If someone had told me yesterday that they’ve found a new actor to play Wolverine, I’d scream it’s too soon. The Hugh Jackman hangover lingers ever since he hung up his adamantium claws last year after the release of Logan, James Mangold’s beloved masterpiece, a fitting yet heartbreaking farewell to our favourite mutant.
But having only last night plugged into two episodes of Wolverine: The Long Night, Marvel’s first venture into the audio drama universe, and there’s a taste for new possibilities, especially since Richard Armitage is involved. The actor who played Thorin Oakenshield to critical acclaim in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit slips into Logan’s skin with a practised ease, easily conveying the character’s many complexities with few words. To be able to do that when there’s no visuals involved requires a whole new level of skill.
A partnership between Marvel and podcast platform Stitcher, Wolverine: The Long Night tells a Wolverine story by keeping him largely off-stage, at least in the beginning. Set in the fictional town of Burns, Alaska, the podcast follows federal agents Tad Marshall (At Essandoh) and Sally Pierce (Celia Keenan-Bolger) as they investigate a bloody massacre that took place on a fishing boat and saw nine crewmates slashed to death. Two women have also recently met with grizzly ends, and even though nothing seemingly connects these incidents, the people of Burns are on edge.
The body count begins to steadily rise and everyone’s searching for Logan, who’s on the run from Weapon X and trying to piece his own life back together after he’s lost his memory. There’s also a shadowy cult involved, and the local sheriff suspiciously wants the Feds out of his little town.
SOUND DESIGN
The first thing a listener’s going to notice about this podcast is that the sound design is exquisitely produced. That’s largely thanks to director Brendan Baker, who recorded the show using ambisonic mics, which basically means the recording reflects the directional and acoustic features of a space. It’s like Imax for your ears.
In a scene early on in episode one, a character opens a window, and you can hear the air whooshing in, and it doesn’t feel simulated like it would if a foley artist tried to replicate the sound on a set. The sound’s so intricately produced, you can literally “hear” two people glancing at each other. Soon as you’re two episodes in, you have a good mental map of the town of Burns, and you’re ready to explore it on your own.
REVISITING TROPES
The Feds give the tired old trope of the good cop/bad cop routine a fresh spin: Essandoh is the fidget-spinning and cautiously empathetic good cop, whereas Keenan-Bolger is the hard-boiled bad cop, itching to pull out the cuffs. The two play off each other’s energies well and in the best of moments, they come into their own.
And the show also heavily borrows from its TV cousins: From Twin Peaks to Fargo and Broadchurch, Wolverine: The Long Night is a derivative show, even if it manages to do it inventively.
But, no doubt, the star of the show is Armitage. Even if you’re not constantly hearing him, he gets into your head right from the start. He reveals Logan’s tortured dual existence: a gruff exterior married to a troubled conscience, aching for absolution. It’s the Wolverine we know from the comic books (they even reference his short stature, which will definitely please hardcore fans).
That Marvel’s taking the time and effort to expand to formats that are currently not moneymaking jackpots is an encouraging idea. Because beyond the slapstick comedy and highstakes action, the comic book repertoire is a treasure trove of stories that can stand the test of serious exposition.
So, if you love comic books, enjoy listening to old-timey audio dramas, and love crime procedurals (who doesn’t?), Wolverine: The Long Night is for you. And even if you don’t fall into any of these categories, the show makes for a great gateway podcast into the world of genre storytelling.
Don’t miss it
Wolverine: The Long Night is now available to stream on Stitcher Premium.
