Rating:

I’m doing this review in two parts because the DVD itself is essentially 2 separate DVDs. Each feature has its own disc and special feat, so this seems like the best way to review both (Wolverine and Thor) and give them the attention they deserve.

We’ll start off with Hulk vs Wolverine. This should be packed as Disc 1 in the sets. To put it simply, this is 37-minutes of animated action bliss. Be warned, it deserves the PG-13 rating. There’s a good amount of blood and slicing, as well as a liberal uses of the work hell and damn.

Definitely aimed at the 13+ crowd, this is the Wolverine/Hulk animated battle that we’ve all imagined and never before seen. It’s absolutely brutal. There were a few moments where I actually winced when the Hulk was pounding on Wolverine.

Continuity and setting are loosely defined in this short. It seems like Wolverine has a relationship with the Canadian government and he’s not yet met the X-Men. He’s called in to track and  destroy the American monster known as the Hulk, after it supposedly levels an entire town and leaving no survivors.

Wolverine quickly finds the Hulk and after a short battle, they are both captured by Weapon X. In a story beat that makes perfect sense, Weapon X has been tracking the Hulk in an attempt to capture and reverse engineer the most powerful biological weapon ever created.

Thanks to this, we get the best part of the movie… Deadpool! Yes, the Merc with the mouth is present and accounted for and he steals every scene he’s in. Writers Kyle and Yost nailed the character and voice-actor Nolan North needs a Deadpool movie of his own. I can’t  believe I’m saying this, because I’ve never been a huge Deadpool fan. But he’s the third star of Hulk Vs.

I won’t spoil the rest for you. It goes without saying that things don’t exactly go the way that Weapon X plans and before you know it the Hulk and Wolverine are fighting against Sabreooth, Deadpool, Lady Deathstrike, and Omega Red.

Winding up the first disc of this set are a few great extra features.

There are two audio commentaries on this disc (Hulk vs Wolverine). The first is by writers Craig Kyle and Chris Yost and the second is by director Frank Paur, and storyboard artists Kevin Altieri and Butch Lukic. Both commentaries are interesting, but the one with writers Kyle and Yost is easily the best, with the pair discussing specific story points and how they came to be.

This is Gonna Hurt: The Making of Hulk vs. Wolverine is an approximately 20-minute behind the scenes look at the feature. It’s describes the process of making the cartoon in detail. Definitely worth watching for the last seven minutes, as it concludes with interviews and clips of the voice actors (Steve Blum, Frank Tatasciore, and Nolan North) recording their lines.

Fan Frenzy: Hulk vs. Wolverine at the 2008 San-Diego Comic Con features footage from said con, along with clips and questions from the Hulk vs. panel that was held at the con. This features Craig Kyle (and others) answering several fan posed questions.

First Look – Wolverine and the X-Men is a short (5 minutes) preview  at the new animated series featuring Steve Blum as the voice of Wolverine. Several members of the creative team on this feature also work on that series. Look for it on Nicktoons now.

Rounding out the extra content on the DVD are a few trailers for upcoming and existing Marvel animated DVDs and video games. Nothing surprising in these.

Overall, it’s a nice set of features and it’s great that each Hulk vs. short has its own set of features. They’ve treated these mini-movies just like they would a longer production and that treatment is well deserved. Not since the original Ultimate Avengers animated DVD have I enjoyed on this much. Hulk vs. Wolverine belongs in the collection of every Marvel fan.