Wolverine may be many things, but Marvel’s most retconned character isn’t one of them. When it comes to complicated histories, Wolverine takes the cake. Keeping Logan’s history a mystery was largely a part of his overall appeal, but the years have slowly stripped that mystery away. Retconning stories in comics isn’t unusual. Often, it’s even for the best. These characters have been around for over 30 years, so origin stories will need to be updated to keep up with the times. Wolverine isn’t the only character to see their past retconned. In fact, one major character holds the record over Wolverine.
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One of Marvel’s original heroes, Captain America, has been fighting bad guys since World War II. Some of Cap’s early stories have even featured infamous team-ups with Wolverine. While the war that Captain America fought in before he was frozen doesn’t change, when he wakes up has changed — more than once. There are obvious reasons for this, and they all make sense. Though the timeline and small details may change, Steve Rogers remains Captain America through and through.
Marvel Always Retcons When Captain America Wakes Up From The Ice
After fighting Nazis in World War II and punching Hitler on the cover of 1941’s Captain America #1, Steve Rogers was frozen in ice and awoke in more modern times. Of course, this is a shifting timeline that Marvel adjusts every 10 years or so. Captain America originally woke from the ice and joined Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in 1964’s The Avengers #4. If time in comics worked the same way it does in the real world, that would mean Captain America would be over 60 years old. It’s hard to come across as young, fresh, and appealing to a new generation of comic book readers at that age.
To rectify that problem, Marvel revises Captain America’s origin about every decade to push up when he’s found in the ice. For example, we’ve seen Captain America wake up and have to adapt to being a “man out of time” while the United States is deep in conflicts like the Gulf War. Fans only have to look at the newly relaunched Captain America by Chip Zdarsky and Valerio Schiti as the latest example of adjusting Cap’s origin. We’re getting an untold tale of Cap right before he joined the Avengers, with readers discovering there was another Captain America named David Colton, who was inspired by the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Steve Rogers and David Colton, who also got the super-soldier serum, infiltrate Latveria to free hostages from Doctor Doom.
The retcons that Captain America has been put through may be minor in their changes, but they’re meant to keep him up with the times. They aren’t meant to drastically change his core themes, and it works out for the best.
Wolverine’s Retcons Help Clear Up Confusion With His Origin
Many fans are thankful that Marvel has cleared up a lot of the confusion with Wolverine’s history. It was charming in the beginning when Wolverine had an air of mystery about him, but over time, fans want to have answers. “What’s the deal with Wolverine and Sabretooth?” “Did the Vibranium give Wolverine his claws, or was he born with them?” “What’s Wolverine’s real name?” These are just a few of the questions fans have had about Wolverine over the years.
But in true storytelling fashion, as one mystery is solved, another mystery is presented to take its place. After some years of relative stability, Wolverine’s mother is alive and has re-entered his life to reintroduce a level of chaos and uncertainty. Just add it to his long list of retcons.
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Image courtesy of Netflix
