Wolverine’s adamantium skeleton and claws are unquestionably iconic aspects of his character in X-Men canon, but perhaps that fact has clouded fans’ minds regarding the truth that Wolverine is actually cooler without his adamantium. Sure, it has its usefulness, and the storyline associated with how Wolverine got his adamantium is legendary, but when one breaks it down, Logan simply doesn’t need it – and he’d be more badass without it.

While Wolverine was technically introduced with adamantium claws (though they were meant to be a part of his gloves at the time of his first appearance in The Incredible Hulk #180-#181), it would be years after his debut that the story of how he got them would be told. That story is Marvel Comics Presents: Weapon X by Barry Windsor-Smith. In it, readers are shown for the first time how Logan was taken by the Weapon X Program, as well as the entire excruciating process of how the adamantium was grafted onto his skeleton.

Weapon X is as dark as fans would expect a story like that to be, and the artwork captures the tone perfectly. It’s one of Wolverine’s most brutal storylines to date, but more than that, Weapon X is a story that will never be forgotten, as it details how Wolverine got his adamantium claws. However, while the storyline itself is badass, it ironically prevents Wolverine himself from reaching his full badass potential, as his adamantium-laced skeleton is something that’s arguably holding him back.

Wolverine’s Adamantium Skeleton is Redundant & Lessens His Badass, Battle-Worn Appearance

Wolverine’s healing factor allows him to recover from practically any injury, though the one thing that it doesn’t have to worry about – thanks to the adamantium bonding – is broken bones. That’s one of the few perks to his adamantium skeleton, which is a bit redundant, and lessens the brutality of any given action sequence involving Wolverine. Imagine Wolverine taking on an army of enemy soldiers, protruding bones, broken claws, and ripped flesh littering his body while his healing factor works overtime to keep up, and Logan just keeps fighting. Adamantium robs fans of that R-rated visual.

Not only is it odd that Wolverine is immune to broken bones despite the fact that his healing factor could cover that (while also lessening the gruesome potential of his battle-worn appearance), but it’s also not very practical. Adamantium makes Wolverine’s body incredibly heavy, meaning he’d be way more effective in combat without it, as he’d be faster and more agile. Plus, Wolverine’s skeleton doesn’t even fulfill the logical function of holding his body together, as he’s shown being torn apart by a Wendigo in Wolverine #37, and he’s able to slice off his hands and feet in Wolverine #42.

Then, there’s the problem with his adamantium claws, which could have been the only redeeming aspect of the adamantium skeleton, but decidedly isn’t.

Wolverine’s Claws Aren’t Strong Enough to Justify His Adamantium Skeleton

It would be one thing if Wolverine’s claws could cut through anything and everything, as that alone would justify his adamantium skeleton, but they can’t – and never could. There are metals such as vibranium and mysterium that put adamantium to shame, and these metals are appearing all over the Marvel Universe as of late. Plus, even in the early days of X-Men canon, Wolverine’s adamantium claws still had limits, as they were shown to just bounce off things like Juggernaut’s helmet, and various other substances that were ‘too strong to cut through’.

Iron Man alone, in the current canon, has a suit made of mysterium (a truly unbreakable metal from the White Hot Room), meaning he’d destroy Wolverine in a one-on-one fight, no laser cannons needed. And even before Iron Man got this upgrade, vibranium was shown to stop Wolverine’s claws in their tracks when Wolverine famously went toe-to-toe with Captain America, whose shield includes vibranium alloy.

Wolverine’s claws are supposed to be able to cut through anything, but they can’t – so, what’s the point? Sure, he can cut through most things like doors and gates, but at that point it’d be more exciting to see Wolverine’s claws in a different (more brutal) light. One can’t use bone to cut through doors or gates, but a jagged piece of skeleton can absolutely rip someone to shreds.

Marvel Comics Already Confirmed Wolverine’s Adamantium is Holding Him Back

Wolverine #91 by Larry Hama and Duncan Rouleau

After Magneto ripped the adamantium from Wolverine’s skeleton in the X-Men storyline Fatal Attractions (which, alone, is another downside to Wolverine’s adamantium), it was revealed for the first time to Marvel Comics fans that Wolverine even had bone claws at all. It was previously believed that Weapon X implanted the claws during the adamantium bonding process, but once the metal was ripped from his bones, it was confirmed that he had bone claws all along. Of course, retrospectively, subsequent Wolverine origin stories depicted him with bone claws before he found himself taken by Weapon X, but those stories wouldn’t have existed without Feral Wolverine.

Feral Wolverine is what Logan became after the adamantium was removed from his body. As confirmed by Charles Xavier in Wolverine #91, the adamantium was actually holding back Logan’s mutation. Wolverine’s body was in a constant state of fighting off the adamantium poisoning, and as a result, stunted the natural progression of Logan’s mutation. When Wolverine became Feral, he had become what he was always meant to be: an animal.

Wolverine was still cognizant (after training his mind and body with Elektra), he just took on a more animalistic appearance in his Feral state. Not only that, he was far stronger than before as well. Wolverine’s healing factor and heightened senses were cranked way up without the adamantium in his body, not to mention, his bone claws were much bigger and littered with jagged ridges. Once he got his mind right, it’s fair to say that Feral Wolverine was better than Wolverine with his adamantium in every regard (minus his looks).

Wolverine’s adamantium skeleton is redundant, it robs him of looking as cool as he could in battle, it keeps him from being as deadly as he could be by weighing him down, his claws aren’t even that strong – and really never were – and Marvel Comics confirmed in the ‘90s that his adamantium was actively holding back his mutation. While Wolverine himself didn’t have a choice when it came to the adamantium bonding, Marvel Comics certainly did, and it could be argued that it made the wrong one, as Wolverine is actually cooler without his adamantium.