in this issue, and Matthew Wilson’s deft coloring helps them along. He tints things well, playing with light and shadow to set the mood for any given scene.

Wolverine #6 succeeds on two fronts- it’s a well-done continuation of X Of Swords and a just a great Wolverine comic in general. This is a challenging balancing act to pull off, but Percy hits it perfectly. The story this issue lays out doesn’t end in this issue, crossing into this week’s Percy written X-Force, but in for a penny, in for a pound, as they say. Bogdanovic and Wilson work together perfectly on the art, supplying some beautiful visuals. No matter what one’s opinion of X Of Swords, this is just a great comic.

Grade: A