Hulk have a shared history paved with epic battles and blood-soaked feuds. Still, despite their history of being pinned against one another, Wolverine only has one true way of hurting the Hulk: his adamantium. Wolverine is one of Marvel’s most elite heroes, with his berserker rage and battle-hardened attitude, but without his metal-coated claws, there is no way for the iconic X-Man to operate on Hulk’s level.

In Incredible Hulk #454 – written by Peter David, with art by Adam Kubert– Hulk and Wolverine once again find themselves at odds; however, this time, Wolverine is without his adamantium and instead wields his original bone claws. When Wolverine slashes Hulk’s throat, Hulk holds his neck in shock, expecting himself to be wounded, but then comes to realize Wolverine can’t pierce his skin with his bare claws.

Wolverine and the Hulk have fought before, but this moment goes to show that Wolverine can only hold his own against the green giant because of his upgraded claws from Weapon X.

Wolverine’s Fight With Hulk Proves His Adamantium Is Absolutely Essential

Incredible Hulk #454 – Written By Peter David; Art By Adam Kubert; Released In 1997

Even with Wolverine’s claws, the Wolverine takes the Hulk down by going into a berserker rage and piercing his chest using his claws. Similarly, in Savage Wolverine #5 – written and illustrated by Frank Cho, Logan manages to stab the Hulk in the brain, causing the Hulk to falter and Wolverine to claim a brief victory.

Wolverine’s origins of being experimented on during Weapon X remains one of the darkest and visceral storylines, and the adamantium skeleton and claws he gained from it set him apart from other heroes. Nevertheless, there have been times when Wolverine has lost his iconic set of adamantium-coated claws, and it was originally believed that Logan remained just as strong, if not stronger, in certain ways, such as his high healing factor. However, Wolverine’s fights with the Hulk sans adamantium prove his metal-coated claws are a necessity if he wants to have a fighting chance against thick-skinned juggernauts like the Hulk.

Without Wolverine’s Biggest Asset, He Becomes Much More Vulnerable To The Hulk

Wolverine’s Bones Minus Adamantium Are A Liability

Wolverine’s twice as efficient without his adamantium, but his adamantium does serve an important purpose to Wolverine in combat, which is to protect him from broken bones. The Hulk himself exploited this weakness by breaking Wolverine’s bone claws; though Wolverine is a force to be reckoned with, with or without his adamantium skeleton, broken bones are a liability that takes Wolverine out of a fight as it takes longer for his healing factor to fix.

Without ademantuim, the Hulk severely outclasses Wolverine, showing just how important the world’s most unbreakable metal is to his invulnerability...

Logan has been able to take on foes who are vastly bigger than him, and the Hulk is no exception. Wolverine is generally able to hold his own against Hulk-level enemies, but this is only the case when Wolverine dons his adamantium claws, as Logan’s incredible healing factor can only take him so far. Without ademantuim, the Hulk severely outclasses Wolverine, showing just how important the world’s most unbreakable metal is to his invulnerability and his ability to compete with the Marvel Universe’s heaviest hitters.