This article contains spoilers for X-Men Legends #8
Marvel Comics’ Wolverine is arguably the most recognizable member of the X-Men and possibly one of the most popular characters in all of Marvel, and there’s one cover featuring the mutant berserker that is almost iconic as the X-Man himself. Now, that cover is getting a tribute in the latest issue of X-Men Legends.
Wolverine made his comic debut in an issue of The Incredible Hulk, so, fittingly, one of his most famous comic book covers comes from an issue of the same book, seeing Wolverine with his claws extended and ready to battle the Jade Giant. Years later, that imagery still permeates modern comics. In X-Men Legends #8 written by Larry Hama with art by Billy Tan and Chris Sotomayor, Wolverine is on a mission to rescue Jubilee from the villainous Lady Deathstrike and her shadowy organization. After successfully freeing Jubilee from her containment, she and Logan team up to fight Lady Deathstrike and escape. Unbeknownst to them, however, the Russian supervillain Omega Red was also involved in Jubilee’s kidnapping and joins the fight against the X-Men. Once it seems the X-Men have won the day, Wolverine’s arch-nemesis Sabretooth appears, giving them a new challenger to contend with.
The issue ends on a cliffhanger after the Sabretooth reveal, teasing the next issue of the saga with a preview of its cover. The cover of the upcoming X-Men Legends #9 depicts Wolverine with his claws drawn and the reflections of Lady Deathstrike, Omega Red, and Sabretooth in each of his claws. The cover is a clear tribute to Todd McFarlane’s cover for The Incredible Hulk #340, which sees Wolverine in the same pose as on the cover of X-Men Legends #9. except with the Hulk in the reflection of Wolverine’s claws rather than three of his greatest foes.
The tribute proves how timeless McFarlane’s Incredible Hulk Wolverine cover is and how influential it has been on future Marvel books. While X-Men Legends is the latest comic series to derive inspiration from McFarlane’s cover, it certainly isn’t the first. Another example of this idea being used was for a variant cover of Wolverine #8 in celebration of the 350th issue of a Wolverine solo book. This Wolverine cover was roughly the same image of Wolverine, but instead with Venom in the reflection of his claws.
The influence of the imagery first seen brought to life on the cover of the original The Incredible Hulk issue is evident. An iconic cover for an iconic character, Wolverine’s reflective claws have become a playground in which many artists can imagine the reflection of Wolverine’s latest challenger to reside, and this time it’s three of Wolverine’s latest and deadliest challengers. Marvel pays perfect tribute to McFarlane’s famous Wolverine cover art, and it assuredly won’t be the last time they’ll do so.
