Brief discussion of suicide.
In a staggering change to the Marvel hero’s lore, a major member ofWolverine’s story just revealed they’re still alive, beginning a brand-new conspiracy spanning from Logan’s childhood to Marvel’s modern day. Thetruth behind Logan’s familywas revealed in 2001’s historicWolverine: The Origin, but it turns out there are still secrets in the Howletts' past.
InWolverine #8’s ‘This Is Your Life’ from Saladin Ahmed, Martín Cóccolo, Bryan Valenza and Cory Petit, Wolverine receives a mysterious letter. The letter apologizes for past sins and asks him to meet the sender, who isrevealed to be Logan’s mother, Elizabeth Howlett.
The last fans saw of Elizabeth, she seemingly shot herself inWolverine: The Origin #3by Paul Jenkins and Andy Kubert. However, it seems she actually survived, and is now ready to reveal to Logan the truth of their past. That’s major news becauseElizabeth’s family are one of the most dangerous villain dynasties in Marvel history.
This new twist makes it likely that Wolverine’s brother John Howlett Jr. is still out there somewhere.
Wolverine’s Mother Is Redefining His Origin
The Hudson Family Has Twisted Secrets
Wolverine: The Originrevealed a variety of facts about Logan’s early life, from his seemingly deceased older brother to the existence ofWolverine’s half-brother Dog Logan. When Wolverine’s claws first manifested, it was to kill his father John’s murderer, Thomas Logan - the family’s groundskeeper and Wolverine’s biological father. In response, Elizabeth went into shock, kicking Logan out of the family home and raising a shotgun to her head. Readers heard the blast of the weapon and saw Elizabeth’s bloodied body, but didn’t actually see her suicide take place. Now, she’s back, hinting thather reaction to Wolverine’s mutation wasn’t genuine, and that she was forced to kick him out to fend for himself.
While Elizabeth married John Howlett, her family line are the Hudsons, and it’s here that the mystery likely begins. The Hudson family are a billionaire dynasty with ties to the Weapon X Project andthe ages-old villain Romulus, aka the historical founder of Rome. It certainly seems likeRomulus and the Hudson family have been deliberately pulling the strings of Wolverine’s life for centuries. Now, it appears that Elizabeth was part of those plans, and that her rejection of Wolverine and subsequent suicide weren’t what they seemed.
Wolverine #8marks the 400th solo comic starring the hero, and Marvel promised that its events would reshape his life going forward. That promise has been fulfilled in a genuinely unexpected way, as a character thateveryfan assumed was dead and gone makes her return. Given the Hudson family’s connection to Weapon X, it’s possible that Logan’s mutant powers were part of a deliberate breeding program, andit’s even likely that his older brother John Howlett Jr. is still out there somewhere- perhaps John Jr.’s real fate even inspired Elizabeth to save Logan by getting him away from the Hudsons.
Whatever comes next,Wolverinelore just changed forever as his mother re-enters his life, kicking off a dark new mystery that goes right back to Logan’s origin.
