Wolverine (comics)

Wolverine
Marvelwolverine.jpg
Wolverine on the cover of New Avengers #5 (March 2005).
Art by David Finch.
Publication information
Publisher Marvel Comics
First appearance The Incredible Hulk #180 (October 1974) (cameo)
The Incredible Hulk #181 (November 1974) (full)
Created by Len Wein
John Romita, Sr.
Herb Trimpe
In-story information
Alter ego James Howlett
Species Human mutant
Team affiliations X-Men
New Avengers
X-Force
S.H.I.E.L.D.
X-Treme Sanctions Executive
Avengers
Horsemen of Apocalypse
Alpha Flight
Team X
Weapon X
Weapon Plus
Department H
HYDRA
The Hand
New Fantastic Four
Notable aliases Logan (current), Patch, Canada, Weapon X (Ten), Death (III), Mutate #9601, Ol' Canuklehead, Emilio Garra, Weapon Chi, Experiment X, Agent Ten, Peter Richards, Mai' keth, Black Dragon, Captain Terror, John Logan, Jim Logan
Abilities
  • Regenerative healing factor
  • Superhuman senses, strength, agility, stamina, reflexes, and longevity
  • Adamantium-laced skeletal structure
  • Retractable adamantium-laced bone claws
  • Elongated and sharp canines
  • Expert martial artist, spy, and tactician

Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero who appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett[1] and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing factor that allows him to recover from virtually any wound, disease or toxin at an accelerated rate. The healing factor also slows down his aging process, enabling him to live beyond a normal human lifespan. This healing factor, along with his retractable bone claws, enhanced physical abilities and senses, made him a valuable weapon. His powerful healing factor enabled the supersoldier program Weapon X to bond the near indestructible metal alloy adamantium to his skeleton and claws without killing him. He is most often depicted as a member of the X-Men, Alpha Flight, or later the Avengers.

The character first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #181 (November 1974) and was created by writer Len Wein and Marvel art director John Romita, Sr., who designed the character, and was first drawn for publication by Herb Trimpe. Wolverine later joined the X-Men's "All New, All Different" roster in Giant-Size X-Men #1 (May 1975). X-Men writer Chris Claremont played a significant role in the character's subsequent development[2] as well as artist/writer John Byrne, who insisted on making the character older than the other X-Men. Artist Frank Miller collaborated with Claremont and helped to revise the character with a four-part eponymous limited series from September to December 1982 in which Wolverine's catch phrase, "I'm the best there is at what I do, but what I do best isn't very nice," debuted.

Wolverine was typical of the many tough anti-authority anti-heroes that emerged in American popular culture after the Vietnam War;[3] his willingness to use deadly force and his brooding nature became standard characteristics for comic book anti-heroes by the end of the 1980s.[4] As a result, the character became the clear favorite for fans of the increasingly popular X-Men franchise.[5] Wolverine has been featured in his own solo comic since 1988 and has been a central character in every X-Men adaptation, including animated television series, video games, and the live action 20th Century Fox X-Men film series, in which he is portrayed by Hugh Jackman.[6] In May 2008, Wolverine was ranked #1 out of "Wizard Magazine's Top 200 Comic Book Characters of All Time"[7] and was ranked #4 of "The 50 Greatest Comic Book Characters" by Empire Magazine in July 2008.[8] On their list of the 100 Greatest Fictional Characters, Fandomania.com ranked Wolverine at #21.[9]

Contents

Publication history

Wolverine made his debut in The Incredible Hulk #181 (November 1974).
Art by Herb Trimpe.

Wolverine first appeared in the final "teaser" panel of The Incredible Hulk #180 (cover date October 1974) written by Len Wein and penciled by Herb Trimpe. The character then appeared in a number of advertisements in various Marvel Comics publications before making his first major appearance in The Incredible Hulk #181 (cover date November 1974) again by Wein and Trimpe. John Romita, Sr., designed Wolverine's yellow-and-blue costume. The character's introduction was ambiguous, revealing little beyond his being a superhuman agent of the Canadian government. In these appearances, he does not retract his claws, although Len Wein stated they had always been envisaged as retractable.[10] He appears briefly in the finale to this story in The Incredible Hulk #182.

Wolverine's next appearance was in 1975's Giant-Size X-Men #1, written by Wein and penciled by Dave Cockrum, in which Wolverine is recruited for a new squad. Gil Kane illustrated the cover artwork but incorrectly drew Wolverine's mask with larger headpieces. Dave Cockrum liked Kane's accidental alteration (believing it to be similar to Batman's mask) and incorporated it into his own artwork for the actual story.[11] Cockrum was also the first artist to draw Wolverine without his mask, and the distinctive hairstyle became a trademark of the character.[2]

A revival of X-Men followed, beginning with X-Men #94 (August 1975), drawn by Cockrum and written by Chris Claremont. In X-Men and Uncanny X-Men, Wolverine is initially overshadowed by the other characters, although he does create tension in the team as he is attracted to Cyclops' girlfriend, Jean Grey. As the series progressed, Claremont and Cockrum (who preferred Nightcrawler[12]) considered dropping Wolverine from the series;[12] Cockrum's successor, artist John Byrne, championed the character, later explaining, as a Canadian himself, he did not want to see a Canadian character dropped.[2][13] Byrne created Alpha Flight, a group of Canadian superheroes who try to recapture Wolverine due to the expense their government incurred training him. Later stories gradually establish Wolverine's murky past and unstable nature, which he battles to keep in check. Byrne also designed a new brown-and-tan costume for Wolverine, but retained the distinctive Cockrum cowl.

Following Byrne's departure, Wolverine remained in X-Men. The character's growing popularity led to a solo, four-issue limited series, Wolverine (September – December 1982), by Claremont and Frank Miller, followed by the six-issue Kitty Pryde and Wolverine by Claremont and Al Milgrom (November 1984 – April 1985). Marvel launched an ongoing solo book written by Claremont with art by John Buscema in November 1988. It ran for 189 issues. Larry Hama later took over the series and had an extensive run. Other writers who wrote for the two Wolverine ongoing series include Peter David, Archie Goodwin, Erik Larsen, Frank Tieri, Greg Rucka, and Mark Millar. Many popular artists have also worked on the series, including John Byrne, Marc Silvestri, Mark Texeira, Adam Kubert, Leinil Francis Yu, Rob Liefeld, Sean Chen, Darick Robertson, John Romita, Jr., and Humberto Ramos. During the 1990s, the character was revealed to have bone claws, after his adamantium is ripped out by Magneto in X-Men #25, which was inspired by a passing joke of Peter David's.[14]

In addition to the Wolverine series and appearances in the various X-Men series, two other storylines expand upon the character's past: "Weapon X", by writer-artist Barry Windsor-Smith, serialized in Marvel Comics Presents #72-84 (1991); and Origin, a six-issue limited series by co-writers Joe Quesada, Paul Jenkins, and Bill Jemas and artist Andy Kubert (November 2001 – July 2002). A second solo series, Wolverine: Origins, written by Daniel Way with art by Steve Dillon, spun off of, and runs concurrently with, the second Wolverine solo series.

Wolverine's first intended origin

Despite suggestions that co-creator Len Wein originally intended for Logan to be a mutated wolverine cub, evolved to humanoid form by the High Evolutionary,[15] Wein denies this:

“ While I readily admit that my original idea was for Wolvie's claws to extend from the backs of his gloves ... I absolutely did not ever intend to make Logan a mutated wolverine. I write stories about human beings, not evolved animals (with apologies for any story I may have written that involved the High Evolutionary). The mutated wolverine thing came about long after I was no longer involved with the book. I'm not certain if the idea was first suggested by Chris Claremont, the late, much-missed Dave Cockrum, or John Byrne when he came aboard as artist, but it most certainly did not start with me.[16] ”

Wein has stated in a conversation with Stan Lee included on the X-Men Origins: Wolverine blu-ray special features that he has read "Ten things you did not know about Wolverine," which states that he was originally intended to be a mutated wolverine cub, and this re-kindled Wein's frustration. He again stated that he had "always known that Wolverine was a mutant."

In X-Men #98 (April 1976), a biological analysis of Wolverine suggests that he was in some way different from the other X-Men, and in X-Men #103, Wolverine says he does not believe in leprechauns, to which the leprechaun replies, "Maybe leprechauns don't believe in talkin' wolverines, either."[17]

In an article about the evolution of Wolverine included in a 1986 reprint of The Incredible Hulk #180-181, titled Incredible Hulk and Wolverine, Cockrum is quoted as saying that he considered having the High Evolutionary play a vital role in making Wolverine a human.[2] Writer Wein wanted Wolverine to be the age of a young adult, with superhuman strength and agility similar to Spider-Man. This changed when Wein saw Cockrum's drawing of the unmasked Wolverine as a hairy 40-year-old.[2] Wein originally intended the claws to be retractable and part of Wolverine's gloves, and both gloves and claws would be made of adamantium.[16] Chris Claremont eventually revealed that they were an integrated part of Wolverine's anatomy in X-Men #98 (April 1976).

Wolverine's second intended origin

John Byrne said in interviews and on his website that he drew a possible face for Wolverine, but then learned that John Romita, Sr., had already drawn one that Dave Cockrum used in X-Men #98 (April 1976), long before Byrne's run on the series.[18][19] Later, Byrne used the drawing for the face of Sabretooth, an enemy of the martial artist superhero Iron Fist, whose stories Chris Claremont was writing. Byrne then had the idea of Sabretooth being Wolverine's father.[20][21] Together, Byrne and Claremont came up with Wolverine being approximately 60 years old and having served in World War II after escaping from Sabretooth, who was approximately 120 years old.[20] The plan had been for Wolverine to have been almost crushed in an accident; he would discover, when attempting to stand for the first time after recovering, that his healing factor does not work on bones, and his legs immediately break. He then spends over a decade in a hospital bed, almost going mad, when the Canadian government approaches him with the idea of replacing his skeleton one bone at a time with adamantium, the claws being a surprise. This origin, too, was never used.

Fictional character biography

Wolverine first uses his claws in Origin #2.
Art by Andy Kubert and Richard Isanove.

As shown in the 2001–2002 miniseries Origin, Wolverine was born as James Howlett in late 19th century Alberta, Canada, to rich plantation owners.

The character grows into manhood on a mining colony in Northern British Columbia, adopting the name "Logan."[22] Logan leaves the colony and lives for a time in the wilderness among wolves, until returning to civilization, residing with the Blackfoot Indians. Following the death of his Blackfoot paramour, Silver Fox, he is ushered into the Canadian military during World War I. Logan then spends some time in Madripoor, before settling in Japan, where he marries Itsu and has a son, Daken.

During World War II, Logan teams up with Captain America and continues a career as a soldier-of-fortune/adventurer. He then serves with the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion[23] during D-Day, and the CIA, before being recruited by Team X, a black ops unit.

As a member of Team X, Logan is given false memory implants. He continues on the team, until he is able to break free of the mental control and joins the Canadian Defense Ministry. Logan is subsequently kidnapped by the Weapon X program, where he remains captive and experimented on, until he escapes, as shown in Barry Windsor-Smith's "Weapon X" storyline which ran in Marvel Comics Presents. It is during his imprisonment by Weapon X that he has unbreakable adamantium forcibly fused onto his bones.

Logan is eventually discovered by James and Heather Hudson, who help him recover his humanity. Following his recovery, Logan, this time under the supervision of Department H, once again works as an intelligence operative for the Canadian government. Logan becomes Wolverine, one of Canada's first superheroes. In his first mission, he is dispatched to stop the destruction caused by a brawl between the Hulk and the Wendigo.[24]

Later on, Professor Charles Xavier recruits Wolverine to a new team of X-Men. Disillusioned with his Canadian intelligence work and intrigued by Xavier's offer, Logan resigns from Department H.[25] It was later revealed, however, that Professor X had wiped Logan's memories and forced him to join the X-Men after Wolverine was sent to assassinate Xavier.[26]

In X-Men #25 (1993), at the culmination of the "Fatal Attractions" crossover, the supervillain Magneto forcibly removes the adamantium from Wolverine's skeleton. This massive trauma causes his healing factor to burn out and also leads to the discovery that his claws are actually bone. Wolverine leaves the X-Men for a time, embarking on a series of adventures during which his healing factor returns, greatly increased in speed and efficiency (due to the fact that the adamantium in his bones used a considerable amount of his healing factor on a constant basis). It is also realised at this time that Wolverine constantly mutates (unlike other mutants) and that the adamantium slowed his mutation to a halt. His natural abilities such as healing factor and animalistic senses increase slowly over time. Feral by nature, Wolverine's mutation process will eventually cause him to degenerate physically into a more primitive, bestial state. After his return to the X-Men, Cable's son Genesis kidnaps Wolverine and attempts to re-bond adamantium to his skeleton.[27] This is unsuccessful and causes Wolverine's mutation to accelerate out of control. He is temporarily changed into a semi-sentient beast-like form in which he gains greater physical power than ever before, at the price of part of his humanity. Eventually, the villain Apocalypse captures Wolverine, brainwashes him into becoming the Horseman Death, and successfully re-bonds adamantium to his skeleton. Wolverine overcomes Apocalypse's programming and returns to the X-Men.

In 2005, author Brian Michael Bendis had Wolverine join the Avengers. After the miniseries House of M, Wolverine regains his memories and prepares to seek out and enact vengeance on those who wronged him. In Wolverine: Origins, the character's second solo series, Wolverine discovers that he has a son named Daken, who has been brainwashed and made a living weapon by the villain Romulus, the man behind Wolverine's own brainwashing. Wolverine then makes it his mission to rescue Daken and stop Romulus from manipulating or harming anyone again.

During the events of the Messiah Complex storyline, Cyclops orders Wolverine to reform X-Force. Since then, Wolverine and the team (initially consisting of X-23, Warpath, and Wolfsbane) have starred in a new monthly title. The team was also featured in the "Messiah War" storyline, a sequel to Messiah Complex.

In 2008, writer Mark Millar and artist Steve McNiven explored a possible future for Wolverine in an eight-issue story arc entitled "Old Man Logan" that debuted with Wolverine #66. Millar, the writer for the story, said, "It's The Dark Knight Returns for Wolverine, essentially. The big, wide, show-stopping series that plays around with the most popular Marvel character of the last forty years, a dystopian vision of the Marvel Universe and a unique look at their futures. The heroes have gone, the villains have won and we're two generations away from the Marvel we know."[28]

Powers and abilities

Wolverine is a mutant with a number of both natural and artificial improvements to his physiology. His primary mutant power is an accelerated healing process, typically referred to as his mutant healing factor, that regenerates damaged or destroyed tissues of his body far beyond the capabilities of an ordinary human. This power facilitated the artificial improvements he was subjected to under the Weapon X program (in later comics called the Weapon Plus program), in which his skeleton was reinforced with the virtually indestructible metal adamantium.

Depictions of the speed and extent of injury to which Wolverine can heal vary. Originally, this was portrayed as accelerated healing of minor wounds,[29] but writers have steadily increased this ability over the years. After several years, Wolverine's healing factor was depicted as healing severe wounds within a matter of days or hours.[30][31] Other writers went on to increase Wolverine's healing factor to the point that it could fully regenerate nearly any damaged or destroyed bodily tissues within seconds.[32][33][34] Among the more extreme depictions of Wolverine's healing factor include fully healing after being caught near the center of an atomic explosion[35] and the total regeneration of his soft body tissue, within a matter of minutes, after having it incinerated from his skeleton.[36] It has been stated in the Xavier Protocols, a series of profiles created by Xavier that lists the strengths and weaknesses of the X-Men, that Wolverine's healing factor is increased to "incredible levels" and theorizes that the only way to stop him is to decapitate him and remove his head from the vicinity of his body.[37] It's possible for the efficiency of his healing powers to be suppressed. For example, if an object composed of carbonadium is inserted and remains lodged within his body, his healing powers are slowed dramatically though they are not fully suppressed.[38] His healing factor can also be greatly suppressed by the Muramasa blade, a katana of mystic origins that can inflict wounds that nullify superhuman healing factors.[39] His healing factor also dramatically slows his aging process, allowing him to live beyond the normal lifespan of a human. Despite being born in the late 1800s,[40] he has the appearance and vitality of a man in his physical prime. Though he now has all of his memories, his healing abilities can provide increased recovery from psychological trauma by suppressing memories in which he experiences profound distress.[41] In addition to accelerated healing of physical traumas, Wolverine's healing factor makes him extraordinarily resistant to diseases, drugs, and toxins. However, he can still suffer the immediate effects of such substances in massive quantities; he has been shown to become intoxicated after significant dosages of alcoholic beverages,[42] and has been incapacitated on several occasions with large amounts of powerful drugs and poisons.[43]

Although his body heals, the healing factor does not suppress the pain he endures while injured.[44] He does not enjoy being hurt and sometimes has to work himself up for situations where extreme pain is certain.[45][46] Wolverine, on occasion, has deliberately injured himself or allowed himself to be injured for varying reasons, including freeing himself from capture,[47] intimidation,[48] strategy,[49] or simply indulging his feral nature.[50][51][52]

Wolverine's mutation also consists of animal-like adaptations of his body, including pronounced, and sharp fang-like canines and three retractable claws housed within each forearm. While originally depicted as bionic implants created by the Weapon X program,[53] the claws are later revealed to be a natural part of his body.[54] The claws are not made of keratin, as claws tend to be in the animal kingdom, but extremely dense bone, and, without their adamantium coating, can cut substances as durable as most metals, wood, and some varieties of stone. They can also be used to block attacks or projectiles, as well as dig into surfaces allowing Wolverine to climb structures.[55] Wolverine's hands do not have openings for the claws to move through: they cut through his flesh every time he extrudes them, with occasional references implying that he feels a brief moment of slight pain in his hands when he unsheathes them.[56]

Wolverine's entire skeleton, including his claws, is molecularly infused with adamantium. Due to their coating, his claws can cut almost any known solid material. The only known exceptions are adamantium itself, the Asgardian metal uru, and Captain America's shield, which is the only substance in the Marvel Universe known to be even more durable than adamantium.[57] Wolverine's ability to slice completely through a substance depends upon both the amount of force he can exert and the thickness of the substance. The adamantium also weights his blows, increasing the effectiveness of his offensive capabilities.[30] However, this also makes him exceptionally susceptible to magnetic based attacks.[58]

Wolverine's healing factor also affects a number of his physical attributes by increasing them to superhuman levels. His stamina is sufficiently heightened to the point he can exert himself for numerous hours, even after exposure to powerful tranquilizers.[59] Wolverine's agility and reflexes are also enhanced to levels that are beyond the physical limits of the finest human athlete.[60][61] Due to his healing factor's constant regenerative qualities, he can push his muscles beyond the limits of the human body without injury.[62] This, coupled by the constant demand placed on his muscles by over one hundred pounds of adamantium,[63] grants him some degree of superhuman strength. Since the presence of the adamantium negates the natural structural limits of his bones, he can lift or move weight that would otherwise damage a human skeleton.[61] He has been depicted breaking steel chains,[64][65][66][67] lifting several men above his head with one arm and throwing them through a wall[62] and lifting Ursa Major (in grizzly bear form) over his head before tossing him across a room.[68]

Wolverine's senses of sight, smell, and hearing are all superhumanly acute. He can see with perfect clarity at greater distances than an ordinary human, even in near-total darkness. His hearing is enhanced in a similar manner, allowing him to both hear sounds ordinary humans can't and also hear to greater distances. Wolverine is able to use his sense of smell to track targets by scent, even if the scent has been eroded somewhat over time by natural factors. This sense also allows him to identify shapeshifting mutants despite other forms they may take.[69] He is also able to use his senses of smell and hearing, through concentration, as a type of natural lie detector, such as detecting a faint change in a person's heartbeat and scent when a lie is told.[70]

Due to a combination of his healing factor and high level psionic shields implanted by Professor Xavier, Wolverine's mind is highly resistant to telepathic assault and probing.[71] Wolverine's mind also possesses what he refers to as "mental scar tissue" created by all of the traumatic events over the course of his life. It acts as a type of natural defense, even against a psychic as powerful as Emma Frost.[72]

Skills and personality

During his time in Japan and other countries, Wolverine becomes a master of virtually all forms of martial arts and is experienced in virtually every fighting style on Earth. He is proficient with most weaponry, including firearms, though he is partial to bladed weapons. He has demonstrated sufficient skills to defeat the likes of Shang-Chi[73] and Captain America[74] in singular combat. He also has a wide knowledge of the body and pressure points.[75] He is also an accomplished pilot and highly skilled in the field of espionage and covert operations.

Wolverine will sometimes lapse into a "berserker rage" while in close combat. In this state he lashes out with the intensity and aggression of an enraged animal and is even more resistant to psionic attack.[76] Though he loathes it, he acknowledges that it has saved his life many times. Despite his apparent ease at taking lives, he does not enjoy killing or giving in to his berserker rages. Logan adheres to a firm code of personal honor and morality.[77]

In contrast to his brutish nature, Wolverine is extremely intelligent. Due to his increased lifespan, he has traveled around the world and amassed extensive knowledge of foreign languages and cultures. He is fluent in English, Japanese, Russian, Chinese, Cheyenne, Spanish, Arabic, and Lakota; he also has some knowledge of French, Thai, Vietnamese, German, Italian, Portuguese, Korean, Hindi, and Persian.[78][79] When Forge monitors Wolverine's vitals during a Danger Room training session, he calls Logan's physical and mental state "equivalent of an Olympic-level gymnast performing a gold medal routine while simultaneously beating four chess computers in his head."[80] Wolverine is also a heavy drinker and smoker, much to Professor Xavier's disapproval.

Wolverine is frequently depicted as a gruff loner, often taking leave from the X-Men to deal with personal issues or problems. He is often irreverent and rebellious towards authority figures, though he is a reliable ally and capable leader. He has been a mentor and father figure to several younger women, especially Jubilee and Kitty Pryde, and has had romantic relationships with numerous women (most notably Mariko Yashida[81]), as well as a mutual but unfulfilled attraction to Jean Grey, leading to jealous run-ins with her boyfriend (and later husband), Scott Summers. He also married Viper,[82] and then later divorced her.[83]

Other versions

As one of Marvel's flagship characters, Wolverine has seen many adaptations and re-imaginings. For example, an issue of Exiles featured a planet of Wolverines. In the Marvel Mangaverse, Wolverine is even the founder of the X-Men. In Marvel Zombies, Wolverine appears zombified alongside Marvel's other major players. The Ultimate Marvel line of comics sought to ingrain Wolverine into its Ultimate X-Men title from the onset. The latest alternate version is seen in the "Old Man Logan" storyline set in an alternate timeline 50 years into the future where the world's superhuman heroes are dead. In this timeline, Wolverine has aged considerably and has become a pacifist.

In other media

Wolverine is one of the very few X-Men characters to be included in every media adaptation of the X-Men franchise, including film, television, and computer and video games, and is the only one to have starred in his own video games (e.g., X2: Wolverine's Revenge, X-Men Origins: Wolverine).

Marvel Animation has completed the first and only season of the animated series, Wolverine and the X-Men, in which Wolverine leads the X-Men while Charles Xavier and Jean Grey are missing. The series aired the full first season in Canada and the U.S. (aired on Nickelodeon's Nicktoons channel).

20th Century Fox, in association with Marvel Studios, released an X-Men spin-off movie based on Wolverine, titled X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which stars Hugh Jackman returning as the title character. Gavin Hood directed the film, which was released in North America on May 1, 2009, and in Australia, the United Kingdom, and France on April 29, 2009. Troye Mellet plays the young Wolverine.[84] The film is based around Wolverine's time in the army with Victor Creed/Sabretooth and then explores how they gradually came to be enemies. William Stryker and Victor Creed are the main antagonists in the film and are played by Danny Huston and Liev Schreiber, respectively.

In the game Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Wolverine stars as one of the four main heroes, with the others being Spider-Man, Captain America, and Thor. He is also a playable character in the games X-Men Legends, X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, and many others. (See List of X-Men video games for more details.)

Wolverine appears in the Spider-Woman motion comics. In this series, he is voiced by Jeffrey Hedquist.

Collected editions

Main series

Title Material collected Publication date ISBN
Wolverine Wolverine (vol. 1) #1-4 July 1995 978-0871352774
Wolverine (Introduction by Chris Claremont) Wolverine (vol. 1) #1-4, Uncanny X-Men #172-173 March 2009
January 2007		 SC: 978-0-7851-3724-5
HC: 978-0785123293
The Best of Wolverine Vol. 1 Wolverine (vol. 1) #1-4, Marvel Comics Presents #72-84, The Incredible Hulk #181, Uncanny X-Men #205, Captain America Annual #8 October 2004 978-0-7851-1370-6
Wolverine Omnibus Vol. 1 Wolverine (vol. 1) #1-4, (vol. 2) #1-10; Marvel Comics Presents #1-10, #72-84; The Incredible Hulk #180-182, #340; Marvel Treasury Edition #26; Best of Marvel Comics (HC); Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #1-6; Spider-Man vs. Wolverine #1; Marvel Age Annual #4; Punisher: War Journal #6-7; Uncanny X-Men #172-173 April 2009 978-0-7851-3477-0
Wolverine Classic Vol. 1 Wovlerine (vol. 2) #1-5 April 2005 978-0-7851-1797-1
Wolverine Classic Vol. 2 Wolverine (vol. 2) #6-10 September 2005 978-0-7851-1877-0
Wolverine Classic Vol. 3 Wolverine (vol. 2) #11-16 May 2006 978-0-7851-2053-7
Wolverine Classic Vol. 4 Wolverine (vol. 2) #17-23 September 2006 978-0-7851-2054-4
Wolverine Classic Vol. 5 Wolverine (vol. 2) #24-30 September 2007 978-0-7851-2739-0
Essential Wolverine Vol. 1 (b&w) Wolverine (vol. 2) #1-23 February 2009 978-0-7851-3566-1
Essential Wolverine Vol. 2 (b&w) Wolverine (vol. 2) #24-47 March 2002 978-0-7851-0550-3
Essential Wolverine Vol. 3 (b&w) Wolverine (vol. 2) #48-69 March 2002 978-0-7851-0595-4
Essential Wolverine Vol. 4 (b&w) Wolverine (vol. 2) #70-90 May 2006 978-0-7851-2059-9
Essential Wolverine Vol. 5 (b&w) Wolverine (vol. 2) #91-110, Annual '96; Uncanny X-Men #332 December 2008 978-0-7851-3077-2
Wolverine Legends Vol. 3: Law of the Jungle Wolverine (vol. 2) #181-186 March 2003 978-0-7851-1135-1
Wolverine Legends Vol. 6: Marc Silvestri Wolverine (vol. 2) #31-34, #41-42, #48-50 May 2004 978-0-7851-0952-5
Wolverine: Not Dead Yet Wolverine (vol. 2) #119-122 December 1998
May 2009		 SC: 978-0785107040
HC: 978-0-7851-3766-5
Wolverine: Blood Debt Wolverine (vol. 2) #150-153 July 2001 978-0-7851-0785-9
Wolverine: The Best There Is Wolverine (vol. 2) #159-161, #167-169 September 2002 978-0-7851-1007-1
Wolverine/Deadpool: Weapon X Wolverine (vol. 2) #162-166, Deadpool #57-60 August 2002 978-0-7851-0918-1
Wolverine Vol. 1: The Brotherhood Wolverine (vol. 3) #1-6 February 2004 978-0-7851-1136-8
Wolverine Vol. 2: Coyote Crossing Wolverine (vol. 3) #7-11 May 2004 978-0-7851-1137-5
Wolverine Vol. 3: Return of the Native Wolverine (vol. 3) #12-19 October 2004 978-0-7851-1397-3
Wolverine: Enemy of the State Vol. 1 Wolverine (vol. 3) #20-25 May 2005 SC: 978-0-7851-1492-5
HC: 978-0785118152
Wolverine: Enemy of the State Vol. 2 Wolverine (vol. 3) #26-32 June 2006
December 2005		 SC: 978-0-7851-1627-1
HC: 978-0785119265
Wolverine: Enemy of the State Ultimate Collection Wolverine (vol. 3) #20-32 June 2008
October 2006		 SC: 978-0-7851-3301-8
HC: 978-0785122067
Wolverine: Origins and Endings Wolverine (vol. 3) #36-40 December 2006
May 2006		 SC: 978-0-7851-1979-1
HC: 978-0785119777
Wolverine: Blood and Sorrow Wolverine (vol. 3) #41, #49; Giant-Size Wolverine #1; X-Men Unlimited #12 July 2007 978-0-7851-2607-2
Wolverine: Civil War Wolverine (vol. 3) #42-48 May 2007 978-0-7851-1980-7
Wolverine: Evolution Wolverine (vol. 3) #50-55 March 2008
November 2007		 SC: 978-0-7851-2256-2
HC: 978-0785122555
Wolverine: The Death of Wolverine Wolverine (vol. 3) #56-61 July 2008
April 2008		 SC: 978-0-7851-2612-6
HC: 978-0785126119
Wolverine: Get Mystique Wolverine (vol. 3) #62-65 August 2008 978-0-7851-2963-9
Wolverine: Old Man Logan Wolverine (vol. 3) #66-72, Wolverine: Old Man Logan Giant-Size September 2010
October 2009		 SC: 978-0785131724
HC: 978-0-7851-3159-5
Dark Wolverine Vol. 1: The Prince Wolverine (vol. 3) #73-74 (Back stories), Dark Wolverine #75-77 March 2010
November 2009		 SC: 978-0785138662
HC: 978-0-7851-3900-3
Dark Wolverine Vol. 2: My Hero Dark Wolverine #78-81 August 2010
March 2010		 SC: 978-0785138679
HC: 978-0-7851-3977-5
House of M: World of M, Featuring Wolverine Wolverine (vol. 3) #33-35, Black Panther (vol. 4) #7, Captain America (vol. 5) #10, The Pulse #10 March 2006 978-0-7851-1922-7
X-Men vs. Apocalypse Vol. 1: The Twelve Wolverine (vol. 2) #146-147, Cable #73-76, Uncanny X-Men #376-377, X-Men #96-97 March 2008 978-0-7851-2263-0
X-Men vs. Apocalypse Vol. 2: Ages of Apocalypse Wolverine (vol. 2) #148; Cable #77; Uncanny X-Men #378, Annual '99; X-51 #8; X-Men #98; X-Men Unlimited #26; X-Men: The Search for Cyclops #1-4 September 2008 978-0-7851-2264-7

Marvel Comics Presents featuring Wolverine

Title Material collected Publication date ISBN
Marvel Comics Presents: Wolverine Vol. 1 Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #1-10 July 2005 978-0-7851-1826-8
Marvel Comics Presents: Wolverine Vol. 2 Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #39-50 January 2006 978-0-7851-1883-1
Marvel Comics Presents: Wolverine Vol. 3 Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #51-61 June 2006 978-0-7851-2065-0
Marvel Comics Presents: Wolverine Vol. 4 Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #62-71 December 2006 978-0-7851-2066-7
Wolverine: Weapon X Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #72-84 March 2009
March 2007		 SC: 978-0-7851-3726-9
HC: 978-0785123279
Wolverine: Blood Hungry Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #85-92 December 1993 978-0-7851-0003-4
Wolverine: Typhoid's Kiss Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #109-116 May 1994 978-0-7851-0056-0

Wolverine: Origins

Title Material collected Publication date ISBN
Wolverine: Origins Vol. 1: Born in Blood Wolverine: Origins #1-5 April 2007
November 2006		 SC: 978-0-7851-2287-6
HC: 978-0785122852
Wolverine: Origins Vol. 2: Savior Wolverine: Origins #6-10 October 2007
March 2007		 SC: 978-0-7851-2288-3
HC: 978-0785122869
Wolverine: Origins Vol. 3: Swift and Terrible Wolverine: Origins #11-15 November 2007
August 2007		 SC: 978-0-7851-2613-3
HC: 978-0785126379
Wolverine: Origins Vol. 4: Our War Wolverine: Origins #16-20, Annual #1 June 2008
February 2008		 SC: 978-0-7851-2614-0
HC: 978-0785126386
Wolverine: Origins Vol. 5: Deadpool Wolverine: Origins #21-27 December 2008
September 2008		 SC: 978-0-7851-2615-7
HC: 978-0785126393
X-Men: Original Sin Wolverine: Origins #28-30, X-Men: Original Sin, X-Men: Legacy #217-218 August 2009
February 2009		 SC: 978-0-7851-2956-1
HC: 978-0785130383
Wolverine: Origins Vol. 6: Dark Reign Wolverine: Origins #31-36 December 2009
September 2009		 SC: 978-0-7851-3538-8
HC: 978-0785136286
Wolverine: Origins Vol. 7: Romulus Wolverine: Origins #37-40 April 2010
December 2009		 SC: 978-0785135395
HC: 978-0-7851-3629-3
Wolverine: Origins, Seven the Hard Way Wolverine: Origins #41-45 September 2010
April 2010		 SC: 978-0-7851-4649-0
HC: 978-0785146483

Wolverine: First Class

Title Material collected Publication date ISBN
Wolverine: First Class - The Rookie Wolverine: First Class #1-4, The Incredible Hulk #181 October 2008 978-0-7851-3316-2
Wolverine: First Class - To Russia With Love Wolverine: First Class #5-8 February 2009 978-0-7851-3317-9
Wolverine: First Class - Wolverine by Night Wolverine: First Class #9-12 April 2009 978-0-7851-3534-0
Wolverine: First Class - Ninjas, Gods And Divas Wolverine: First Class #13-16, X-Men and Power Pack #1 August 2009 978-0-7851-3535-7
Wolverine: First Class - Class Actions Wolverine: First Class #17-21 February 2010 978-0-7851-3678-1

Other

Title Material collected Publication date ISBN
Wolverine Legends Vol. 2: Meltdown Havok and Wolverine: Meltdown #1-4 March 2003 978-0785110484
Wolverine: Origin Origin #1-6 March 2006
October 2006		 SC: 978-0-7851-3727-6
HC: 978-0785123286
Wolverine: The End Wolverine: The End #1-6 May 2007 978-0-7851-1349-2
Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk #1-6 May 2010
October 2009		 SC: 978-0785141570
HC: 978-0-7851-4013-9
Wolverine: Weapon X, Vol. 1: The Adamantium Men Wolverine: Weapon X #1-5, Wolverine #73-74 April 2010
November 2009		 SC: 978-0785141112
HC: 978-0-7851-4017-7
Wolverine: Weapon X, Vol. 2: Insane in the Brain Wolverine: Weapon X #6-9, Dark Reign: The List - Wolverine July 2010
March 2010		 SC: 978-0785141129
HC: 978-0-7851-4018-4
X-Men: Wolverine/Gambit Wolverine/Gambit: Victims #1-4 June 2002
November 2009		 SC: 978-0785108962
HC: 978-0-7851-3802-0
Wolverine: Flies To A Spider Wolverine: Chop Shop, Wolverine: Switchback, Wolverine Holiday Special: Flies to a Spider, Wolverine: Dead Man's Hand August 2009 978-0-7851-3569-2
Wolverine Noir Wolverine Noir #1-4 May 2010
November 2009		 SC: 978-0785135470
HC: 978-0-7851-3945-4
Weapon X: Days Of Future Now Weapon X: Days of Future Now #1-5 February 2006 978-0-7851-1749-0
Wolverine/Black Cat: Claws Wolverine/Black Cat #1-3 February 2010
February 2007		 SC: 978-0785142850
HC: 978-0-7851-1850-3
Hulk/Wolverine: 6 Hours Hulk/Wolverine: 6 Hours #1-4, The Incredible Hulk #181 May 2003 978-0-7851-1157-3
Wolverine: Logan Logan #1-3 April 2009
September 2008		 SC: 978-0-7851-3414-5
HC: 978-0785134251

References

  1. ↑ Jemas, Bill, Quesada, Joe, Jenkins, Paul (w). Origin (2001–2002), Marvel Comics
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Sanderson, Peter (w). "Wolverine: The Evolution of a Character" The Incredible Hulk and Wolverine (October 1986), Marvel Comics
  3. ↑ Wright, Bradford W. (September 18, 2003). Comic Book Nation. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 265. ISBN 978-0801874505. 
  4. ↑ Wright 2003, p. 277.
  5. ↑ Wright 2003, pp. 263, 265.
  6. ↑ X-Men (film) at the Internet Movie Database
  7. ↑ [1]
  8. ↑ "The 50 Greatest Comic Book Characters". Empire Magazine. July 2008. http://www.empireonline.com/50greatestcomiccharacters/default.asp?c=4. 
  9. ↑ "The 100 Greatest Fictional Characters". Fandomania. http://fandomania.com/100-greatest-fictional-characters-25-21/. Retrieved May 21, 2010. 
  10. ↑ Woodward, Jonathan (July 8, 2005). "CONvergence I - Len Wein". http://woodwardiocom.livejournal.com/326299.html#LenWein. 
  11. ↑ Cunningham, Brian (1996). "Dressed to Kill". Wizard Tribute to Wolverine.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 X-Men Companion
  13. ↑ DeFalco, Tom (May 1, 2006). Comics Creators on X-Men. Titan Books. p. 110. ISBN 978-1845761738. 
  14. ↑ Cronin, Brian (March 29, 2007). "Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #96". Comic Book Resources. http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2007/03/29/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-96/. Retrieved April 3, 2007. 
  15. ↑ Cronin, Brian (October 20, 2005). "Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #21". Comic Book Resources. http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/10/20/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-21/. Retrieved August 19, 2007. 
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Wein, Len (February 24, 2009). "WeinWords". Say What?. http://lenwein.blogspot.com/2009/02/say-what.html#links. 
  17. ↑ X-Men #103 (February 1977). p. 14. panel 3.
  18. ↑ "Questions about Comic Book Projects". Byrne Robotics. September 14, 2007. http://www.byrnerobotics.com/FAQ/listing.asp?ID=2&T1=Questions+about+Comic+Book+Projects#213. 
  19. ↑ "Wolverine/Sabretooth - Marvel Legends Face-Off". OAFE. http://www.oafe.net/yo/mlfo2_ws.php. 
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Wells, John; Caringer, Mark. "Who's your Daddy?". Logan Files. http://loganfiles.com/w-relationship.html. 
  21. ↑ "Questions about Aborted Storylines". Byrne Robotics. August 29, 2006. http://www.byrnerobotics.com/FAQ/listing.asp?ID=3&T1=Questions+about+Aborted+Storylines#207. 
  22. ↑ Origin #1-6
  23. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #34
  24. ↑ Incredible Hulk #180-181
  25. ↑ Giant-Size X-Men #1
  26. ↑ House of M #1
  27. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #99-100
  28. ↑ "Millar On Old Man Logan". Newsarama. January 25, 2008. http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=144471. 
  29. ↑ X-Men #107 (October 1977)
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Wolverine (vol. 1) #2 (October 1982)
  31. ↑ Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #86-90 (1991)
  32. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #92 (August 1995)
  33. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #115 (August 1997)
  34. ↑ X-Men (vol. 2) #150 (February 2004)
  35. ↑ Logan #2 (June 2008)
  36. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 3) #43 (August 2006)
  37. ↑ Excalibur (vol. 1) #100
  38. ↑ "Wolverine: Origins" (vol. 1) #7
  39. ↑ Wolverine: Origins #39 (October 2009)
  40. ↑ Origin mini-series
  41. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #175
  42. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 1) #3 (November 1982)
  43. ↑ Marvel Comics Presents (vol. 1) #87 (1991)
  44. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 3) #65 (October 2007)
  45. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #105 (September 1996)
  46. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 3) #64 (June 2008)
  47. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #98 (February 1996)
  48. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #184 (February 2003)
  49. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 3) #63 (May 2008)
  50. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #90 (February 1995)
  51. ↑ Wolverine Annual '95 (June 1995)
  52. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #186 (April 2003)
  53. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 1) #2
  54. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #75
  55. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #91, #101
  56. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #77
  57. ↑ Captain America Annual #8 (1986)
  58. ↑ X-Men (vol. 2) #25 (October 1993)
  59. ↑ X-Men (vol. 2) #5
  60. ↑ Wolverine: Origins #5
  61. ↑ 61.0 61.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Wolverine 2004
  62. ↑ 62.0 62.1 Wolverine (vol. 2) #1 (November 1988)
  63. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #57
  64. ↑ X-Men #111 (June 1978)
  65. ↑ Wolverine: The Amazing Immortal Man & Other Bloody Tales (July 2008)
  66. ↑ Wolverine: Origins #32 (March 2009)
  67. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 3) #51
  68. ↑ Wolverine: First Class #8 (December 2008)
  69. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #51 (February 1992)
  70. ↑ Wolverine: Origins #9 (February 2007)
  71. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 3) #46 (November 2006)
  72. ↑ X-Men: Original Sin (December 2008)
  73. ↑ X-Men (vol. 2) #62 (March 1997)
  74. ↑ Wolverine: Origins #4-5
  75. ↑ X-Men (vol. 2) #108 (January 2001), Wolverine (vol. 3) #20 (December 2004)
  76. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #168 (November 2001)
  77. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #1 (November 1988): "I'm an X-Man. [...] With them, killing is a last resort. With me, it's second nature. I take the world as it is, and give better than I get. Come at me with a sword. I'll meet you with a sword. You want mercy. Show a little first. [...] Some of those folks died fighting... some praying... some accepted their fate... some cursed it... some begged for their lives... most were terrified. Details don't matter. What's important is that they died. And those scales have to be balanced. In kind."
  78. ↑ "Wolverine: Abilities (List of known languages)". Marvel.com. http://www.marvel.com/universe/Wolverine.  (excluding German, mentioned in Wolverine (vol. 2) #37 (March 1991), and Portuguese, mentioned in Wolverine: Saudade (October 2006)
  79. ↑ Wolverine: Origins #32
  80. ↑ Wolverine (vol. 2) #51 (February 1992)
  81. ↑ Wolverine #1-4 (September – December 1982)
  82. ↑ Wolverine #126 (July 1998)
  83. ↑ Wolverine #169 (December 2001)
  84. ↑ Harvey, Shannon (February 29, 2008). "Perth boy to play young Hugh Jackman in Wolverine movie". The Sunday Times. http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,23297937-5012990,00.html. Retrieved March 1, 2008. 

External links