'Savage Wolverine' Writer Tom Bloom Sends Logan Down a Crossroads

Welcome to Tropica, Nevada. Hope you survive the experience.

In Tom Bloom and Devmalya Pramanik's SAVAGE WOLVERINE INFINITY COMIC, now available on Marvel Unlimited, Logan finds himself at a crossroads after an A.I.M. attack leaves him stranded in a small Western America town. As he searches for the quickest way out of there, he comes across some trouble—and it may be more than even The Best There Is can handle alone.

Speaking to Marvel.com, SAVAGE WOLVERINE writer Tom Bloom—best known for his wildly popular Kill 6 Billion Demons webcomic—broke down his Marvel debut. He discussed the impact of the Krakoan Era on this story and described his Wolverine as "the gruff, wandering antihero type." He explained how the villain capitalizes on some real anxieties to make a convincing point, as well as the way body horror films inspired the Infinity Comic's creepy designs. He also teased Wolverine's co-protagonist, a finale involving chainsaws, and much more.

MARVEL.COM: Set the stage for us. Where does SAVAGE WOLVERINE find our hero when the first issue picks up?

TOM BLOOM: SAVAGE WOLVERINE finds Logan between places—literally, as he's on a cross-country bike ride. This is after the events of the Krakoan Era and kind of deals with some of its fallout.

MARVEL.COM: Wolverine oscillates between brutal warrior and father figure and everything in between. What kind of Logan do we encounter in SAVAGE WOLVERINE?

TOM BLOOM: I always liked Wolverine as the gruff, wandering antihero type; it's a very North American cultural pillar. I think you could see him played by Kurt Russel in this if it were a short film.

MARVEL.COM: What were some of the joys and challenges of exploring that side of Wolverine?

TOM BLOOM: It's easy to write a tough character as blunt or uninvested in the stakes of a situation, but I think it's more interesting when you can see the parts of them that really do care shining through.

MARVEL.COM: Tell me a little about working with Devmalya Pramanik. What did he bring to the series?

TOM BLOOM: Devmalya had a great energy and enthusiasm and I think we hit the right vibe for the comic right away once we chatted. I think he's done excellent work on the first few issues.

MARVEL.COM: I'd love to know more about the designs for Wolverine's spectacularly creepy villains. How did the team arrive at that look?

TOM BLOOM: The villain of this story is someone who's got a grip on a small town. I wanted to make that more literal. I was thinking a lot about '80s action for this script and landed on body horror films like Reanimator and The Thing.

MARVEL.COM: While we're on the subject, what kind of threat do those antagonists pose, to both Logan and the town of Tropica, Nevada? How worried should we be about them?

TOM BLOOM: I think the main thing with the villain Wolverine's facing in Tropica is that he's got a point—one he's taken to rather extreme ends and is exploiting for his own personal gain (tell me if you've heard this one before), but he's risen to power from some fairly real anxieties. I think it takes strength to overcome the kind of impulses that this guy is exploiting, that of fear, economic anxiety, and the decline of a community. It's a fairly common human tragedy, and I don't think anyone's immune to it.

MARVEL.COM: Wolverine encounters several new characters on this journey. What kind of folks will we run into in Tropica, and what do they mean for Logan?

TOM BLOOM: Wolverine's got a sort of co-protagonist in this story, which I think is important when you have these kinds of big, almost mythical heroes wandering around. The X-Men are a huge deal; I mean, Logan's been to space and other dimensions and who knows what. Sometimes, it's nice to tell a story that's a little more grounded through these side characters; you get a different perspective.

MARVEL.COM: What are you most excited for readers to see in SAVAGE WOLVERINE?

TOM BLOOM: I hope readers enjoy the finale. There are chainsaws involved.

SAVAGE WOLVERINE #1 and #2 are now available to read on Marvel Unlimited!

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