Warning! Spoilers ahead for Avengers #42 from Jason Aaron and Luca Maresca
In the latest issue of Marvel Comics' Wolverine is the next hero chosen to become the Phoenix in the latest issue. However, he also reveals a hilarious secret about one of his go-to attacks with the X-Men, and it's pretty great.
While the Phoenix Tournament began with a roster of nearly 20 different contenders, that number is now down to about half. Beyond those who were simply defeated, some actually forfeited their duels such as Doctor Doom and Hyperion, and Shang-Chi was even disqualified as a contender due to Captain America intentionally trying to lose to him, believing him to be the most balanced choice if someone absolutely has to become the new Phoenix host. However, Wolverine has a very cynical view of the Phoenix Force. Out of all of the contenders, he's arguably been the most personally affected by the Phoenix in the past, due to its tendency to claim past hosts he's been close to such as Jean Grey, as well as Rachel and Hope Summers. He also knows how tempting the power of the Phoenix can be.
Logan believes in this issue that in spite of his allies claiming that they don't want its unpredictable and unruly power, deep down they're all wondering if they could be the one who could manage and handle the Phoenix, as he himself feels the same way. Who wouldn't want to be able to come back from the dead and fly? In Wolverine's mind, everyone wants to fly, and that's why he has Colossus throw him around so often in their iconic Fastball Special attack. Apparently, it's less of a strategic move and more due to Wolverine's desire to simulate the feeling of flying through the air, which is pretty funny considering all of the times they've used it in past comics.
The Fastball Special is one of the most classic forms of mutant power synergy, which has recently become a large focus in writer Jonathan Hickman's X-Men comics. Mutantkind has taken synergies to heart on a whole new level within their new nation of Krakoa, incorporating them into their technologies such as their resurrection protocols, infrastructure building, resource management, defenses, and more. As such, the Fastball Special could be considered to be a foundation of these new initiatives. However, to learn that its prevalence is due to Logan simply liking the feeling of flying through the air after being chucked by Colossus is pretty dang funny.
Despite the overall dire and intense nature of this issue of Avengers, this relatively small line revealed a great deal, providing a pretty humorous undertone to Wolverine's debut as a Phoenix warrior. In any case, Wolverine is about to face Black Panther by the issue's end, and it's as of yet unclear who the victor will be in future issues. However, if Wolverine does defeat Black Panther, it will put him one step closer to being able to fly like he's apparently always wanted to do. At least there's a potential silver lining there, however small it may be as the series continues from Marvel Comics.
