No image of Marvel's Wolverine is complete without his signature claws, a result of his animal-like mutation that allows him to wield three razor-sharp blades from each fist. But despite more than fifty years of comic book stories, Marvel still hasn't answered one question: how do Wolverine's claws actually work?

The iconic claws, the Weapon X program that grafted the metal to Wolverine's skeleton, and even the science behind that adamantium are all common knowledge for X-Men fans. Which makes it all the more shocking that nobody, not even the minds at Marvel, can explain what is happening inside Logan's arms that allows him to expel or retracts his claws?

How Does Wolverine Actually Control His Claws?

Fans Know The 'Snikt!' But Have No Clue How They're Triggered

To make the question perfectly clear, the entire world is fully aware that with an audible "SNIKT" Logan can send the three blades from inside his arm, to outside his arm. It's a simple enough motion, even if we have seen what happens when Logan doesn't orient his hands properly to the claws. And it's also clear that the claws are released or retracted based on a conscious decision to do so. But even accepting that Logan controls his claws like any other appendage, the question of 'how the claws operate' on a biological and mechanical level, is still unanswered.

It's simple to say 'Logan can move his claws in and out with muscles'... But there is one massive problem: that isn't how muscles actually work.

This would normally be the point at which we would dive into comic book history to explain what inspired the most well-known version shown in movies, or how the film versions simplified comic book lore, but not in this case. Because all evidence suggests Marvel also doesn't have an answer, and every attempt to come up with an explanation has proven as nonsensical as the rest.

Wolverine's Original Claws Were Knives, Not A Mutation

The First X-Men Movie Suggested The Blades Were Artificial

If the first film version of the X-Men (2000) is responsible for making Hugh Jackman's Wolverine an icon, then it's a good place to start. The filmmakers needed to come up with a clear way of explaining the nature and function of Wolverine's claws to worldwide audiences, so the simpler the better. The scene depicting the x-ray scans of Wolverine's entire body reveals their solution: Wolverine's movie claws appear artifically implanted and, presumably, operated mechanically.

The film doesn't outright state that the claws are entirely artificial (at least not as much as Logan's own horrified reaction to them in X2 flashbacks), but the impression of metal rods, cylindrical sleeves, ed to one device or object at their base is immediate and effective. Perhaps unfaithful to the comics, but considering Marvel's own lack of explanation it seems a job well done on the production's part.

Surprisingly, this explanation is closer in spirit to the debut of Wolverine than any idea of 'bone claws' being part of Logan's mutation. Because when he first debuted in Hulk #181 by Wein, Roy Thomas, and John Romita Sr., Wolverine's claws were just retractable adamantium blades built into his gloves. Wein revealed the truth in a 2009 blog post, crediting Dave Cockrum and Chris Claremont for improving on the claw concept (in Giant-Size X-Men #1):

"While I readily it that my original idea was for Wolvie's claws to extend from the backs of his gloves (I figured that since Adamantium is indestructible, telescoping claws no more than a molecule thick could fit into those casings in the backs of Adamantium gloves, which had then been covered in cloth. Dave and Chris definitely improved on that idea)."

So in both the comics and the movies Wolverine's claws were introduced as collapsing knives, somehow controlled by their operator. Concealed blades given to him by the Weapon X masterminds, uniquely suited to a mutant of his strength and healing ability.

Wolverine's Bone Claw Retcon Made The Problem Worse

Wolverine's Claws Are Natural, But Don't Work Like Any Animal

Marvel's creative then tossed with clean explanation, and instead revealed Logan's metal claws were secretly covering genuine spears of natural bone, grown as part of his mutation. It should come as no surprise to learn that 'foot-long switchblade bone knives' rarely occur in nature, so there's no hope of explaining them biologically. Which is the core problem, as giving Wolverine functioning bone claws means he had to control them organically, without any assistance.

Hugh Jackman and Wolverine are both living statues of muscle, so that's the answer! That's the easiest (and most frequently occuring) explanation, but in order for it to make any sense at all, you have to know nothing about muscles.

No, Wolverine's Claws Can't Be Controlled By His 'Muscles' Alone

It's simple to say 'Logan can move his claws in and out with muscles,' and immense credit to artist Jonah Lobe for offering the best possible depiction of this theory in Marvel Anatomy: A Scientific Study of the Superhuman (pictured above). Claws are contained within the arm bones, and attached muscles extend to launch them to full length. But there is one massive problem: that isn't how muscles actually work. Every muscle in the body can only pull, never push, meaning this explanation defies biology.

While innaccurate for claw extension, Lobe's diagram offers a perfect illustration of how contracting muscles can manipulate the skeleton when viewed in reverse order (from top to bottom, or extended to retracted).

This is the point at which Marvel seems to have called it quits, accepting the claws as nonsense, or fantasy. But we're not satisfied. So we've concocted our own theory taking inspiration from the ligaments and tendons found within a normal human arm and hand.

Marvel Can't Explain How Wolverine's Claws Work, But We Have A Theory

Our Idea Isn't Perfect, But It's Based on Real Biology

Humans hands don't need muscles to be strong, relying on tendons controlled by muscles in the forearm to offer dexterity and strength down to our fingertips. If Logan's mutations blessed him with additional tendons for these bones, one can imagine them being 'loaded' within his arm--picture Wolverine's claws strung on this retracted tendon within his forearm, like arrows on a loaded bow. It would then be feasible for him to quikcly contract this tendon, forcing the claws to break the skin and extend in a blink.

Of course, even more mutant tendons would be needed to reverse this process, given the speed with which Wolverine's claws return inside his arm. This complex pulley system of tendons would also need to be specialized for each claw (as Wolverine has shown the ability to retract and expel them independently). Not to mention that the muscles needed to drive these tendons would require Wolverine's wrists to be shoulder-sized ts.

Artificial claws remain the best explanation, but Marvel wrote that out of canon a long time ago. With no other explanation either offered or plausible, is a tendon-driven-claw theory plausible? Perhaps. But if Wolverine's claws don't occur in nature, then no solution is likely to make complete sense.

Source: Len Wein