007 - The Thirties (version 2.0)

Logan as merchant marine

Leinil Francis Yu and Edgar Tadeo, Wolverine #113.

As the thirties begin, Logan is still in the merchant marines and has returned to the Far East...

Marvel Comics Presents #41 (Jan 1990) – “Black Shadow, White Shadow: China Beachhead”
Writer: Marv Wolfman; Artist: John Buscema

Wolverine mentions he has been to China a few times. He will find himself in China again in 1949. He also notes, “There was a time when I'd dive for the thrill of it. Underwater, floating between schools of fish an' coral shimmerin' like rainbows, there was a sense of peace that I found nowhere else.” It is probable that these diving excursions first took place while with the merchant marine.

Wolverine #113 (May 1997) – “The Wind From the East”

Writer: Larry Hama; Penciler: Leinil Francis Yu; Inker: Edgar Tadeo

Logan flashes back to pre-World War II Shanghai when he was a hard-drinking merchant marine. Specifically, he remembers confronting members of the Japanese Imperial Army when they threaten an old man and defenseless young boy. Showing only defiance in the face of the soldiers, Logan impresses an Imperial Japanese Captain, possibly Ogun himself, and is offered a position at the Ogun Ryu Dojo in Kanazawa, Japan. It is obvious that Logan does not know how to use a sword at this point in his life. Note that Japan landed Imperial Troops in Shanghai in 1932 between January and March to break up boycotts of Japanese goods. This story fits quite well within that time period.

While in the Far East, Logan travels for the first time to Madripoor…

Wolverine #126 (Jul 1998) – “Blood Wedding”

Creators: Chris Claremont & Leinil Francis Yu; Inker: Edgar Tadeo & Gerry Alanguilan

Logan tells Kitty that a diminutive woman by the name of Seraph built the Princess Bar in Madripoor, near Singapore. “I was a punk when Seraph found me. All instincts, all muscle, no mercy, less brains. An animal on two legs, a predator. First time we met, she backed me down with a laugh. She brought beauty to my world and grace… Before Seraph, I did what I pleased. I didn't care. She taught me actions have consequences. And how we deal with them? That defines our morality. Before Seraph, I could claim a kind of innocence.”

Wolverine #128 (Sep 1998) – “Green for Death”

Writer: Chris Claremont; Penciler: Stephen Platt and Angel Unzueta; Inker: Banning, Mendoza, Candelaro, Hunter and Martin

Viper confirms that Seraph was Logan 's salvation. Wolverine agrees that he owed Seraph a lot.

With a new outlook on life, Logan soon finds himself fighting for good around the world…

X-Men: True Friends #2 (Oct 1999) – “Royal Hunt”

Writer: Chris Claremont; Penciler: Rick Leonardi; Inker: Al Williamson & Jimmy Palmiotti

In Edinburgh , Scotland, 1936, Alasdhair Kinross crosses path with Kitty Pryde, a young time-traveling mutant teammate of Logan's from the 1990s. After a confrontation with Baron Strucker and an Egyptian telepath named Amahl Farouk, Kinross and Pryde are dumped in the Edinburgh harbor and left for dead. Logan rescues them, calling himself Wolverine, sporting claws and a powerful mutant healing ability. The only way to explain the existence of this “Wolverine” and his claws is that he was transported through time from the future. As Logan says, “Some people I work with called in a marker, said there'd be trouble, young folks needin' help.”

X-Men: True Friends #3 (Nov 1999) – “Claiming the Crown”

Writer: Chris Claremont; Penciler: Rick Leonardi; Inker: Al Williamson

While battling Baron Strucker, Logan makes more comments that are in line with his future self, “Kill me as many times as you like, my healing factor will always bring me back. I'm the new kid on the block, the next generation of humanity's evolution.” And when Kitty returns to the present, her time-travels are confirmed by Logan and others, suggesting that the events took place within our continuity and not some alternate timeline.

Wolverine #35 (Jan 1991) – “Blood, Sand and Claws”

Writer: Larry Hama, Penciler: Marc Silvestri; Inker: Dan Green

While fishing in Vancouver with Eugene Judd (Puck of Alpha Flight), Logan makes reference to a woman named Inez who spent time with Ernest Hemingway in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War. Within moments, a time vortex sends Logan, Judd and Lady Deathstrike back in time to April 26, 1937 in Guernica, Spain , the day of a devastating German raid. There, it becomes obvious that Ernest Hemingway and Inez, a Partisan, are already quite familiar and friendly with Logan. Considering that Hemingway arrived in Spain in February of 1937, it is quite possible that Logan met Hemingway in March of 1937 in conjunction with the Partisans of the Spanish Civil War. Due to Logan 's time travel, there is a record of events in Guernica of Logan's actions that are directly a result of the modern-day Logan's participation.

Wolverine #79 (Mar 1994) – “Cyber, Cyber, Burning Bright”

Scripter: Larry Hama; Penciler: Adam Kubert; Inker: Mark Farmer & Mike Sellers

While fighting Zoe Culloden at the Landau, Luckman and Lake offices in Edinburgh , Scotland, Logan knocks over a filing cabinet filled with records on his life. One folder is marked, “Logan: Spanish Civil War Records.”

Logan as merchant marine

Alan Davis and Mark Farmer , Uncanny X-Men #455.

Uncanny X-Men #455 (April 2005) – “Not Dead Yet?!”
Writer: Chris Claremont; Penciler: Alan Davis; Inker: Mark Farmer

When visiting Mary McKenna at the Royal Tyrrell Institute in Drumheller, Alberta, Canada, Logan sees an old photo of himself and a man with an eyepatch holding the jawbone of a Tyrannosaurus Rex. This is possibly Mary McKenna’s grandfather, suggesting that Logan was on a dig with the elder McKenna in the 1930s.

Wolverine #183 (Jan 2003) – “…And Got Yourself a Gun”
Writer: Frank Tieri; Penciler: Sean Chen; Inker: Tom Palmer

Logan states, “…even I got a little choked up…” to Lou Gehrig's farewell speech at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939, suggesting Logan returned to the States briefly before traveling back to Japan.

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