If you read Frank Cho’s Dynamite book Jungle Girl, you already have an idea of what to expect here.  It takes place in the Savage Land, and all hell breaks lose rather fast.  Cho hasn’t hidden his love of Shanna the She-Devil, and it shows in his writing.  She gets some good dialogue compared to the other characters in this book. Granted, most of her dialogue is explaining the trip that the reader just saw themselves.  Savage Wolverine #1 isn’t written well, but it shows a lot of potential.  It could be a fun and outlandish book.  Cho misses a great opportunity for humor, instead going for straight seriousness.  The recent Avenging Spider-Man arc in the Savage Land used the absurdity of the land rather well.  Wolverine can’t stay in the Savage Land forever, so Shanna will have to make a trip to the Jean Grey School sooner or later, which is a situation ripe with humor.

Wolverine doesn’t fare well in this issue.  It’s clear from the start that Cho wanted this book to be a Shanna ongoing, but Marvel thought it wouldn’t sell. So Cho threw Wolverine into it so that it would sell.  He barely speaks, and narrates every little thing he does.  The reader doesn’t need to be told he just killed someone when we saw the head flying across the panel.  The narrations go away once Wolverine bumps into Shanna, which betters the issue.  If the next few issues have the same problems, maybe Marvel should bring a cowriter aboard for a while.  Help Cho get his ideas out more effectively.  If I had any control over the books Marvel published, they would have turned this into a Shanna book instead.  Wolverine has enough books, and Marvel has been succeeding recently with B and C lister books.  If the book is good, it will sell.  Also, this would be a MAX book.  Cho could pencil the nudity that he terribly wants to pencil.

At this point in Frank Cho’s career, everyone knows what to expect from his books.  Lots of dinosaurs, cavemen, and scantly clad women.  Every other shot of Shanna has her standing in a provocative position with her boobs almost hanging out.  With the story being serious in nature, the amount of boobs sticks out that much more (no pun intended).  If Savage Wolverine had been more lighthearted and over the top, the boobs would have felt natural (I seriously didn’t mean that pun either).  Savage Wolverine is one great looking comic though. Every character is very expressive and detailed, and the lush jungles are beautiful.  The contrast of wide screen panels and small panels is used well to convey the fighting.  Cho’s amazing art is going to be the big draw on this book for some time.

Savage Wolverine is going to be a bubble book for some time.  If the writing can improve, and the tone can shift a little bit, we have ourselves a great book.  But if not, we have a dud.

Savage Wolverine #1 gets 3/5.

MrComicBook, Review: Savage Wolverine #1

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14 AT 9PM ET/ 6PM PT

DISH Customers Who Are Being Denied Access to Their Favorite
Scripted Drama Series* Can Register for the Free Live Stream at http://www.amctv.com/thewalkingdead4dish/

New York, NY, September 28, 2012 – In response to DISH taking away its customers’ favorite scripted drama series on basic cable* – The Walking Dead – AMC is offering all DISH subscribers a special live stream of the hit show’s season three premiere episode on Sunday, October 14, at 9PM ET/6PM PT on amctv.com. This streaming event will run concurrently with the television debut so DISH subscribers who are fans of the series can experience this highly-anticipated premiere at the same time it’s available to all other cable and satellite subscribers.

Beginning Friday, September 28 at 9 AM ET, DISH subscribers can register for access to the free live stream of “The Walking Dead” at http://www.amctv.com/thewalkingdead4dish/.

AMC stated: “To gain leverage in an unrelated lawsuit, DISH has decided to deny their customers access to AMC shows including ‘The Walking Dead,’ the series that has shattered basic cable ratings records. Although ‘The Walking Dead’ is the #1 basic cable scripted drama for DISH customers, DISH has stated it has no plans to bring back AMC. DISH customers who want to watch the entire season at the same time as the rest of the country should switch television providers now…time is running out.”

DISH dropped AMC, as well as its sister networks, IFC, WE tv and Sundance Channel to gain leverage in an unrelated lawsuit. DISH customers may find information on how to switch providers at www.switchfromdish.com.

“The Walking Dead,” hailed by Entertainment Weekly as the “greatest thriller ever produced for television” follows Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his band of survivors who must not only fight the dead, but also face a whole new fear: the living. Season three of “The Walking Dead” will air in two-parts with the first eight hours kicking off October 14 and the final episodes returning beginning February 2013.

Based on the comic book series written by Robert Kirkman and published by Image Comics,
“The Walking Dead” stars Lincoln, Sarah Wayne Callies, Laurie Holden, Steven Yeun, Norman Reedus, Chandler Riggs, Lauren Cohan, Scott Wilson, IronE Singleton, and Melissa McBride.
Joining the cast for season three are David Morrissey and Danai Gurira along with her zombie pets.

The series is executive produced by show runner Glen Mazzara, Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd and David Alpert with Greg Nicotero, Denise Huth and Evan Reilly as co-executive producers.

The season premiere of “The Walking Dead” will be complemented by a wealth of exclusive content at www.amctv.com. Fans can check out “Inside The Walking Dead” videos, episode sneak peeks, “Talked About Scenes,” “Talking Dead” bonus scenes, production diary interviews with the cast and crew, production photo galleries, fan trivia and new behind-the scenes videos from the set in Atlanta.

The season premiere of “The Walking Dead,” coincides with AMC’s annual blockbuster marathon of thriller and horror films, AMC Fearfest. Celebrating its 16th year, AMC Fearfest will feature 19 consecutive days of themed programming and more than 70 films, running from Saturday, October 13 through Wednesday, October 31.

“The Walking Dead” reigns as the most watched drama series on basic cable for Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54 and is the highest rated scripted drama series among DISH subscribers (Source: Nielsen Media Research 4Q11 – 1Q12 A 18-49 (000) Dish Universe. The series has garnered two Emmy® Awards for Outstanding Prosthetic Make-up, a Golden Globe® Award nomination for Best Television Series – Drama, and a WGA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Writing Derivative New Media, among other accolades.

Agent Burgos, AMC OFFERS DISH SUBSCRIBERS LIVE STREAM OF THE “THE WALKING DEAD”

Following DISH’s Drop of AMC, the Network’s Contest Challenges Fans to
Create a Video About Losing
“Breaking Bad,” “The Walking Dead,” “Mad Men,”
and Other of TV’s Most Popular Shows

NEW YORK, NY, AUGUST 6, 2012 – AMC is launching a new online video contest, “Hey DISH, Where’s My AMC?” (www.WheresMyAMC.com) following DISH’s blackout of AMC last month. DISH dropped the network in an attempt to gain leverage in an unrelated lawsuit. The contest, which is accepting submissions through August 29, 2012, invites fans of AMC to create a 30-90 second video about how DISH customers feel since losing AMC’s award-winning shows, including “Breaking Bad,” “The Walking Dead,” “ Mad Men,” and “Hell on Wheels.” The video contest comes on the heels of AMC’s release last week of its “Zombie Experiment NYC” video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHPMocTmC08&feature=youtu.be), which went viral and became one of the most watched videos in the world, with more than 4.2 million views.

Mac McKean, Senior Vice President of AMC Digital, said: “We’ve had a tremendous outpouring of support from fans asking what they can do since DISH dropped us so we thought we’d give them an outlet for expressing their dissatisfaction over DISH’s decision.”

To enter the “Hey DISH, Where’s My AMC?” contest go to www.WheresMyAMC.com

The Grand Prize Winner receives a $4000 cash prize, a Canon® 7D Camera (MSRP $1549), and the opportunity to discuss their work with AMC’s Senior Vice President of Production. In addition, the winning video will appear across AMC owned social media channels. The contest also features two runner-up categories: “People’s Choice” and “Highest Viewed.” The winners of these categories will each receive a $1000 cash prize plus extras.

For more information on why DISH dropped AMC and its sister networks, IFC, WE tv and Sundance Channel, go to www.switchfromdish.com.

About AMC
AMC reigns as the only cable network in history to ever win the Emmy® Award for Outstanding Drama Series four years in a row, as well as the Golden Globe® Award for Best Television Series – Drama for three consecutive years. Whether commemorating favorite films from every genre and decade or creating acclaimed original programming, the AMC experience is an uncompromising celebration of great stories. AMC’s original stories include “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad,” “The Walking Dead,” “The Killing” and “Hell on Wheels.” AMC further demonstrates its commitment to the art of storytelling with its slate of unscripted original series, as well as curated movie franchises like AMC’s Can’t Get Enough and AMC’s Crazy About. AMC is owned and operated by AMC Networks Inc. and its sister networks include IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv. AMC is available across all platforms, including on-air, online, on demand and mobile. AMC: Story Matters HereSM.

Agent Burgos, “Hey DISH, Where’s My AMC?