With a brand-new movie coming up, we look at how Wolverine came to be the best there is at what he does.
IT has been almost four decades since Wolverine made his debut in the last panel of Incredible Hulk #180 back in 1974. Then, new characters who surfaced in the Green Goliath’s pages were a dime a dozen, but what made Wolverine stand out was not just his bright yellow costume and those oh-so-cool metal claws, but also the way he was able to take on not just the Hulk, but Wendigo as well!
Despite having sliced through 40 years’ worth of adventures with his adamantium-laced claws, which pop from his hands to the by-now-familiar sound effect “Snikt!”, Wolverine’s origin was only revealed 12 years ago, via the 2001 Origin miniseries. The 27-year wait would probably have been even longer had it not been for the pressure generated by the success of the character in the first X-Men movie. Marvel realised that if it did not get Wolverine’s origin out in the comics, Hollywood would probably do it soon.
With Origin laying down a solid foundation for the character to build on, numerous other enhancements and dimensions have been added on to Wolverine’s present-day status as an X-Man, Avenger and mutantkind’s number one icon.
In addition to the books that bear his name (his solo book Wolverine, as well as Wolverine And the X-Men), he also features in some capacity in almost every other X-Men book currently published by Marvel, and is also part of Avengers and Uncanny Avengers as well.
In conjunction with the upcoming release of The Wolverine, this week we’ve stitched together 11 of Logan’s most character defining moments throughout the years.
Origin of a wolverine
Origin #1-#6 (2001-02)
Writers: Paul Jenkins, Bill Jemas and Joe Quesada
Artist: Andy Kubert
AFTER 27 years, the truth of Wolverine’s origins finally came out, and it really did justice to the character.Origin is definitely a must-have for any Wolverine or X-Men fan, for the way it defines Wolverine’s psyche and character.
For decades, we’d known him as just “Logan”, only to find out that the name actually belongs to his childhood nemesis. His real name is actually James Howlett, the stepson of a wealthy Canadian plantation owner (John Howlett Jr) in the late 19th century.
However, all is not well within his family. James suffers from various allergies, his mother Elizabeth is mentally unstable, and his biological dad is suspected to be the groundskeeper, Thomas Logan. The only bright spark in his life is his nanny Rose, a redhead Jean Grey-look alike (which explains his grownup fetish for redheads!).
A confrontation involving John, Elizabeth and Thomas then changes James’ life, resulting in the death of all three, and James’ latent mutant abilities finally manifesting! The scene where James first uses his bone claws surely ranks as one of the most memorable moments in comics ever.
The tragedy forces James and Rose to flee from the mansion and begin anew in the harsh conditions of a mining colony in the Yukon Territory.
Unfortunately, their past catches up with them and during a battle with Dog Logan (James’ stepbrother, who was once rumoured to be Sabretooth), James accidentally kills Rose and after that, exiles himself into the wilderness to live among wolves.
Genesis of a nemesis
Wolverine (Vol 2) #10 (1989)
Writer: Chris Claremont
Artist: John Buscema
THE early Wolverine-Sabretooth slugfests were entertaining, but their rivalry lacked depth – there was just no rationale behind the bloodlust. This issue of Wolverine, however, explains the reason behind their rivalry, and not surprisingly, it’s all because of a girl.
After his self-imposed exile, Wolverine returns to civilisation to live with the Blackfoot Indians, where he finds a soulmate in Silver Fox.
However, their happiness is short-lived when Sabretooth comes a-calling and murders Silver Fox on Logan’s birthday! Obviously, this drives Wolverine into a berserker rage but it is still not enough to take down Sabretooth, who completely dominates the fight.
Siring of an offspring
Wolverine (Vol 3) # 40 (2006)
Writer: Daniel Way
Artist: Javier Saltares
YEARS after Silver Fox’s death, Wolverine rediscovered love in Itsu, a Japanese villager, but unfortunately, she suffers the same fate as Silver Fox.
Itsu is killed, not by Sabretooth but by the Winter Soldier (a.k.a. Bucky Barnes), who is under orders from Romulus, the master orchestrator of Wolverine’s life. But even though it is short-lived, their union is gifted with an offspring named Daken – a son he never knew existed until recent years.
Their father-son rivalry has been cranked up to the max since Wolverine Jr’s debut in Wolverine Origins#10 – with Daken hell-bent on killing his father ... by any means necessary!
Warrior of a world war
Uncanny X-Men #268 (1990)
Writer: Chris Claremont
Artist: Jim Lee
THIS standalone issue best epitomises Wolverine’s contribution to the Golden Age, despite only being introduced three decades later. While Wolverine served with the Canadian military during World War I, it is his team up with Captain America in World War II that really pads his résumé.
Furthermore, this must-have issue (ranked #97 on Wizard Magazine’s “100 Best Single Issue Comics Since You Were Born” list) also establishes the connection between Wolverine, the Hand, and Natasha “Black Widow” Romanova.
Weapon of adamantium
Marvel Comics Presents #72-#84 (1991)
Writer/Artist: Barry Windsor Smith
MARVEL’s first serious attempt at giving Wolverine a past. After years of skirting the issue of his mutation, the story behind Wolverine’s adamantium treatment is finally revealed in this 13-part story. The tale retraces Wolverine’s kidnapping and subsequent imprisonment under the Weapon X programme (a secret research facility which turns its subjects into living weapons), where his bones are forcibly fused with adamantium.
Although he escaped and even killed a few of his captors in the process, the spectre of Weapon X continues to haunt him in various story arcs till today!
Development of a hero
Alpha Flight (Vol 1) #17 (1984)
Writer/Artist: John Byrne
AFTER escaping from Weapon X, a delusional Wolverine is discovered by James and Heather Hudson. Heather plays an instrumental role in helping Wolverine regain his humanity, while James offers him a role in Department H – a branch of the Canadian Government that monitors superhuman activity and the country’s superhuman team, Alpha Flight.
These developmental years help Wolverine consolidate his life as a hero, and although he achieves much success in his role, the lone blemish in his exemplary record comes when he is assigned to stop the brawl between the Hulk and Wendigo!
First appearance of an icon
Incredible Hulk (Vol 1) #181
Writer: Len Wein
Artist: Herb Trimpe
“THE world’s first and greatest Canadian super hero!” the cover tagline proclaims, as the Marvel Universe unveils Canada’s biggest import.
Of course, there is no doubt at all that the Hulk would win this three-way-slugfest against the Wendigo and Wolverine.
Although he loses the fight, word of Wolverine’s prowess spreads after this rumble in Quebec, and earns him a ticket out of Department H right into the X-Mansion!
Rise of an X-Man
Giant Size X-Men #1 (1975)
Writer: Len Wein
Artist: Dave Cockrum
ALPHA who? In this special issue of X-Men, Wolverine crosses the border after accepting Professor X’s invitation to be part of a new X-Men team (together with Sunfire, Banshee, Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus and Thunderbird), whose first mission is to rescue the original X-Men from the living island of Krakoa.
While his involvement in this adventure is just a bit part, subsequent issues of the Uncanny X-Men title (#94-#142) gradually evolved him into the superstar he is today.
Best at what he does
Wolverine #1-#4 (1982)
Writer: Chris Claremont
Artist: Frank Miller
“I’M the best there is at what I do. But what I do isn’t very nice.” This is the limited series that gave us that immortal catchphrase. It’s no secret that Wolverine likes Oriental women, and this is where we are formally introduced to Mariko Yashida – the daughter of a Yakuza head.
Their long-distance relationship is interrupted when Mariko goes incommunicado – as she has been forced by her father to marry a criminal associate (Noburu Hideki) as settlement for a debt – Wolverine travels to Japan to save her and ends up taking on the Yashida Clan and the Hand!
This welcome departure from the usual frenzied mutant massacres opened up new dimensions for the versatile character.
Memories of madness
House Of M #1-#8 (2005)
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Oliver Coipel
COURTESY of the Scarlet Witch’s reality-altering spell, the whole Marvel Universe is redefined, with most heroes getting to live out their deepest desires. However, for Wolverine, this means regaining all his lost memories and being the only person in the altered reality who remembers what the world used to be like!
Apparently, having a healing factor not only repairs broken bones and damaged tissues, but also places a mental block on painful memories. However, the Scarlet Witch’s act indirectly removes these blocks and opens the doors for Wolverine to revisit his long-forgotten past – and a host of other untold stories.
Akin to opening Pandora’s Box, this groundbreaking event sparked a series of story arcs in which Wolverine revisits his past, with almost every single one being a painful experience.
From berserker to educator
Wolverine And The X-Men, ongoing (2011-present)
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Chris Bachalo
AFTER the events of Schism, in which Wolverine and Cyclops got into an almighty row and parted ways, Logan takes one half of the decimated post-House Of M mutant population with him and establishes the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, with him and Kitty Pryde as the headmasters, and others like Rachel Grey, Iceman, Beast, and er … Doop on the teaching and administrative staff.
Thus begins a brand new role for Logan – that of a teacher, mentor and father figure to many of the young mutants at the school. It’s a role that may seem like an odd fit for the berserker-rage-prone, cold-blooded Weapon X, but strangely enough, it is a role that fits Wolverine perfectly.
After all that he has been through, all the painful mistakes he has made, all the suffering he has been through, and all the crazy world-threatening events he has survived, it seems fitting that he should be the one to head a school dedicated to training young mutants, and ensuring that the next generation of X-Men does not make the same mistakes he did.
So far, school is still in session and Wolverine has proven to be a capable (if unorthodox) headmaster. Besides, his students know better than to cross a headmaster who can make your blood go cold with a single … SNIKT!
Comics courtesy of Earth 638 (e-mail: earth638@yahoo.com, tel: 012-663 1584, Facebook: facebook.com/earth638).
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