Wolverine has become one of the most popular superheroes ever. He first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #181 and was added to the X-Men in Giant-Size X-Men #1. This move made him a superstar, but he would truly reach the next level once he got his first solo story in 1982. Since then, the ol’Canucklehead has sold millions of comics and become an icon. While his biggest showcases are the team books that he anchors, his solo series are way better than they get credit for, thanks to the amazing creative teams that have worked on his books over the decades.
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Some of greatest creators of all time have written Logan’s stories. There have been times when his books were among the bestselling solo books on the market, all because of these amazing creators. These are the ten best Wolverine runs, helping forge a legend as unbreakable as his skeleton.
10) Frank Tieri
Frank Tieri took over Wolverine in the year 2000. The ’90s were the best time for the hero’s solo books, so he was walking onto the title as it was at its most popular. There was a lot of pressure, but he was able to soar. Tieri wrote Wolverine (Vol. 2) #154-186. He was the last writer on that classic title and he closed it out with style. Tieri doesn’t get the credit he deserves for his Wolverine run (or honestly in general) and his time with the character is a must-read for any fan of Marvel’s wildest hero.
9) Barry Windsor-Smith
Barry Windsor-Smith is one of the greatest writer/artists in comics. Now, he didn’t technically have a run on a Wolverine book (although he did some stories with the character in Uncanny X-Men along with Chris Claremont). Instead he wrote and drew one of the best Wolverine stories ever in Marvel Comics Presents #72-84: “Weapon X”. It told the tale of Logan getting his adamantium skeleton, giving readers what was essentially a horror comic, showing the brutality with which Logan was treated and the bloody revenge he took. This was a very different kind of Wolverine story and it’s become legendary.
8) Mark Millar
Mark Millar is one of comics’ most controversial writers. In the ’00s, he was one of the biggest creators out there, but much of his work has been re-evaluated and found wanting. However, his time writing Wolverine is still beloved by fans. He wrote two different stories for the character – “Enemy of the State/Agent of SHIELD” and “Old Man Logan”, running through Wolverine (Vol. 3) #20-32, with John Romita Jr., Klaus Janson, and Kaare Andrews, and Wolverine (Vol. 3) #66-72 and Giant-Size Wolverne: Old Man Logan #1, with Steve McNiven, respectively. These two stories are action masterpieces; Millar didn’t really dig into the character very much but he was able to give readers the kind of action and attitude that they craved from Logan.
7) Jeff Lemire
Old Man Logan was immediately popular and after Death of Wolverine ended the life of Logan, he was shunted over to the 616 because of Secret Wars (2015), birthing the excellent Old Man Logan (Vol. 2). Jeff Lemire was teamed with his frequent collaborator Andrea Sorrentino (also working with fill-in artists Eric Nguyen and Filipe Andrade) for 24 issues of Logan goodness, dealing with old version of Wolvie starting life on a new world. Lemire dug into the character, dealing with his guilt over killing the X-Men and the loss of family, taking him on a journey of self-discovery. Old Man Logan (Vol. 2) was a masterwork and it remains one of the most underrated series in Marvel history.
6) Benjamin Percy
Wolverine was killed in 2014 and returned to life in 2019, but didn’t get a new solo series until 2020. Wolverine (Vol. 7) was the Krakoa Era Wolverine book and it was written by Benjamin Percy for its entire 50 issue run. He worked with numerous artists over his run, with Wolverine legend Adam Kubert being the biggest name, along with Joshua Cassara, Federico Vicentini, Geoff Shaw, and others. Percy understood how to write Wolverine in a way that few writers since Larry Hama have, capturing the violence and emotion of the man. His run is brilliant and was one of the best books of the Krakoa Era.
5) Erik Larsen
Erik Larsen became a superstar thanks to Spider-Man and was one of the seven Image founders. He’d return to writing for Marvel in the late ’90s and was handed their bestselling solo title. Larsen wrote Wolverine (Vol. 2) #133-149, and was able to close out the decade with aplomb. His first story took Logan into space, and the run went on from there, pitting the hero against the most dangerous threats. Larsen got to write the story of Wolvie getting his adamantium skeleton back and gave readers some awesome, action-packed stories with artists like Leinil Yu and Jeff Matsuda. Larsen was the perfect creator to close out the ’90s for the ol’Canucklehead with a run that is pretty slept on by readers.
4) Greg Rucka
In the late ’90s, the Marvel Knights imprint became massively popular, telling more grounded superhero stories with an edge. Wolverine was perfect for the line and his solo would be shunted there in 2003, where writer Greg Rucka and artists Darick Robertson and Leandro Fernandez launched Wolverine (Vol. 3). Rucka was known for his crime and spy comics and he brought that kind of grounded approach to the hero over the first 19 issues of Wolverine (Vol. 3). There were no costumes, just violent stories showcasing what the ol’Canucklehead did best in a world full of monsters.
3) Jason Aaron
Jason Aaron is a superstar nowadays and that all started with his run on Wolverine. He wrote Wolverine: Weapon X #1-16, with Ron Garney, Yanick Paquette, C.P. Smith, and Davide Gianfelice, before the launch of Wolverine (Vol. 4), writing issues #1-19 before the book was reverted to legacy numbering, finishing his run with issues #300-304 (also read the fantastic Astonishing Spider-Man and Wolverine) with artists Renato Guedes, Daniel Acuna, Ron Garney, and more. Aaron did a fantastic job with the character, pitting him against dangerous villains and the demons of Hell, while giving him his best girlfriend since Mariko. Aaron’s Wolverine run started almost 20 years ago, and it’s still casually blowing modern runs out of the water (especially the abysmal current one).
2) Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont redefined the X-Men and made Wolverine a superstar in Uncanny X-Men. In 1982, he wrote Logan’s first four-issue miniseries with Frank Miller and in 1989, he was the writer to launch the ol’Canucklehead’s first ongoing. He wrote Wolverine (Vol. 2) #1-8 and #10, with legendary artist John Buscema (he’d return to the book with issues #125-128, with Leinil Yu). He established Logan’s life on Madripoor in these issues, introduced the Murasama blade, debuted villains like Bloodscream and Roughhouse, and gave readers the story of the Wolvie’s first-ever fight with Sabretooth. Claremont and Buscema (with Bill Sienkiewicz inking issue #10) gave readers perfect Wolverine, kicking off his first ongoing brilliantly.
1) Larry Hama
Larry Hama is one of the greatest comic creators ever and his time on Wolverine proved it. He’s the man who created the modern G.I. Joe universe and would join Wolverine (Vol. 2) as writer with 1990’s issue #31. Hama wrote Wolverine (Vol. 2) #31-43, #45-57, #60-109, and #111-118, dealing with the fallout of stories like “Weapon X” and “Fatal Attractions” while also telling his own excellent stories. He crafted Logan into a ronin warrior poet, giving readers tremendous action while digging into who the hero was as a person. His time writing bone claw Wolverine is one of the best eras of the character’s existence and he gave readers some of the best superheroes comic starring the ol’Canucklehead ever.
What’s your favorite Wolverine run? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
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