What is the essence of Wolverine as a character?
I feel like a lot of the division and rage around Wolverine as a character is because there are some fundamental disagreements about the appeal of the character, as well as his fundamental nature.
For me, I think this page from the Wolverine Miniseries is probably the best encapsulation of the character. He's a guy striving to be better than he used to be, and while he fails often, he never stops trying to be a better person.
That page pretty much sums it up. I would only add to that by saying that he also struggles to define his humanity against an exterior world that would rather dismiss him as being nothing more than an animal.
But yeah, unlike Superman, Batman, or Spiderman, Wolverine's greatest battle is internal.
Thats what Wolverine is as a comic character, the problem is movies are what determines what characters are now and thats not what he is in movies.
Wolverine is literally only cool when he's characterized as an escaped paramilitary experiment who can't remember who he is or what happened to him. He needs to have the element of the unknown with his character, a life that is lost to both Wolverine as a character and us as the reader
>>77376659
The constant struggle to reign in his gay side.
>>77378103
Isn't that the essence of every superhero though?
>>77378170
Everyone except Hercules
>>77378526
and Midnighter
>>77378526
>Hercules
>not 100% straight
>>77376659
Snikting bubs.
Agreed what killed wolverines character was when he lost the animal in him and he became full on jobber
His entire character was based on be a joke or be badass
When they'd write him he'd save the day like Popeye or go flying out the battle with one hit get up and walk to a store for Fritos
Letting wolverine be in control of himself made him become like everyone else and there's no room in a world where too much heroes have that same gimmick but do it better
>>77376659
He is the man who kills so that others don't have to. He gets his hands dirty, all his teammates look away and mutter angrily that it didn't have to come to this, but they're all secretly relieved that the bad guy is dead and it wasn't them who did the deed.
He's the best assassin in the world, yet the most fulfilled he ever is is when he's being a father figure to kids who need one.
He's someone who understands the hypocrisy of a no kill policy, and with a heavy heart he accepts the burden that his friends and loved ones can't handle.
and he does so knowing that every decade or so he's going to be such a deranged mess because of it he has to snikt his own brain to wipe away another chunk of memory just to become functional again, never knowing which long-dead loved ones he'll lose along with it.
that's what I've taken away from the character after all these years. That he wants to be a better man, but is willing to sacrifice his progress if it means the people he cares about can continue to be better men and women
>>77376926
True. For example, in this page he calls himself "Shingen" because he's a giant fucking weeb.
>>77381454
That was beautifully put anon
>>77381784
>>77381454
>That time Logan was going to mercy kill a mutant.
>Instead Scott decides to do it.
>Logan is the only one that will ever know.
We will never get Scott and Logan being bros. I will always hate Schism and AvX. It should have been Storm that separated.
>>77381454
I would read wolverine comics and watch wolverine movies with you/10
You understand you understand
>>77381301
I'd snikt his bubs. No homo.
>>77376659
GONNA
>>77376659
What does it take to change the essence of a mutant?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdenc4qcYwg
>>77376659
How would you successfully write wolverine going through the same arc that ruined him
becoming a teacher and looking down on killers
>>77382873
I wouldn't kill him off to fix it all that did was show he gave up
>>77377993
Wait you mean you don't like that they retconned Wolverine into being the person that inspired Xavier to start the X-Men
>>77376926
>implying Spider-man's greatest battle isn't internal
>>77383337
His wallet is empty inside
![famouspanelswolverine23[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/ohwvNcU.jpg "famouspanelswolverine23[1].jpg")
>>77376659
He's the guy who keeps on going no matter what. He's the one willing to do whatever it takes to keep innocent people safe, no matter how hard or painful it is. To me, the fundamental nature of his character was summed up when he said that it hurts every time he takes out his claws: people think that he's unstoppable, that he can't feel pain, but it's really the opposite. He always feels pain, in every single fight, but he's willing to endure it, because someone needs to be able to. He probably has the worst case of PTSD in human history because of all the physical and mental anguish he's been through, but he's willing to take on that burden so other people don't have to.
Then he got popular so writers boosted his healing factor to the point where he basically can't die and is never in any real danger, and ignored the fact that he can still feel pain, so now he's just a Boring Invincible Hero. He doesn't need to use his wits or his tactical expertise anymore, he can just charge into battle headfirst and ignore the damage. So so instead of a brilliant and courageous solider-samurai with a century of experience, he's more like some asshole playing real life Call of Duty with cheat codes on.
>>77376659
He's the berserker tamed by his friends, family, and samurai teachings.
>>77384313
Knowing nightcrawlers honesty he probably just assumed wolverine was his real name
>>77384313
Wolverine's costume looks cool
>>77382672
cute
>>77384313
I love how all this little tidbits about his past were revealed so organically, and weren't emphasised in-story as these horrible, dark secrets. I mean, they WERE, but the reader didn't really know that.
