With Logan hitting theaters in the U.S. this week, we're digging up our list of Wolverine's best fights. Thanks to razor-sharp adamantium claws, samurai training, and a nigh-unstoppable healing factor, Wolverine has proven a thorn in the side of many Marvel villains and more than a few heroes to boot. Suffice to say, he's had some good ones.
Check out our list, then let us know your favorite Wolverine fights in the comments!
Warning: Some graphic imagery is contained within this article.
Another warning: Beware spoilers of plot details surrounding the fights.
Issue:X-Men, Vol. 2 #25 by Fabian Nicieza & Andy Kubert
That had to hurt. Wolverine and Magneto have long shared a deep and enduring animosity, yet beneath their mutual disdain has always been an undercurrent of grudging respect. Well, all those warm fuzzies go right out the window in this issue, Magneto using his command over metal in a most horrific and iconic way.
Attempting to subdue Magneto after yet another of his crimes against humanity, Wolverine is tasked with keeping him busy while Professor X and Jean Grey try to take him out from the inside. While not the most solid of plans, Wolverine is nothing if not a team player, engaging the villain in a deadly solo standoff. A particularly vicious slash pushes Magneto over the edge, the Master of Magnetism at last losing the kid gloves as he rips the adamantium from Wolverine's skeleton like the world's worst Play Doh dispenser.
Wolverine would of course get his adamantium back later on, returning to stab Magneto countless times more. However, his ordeal isn't completely rendered moot as it's later revealed that his claws, once thought to be a byproduct of his time with Weapon X, are actually yet another part of his original mutation. What a twist!
This one isn’t much of a fight – there’s really only one blow thrown by each combatant – but it’s a classic encounter from Wolverine’s long history that warrants at least a mention.
Issue:Wolverine, Vol. 1 #2 by Chris Claremont & Frank Miller
What's better than Wolverine fighting a ninja? Wolverine fighting a bunch of ninjas, at the same time! While in Tokyo in search of his former flame, Mariko, Wolverine's presence is quickly noticed by members of the The Hand, a renowned and lethal league of assassins. Attacking in the dark of night, The Hand send a ridiculous amount of cannon fodder to take him down, their vicious battle running from the rooftops to the streets below. Despite their obvious strength in numbers, Wolverine unsurprisingly comes out on top, using his uncanny reflexes and prodigious healing to thwart their intended plot.
He would face The Hand yet again later on, stepping in to stop an attempted assassination involving the very woman he had come to find. He'd again come out ahead, row after row of ninjas falling at his feet, but sadly his victory is not without cost. Mariko bears witness to his feat and, more importantly, to his unbridled savagery, at long last discovering the man he truly is, not the man he tries to be.
Issue: Wolverine, Vol. 3 #72 by Frank Millar & Steve McNiven
Set in the not so distant future, Old Man Logan tells the story of a Wolverine broken by the events of his past. Vowing to never again pop his claws after a particularly traumatic battle, Logan accompanies the elder Hawkeye cross country in a bid to save his farm from the wrath of the Hulk gang.
A few symbiote dinosaurs and double crosses later, Logan ends up at the mercy of the United States' current President, the Red Skull. Forced to battle in a disturbing trophy room filled with ill-gotten relics of an age long past, the super strong Skull initially has the upper hand over the seemingly neutered Logan. Refusing to break his vow, Logan instead uses the Skull's most prized possession against him in a powerful display of resilience, taking Captain America's discarded shield and using it in a way that even the good Captain likely considered at least once. He then further adds to his style points, using the remains of Tony Stark's Iron Man armor to dispatch Skull's remaining thugs and make his escape. Gotta love the loopholes.
Yeah, this Old Man Logan storyline had a great fight against the Hulk that ended in disgusting fashion, but this battle with the Red Skull showed how dangerous Wolverine could be even without his claws. Resourceful little runt, isn’t he?
Issue:Uncanny X-Force, Vol. 1 #34 by Rick Remender & Phil Noto
Wolverine has been in an impressive number of battles over the years, but few offer as much in the way of personal stakes as his final battle with his son, Daken. On hand to prevent Shadow King and the Brotherhood of Mutants from igniting the second Age of Apocalypse, Wolverine is forced to combat his offspring to a decidedly final resolution.
This fight is memorable primarily for the conscious decisions Wolverine is forced to make. Whereas Daken immediately gives in to his more animalistic impulses, Logan approaches the melee with a stone cold sense of purpose, knowing full well that there's only one way of stopping his damaged son for good. Borrowing a trick from Daken's own play book, Wolverine drowns his son in a shallow puddle, the possibilities of what their lives could have been flashing through his mind all the while. This decision is given even further impact when it's revealed that the Wolverine of an older timeline (comics, right?) had informed Wolverine of the necessity of Daken's death, making his actions disturbingly premeditated.
Daken obviously doesn't stay down for long, reemerging as an undead Horseman of the Apocalypse in the pages of Uncanny Avengers, but it's safe to say that his fight with dear old dad is one he won't be forgetting any time soon.
Issue:Uncanny X-Men, Vol. 2 #133 by Chris Claremont & John Byrne
If you're ever trapped in a seemingly impossible situation, Wolverine is the guy you want to get you out. With the core X-Men captured by Mastermind and the Hellfire Club, it's up to Wolverine to launch a solo rescue mission. In his way lies an army of nameless henchman, all of whom will soon come to regret clocking in after lunch.
After mowing through the usual front wave as easily as one might pick up the mail, Wolverine saves one unlucky henchman for last. Rather than do his usual slice and dice routine, Wolverine instead explains the exact order of the events to follow should said henchman not stand down. Wolverine had always proved capable but here he's just plain awesome, using his innate know-how and genetic cheat codes to make easy work of twenty something guys. It proved to be an amazing display of dominance not then seen, one made even better when Cyclops later passes out during a mind battle with Mastermind. C'mon, Summers. Keep up.
Issue:Uncanny X-Men, Vol. 2 #205 by Chris Claremont & Barry Windsor-Smith
Lady Deathstrike remains one of Wolverine's greatest villains, both because her adamantium claws put her on equal footing in battle and because the two share a troubled history together. Deathstrike's father developed the adamantium bonding process during WWII but was disgraced in battle. Deathstrike has since fought to restore her family's honor by killing Wolverine.
She very nearly succeeded in their first battle. Deathstrike and her Reavers ambushed Logan in the middle of a blizzard. He was beaten so severely his mind shut down and he couldn't remember who he was. It was only the timely appearance of Power Pack member Energizer that he came to his senses.
Hungry for payback, Wolverine stalked the Reavers and dispatched them one by one. He battled Deathstrike and nearly killed her before discovering the horrific cybernetic implants she had subjected herself to. Deathstrike begged to be put out of her misery, but Wolverine refused her that mercy. He has probably come to regret that decision many times.
Continues
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