Wolverine (2nd series) #189

Issue Date: 
June 2003
Story Title: 
Good Cop / Bad Cop. Part Two
Staff: 

Daniel Way (writer), Staz Johnson (penciler), Danny Miki (inker), Avalon Studio’s (colorist), Comicraft (letterer), Warren Simons & John Miesegaes (assistant editors), Axel Alonso (editor), Joe Quesada (editor in chief), Bill Jemas (president)

Brief Description: 

Inside the Chief of Police’s office, Detective Lester Brown is questioned about what has recently happened. During the conversation, he states that he lost his gun and his keys. After he is suspended, Detective McLawry heads out to a bar to celebrate along with his buddy Detective Murphy. In the bathroom, McLawry is confronted by Logan, who tells him that he knows what happened. Outside the bar, McLawry smacks Logan over the head and takes him out in the middle of nowhere. After a conversation ensues where McLawry confesses what he had done, McLawry shoots Logan in the head and buries him in a shallow grave. Once he leaves, Logan escapes and heads to Sullivan’s where Lester is at. Once he goes to the restroom, he leaves a package for Lester that contains his gun and a map. Ecstatic, Lester heads out to prove what he had said about McLawry was right. Content with what he did, Logan drinks the Bourbon he had left for Lester.

Full Summary: 

Inside the Chief of Police’s office, a female investigator tells Detective Lester Brown that Tawanda Barnes, the woman who came in there yesterday and publicly threatened to bring him up on charges never showed up for work last night. A co-worker went to her apartment; saw that the door had been kicked in and that there were signs of a struggle. Neither she, nor her son Juwan, were home – they seem to have disappeared.

She then asks him if he can tell them where he was last night. With a busted, swollen eye, Lester informs them that he was at Sullivan’s. The female investigator inquires if he was drinking. Lester admitted that he was, but just one. A male investigator asks what happened after. Lester tells him that he went home and passed out. The female investigator asks that he passed out after one drink? Did anybody see him at home? Lester replies that he buzzed his neighbor to let him in, he had lost his keys. The female investigator says because he was drunk.

The male investigator asks if anybody saw him at Sullivan’s. With his head lowered, Lester tells them McLawry. The male investigator asks Detective “McLawry?” He then asks the Chief of Police if he is the same one that they are investigating for the Elijah Snow shooting. The Chief tells him he was, they cleared it this morning, it was a good shoot. The female investigator remarks that she is glad to hear it and then asks Lester what happened to his face. Lester informs her that he got jumped by some gangbangers. She tells him that they didn’t see a report on that.

When Lester doesn’t reply, the investigators start to leave and tell him that they’ll be right back. As they leave, the Chief informs Lester that he is suspended pending investigation and that he’ll need his gun and badge. As Lester tells him that he doesn’t have his gun, the investigators stop in their tracks.

The male investigator proceeds to ask Lester where it is. When Lester tells him he doesn’t know, the investigator asks him if he lost it like he lost his keys. Enraged, Lester yells at him that if he’s gonna charge him, then just do it. The male investigator asks charge him with what? The only thing they know for sure is that he went to their apartment last night after the episode in the station house. Which, he has to admit, looks kinda bad.

Lester yells that McLawry knew about Juwan and his mom, he overheard what she said when she came in. He went to their apartment to warn them that they may be in danger. The female investigator asks that he thought they might be in danger… from McLawry? She asks why McLawry would be out to get them for pressing charges against him? Lester tells her that Juwan Barnes was a potential witness against McLawry in the Snow shooting. The female investigator replies that his boss just said the shooting was good, if he had a witness who was saying otherwise…

Lester tells her that’s why McLawry killed the boy and his mom so they’d never get a chance to say otherwise. He killed them to cover his tracks, he knows it! The male investigator asks so they’re dead, he knows that for sure? Then does he mind telling them where the bodies are? Picking his head up out of his hands, Lester tells them that he doesn’t know. The male investigator informs him that’s too bad.

As the two investigators leave for the second time, they tell him that they’ll be in touch and that he knows the drill. In the meantime, how about finding that gun for them? As the investigators walk through the police station and Lester exits the Chief’s office, McLawry stands there with a smug look on his face. His buddy, Detective Murphy comes up to him and says that he just heard that I.A. cleared him of the shooting. He then points over to Lester and asks him if he can believe it. Grabbing his coat, McLawry invites Murphy along for a drink, he feels like celebrating.

At Martinez’s bar, McLawry tells Murphy to tell the bartender to get them another round, he needs to hit the can. While he is washing his face and hands at the sink, a man standing at the urinal asks him how it feels. Turning around, McLawry asks how does what feel? The man says to him gettin’ away with it. McLawry remarks nice try and asks the man what piece-of-crap rag he writes for. The man, Logan in disguise, asks him that he doesn’t remember him? He brought him a drink last night. It was about an hour or so after he shot the kid, about four hours after he shot his mom, about eight days after he shot their neighbor through the belly and watched him bleed out on the floor.

Enraged, McLawry grabs Logan by the jacket collar and asks him what he know about it. Logan informs him that he knows everything. Just then, Murphy enters the restroom and tells McLawry that the bar is outta Jager. Pushing him past him, Logan exits the restroom. When he does, Murphy asks McLawry what that was about. Exiting the restroom, McLawry tells him nobody and that he has to go. Once he leaves, Murphy remarks yeah, right and asks if he has more “laundry” to do.

Outside the bar, Logan stretches and sniffs the air and flashes a half-smile. Stopping at the entrance-way to an alley, Logan asks if he should bother puttin’ his hands up. The answer comes from a heavy object smashing Logan across the back of his head. Dragging him through the alleyway, McLawry ties Logan up and puts him the trunk of his car. After a long drive into the deep woods away from civilization, McLawry stops the car. Opening up the trunk, McLawry says to him that it’s time for some answers.

Putting Logan on the ground, McLawry starts to fish around in the trunk. Logan asks if he brought him out there just to talk. Brandishing a shovel, McLawry asks him what he thinks. Logan tells him that he thinks he’s a coward and a murderer. Cracking him across the face with the shovel, McLawry asks that he’s a coward? Every day, he’s out there on the street, puttin’ his butt on the line. If it wasn’t for cops like him, no one could live in this city. An’ if he’s gotta kill a few drug-dealing scumbags like “No-Show” Snow along the way, then that’s just the way it’s gotta be.

Bloodied, Logan tells him nice speech and asks him if that’s the same one he gave to Juwan Barnes before he killed him. Walking back over to the car, McLawry states yeah, he killed that kid, him and his mom, both. Then he buried them out there, where no one would find them. It was the hardest thing he ever had to do but it had to be done. Logan tells him to not bother lyin’ to him. He doesn’t know why he killed Snow an’ he don’t care but he knows it wasn’t self-defense. The place reeked of the kinda fear you only get when you beg for your life. The boy, Juwan, he knew what he did, that’s why he killed him. And then he killed his mother just to pad the job. He can play it noble all he wants but he’s nothin’ but a murderous scumbag who’s too scared to own up to it.

Walking over to Logan, carrying a pistol, McLawry tells him how about that, he guess he does know everything after all. He then tells him congratulations and shoots him point-blank in the temple. As he drives away, Logan escapes from his shallow grave thanks to the use of his adamantium claws and tells him “congratulations” back at him.

At Sullivan’s bar, the waitress asks Lester Brown if he wants a Bourbon on the rocks, same as usual? Lester looks up at her and tells her no, he doesn’t drink, not anymore. After a while of sitting by himself, the waitress comes back around and hands him a Bourbon on the rocks. Drinking his coffee, Lester tells her that he didn’t order it. The waitress informs him that the guy at the bar sent it over. He said that he looked like he needed it. Looking over at the bar, Lester doesn’t see anybody. The waitress states that he must’ve left. Walking over to the bar, Lester sees a package that contains his gun and a map. Ecstatic, Lester rushes out of the bar. As he does, he remarks that he got him this time, McLawry.

When Logan exits the restroom, the waitress tells him that he cleans up real nice, to which Logan thanks her. She then tells him that she thought he left. That guy he bought the drink for took off; guess he didn’t want it. Drinking it down, Logan tells her good, more for him.

Characters Involved: 

Wolverine

Detective Lester Brown

Detective Scott McLawry

Detective Murphy

Chief of Police (unnamed)

Two investigators, one male and one female (both unnamed)

Various people at the police station (all unnamed)

Waitress and various patrons of Sullivan’s bar (all unnamed)

Story Notes: 

Jagermeister is a German alcohol.

Bourbon is an American whiskey.

This is the final issue of Wolverine (2nd series). However, he wasn’t out of a solo series long, as it was relaunched the next month, with a new #1 – Wolverine (3rd series).

Issue Information: 
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