Warning: Contains spoilers for Wolverine #2!!Wolverine Is the best at what he does, as the iconic line goes, but what Logan views as his defining attributes are not truly at the core of who he is. A Wendigo encounter proves what centers Logan in so many lives. Adamantium claws, a healing factor, and a charming attitude are only adornments – Wolverine is a mentor for the world’s young and scared “monsters”.
in Wolverine #2By Saladin Ahmed, Martin Cóccolo, Bryan Valenza and Cory Petit, Wolverine crosses paths with a hungry Wendigo, only to discover that the creature is not quite what it seems. Rather than a bloodthirsty beast, it’s a recently cursed teenager who reaches out for help, and the encounter provides some familiar, important notes for the adamantium-laced mutant.
Logan knows the value of getting help fighting animalistic, violent instincts, and he’s also uniquely suited to be the helping hand for others. Wolverine’s most defining quality isn’t ruthless violence, it’s his ability to change the lives of the kids and teenagers who need someone stubborn enough to stop them.
Wolverine is defined by his unique ability to act as a mentor, not by violence or attitude
A taste for violence, adamantium claws, and attitude aren’t his most important traits anymore
Logan defines himself by the violence that surrounds him. He’s been responsible for some incredible carnage over the years, and he’s indisputably one of Marvel’s most skilled combatants. His primal rage has been centered for too long, leading the mutant and many fans to believe that it is the core of who he is. He is a fighter, but he is an even better mentor. After years of reluctantly yet successfully guiding the X-Men’s most stubborn, dangerous youth, and even starting the Jean Gray School to give mutants a safe place, no one has a way with them like he does. This is the heart of Wolverine.
From Kitty Pryde to Kid Omega, Wolverine had a hand in training many young mutants who became heroes. He is deeply familiar with the feeling of being an outsider and knows how important it is to have help that does not give up. His story and open nature enable him to reach kids and teenagers who don’t want to pay attention to anyone else. Logan takes the heat and keeps going, but inherently knows when to soften his notoriously rough exterior as well. Both aspects shine through in his encounter with the Wendigo, showing that his ability to make a difference to ordinary, superpowered youth is his most important quality.
Wolverine is running from his greatest attribute
But even he cannot escape who he really is
The encounter with the Wendigo not only shines a light on who Logan is, it offers proof that Wolverine cannot hide in the wilderness and escape who he is at heart. Sure, violence continues to find him, but that’s not the only thing waiting in the snow. There will always be young, scared mutants and monsters who need someone like him – and there is something that draws them in no matter how far he goes to escape it. His choice to leave Rogue and her new unsettled X-Men behind didn’t change that. He still answers the call for help elsewhere.
It’s a mistake to boil Wolverine down to the metal that coats his bones or the healing factor that keeps him alive. His greatest contribution is not how many lives he can take, or what helps him survive; So he always knew how to lead the members of the next generation who fight the most. It was painful, at times, and it’s hard to blame Logan for running, but the distance won’t change what he’s meant to do. Wolverine is one of the X-Men’s greatest mentors, and leadership defines him more than violence or adamantium can.
Wolverine #2 is available now from Marvel Comics.