Nick Fury/Wolverine: The Scorpio Connection (1989)
Writer: Archie Goodwin
Artist: Howard Chaykin
Color art and special effects: Richard Ory & Barb Raush
Letterer: Ken Bruzenak

A S.H.I.E.L.D. taskforce lead by an old friend of Wolverine is massacred and the culprit appears to be the long-dead Scorpio. Fury spearheads the investigation and partners up with Wolverine in order to learn the secret of the mysterious resurrection of Scorpio, leading them to cross paths with an old femme fatale from Fury's past who reveal a shocking revelation about the identity of the new Scorpio. 

  • Continuity Notes
  • Cover appearance
  • Appearances by Dum Dum, Val and the first appearance of Fury's son, Mikel.
  • Nick Fury, Agent Of S.H.I.E.L.D. (V2) #3 shared the comic stands with this graphic novel, both published in July of 1989.
  • Howard Chaykin penned a 1994 sequel Scorpio Rising, reuniting Fury, Wolverine and Scorpio
  • This is the first of three graphic novels teaming Fury and Wolverine; Scorpio Rising and the unrelated Bloody Choices
  • Goodwin took three years to finish the script after Chaykin completed his artwork
  • The cover to this graphic novel proved popular enough to feature in posters, T-shirts and even the July 1989 issue of Advance Comics
  • Dum Dum appears to be married with two young children, in contrast to only one son in Nick Fury, Agent Of S.H.I.E.L.D. (V2) #1
  • Reprinted in Wolverine and Nick Fury: Scorpio
  • Check out this article from Marvel Age on the release of Scorpio Connection
  • For more on Chaykin's work on Nick Fury, click here for our 2012 interview with him

Review
Adult and sophisticated yarn with a morose Fury coming to terms with his past in a perfect sequel to the Steranko tales of the 60's. Wolverine is perfectly characterized here; one sequence in particular standing out as the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents watch and discuss Wolverine donning the mask, a scene that transcends the material and single-handedly justifies the "cape & spandex" reality of comic book heroes. The story is fast paced and exciting with plenty of twists. The art by Howard Chaykin is good stuff; the flashback sequences are fantastic. Continuity wise the novel poses some hiccups as it dates after NF Vs S.H.I.E.L.D. (as is demonstrated by the comment Dum Dum makes about Nick and Val) but Dum Dum suddenly has two kids and his wife is still alive, contradicting the first issue of the second S.H.I.E.L.D. title. Also the story is obviously meant to fit into the "old" S.H.I.E.L.D. rather then the second incarnation with Kate, Pierce, and Nina; both the long gestation for this project probably has allot to do with that. The revelation of Fury's son as Scorpio is certainly a remarkable bit of plotting and serves Fury well in terms of character development. 


Rating