Wolverine & Wendigo’s History, Explained

Wolverine's first adventure in the Marvel Universe put him face-to-face with a furry and fanged Wendigo. Hailing from the same Canadian wilderness as the Weapon X program, a Wendigo is the product of a curse that turns anyone who tastes human flesh into a bloodthirsty beast.

Unlike the Wendigo of Algonquian folklore, the Wendigos of the Marvel Universe are massive, hairy creatures who spread their infection through bites and claw marks. Where Logan spent a lifetime trying to tame his killer instincts, the Wendigo stands as a terrifying example of when insatiable hunger overrides someone’s humanity.

Now, as Logan faces a new Wendigo in WOLVERINE (2024) #2 by Saladin Ahmed and Martin Cóccolo, let's look back at some of Wolverine’s most memorable battles with Wendigo throughout Marvel history.

WOLVERINE’S DEBUT

The first documented Wendigo was a desperate hunter named Paul Cartier, who clashed with the Hulk on numerous occasions. During one of their battles, Wolverine leapt into the brawl between these two goliaths on the last page of INCREDIBLE HULK (1962) #180 by Len Wein and Herb Trimpe, his introduction to the Marvel Universe.

Department H, Canada's superhuman government agency, tasked Logan with single-handedly taking down the Hulk. However, Wolverine and Hulk worked together instead to knock out the rampaging Wendigo first.

During the subsequent brawl between the Hulk and Wolverine, Marie Cartier, Paul’s sister, tried to mystically transfer the Wendigo’s curse onto the Hulk. When that attempt failed, Georges Baptiste, Paul’s friend, took the Wendigo curse onto himself out of love for Marie. As the Hulk knocked Wolverine out, Georges escaped into the wilderness.

WOLVERINE RETURNS TO CANADA

Shortly after Wolverine joined the X-Men, Logan and his new friend Nightcrawler ventured to Canada in UNCANNY X-MEN (1963) #139 by Chris Claremont and John Byrne. The two X-Men made the trip to iron out some issues over Wolverine's departure from Department H but wound up working with Logan’s old Alpha Flight teammates to investigate disappearances linked to Wendigo.

Donning his iconic brown costume for the first time, Logan reunited with Guardian (James Hudson), Shaman, and Snowbird in the Canadian wilderness. When the Wendigo attacked and overwhelmed Nightcrawler, Wolverine and his allies joined the tree-toppling battle.

This showdown was a team effort. Snowbird struck the final blow by turning into an actual wolverine and Shaman mystically transformed Wendigo back into Georges Baptiste after the fight. The authorities then arrested Baptiste for his crimes as Wendigo.

SPIDER-MAN AND WOLVERINE VS. WENDIGO

When a bigfoot-like creature was linked to several killings in British Columbia, Wolverine and Spider-Man teamed up to face a Wendigo in SPIDER-MAN (1990) #8 by Todd McFarlane. The killings became an international media frenzy, with The Daily Bugle sending Peter Parker out to cover the story. Meanwhile, Wolverine investigated this string of killings out of concern for the area’s wildlife.

As several hunters tried to bait the Wendigo, Wolverine realized the creature was not particularly violent or aggressive. Spider-Man also suspected the Wendigo was not responsible for these murders. The Wendigo scared Police Chief Inspector Krahn into confessing he killed those young boys.

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

After Wolverine lost his adamantium and Sabretooth destroyed his claws, Logan traveled to an old Weapon X facility to try resolve his predicament in WOLVERINE (1988) #129 by Todd DeZago and Leinil Francis Yu. Instead of answers, Logan found a new Wendigo, who used to be a rugged survivalist named Andrew Mornet.

After chasing Logan through the facility, the Wendigo gutted the X-Man, who tried to run him over in a military vehicle and slashed the X-Man's face in return. After a boy found the injured Wolverine and took him to his family’s barn to heal, the Wendigo followed Logan’s scent and attacked the barn. In their subsequent battle, Wolverine doused Wendigo in kerosene and lit him on fire, sending the creature into the night as the barn burned around them. 

WOLVERINE: STAY ALIVE

Centuries ago, a cannibalistic sorcerer called Mauvais became fascinated by the power of Wendigo. After he awoke in the modern day, he tried to summon the Wendigo’s curse by eating a contestant on a reality show called "Stay Alive" in WOLVERINE (1988) #170 by Frank Tieri and Sean Chen.

When Wolverine confronted Mauvais, a wild Wendigo attacked them both. During the battle, Mauvais bit the Wendigo, ripping his heart out and eating it to steal the creature’s power. After Mauvais fully transformed into a Wendigo, Alpha Flight landed on the scene to lend Wolverine a much-needed hand.

Snowbird attempted to fight the creature by transforming into a Wendigo herself, but the heroes only defeated Mauvais in his Wendigo form with help from the Elder Gods of the North. These powerful figures then trapped the ancient sorcerer in another dimension.

SHE-HULK VS. WENDIGO

She-Hulk once teamed-up with S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Hulkbusters to hunt down the Hulk’s old foes. Together, they targeted a Wendigo in SHE-HULK (2005) #16 by Dan Slott and Rick Burchett. As Wolverine tracked the creature down on behalf of a local tribe, he found the Wendigo walking into a trap set up by S.H.I.E.L.D. The Wendigo attacked a decoy campsite, creating the necessary diversion for Wolverine and She-Hulk to battle the creature.

In the heat of battle, the Wendigo tore through She-Hulk’s stomach. Alpha Flight’s Talisman stitched her back together with a mystic solution, kicking She-Hulk’s healing factor into overdrive. Fueled with power, the green giantess launched Wolverine in a “fastball special” that allowed him to tear out the Wendigo’s heart. Despite Talisman’s disapproval, Wolverine allowed She-Hulk and S.H.I.E.L.D. to take the Wendigo into custody.

WOLVERINE: WENDIGO!

Tall tales and local myths exist everywhere, including the Marvel Universe. Despite the deadly history of the Wendigos, the residents of the Marvel Universe still view them as topic of intrigue, much like bigfoot and other mythical figures.

In WOLVERINE: WENDIGO! (2010) #1 by Frank Tieri and Paul Gulacy, a town decided to make Wendigo its unofficial mascot, sending a small production crew to film a monster-hunting reality show. A Wendigo, formerly a lumberjack named Luc Lemay, attacked this crew and brutally killed four people.
Wolverine saved the show’s producers by quickly slicing off the creature’s arm and sending him running into the night.

When local police and shadowy government agents grilled the producers about what happened, they decided that no one would ever believe their story if they told the truth.

WORLD WAR WENDIGO

After an argument in a meat-packing plant in Ontario turned deadly, the killer’s attempts to dispose of the body spread the Wendigo’s curse across Canada, launching "World War Wendigo" in AMAZING X-MEN (2013) #8 by Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost, and Ed McGuinness. As unintentional cannibals formed an army of Wendigos, the X-Men and Alpha Flight teamed up to face the rampaging beasts.

Wolverine jumped into the fray, but he did not have his mutant healing factor at the time. As a result, he turned into a Wendigo once wounded. Historically, the Wendigo curse stopped at Canada’s border, but Tanaraq—a member of a group of old gods called the Great Beasts—tried to spread it around the world. Once Guardian defeated Tanaraq, Logan and the other Wendigos returned to normal. 

THE BEAST WITHIN

While Wolverine does not have many memories from his tortuous time in the Weapon X Program, he still recalls one encounter with a Wendigo, which appeared in WOLVERINE: BLACK, WHITE & BLOOD (2020) #1 by Gerry Duggan and Adam Kubert.
 
Shortly after Weapon X coated Logan’s bones in adamantium, the agency tested his new powers and conditioning by throwing him into battle against a Wendigo. After a bloody and brutal brawl, the Wendigo said something in French, revealing a second of humanity that stopped Logan in his tracks. Their Weapon X captors dragged them both away for further testing.

WOLVERINE: FROM THE ASHES

After the fall of the mutant island nation of Krakoa, Wolverine needed to work through the traumatic assault on mutantkind and left human society for the wilderness. He stepped away from the X-Men, opting to run with the wolves instead.

In WOLVERINE #2 by Saladin Ahmed and Martin Cóccolo, a Wendigo ambushed Wolverine while it hid from the Department H agents on his trail out in the Canadian cold. However, when this Wendigo demonstrated his humanity to Logan, the clawed X-Man decided to help the creature escape the government agents hunting him.

Embark on Logan's next Wendigo adventure in WOLVERINE #2 by Saladin Ahmed and Martin Cóccolo, available now!

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