"The Last Mutant Standing": Wolverine its the One Way He's Scared for His Story to End

Summary

Wolverine's worst fear is being the last mutant alive, despite his popular stories often depicting him in that role.
Prominent story arcs like "Days of Future Past" and "Old Man Logan" have featured Wolverine as the last surviving mutant in dystopian futures.
Wolverine's true desire is to be with his loved ones, as he is drawn to protecting others rather than being a lone hero.

Warning: Spoilers for Wolverine (2020) #40 ahead!Wolverine may be the indestructible bogeyman of Marvel's mutants, but even he has his nightmares. In a cruel irony, Wolverine reveals that he's desperate to avoid being "the last mutant standing" - despite his most popular stories casting him into that very role.

Wolverine #40, by Benjamin Percy, Ibrahim Moustafa, and Frank D'armata, sees Wolverine's attempt to take down Orchis going drastically wrong. Having stolen an Orchis ship and with Spider-Man in tow, Wolverine attempts to infiltrate the Orchis space station. However, he is thwarted when Orchis immediately sees through the ruse and sics a squad of Sentinels on him.

Wolverine leaps out of his spaceship as enemy Sentinels destroy it; his inner monologue follows the action, explaining how he doesn't want "to be the last mutant standing."

As Wolverine floats through space while surrounded by Sentinels, he thinks, "For all my hesitations about Krakoa, now that it's been torn away from me...I've spent every moment fighting my way back to it. To them. I don't want to be the last mutant standing."

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Wolverine Rejects His (Incredibly Popular) 'Lone Hero' Future

A Sentinel robot holds Storm in its grasp while blasting Wolverine with its other hand. A text box in the bottom corner dramatically exclaims "This Issue: Everybody Dies!"

This is a particularly disturbing fear for Logan to have, as several prominent stories feature Wolverine in this exact scenario. Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Terry Austin, and Glynis Wein's "Days of Future Past" arc from Uncanny X-Men #141 sees Wolverine as one of the last surviving X-Men leading the (ultimately unsuccessful) charge against a dystopian future created by Senator Kelly and his Sentinels. This timeline would prove to be incredibly popular for future stories, even receiving a film adaptation in 2014's X-Men: Days of Future Past.

This trend of a future Wolverine striking back against a dystopian future continues with "Old Man Logan". Created in 2008 by Mark Millar, Steve McNiven, Dexter Vines, and Morry Hollowell in Wolverine #66, he is once again the last X-Man standing in a world gone to hell (in this instance, having been tricked into slaughtering the rest of the X-Men himself) and having renounced his "Wolverine" persona. This version of the character would again prove popular enough for multiple appearances in subsequent comics, and, once more, a film version would follow (2017's Logan).

All Logan Wants Is To Be With His Loved Ones

Spider-Man webs up a Sentinel's hand, making it blast itself, while Wolverine fights its Wolverine-clone pilot; his inner monologue expresses that "nobody's the best alone" and "if you're not fighting for others, then what's the fighting for

Stories of a grizzled Wolverine leading a desperate lone charge against a broken world may be popular, but Wolverine #40 repudiates this vision for the character. Whether in "Days of Future Past" or as "Old Man Logan," Wolverine always finds himself drawn to protecting others; the image of the snarling, indestructible figure alone against the world is nothing but a facade. Wolverine may be gruff, rude, and one of Marvel's greatest killers...but at the end of the day, his worst nightmare is nothing more than being left behind by his friends and loved ones.

Wolverine #40 (2020)
	Writer: Benjamin Percy Artist: Ibrahim Moustafa Colorist: Frank D'Armata Letterer: VC's Cory Petit Cover Artists: Leinil Francis Yu, Romulo Fajardo Jr.

Wolverine (2020) #40 is available now from Marvel Comics.