While Insomniac’s Wolverine may be getting a mature rating, there are plenty more stories with him – especially disturbing ones. Logan has had a long history, and it is absolutely filled with horrific events.
Let’s take a look at some of the most gruesome facts only determined Wolverine fans would know of. How many of these do you know yourself?
WARNING: These descriptions and visuals cover violent content.
Drowning His Own Son
Uncanny X-Force #34
Many may not know that Wolverine has a son in the first place; he himself also had no clue he did. Akihiro was born into a tragic life, which helps explain his turn to villainy.
In this issue, Akihiro forced Wolverine to watch him basically beat a child. At least until Logan escaped and believed he had no other choice, he must kill his son.
The death itself is heartbreaking, where we are shown both Logan’s thoughts and Akihiro’s as the father drowns his son in just a puddle. At the end, Logan is left cradling the body of a child he never even got to know.
He Was Caught in the Bombing of Hiroshima
Logan #2
Back in WWII, Logan had become a POW in Japan, where he then broke out alongside his cellmate, Lt. Ethan Warren, but they split up shortly after.
Logan then has a tender moment with a native woman named Atsuko, at least until Lt. Warren appears again. A fight quickly commences, in which Atsuko ends up dying at the hands of Warren.
At least until the atomic bomb was dropped and caused massive, horrific destruction. Despite it all, Logan rose from it, unable to die by any means.
He Had to Kill an Innocent Teen
Ultimate X-Men #41
While this is in an alternate universe, it is still something horrific that Wolverine had to do. Jesse was an ordinary boy until one day he woke up, and his Mutant gene had activated overnight.
Unlike others, who get abilities like flight or telekinesis, Jesse was cursed to kill every living being he came across. His story is tragic, with Wolverine later revealing Jesse had unknowingly caused the death of over 265 people.
Logan tries to share a beer with Jesse, but Jesse tells him to “just do it”. The next thing we see is Logan walking out of the cave alone the next morning.
“Happy Birthday”
Wolverine (Vol 7) #41
There is no one who can say they hate Wolverine more than Victor Creed. And as such, Sabretooth has a tradition of sorts, where he always makes sure to give Logan a ‘gift’ for his birthday.
We’ve already seen on this list how Logan once had to kill his son, Akihiro. Well, this time Victor did it for him. Sabretooth managed to track down Logan, Akihiro, and some others into the middle of nowhere, showing just how determined Victor is.
This was all in order to surprise Logan with the bodies of his son and friends, all arranged to spell ‘Happy Birthday’. A cruelty only Sabretooth could give towards Logan.
He Was Drained of Life (Repeatedly)
Wolverine: The Best There Is #4
This is a comic with another parental advisory warning on the cover; you can already tell, just from that, how horrific this will be for Logan. Be warned; this is not a comic for the queasy.
He was tortured brutally, in almost every way imaginable, but they didn’t stop there. Logan is kept there due to his captors also having a child there that they threaten to kill if he leaves.
When Scavenger joins in on the torture, he uses his power to sap all life out of Logan. However, with his healing factor, it all comes back. Unfortunately, this just means Scavenger can do it again, and again.
Suffocated to Death in Adamantium
Death of Wolverine (2014) #4
Wolverine had lost his powers, and even without them, he went on a mission against the founder of the Weapon X program. The doctor’s goal is to create an army using adamantium to bond with people.
Logan quickly set into action and freed the test subjects. At the cost of dousing himself in the liquid metal, but that doesn’t stop him from coming after the doctor and watching him die.
His final moments are of him remembering everything good he’s done in his life. The metal solidifies and kills him, just as the sun sets in one final, beautiful moment.
The Hulk Ate Him
Wolverine: Old Man Logan Giant-Size (2009) #1
In the dystopian world of Old Man Logan, the Hulk has grown insane. With his own inbred family, he rules over what he calls Hulkland, where Logan lives with his family.
When Logan discovered his entire family had been murdered because he couldn’t pay ‘rent’, he decided enough was enough. He went on a spree to kill every Hulk in Hulkland. Due to this massacre, the Hulk tears him apart and eats him.
What he didn’t take into account was Logan’s healing factor, meaning he healed completely and burst out of the Hulk, eviscerating him. Logan successfully killed almost every Hulk, except for one baby.
He Killed The X-Men
Wolverine (Vol. 3) #70
Another tragedy in the universe of Old Man Logan, in fact, is his origin story. Set 50 years before the events of the comic series, it shows how Logan became the man he is in the future.
It all started when villains attacked the X-Mansion, but it was an illusion created by Mysterio the whole time. Without Wolverine even knowing, he had killed every one of his teammates and those he considered family.
When the truth was revealed, he went into a fugue state, traumatised for the rest of his life. Stuck with the image of holding Jubilee’s dead body for eternity.
A Cannibal Made Him a Meal
Wolverine (Vol. 2) #165
Another instance of Logan being eaten, which happens more than you’d think. Wolverine has yet again been captured and locked up, but this time, it’s with an insane cannibal.
The man bites literal chunks out of Logan, who’s alive and awake, watching someone eat him. The physical torture is one thing, but take into account the psychological effects.
It’s after the cannibal tears out his eye to eat it that Logan is saved. However, the man gets away, saying how he can’t wait for them to meet again.
Killed by Kitty Pryde
What If? Wolverine Enemy of the State
In ‘What If?’, anything can happen, and in this story, Wolverine has lost control over his mind due to Hydra and is killing every hero he can find.
In canon, Logan and Kitty have an almost father-daughter relationship, so watching the pain Kitty goes through as she’s forced to kill him is intense. This Wolverine is nothing like the one we usually see, so we can feel the same torment as Kitty herself.
When Logan comes for Kitty, she tries to bargain, but she ends up with no other choice than to phase her hand into his head. She apologises to her lost mentor, and while we may not see her grief, we can still experience it alongside her.
These were the most gruesome things about Wolverine that you most likely didn’t know. If you did, then congratulations, and if you didn’t? I hope you learnt something interesting from this and enjoyed it all the same.