Logan met and exceeded expectations at release and it's still riding high on critical and commercial success. It was immediately hailed as one of the freshest and most emotionally impactful movies in the X-Men franchise, and with a global gross of $565.5 million, is currently the third highest-grossing X-movie ever. As the theatrical release for Hugh Jackman's final turn as the Wolverine winds down, information about production of the celebrated finale is starting to paint a picture of the different paths this gritty road-movie could have taken. Recently-released concept art shows alternate designs for mutant tracker Caliban, as well as a long-haired Logan and a decidedly sharper Charles Xavier.

While earlier concept releases have highlighted the heroes of Logan, it's time for the antagonists to have their turn in the spotlight. Cast in point, the latest Logan concept art released online, shows off the ultra-modern prosthetics of cyborg Donald Pierce and his Reavers.

Concept designer Edon Guraziu released close-up images of a prosthetic hand and several angles of a bionic leg, which look decidedly more robust and professional than some of the cyberpunk designs that made it into the theatrical version of Logan. Take a look at his work HERE. Guraziu elaborated on the logic behind these designs as follows:

The brief I got was to design highly advanced prosthetics of surgical quality in terms of materials and aesthetic that would be 3D printed/generated in the expedition trucks of the Reavers while on the hunt for Logan, almost the entire team would have missing limbs as the backstory suggested they were former military.

Now after 2 years of production it seems like things have changed and that they went with a more out-dated industrial loking prosthetic that would fit more into the junk[y]ard'ish environment. Actually very happy with that decision as it fits great with the vibe and environment of the movie.

The bionic hand is noticeably different to the skeletal prosthetic of the movie's chief villain, Donald Pierce, which looks more retrofitted than something that has been purpose-printed for the job at hand. It is fully encased in material, where the mechanisms of Pierce's prosthetic in Logan are exposed. As Guraziu himself says, the look of the prosthetics that made it into the movie are much more fitting. Pierce tinkers with his hand during Logan, tying thematically to this future where individuals are scrapping for survival in the face of encroaching automation, as seen during the traffic sequence where Logan helps round up the escaped horses. Not to mention, the dust-covered and rusty visuals of Logan's landscape.

Concept art can vastly change the direction of a movie, with some designs serving the underrated role of mooting particular avenues for the movie to take. While the Old Man Logan inspirations behind James Mangold's Logan would always be served best by this dusty, western aesthetic, the futuristic setting required some exploration so that a balance could be struck between retro and futuristic. The final product was something of a military-grade Mad Max.

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Source: Edon Guraziu