"Wolverine: Old Man Logan" is an eight-issue storyline from the Wolverine
ongoing series by writer Mark Millar and artist Steve McNiven, published by
Marvel Comics. It began in June 2008, ran through Wolverine #66-72 and ended
in Wolverine Giant-Size Old Man Logan in September 2009. It is set in an
alternate universe designated as Earth-807128.
Set over fifty years in the future, it uses a similar premise to another Millar
book, Wanted, in which the world's supervillains band together to finally
destroy all superheroes. The hardcover collected edition was published January
1, 2010. A new volume of Old Man Logan debuted
during the 2015 Secret Wars storyline, written by Brian Michael Bendis with art
by Andrea Sorrentino. This will be followed by an ongoing series beginning
in January 2016, written by Jeff Lemire with Sorrentino returning as artist.
Hugh Jackman, who has played Wolverine in the X-Men film series since 2000, has
hinted that Old Man Logan is the basis for the third Wolverine solo film, but
this has not been confirmed by 20th Century Fox.
Plot = Volume One=
The United States has been conquered and divided amongst supervillains, with
territories belonging to The Abomination, Magneto, Dr. Doom and the
Red Skull, who has named himself President. Heroes have been wiped out of
existence, with the few survivors in hiding. Logan lives with his wife
Maureen and young children Scotty and Jade on a barren plot of land in
Sacramento, California, now part of the territory known as "Hulkland." Logan,
needing money to pay rent to his landlords, accepts a job from a
now-blind Hawkeye - to help him travel east to the capital of New Babylon, and
deliver a secret package. Logan and Hawkeye encounter several
diversions on their journey. They rescue Hawkeye's daughter, from the clutches of
the new Kingpin, before she murders Kingpin and reveals her intention to
seize his territory. They escape a cluster of Moloids, who
are destroying cities by sinking them from beneath the surface. They then get
chased by a Venom symbiote-infused dinosaur, before being rescued and
teleported by the White Queen and Black Bolt.
Throughout the story it is reiterated that the "Wolverine" persona died the
day the villains attacked, and Logan has refused to use his claws ever since. Via
flashbacks it is revealed that on the night the attack happened, a group of
forty supervillains apparently attacked the X-Mansion. Unable to locate his
teammates, Wolverine slaughtered the attackers to ensure the safety of the
mutant children. As the last "attacker" was killed, Logan realized that the
entire assault was an illusion created by Mysterio, and his perceived enemies
were actually his fellow X-Men. This destroyed him emotionally and mentally,
and he fled the Mansion and wandered away to a train track in shock and
shame. Though he made a subsequent suicide attempt by allowing a freight
train to run him over, Logan could not actually kill himself, but had
effectively killed "Wolverine". When they finally reach the capital,
Hawkeye delivers his package to an underground resistance group hoping to
begin a new Avengers-esque team. The package is revealed to be a case of
Super Soldier Serum, enough to form an army. But Hawkeye's clients expose
themselves as undercover S.H.I.E.L.D agents. They shoot and kill Logan and
Hawkeye. However, Logan's body heals, and he awakens in Red Skull's trophy
room amongst the armaments and costumes of the world's fallen superheroes.
Without using his claws, he kills Red Skull's men and engages Red Skull
himself, eventually decapitating him with Captain America's shield. He grabs
a briefcase of money and uses pieces of Iron Man's armor to fly back home.
Upon arriving, Logan discovers that in his absence the Hulk's grandchildren
murdered his family, and left the bodies unburied. This results in Logan finally
unleashing his claws. He seeks out and slaughters almost the entire Banner clan
before encountering old man Banner himself, who displays monstrous strength
even in his human form. Banner reveals that while the murder of Logan's family
was intended as a message to others, he really just wanted to get Logan angry
enough to fight him because he had gotten bored being a "super-villain
landlord" like the others. In his Hulk form, Banner is enormous, bigger than
the Hulk has ever been shown before, and easily defeats Logan and then consumes
him. Logan recuperates within Banner's stomach and bursts out, killing the
Hulk. Afterward, he discovers a baby hulk - Bruce Banner Junior.
A month later, Logan and his neighbors hold a small memorial for Logan's
family. With nothing left on his old home, Logan then says he plans to defeat
all the new world villains and bring peace to the land—-with him and Bruce
Banner Junior, being the first members of a new group of superheroes—before
riding off into the sunset. Collected editions
Sequels = Secret Wars=
The 2015 Secret Wars storyline features an Old Man Logan miniseries. The
Battleworld domain associated with this reality is the Wastelands.
Somewhere in the Wastelands, a poker game is being played. A guy in a
Daredevil costume is given some face time. He has news to deliver: the Hulks
seem to have vanished off world. The head honcho is named Gladiator. He
sports an Iron Man helmet and has that code name tattooed all across his chest.
He is doubtful of this piece of news. The wannabe Daredevil begins to tell him
of "this guy." That is interrupted by the appearance of said guy. A shadowy
figure who wants to take down the falsely-named straw boss for the
abduction and murder of children. This mystery man is so bold that when he is
threatened with the count of three, he pours cola over DD’s head and does the
countdown himself. Gladiator is enraged, pulls out his guns, and orders his
execution. After Logan defeats Gladiator, a bullet grazes Logan’s face.
A chubby, bald boy pulled the trigger where he is upset that Logan killed his
father who happened to be that town’s tyrant. Logan tells the kid that he did
him an enormous service and that he’ll be grateful in the near future. The boy
vows vengeance. Logan will indulge him if/when that day comes. The townsfolk
gather round. Logan encourages them all to relish their freedom. His encouraging
words are met with silence. Trotting along atop his alabaster equine, Logan
travels at a slow, undetermined pace. After a minor dust storm, Logan spots an
Ultron helmet. In a Hamlet-esque pose, he speaks to it expecting a response. He
is a bit baffled by this. Logan makes a pit stop at home. Danielle Cage is
waiting for him along with a baby Hulk. Danielle wonders about Logan’s
well-being and asks of his mission. Both A-OK. When Dani espies the
Adamantium-laced cranium, she is at a loss. Logan informs her that it comes
from a malevolent AI and that her dad busted a few back in his day. He is
leaving immediately where he must investigate the waylaid relic. When
Logan asks her how she is getting along with little Bruce Banner Jr., she enjoys
the company and mentions the infant’s voracious appetite. Logan has to abandon
her once again. With a tinge of sadness, he states that she takes after both
parents in terms of her looks. Danielle cuts him short since they are deceased.
Logan drops enough cash for her to get food and supplies. As he walks out, a
family photo shows Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and Dani as an infant. Logan
makes his way to Hammer Falls, Nevada. This is the reinterpretation of Sin
City. As he approaches a seedy hotel, Logan encounters Emma Frost who uses her
abilities to make Logan see her as Jean Grey. Logan is disappointed at the
ramshackle where Emma now resides. She flat out blames him. After he took out
the Kingpin, the Hulk Clan, and Banner himself, a vacuum was created. The
Punishers vied for the power that granted them the open territories. Emma
came to the city and witnessed the massacre. She tried to overtake them,
but her elderly status has weakened her powers. Logan is seeking Ultron-8 so
that he can examine the head. It belonged to an Ultron-5. Emma tells him
to cease and desist and live the idyllic existence. Emma points out that Logan
already has the answer to his question. Number Five’s helmet came from over the
Shield. He shouldn’t bother playing the hero anymore. He retorts that King Doom
is supposed to be the absolute saviour. Logan tries to convince Emma that she
can still make a life for herself. Just then, the Punishers arrive and kill Emma
Frost. They were so quick in their attacks that she couldn’t turn into her
diamond form. Emma Frost's telepathic assaults exacerbated the situation
rather than subdue the gun-crazed men. She’s bleeding out, but assures Logan
she feels no pain. He commends her on her lifelong contributions. She mentions
how much she misses teaching which Logan agrees with. Her last words are the fact
that she was awaiting the angel of death and assumed it to be Logan. Logan then
reaches the Shield and starts to climb it.
Logan finally makes it to the top of the wall and sees a cityscape in the
distance. Before he can climb down the other side, he is met by a member of the
Thor Corps that tells what he has done is forbidden, something Logan is
oblivious to. Logan says that Thor looks like a half dead man, which earns him a
lightning bolt that fries his body and falls to the other side of the wall.
Thor goes down to look for Logan, but only finds wild animals. As Thor flies
away, a naked Logan appears. While trying to get rehydrated at a nearby
pond, Logan is attacked by a tiger. Logan quickly kills the tiger only to
come face to face with Sabretooth, who has some soldiers as his back-up.
Unbeknownst to him, Logan had actually reached the Domain of Apocalypse. The
soldiers open fire on Logan, who can barely defend himself until a lightning
bolt suddenly strikes down and takes out all of Sabretooth’s soldiers. Logan
looks up to see who it is thinking at first to be Thor coming back to finish
him off. It turns out to be Storm and the X-Men. Before he can say a word to
them, Logan passes out from all the pain he has endured. Sometime later, Logan
wakes up in a Japanese-styled house where he finds a picture of one of the
first X-Men teams he was a part of hanging on the wall. A young Emma Frost
walks into the house who reveals that they are actually in his mind. Emma
brings up the fact that she found it difficult to find a happy memory in
Logan’s mind. As soon as Emma brings up Logan’s deceased family, Logan threatens
to kill her if she doesn’t return him to the real world. Emma is not intimidated
by Logan’s threats. Instead, she brings up the fact that she does not know who
he really is because if he was the Logan she knew than he has created the most
elaborate 50 year character history she has ever seen. Logan orders Emma to get
him back to reality and Emma finally decides to oblige his request. Logan
wakes up to see a confused X-Men group talking amongst themselves about how
they already have a Logan. Magneto believes that this Logan was made to
infiltrate their ranks. Logan is confused by the entire situation but
before he can get any answers a bomb destroys part of the build Logan and the
X-Men are in. Sabertooth, Mister Sinister, and Abyss appear and
immediately attack the X-Men. Believing him to be a traitor, Magneto throws
Logan out the building. While getting up from Magneto’s attack, Logan is still
trying to piece together what exactly is going on. Before he can think of his
situation any further, Logan is confronted by Apocalypse.
As Apocalypse is understandably confused by Old Man Logan's presence, one of the
Thor Corps members shows up and tells Apocalypse to stand down. There's a
tense conversation between Apocalypse and the Thor Corps. He's understandably
curious about where Old Man Logan came from and why he ended up in this
apocalyptic wasteland among the many apocalyptic wastelands that make up
Battleworld. Even the other X-Men are curious. When Apocalypse actually tries
to be respectful, it shows just what Old Man Logan is up against. Eventually,
Apocalypse gets too angry to respect God Emperor Doom’s divine authority and he
opts to attack the Thor Corps rather than cooperate with the emissary of
Doom. It's not a fair fight though as while Apocalypse is in his own domain,
he still can’t measure up to God Emperor Doom's power. While the fight rages on,
it gives Old Man Logan the chance he needs to slip away. He even manages to
get some help from a familiar face in Tabitha Smith. It adds another nice
personal moment as these are still versions of the friends and family that
Old Man Logan slaughtered in his world so it definitely affects him. As
Apocalypse falls down, Old Man Logan attacked the Thor Corps and even guides
the X-Men to Tabitha so they can help her. While this isn’t the first time Old
Man Logan dared to take on a Thor, this time he actually gets a shot in, which
makes for a pretty satisfying moment nevertheless it doesn’t change the
outcome of the fight, which is entirely expected. Once again, Old Man Logan gets
knocked so hard that he gets thrown into yet another domain of Battleworld. As
soon as he wakes up in Technopolis, he’s met with yet another Thor. As Tony Stark
wants to study Old Man Logan’s healing and find out how someone survives a Thor
blast, War Machine reminds him that Old Man Logan’s still needs to answer to God
Emperor Doom because he's outside his own domain. A tense exchange follows.
There’s more insight into Old Man Logan's torment. It shows that being
around the people he killed is really taking a toll out of him but War Machine
doesn't care, he had broken Doom’s divine decree and that he needs to be
punished. Logan is defeated by War Machine and is to be banished to the
Deadlands. Thanks to his healing factor, Logan
managed to fight through the hordes of zombies of the Deadlands and take
shelter inside a cave. Once inside the cave, he found an uninfected She-Hulk
who had been there for a long time. Logan was trying to convince her to
throw him out of the Deadlands when the zombies who were pursuing Logan found
them. In a desperate attempt to save Logan's life, She-Hulk caught him and
jumped as high as she could to throw him out of the Deadlands as he had
suggested, ultimately sacrificing her own life to do so. Afterwards, Logan
found himself in the Kingdom of Manhattan.
References