10 Shockingly Dark Origins Of Comic Book Heroes

2. Wolverine

Rocket Raccoon
Marvel Comics

The future Wolverine was born into a wealthy Canadian family as James Howlett at the end of the 19th Century. Following the death of his family, he adopted the name “Logan” after his biological father and lived in the Canadian wilderness for a time, and also gained the nickname “Wolverine” from his co-workers at a stone quarry.

After gaining the animosity of Victor Creed and the possible life-long manipulation of an immortal mutant named Romulus, Logan traveled the world, becoming a spy, assassin, soldier, and samurai. He fought in World War II and fought with or against many future friends, including Captain America, Bucky Barnes, Nick Fury, and a young Natalia Romanoff. Wolverine was part of the covert Team X during the Vietnam conflict. After serving with the Canadian Spy agency Department K, Logan was kidnapped and taken to the Weapon X Project, his skeleton was laced with adamantium, which drove his healing factor to the breaking point and nearly destroyed his mind. The near-feral man broke free and disappeared into the Canadian wilderness.

Discovered and nursed back to health by James “Mac” and Heather Hudson, Logan couldn’t recall much of his early history. James took Wolverine to be part of Department H, Canada’s superhero organization. The former Weapon X went on several secret missions for that organization until Charles Xavier came to recruit him into the X-Men.

Contributor
Contributor

John Wilson has been a comic book and pop culture fan his entire life. He has written for a number of websites on the subject over the years and is especially pleased to be at WhatCulture. John has written two comic books for Last Ember Press Studio and has recently self-published a children's book called "Blue." When not spending far too much time on the internet, John spends time with his lovely wife, Kim, their goofy dog, Tesla, and two very spoiled cats.