Top 10 Wolverine Costumes

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Wolverine. He’s the X-Men’s most ferocious member, full of guts and inner fire. He’s also got the rep of being a clawed berserker with a loner complex, (and you’d have one too if you shared his WEAPON X origin), but over the years he’s grown into a steadfast hero.

A fan-favorite for his complex beginnings and unforgiving attitude, Logan’s ever-evolving style deserves a shoutout too.

Watch our picks for Wolverine’s Top 10 Costumes below, and tell us what you think at @MarvelUnlimited on Twitter and Facebook!

1. ORIGINAL SUIT

Wolverine clawed onto the scene in INCREDIBLE HULK (1962) #180, a final page splash that immediately established his snarly demeanor. Leveling the brutal rage of Wendigo and the Hulk with an equal level of savagery, Wolverine’s first issue saw him in his signature yellow and blue, with animalistic stripes that evoked the markings of a wolverine. Here, his Adamantium claws are affixed to his gloves, although in his time with the X-Men, his favorite appendages would be depicted as extensions of his skeleton. His mask “ears” are slimmer here too, with full cutouts for the eyes.

One of the most striking features of this suit are those cat-like whiskers. Fairly adorable for someone so fearsome.

Read Wolverine’s first full appearance in INCREDIBLE HULK #181, a dust-up for the ages.

2. NOT-SO MELLOW YELLOW

Seminal issue GIANT-SIZE X-MEN (1975) #1 ushered forth a brand new age of X-Men, as Professor Xavier recruited a global roster to save his original team from sentient island Krakoa. It was also penned by Wolverine’s co-creator Len Wein, with uncanny pencils by the legendary Dave Cockrum.

In addition to marking the first appearance of Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus, and Thunderbird, this issue introduced Wolverine’s now-classic yellow threads. Gone were the whiskers in favor of a more pronounced mask. All-white lenses added an intimidating quality to this unpredictable hothead, while a boost in shoulder pads added bulk. You’ll notice here too that Logan’s claws are no longer accessories, but bonded to his body.

After reading this issue, continue with writer Chris Claremont’s run, which picked up from GIANT-SIZE X-MEN in UNCANNY X-MEN (1963) #94.

3. FANGED AND FURIOUS

While short-lived, Wolverine’s “Fang costume” left an impression.

During a heated battle with the Shi’ar Imperial Guard in UNCANNY X-MEN #107, Wolverine’s yellow costume was burnt to tatters, and the next best option seemed to be lifting a look right off the back of one of its members.

Wolverine borrowed this get-up from the alien Fang, a bestial bodysuit adorned with pointed teeth that punctuated the neckline, midsection, hands, and feet. The dual color combo of brown and black are sleek, but those teeth? Pure comic book camp.

Fun fact: X-23, AKA Wolverine’s clone, AKA Laura Kinney, adopted the Fang suit in her intro to the larger X-Men team in UNCANNY X-MEN #450. The trend lives on, even in infamy!

4. BROWN AND YELLOW

This brown and yellow suit first appeared in UNCANNY X-MEN #139, the issue that brought Kitty Pryde into the X-Men’s ranks.

Wolverine would spend a significant amount of time in this costume, a modification by artist John Byrne that toned down the vibrant blue elements in the GIANT-SIZE outfit to an earthier brown, more ideal for stealth.

The winged boots are a further play on Wolverine’s original costume too, while the red belt remained his staple. This look dominated the ‘80s, a defining era for the X-Men under Chris Claremont’s lead.

Most notably, this was the uniform that allowed Logan to show off that lustrous arm hair.

5. WETWORK WEAR

For his first solo ongoing series, Wolverine ditched the dramatic yellow and slipped into an all-black ensemble, rocking an unmasked face and sleeveless guns.

Black war paint become his antiheroic calling card, and some out of control sideburns warned everyone that clean-cut X-Man he was not. Topping off the look were short gloves, a must-have for any mission where your hands are bound to get dirty.

This was the first time we saw a look that completely broke away from an X-Men uniform. It was an important step in differentiating the character as a mutant who doesn’t play by the rules, one who’s just as effective on his own as he is with a team.

6. BLUE AND GOLD

In the early ‘90s, Wolverine tried on the blue and gold that the rest of the X-Men wore in their redesign by artist Jim Lee. Hearkening back to the X-Men’s first costumes in UNCANNY X-MEN #1, these streamlined suits were practical and identifiable.

After the X-TINCTION AGENDA event, the team divided into two unique squads, covered in X-MEN (1991). Cyclops and Storm led their “Blue” and “Gold” X-Men across two separate series, in what many consider the mutants’ most prominent era.

See everyone go uniform for the first time in UNCANNY X-MEN #273, and continue through issue #274.

7. GONE FERAL

In massive crossover event FATAL ATTRACTIONS, (which you can read in full with MU), Wolverine was robbed of his Adamantium by Magneto, a power move that left Logan and his teammates shattered.

Wolverine would remain in this “unbonded state” for a long while, sporting bony claws instead of metallic ones. Although, Cable’s time-tossed son Genesis attempted an Adamantium graft to restore what Logan lost… and it went badly.

Genesis’ procedure left Wolverine feral, unable to control his primal rage, and acting on animal instinct alone.

This “Feral Wolverine,” unveiled in WOLVERINE (1988) #100, gave Logan sharpened fangs. His hair was as unruly a mess as his psyche, and his nose became a flattened stub. He covered up that unfortunate side effect with a blue bandana face scarf and loads of sideburn.

Logan’s scruffiest look by far, and his most terrifying.

8. ULTIMATE WOLVERINE

The X-Men got a shiny, modern reboot in Marvel’s Ultimate Universe, and Logan’s outfit in ULTIMATE X-MEN (2000) followed suit.

Channeling the height of bad boy, Logan swaggered through Danger Room sessions and Savage Land missions wearing a pared down version of his original yellow costume. His top was muted to be primarily black, while the red logo remained on his X-belt.

The Ultimate team’s vibe was shaped by everyone adding their personal flair to a primarily black and gold motif, although Wolverine’s civvies in this series are nothing to SNIKT at.

9. ASTONISHING WOLVERINE

In this perfect X-Men intro series, Logan’s original duds were refreshed. He was given a formfitting uniform that featured clean blue and yellow stripes, a callback to his GIANT-SIZE suit. The winged boots were left behind, although that black pattern down their center are straight from ‘74.

10. X-FORCE

A severe chapter in Wolverine’s style evolution.

This militant look from X-FORCE (2008) was a black and gray camouflage uniform, perfectly suited for the team’s off-the-books operations. The infrared eyes are downright demonic, but seeing as how Logan regressed to some bad habits of mutilation and murder during this period, they’re actually quite fitting.

X-Force was assembled for the sole purpose of handling threats that the X-Men could not. And by “handle,” we do mean permanently. While the leader of Cyclops’ kill crew, Wolverine teetered on the edge of losing all that made him human. But at least he looked scarily cool while doing so.

There you have it! Tell us which Wolverine costume is your favorite, and join Marvel Unlimited to read these comics—and choose from over 27,000 more—right now! What will you be reading this week? Join the conversation at @MarvelUnlimited, and stay tuned to our Twitter and Facebook channels for more weekly announcements and updates.