Few of Marvel’s characters have a history quite like Wolverine does, which is amusing when you consider that his character was created fairly late in the game. Originally, Wolverine was only intended as an unknown factor to liven up what would otherwise be a mundane fight between The Hulk and Wendigo in the angry green giant’s own title: a diminutive Canadian hero caught between two powerhouses who somehow held his own.  Over the years, many writers have tried to flesh out his story, adding their own ideas to the character, occasionally taking out or rearranging bits of pre-established history, shaping him into the confused mutant without a past that most of us grew up with. Trying to piece together Logan’s history with massive piles of back-issues was just something that comic collectors did, and with each new story, the character evolved, showing sides ranging from animalistic to honorable.

Wolverine has been a fan favorite for quite some time then, and it is only recently that Marvel finally sat down and officially connected all of the pieces of Wolverine’s past. Since Hugh Jackman has shown to be a reliable actor for portraying Logan’s complex character, it makes sense that they would buck the Wolverine complete package into a theatrical release.

And what a history! Making a film like this is an ambitious project indeed, simply because there is so much material to work with. The film touches on Logan’s childhood in the 1800’s colonial Canada before launching into a montage of him and his half brother Victor Creed (aka Sabertooth) savagely fighting in every war since the American Revolution.  The scope of the film then condenses, finding the two brothers working in a covert government ops team composed entirely of mutants. Logan has been set at odds with his brother’s increasing savagery over the years, and it finally drives a rift between them, causing him to leave the unit and setting into motion events that would eventually lead him into the Weapon X program.

Some of this history was touched upon in X-2, as Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine began to hijack the film franchise. In X-2, General Stryker lured the X-men to the Alkali Lake Weapon X facility, where Wolverine was revealed to have undergone the process which laced adamantium to his skeleton, making him virtually indestructible on top of his normal mutant powers of keen senses, regenerative healing, and bone claws. This film expands on all this, showing us who was involved in the early Weapon X project and Logan’s role in it, as well as what happened to him following the bonding process.