So far, the new Ultimate Universe has introduced a new group of Ultimates (who are essentially the Avengers), Reed Richards as Doctor Doom, and an all-new and all-different set of mutants. Of all the new Ultimate Marvel Comics characters, however, Wolverine becoming the Winter Soldier may be the most interesting.
Ultimate Wolverine creative team
- Writer: Christopher Condon
- Art by: Alessandro Cappuccio
- Colorist: Bryan Valenza
Ultimate Wolverine is only two issues into the series as of writing. The debut issue explained some of Logan’s past and how he was captured. Readers also saw that he was friends with Nightcrawler like on Earth-616. Issue No. 2 shows the Maker kill The Professor to ensure that Logan would never get adamantium in his body like he did in his origin. Also like his origin, he was treated like an animal and brutally tested by his handlers.
The next issue has Gambit and Kitty Pryde on the cover. The description for Ultimate Wolverine No. 4 says that Winter Solider is beginning to question his masters and wants to know who Logan is. With their weapon not following orders, it could be time to bring in one of Wolverine’s oldest enemies, Sabretooth. As reported by Comic Book Resorces, the Ultimate Wolverine No. 5 description says:
"ULTIMATE SABRETOOTH CLAWS HIS WAY ONTO THE SCENE! Mysteries of Ultimate Wolverine's past are revealed when a familiar face joins the fray!"
It makes sense that Leaders Rasputin (Colossus and Magik) and Leader Rossovich (Omega Red) would have a backup plan if their tool escaped. Considering Sabretooth's connection to Logan in the main continuity, this is the most logical opponent for Wolverine in this story. He’s also one of the few people who could survive the adamantium bonding (thanks to his healing factor) and he’s more brutal than Logan. On top of that, it's the perfect time for writer Christopher Condon to have Wolverine lose his first fight only to overcome things later.
It’ll be great to see what changes are made to Sabretooth. There isn’t much to go on with the Instagram image from artist Alessandro Cappuccio. Plus there’s no guarantee that it’s the final art for the cover. His face could become clearer and reveal that he’s not Victor Creed. For all we know, it could be any of Logan’s past enemies and even his friends.
Romulus, Wild Child, and Wolfsbane are all characters that could be Ultimate Sabretooth. They all have claws and a connection to Logan in the main continuity. Yes, not having Victor Creed be Sabretooth could be disappointing. However, we’ve already seen changes to characters like Jennifer Walters not being Ultimate She-Hulk and Tony Stark becoming Iron Lad. Realistically, as long as the story is good, it shouldn’t matter. Since the new Ultimate Universe hasn’t had many misses yet, this writer will keep his faith in the creative team on this title.
Stay tuned to Bam Smack Pow and our social media pages (Bluesky, Instagram, and Twitter) for more Marvel Comics news as it comes out.