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SAN DIEGO — Marvel and Lionsgate debuted the “Hulk vs. Wolverine” portion of the upcoming “Hulk Vs.” DVD, which will also feature a “Hulk vs. Thor” episode.  The DVD will go on sale in January.

On hand to discuss the DVD were supervising producer and co-writer Craig Kyle, producer and supervising director Frank Paur, co-writer Christopher Yost and voice actor Fred Tatasciore, who portrayed the Hulk.

“This is the fight we’ve loved since 181,” said Kyle, referring to the first appearance of Wolverine in “Incredible Hulk” 181, where the Canadian mutant and the green Goliath first threw down.

“We’ve brought it together in a way I think you guys are gonna love,” Kyle said. “These are the kinds of films I think we should be making for you guys.”

Kyle focused on the fans during the presentation, saying the Marvel direct-to-DVD features were aimed at pleasing the comic-book fans first.

Co-writer Chris Yost, who also writes the comic-book “X-Force” with Kyle, talked about bringing the comic-book feel to the project.

“Everything that the fans like, the action and the edge, I’ve tried to bring to it,” Yost said.

Paur said the DVD can be more violent and action-oriented than broadcast television; there’s also some things that are more cost-effective on DVD.

“There are some things … that I wouldn’t even think about approaching (for TV) that we did on these features,” Paur said.  “We did some things that would not be cost-conscious on a TV series.”

Kyle talked a bit about “Next Avengers,” a PG-rated animated DVD featuring the children of the original Avengers, and indicated it would be more kid-appropriate than the more violent “Hulk Vs.”  He also mentioned some other kid-friendly properties he’d like to see.

“I think there’s room for ‘Power Pack,’ ‘New Mutants,’ and then there’s stuff where we need five amputations to make it right.”

– Matt Price

Wolverine himself, Hugh Jackman, made a Comic-Con appearance at the 20th Century Fox panel, to promote “Wolverine: Origins,” which Jackman said had just wrapped.

Jackman thanked the fans, and said without comic fans, superhero movies wouldn’t be the powerhouses in Hollywood that they now are.  He also said he largely owed his career to the comic-book fans for making “X-Men” a hit.

Lots of spoilers about the footage at FirstShowing.net, including team members and characters involved and what they were doing in the sneak peek trailer.
– Matt Price

A very realistic-looking Wolverine on the convention floor at Comic-Con International in San Diego.

Matt Fraction, who joins the writing team on “Uncanny X-Men” with the recent issue No. 500, said mutantkind as a whole would be packing up and moving to San Franscisco, in the X-Men panel at Comic-Con International.  Fraction indicated the team would have a rotating cast of characters.

It’s “the biggest seismic change in X-Men history,” editor Nick Lowe said, as reported by Comic Book Resources.

– Matt Price 

Hulk takes on Thor and Wolverine in this January 2009 DVD release.

– Matt Price

Check out the second trailer for the 2009 cartoon “Wolverine and the X-Men.”

Supervising producer Craig Kyle, head writer Greg Johnson and others involved with the new X-Men cartoon will speak about the series at Comic-Con International on Saturday, July 26 at 8:30PM PT in Room 6CDEF, where fans can be the first to see the three-part pilot.  The series will air on Nicktoons in 2009.

Marvel.com has more information:

“When an explosive event shatters the lives of the X-Men and takes away their mentor, the beaten heroes walk away from it all.
But then they’re given a rare glimpse into the future, and see a world in utter ruin, ruled by mutant hunting Sentinels. A world that spiraled out of control because the X-Men had given up.
So now the most legendary of all X-Men takes the lead - Wolverine! Reuniting these broken heroes, Wolverine embarks on the ultimate mission - to prevent the world’s destruction.
To rescue us from ourselves. To save the future.”

– Matt Price

Wolverine #66 reunites the “Civil War” creative team of Mark Millar and Steve McNiven for a comic that’s technically solid, but leaves a lot of questions.
In the first of an eight-part series, Millar seems to be writing a riff on “Unforgiven.” Wolverine, now calling himself simply Logan, is retired from fighting. Fifty years in the future, all the superheroes have been defeated, and supervillains have divvied the United States up among themselves. 
Logan lives in California, now called Hulkland, under the protection of the Hulk’s not-so-nice hillbilly grandchildren.

Logan’s late on the rent, so the Hulks come to beat him up. He fantasizes about retaliating, but can’t.  

He gets the chance to make some money and get his family out of debt, so he takes it  —  leading us into the probable cross-country trek that will likely fuel the “Old Man Logan” storyline.
McNiven’s art is great. He captures the Western-like feel of the landscape and the variety of the characters populating it.  It’s a departure from his slick “Civil War” style, but completely appropriate for the material.
Maybe Millar will explain the reasons that have made Wolverine so downtrodden and out-of-character as “Old Man Logan” starts.   As it is, “Wolverine” 66 is an interesting what-if with outstanding art that perhaps wears its influences too strongly.

Millar has said in interviews that his “Wolverine” will tie in with his “1985″ (which I liked a lot) and his “Fantastic Four” (which I have liked parts of), so it’ll be interesting to see how all that comes together.

– Matt Price  

Freshly redesigned Newsarama has an eight-page preview of “Wolverine” #66, which kicks off the “Old Man Logan” storyline by the “Civil War” creative team of Mark Millar and Steve McNiven.

–  Matt Price 

From Marvel:

Marvel is proud to unveil superstar artist Michael Turner’s variant cover to Wolverine #66, the first chapter of “Old Man Logan” by the Civil War dream team of Mark Millar & Steve McNiven! Tying into Millar’s acclaimed work on Fantastic Four and the upcoming Marvel: 1985, this brand new arc presents the most important Wolverine story of the 21^st century! For 50 years, no one’s heard from Wolverine…but why? And what led to evil’s triumph over good? The answers start here folks and with Millar & McNiven back together, you know that Wolverine #66 is the book that everyone will be talking about!