By Ryan Riley, Contributor
There are only a few weeks left until "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" hits theaters on May 1. This presents an ideal opportunity to explore the history of this unconventional comic book superhero. The next few columns I will write will examine various aspects of Wolverine as a character. This first column will highlight the very best stories featuring our favorite Canucklehead. Since there have been so many Wolverine stories over the years, there are a lot of them to choose from. Here are what I think are the most memorable of the lot.
*This column discusses the plot points of a variety of Wolverine stories, some of which contain story spoilers. Consider yourselves warned.
Wolverine (mini-series)
This was the very first solo Wolverine series ever published by Marvel. Up until then, Wolverine was only starting to develop into a more complex character in the pages of Uncanny X-Men under the guidance of Chris Claremont. The inaugural mini-series, by Claremont and Frank Miller, took Wolverine's character to a whole other level. Wolverine was romantically involved with a Japanese woman named Mariko Yashida, and at the start of the story she has broken off all contact with him. When he travels to Japan to seek answers, he finds her married to another man because of an obligation to her father, a Yakuza crimelord named Shingen who she had assumed was dead. When Wolverine protests this arrangement, Shingen challenges him to a duel and proceeds to soundly thrash the X-Man. Having been humbled as never before, Wolverine embarks on a journey that pits him against the Yakuza, the Hand ninja clan and his own bestial nature. At the story's conclusion, Wolverine regains his honor and proves that he is more human than animal. This take on the character became the benchmark for every Wolverine story since.
Wolverine: Enemy of the State
Over the years, many different creative teams had set Wolverine against every conceivable foe. Leave it to Mark Millar to sic him on the good guys. Wolverine gets lured to Japan and brainwashed by Hydra & the Hand, who then unleash him against the "who's who" of the superhero set, including the Fantastic Four, Daredevil and the X-Men. He amassed a body count consisting of dozens of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, some C-list superheroes and former ally Northstar before the good guys were able to recapture him and undo the brainwashing. Once he recovers, he makes it his mission to wipe out Hydra, the Hand and their new leader, the Gorgon. It's such a simple premise, but it was Millar's execution of it that made Enemy of the State one of the best Wolverine stories ever told. Wolverine's inner dialogue with his brainwashed Hydra personality gives the reader more insight into what makes him tick than almost any other story. His opinions of his fellow superheroes (Daredevil in particular) are both revealing and amusing at the same time.
Origin
Ever since his debut in The Incredible Hulk, Wolverine's origins have been steeped in mystery, both to readers and to himself. It was the Origin miniseries by Paul Jenkins and Adam Kubert that offered readers the first glimpses into where Wolverine came from and how he came to be. The story opened up with a trio of children at a large farming estate in Canada: James Howlett, the sickly son of the estate owner, Rose, a lovely red-haired girl brought from the nearby village as a companion for James, and Dog, the crude son of the groundskeeper, Mr. Logan. The first part of the story was a textbook case of class warfare that goes awry, ending in the death of James' and Dog's fathers. Mr. Logan's death came at the hands of James, who popped out the signature Wolverine claws and ran him through. They escape from the estate, and the rest of the story explains where he picked up the "Logan" alias and his partiality toward redheads among other things. Before this story, comic book fans thought that Wolverine's origins would be better left untold. Origin proved this notion wrong, all the while leaving readers wanting to know more about Wolverine's past.
Old Man Logan
OK, this one hasn't even been completed yet, but it is so well-done that I had to include it. I feel that Mark Millar has a really good handle on the character of Wolverine. The decision makers at Marvel must have agreed, because they let him run wild with the character in an alternate-future story titled "Old Man Logan". In this seriously twisted story arc, just about all of the superheroes have been missing for fifty years, America has been divided into six territories by supervillains, and an older Wolverine lives on a farm in Sacramento with his wife and children. It seems that Logan owes a lot of money to the farm's owners, who happen to be the Hulk's grandchildren. After the Hulk clan stomps a new mudhole into him for not having the money, a now-blind Hawkeye shows up at his doorstep, offering to get him the money he needs in exchange for accompanying him to the East Coast on a delivery job. Along the way, the pair encounter a motorcycle gang called the Ghost Riders, rogue Moloids and a Venom-ed out Tyrannosaurus Rex. While some of the aspects of "Old Man Logan" seem like Millar came up with them after a marathon booze session, the story puts a unique twist on what has become one of comics' most overexposed characters. I can't think of another writer with the skill or courage to come up with a story where Wolverine can fight but flat-out refuses to. Millar did it and still managed keep the story readable.
Weapon X
Where Origin told the story of Wolverine's beginnings, Weapon X tells the story of how Logan became the killing machine we know and love. This is where readers get to witness the events that led to Wolverine being abducted and implanted with the unbreakable adamantium that would bond with his skeleton and claws. Besides the obvious draw of the story, which was answers about a part of Wolverine's origin, Weapon X hits perfectly on the blind arrogance of a brilliant-but-careless cadre of scientists taking an already-formidable soldier/spy, turning him into the perfect weapon then seeing their fear, awe & regret as he rebels against and kills them. This influential tale laid the groundwork for other writers to expand on the story, like Grant Morrison did with his Weapon Plus story arc in New X-Men.
It's your turn now...
Do you think there were any important Wolverine stories that were left out of this column? Do you flat-out disagree with the stories chosen? If so, please don't be shy. Leave some feedback below and let us know what you think.
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