Marvel’s Wolverine is known as a fierce fighter who can defeat even the mightiest of opponents – but this X-Men legend has a difficult time fighting Colossus. Both mutants are ostensibly on the same side; they differ greatly in temperament but are not afraid to fight for mutants against a world that hates them. While Colossus uses his brute strength, Wolverine uses his claws, which can cut through almost anything – except Colossus himself.
Both mutants were introduced in the 70s and are absolutely a product of their times. Wolverine was a wanderer at heart, a man without a past and an uncertain future who fought for himself more than any other government institution (outside of Canada’s Alpha Flight, which he later left anyway). Colossus, hailing from the then-Soviet Union, was a quiet artist in the body of an impossibly strong warrior, who wanted to serve his family and despised the Communist regime in his heart. Both men would serve on Professor X’s second X-Men team in Giant-Sized X-Men #1, and would soon become fan favorites for years to come.
Wolverine’s mutant powers include heightened senses, a high-powered healing factor, and bone claws – but one of his signature elements was manmade. Logan’s entire skeleton is coated with the super-strong metal adamantium, including his claws; he can thus cut through nearly any material. But Wolverine’s fight with Colossus in 2010’s Wolverine #4 proves that Logan does have some difficulty slicing through Colossus. Possessed by a demon, Wolverine attacks Colossus – but he quickly finds that glancing blows with his claws do absolutely nothing to Colossus’ metal skin.
Wolverine’s Claws Can Cut Through (Almost) Anything
Wolverine eventually manages to pierce Colossus’ skin, but only after a Herculean effort (“Blood…where there’s blood, there are soft red squishy parts…let’s open you up and have a look at them” he says during the fight). This is not a case of Logan holding back against his teammate – his body is temporarily under control of a bloodthirsty entity who clearly wishes to hurt Colossus. Even with the demon’s fury, Colossus’ skin manages to stand up to Wolverine’s claws, meaning the mutant can’t slice through everything (Captain America’s shield being another notable object).
While Colossus is nigh-invulnerbale in his metallic form, he must remain in that metallic form if he sustains an injury too great for his human body to heal. Colossus is also completely powerless when not in his adamantium form; Wolverine can always heal regardless of his state. Wolverine, given enough time, could defeat Colossus in a fight using only his claws, but he would have a terrifically difficult time doing so; the latter’s skin is made of adamantium, same as Logan’s claws, and even a demon-controlled Wolverine can do very little against him.
