15 Most Powerful Versions Of Wolverine

Summary

• Wolverine has been reimagined in many powerful forms from alternate realities, some heroic and others monstrous.
• The original Wolverine from Earth-616 is the basis for all other versions, boasting superhuman strength and adamantium claws.
• From Hydra Wolverine to Dark Claw, Wolverine’s alternate versions showcase different powers and abilities, making them heroes or villains.

When a superhero becomes as popular as Wolverine, it’s only a matter of time until they’re rebooted, reinvented, or completely reimagined. It’s one of the things comic books do best, taking a beloved character and dreaming up alternate versions from possible futures, alternate realities, or even sucessors who will some day replace the original.

For Wolverine, some of his most powerful incarnations have hailed from the main Marvel universe of Earth-616, but there are many more powerful versions from alternate realities, as well. Many of these versions are just slightly different variants of the heroic Wolverine that fans are familiar with. Other versions are horrific monsters who want nothing more than to spread pain and suffering. This list contains the most powerful versions of Wolverine, be they heroes or villains.

15 The Original Wolverine

The classic version, hailing from Earth-616

The Wolverine from the main Marvel universe of Earth-616 is one of the strongest X-Men in any era. He has superhuman strength, stamina, and agility, all of which supplement his primary weapon, his adamantium claws. This version of Wolverine is what all others are based off of and has been on the most adventures. While his “vanilla” form isn’t the strongest on this list, all his powerful forms start here.

Even without any additional modifiers dreamed up in modern stories, adamantium can cut through just about anything, and Logan’s made short work of numerous powerful enemies over the years (like the Brood, the Skrulls, the Hellfire Club, you name it). And as is always the case, Wolverine’s incredible healing factor makes injuring him essentially pointless — and killing him even harder.

14 The Hydra Wolverine

From Earth-1720, A Wolverine Without Morals

First appearing in Exiles #92 by Chris Claremont and Paul Pelletier, this version of Wolverine is the leader of Hydra alongside an evil version of Sue Storm, whom he is in a relationship with (bad news for Jean Grey). These two characters succeeded in conquering their world’s heroes, and decided to expand their empire by invading other universes. And while this Wolverine didn’t have any extra powers compared to his 616 counterpart, he was far more dangerous due to the fact he was completely evil.

The regular Wolverine is a gruff and rough but ultimately good man. This isn’t the case for Earth-1720 Wolverine. He was a horrific monster who wanted nothing more than to conquer and rule over people, and he didn’t care how he accomplished it. Thankfully, he was eventually murdered by an alternate version of Kitty Pryde.

13 The Days Of Futures Past Wolverine

A Wolverine Trapped In A Dark Future

Days of Futures Past from Uncanny X-Men #141 and #142 by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Terry Austin, Glynis Wein, and Tom Orzechowski, is one of the darkest future timelines in Marvel Comics. The Wolverine from that dystopian future is one of the most powerful versions, older, wiser, and more hardened from years of horror at the hands of the Sentinels. While this Wolverine doesn’t have any powers that 616 versions doesn’t, the years of experience he’s gained make him far more dangerous.

He shares all of the regular Wolverine’s powers and abilities, including an adamantium-laced skeleton that is indestructible. In fact, in one of the most iconic sequences of the famous comic, that metal skeleton is the only thing left of him after a Sentinel brutally destroys his body with an unsurvivable blast.

12 Dark Claw

The Amalgam Fusion Of Batman & Wolverine

Dark Claw is one of the strangest versions of Wolverine, but also one of the most powerful. This fusion of Wolverine and Batman features all of Logan’s powers and abilities, but also wields the detective and analytical skills of Bruce Wayne. This is by far one of the most powerful grounded versions of Wolverine. With all of Batman’s fighting skills and methodical nature, with Wolverine’s power and brutal fighting style.

This character has the Amalgam Comics crossover between Marvel and DC Comics in the mid ’90s to thank, when several leading heroes of the Avengers and Justice League saw their characters combined (creating the Captain America and Superman hybrid Super-Soldier, among others). Dark Claw got the best deal, giving Wolverine all of Bruce Wayne’s wealth, providing him resources to fight crime he never had on his own.

Dark Claw’s primary enemy was The Hyena, a fusion of DC’s Joker and his traditional Marvel rival Sabretooth.

11 ‘Hot Claws’ Wolverine

Wolverine’s Claws Become More Dangerous Than Ever

For a time, the Earth-616 version of Wolverine got a major power upgrade that turned his claws into an entirely different kind of deadly weapon (far beyond the normal bounds of Wolverine’s mutation). After he was brought back to life in the comics, his healing factor became supercharged and excess energy transferred to his claws, which heated up to become ‘hot claws.’

This new power, introduced in the Return of Wolverine mini-series by writer Charles Soule and artist Steve McNiven made the already impossibly sharp adamantium claws even more so, but it’s since been completely forgotten about in the Krakoan era.

10 The Cyclops-Wolverine

A Bizarre Fusion Of X-Men’s Two Powerful Mutants

This Wolverine variant was seen most recently in Sins of Sinister #1 by Kieron Gillen and Josh Cassara, and is presumably a powerful fusion between Wolverine and Cyclops, bestowed with the mutant abilities of each. In his right hand, he wields Wolverine’s iconic Adamantium claws, but in his left, he appears to have Cyclops’ notorious optic blasts primed to fire from his knuckles.

This version of Wolverine was really only seen once, having appeared in just one issue, but it was a fascinating look and what would be an absurdly powerful mutant. Not only would this mutant have the healing factor and the dangerous close combat potential of Wolverine, but he would also also excel at ranged combat and massive area of effect destruction from Cyclops’ optic blasts. The only question would be whether he’s more of a reliable leader or wild card. Either way, his enemies won’t stand a chance.

9 Marvel’s Wolverine Terminator

Dr. Doom Stole Wolverine’s Skeleton

When an invasion of Martian Master struck Earth in Marvel’s 691 Universe, Victor Von Doom joined forces with Earth’s heroes to mount a defense. A hopeless one in the end, as the allied Earth heroes succeeded in defeating the invading forces, but most of their number were lost in the effort. People assumed that Dr. Doom had been among those casulalties, but he revealed himself as a survivor in the last way anybody would have ever expected.

Instead of simply dying, Dr. Doom somehow manages to kill Wolverine, and steal his body. This granted Dr. Doom access to Wolverine’s skeleton, which he fashioned into a terrifying, almost Terminator-like body for himself (first seen in Guardians of the Galaxy #24 by Jim Valentino, Steve Montano, and Evelyn Stein). This version of Wolverine was eventually defeated by the Guardians of the Galaxy, but he was able to flee Earth, and remains at large.

8 The Ultimate Wolverine

A Wolverine For A Different Universe

The Wolverine from Earth-1610 mostly has the same powers as his 616 counterpart, but in some respects, he’s even more powerful. The Ultimate Comics character is far more ruthless and willing to use his dangerous powers, making him much more dangerous.

Ultimate Wolverine engineered a scenario that almost killed Cyclops and he later brutally attacked Magneto. He was potentially also a far more advanced martial artist than Wolverine, with sustained training that he seemed to remember more of than the 616 Logan. This version of Wolverine would also change a lot more than the 616 version, with him eventually taking on the identity of an entirely new character.

7 The Future Cable-Wolverine

The Ultimate Change To Wolverine’s Lore

In Ultimate X-Men #75, readers are shown the shocking reveal that the mystery enemy that the X-Men had been fighting against, seemingly Cable, is in fact Wolverine. This is one of the strongest versions of Wolverine for a bunch of different reasons. Not only is this Wolverine significantly more aged and experienced, but he also has full access to Cable’s usual arsenal as well as Wolverine’s power and claws.

The regular 616 version of Cable once took on the Avengers and systemically took them down one by one before they even realized what was going on. That was just the normal Cable who did that. Adding on the fact that Cable now has access to Wolverine’s claws and heightened sense of smell makes him far more dangerous, though this version of Wolverine did lose his healing factor.

6 Weapon Omega

Wolverine Becomes An Apocalyptic Threat

Weapon Omega is one of the most powerful versions of Wolverine in any universe, born and created in a future too grim for most inhabitants of the Marvel Universe to comprehend. He has all the powers and abilities of his Earth-616 version, but also those of Apocalypse, whom he supplants as the leader of the Horsemen in this dystopian universe.

Among the vast powers in his arsenal, Weapon Omega is essentially immortal. He can also teleport, fly, mentally manipulate others and also manipulate his size and shape by controlling his molecules. Apocalypse is stated to be the strongest mutant in Marvel’s Universe, bar none. So adding Wolverine’s abilities into that mixture is an efficient, fantastic way to get a Wolverine who is truly unstoppable.

Weapon Omega first appeared in X-Men: Alpha #1 by Scott Lobdell, Mark Waid, Roger Cruz, Steve Epting, Tim Townsend, Dan Panosian, Steve Buccellato, Electric Crayon, Richard Starkings, and Comicraft.

5 The Hellverine

A Demonic Version Of Wolverine Hell Bent On Revenge

First appearing in Wolverine #1 by Jason Aaron and Renato Guedes, this version of Wolverine is a powerful demon from Hell. This unnamed demon came across a man named Roger, who absolutely despised Wolverine, blaming him for the death of his family. The demon was able to prey on this and struck a deal with Roger. Working together, the two were able to trick Wolverine and send his soul to hell.

With Wolverine’s soul trapped in hell, his body was up for the taking, and the unnamed Demon happily took it over. This aptly-named Hellverine then went on a rampage, attempting to toture and kill Wolverine’s close friends and children. Since this was Wolverine’s body, the demon had all of Wolverine’s powers as well as his own additions, such as control over fire, telekinesis and acid generation.

4 Wolverine, Lord Of The Vampires

Wolverine’s Bloodlust Is Taken To The Next Level

One of the strangest realities in What If..? comic books gave fans one of the most powerful versions of Wolverine, with Issue #24 of the series showing Wolverine bitten by Lord Dracula. Being Wolverine, he soon responded by killing Dracula, leaving him a clear path to becoming the new Lord of the Vampires himself.

Wolverine killed most of the X-Men, turning some to vampires, and was able to control them and others with hypnotic powers. He quickly began a bloody campaign against New York City and the rest of the world. This isn’t the first time Wolverine has encountered Dracula either, as Dracula once tried to use Wolverine’s blood to create an army of daywalkers.

3 The Adamantine Wolverine

Earth-12025 Wolverine, With The Powers Of A God

The Earth-12025 version of Wolverine, or as he’s properly known, the Governor-General of Dominion of Canada, and Viceroy of Her Majesty’s Expedition to Shangri-La is effectively a god-level superhero. Obviously blessed with all the mutant powers of the traditional Wolverine, this incarnation of Loganbut his skeleton and claws are laced in adamantine, a mystical metal favored by the gods of Olympus.

The golden metal is the substance for which the traditional adamantium is named, but the real thing affords Wolverine many advantages, including being immune to any telepathic Earth-12025 attacks. It’s even more durable than adamantium, making Wolverine invulnerable, even to extraordinary power like that of Thor’s hammer.

2 The New Wolverine (Laura Kinney)

A Wolverine For a new Generation

Laura Kinney began her superhero career as the superhero X-23, but has more than earned the official title of Wolverine in the years since her introduction. Originally thought to be a direct clone of Logan with all of his powers and abilities, it was eventually clarified that Laura is Wolverine’s genetic daughter, offering a slightly different explanation for her own superhuman features. Genetic copy or family legacy, Laura is just as skilled as the original Wolverine at tracking people from great distances thanks to a greater sense of smell, and enjoys heightened senses and alertness her teammates can’t hope to match.

Sure, Laura might not have as many claws as he does (only two on each hand), but she has earned the ‘Wolverine’ name from Logan himself. Add in her own incredible career thus far, and the times she has received her own power upgrades (such as the Enigma Force, the source of energy behind Marvel’s heavyweight Captain Universe), and some stories have even seen Laura rank among the most powerful Marvel cosmic characters. Whether you call her Laura, X-23, Talon, or Wolverine, the successor to the legacy of Logan remains a version that lives up to the original.

1 The Phoenix Force Wolverine

The Most Powerful Wolverine Has Ever Become

The most powerful version of Wolverine in the comics is the future host of the Phoenix Force, and one of the most powerful cosmic entities in the Marvel Universe. This version of Wolverine is powerful enough to manipulate matter and reality, and unleash unimaginable cosmic energy.

This future version of Logan seen in the pages of Thor is not only able to travel through space and consume the energy of stars, but do so as one of the last living heroes in the entire Marvel Universe. His combat is almost too overpowered to quanitfy, with his most well known battle with Old King Thor literally taking place across entire galaxies. The universe might need to die for this version of Logan to rise, but it could be worth it to see this form of the Phoenix reign supreme.