Wolverine's Claws

[alrekr]

This little dilemma tickled me a little while back;

If you cut off Wolverine's arm (I know it's not possible because of his unbreakable skeleton, but bear with me), would his body grow a new arm, or would his arm grow a new body?

New arm. Two ways of explaining.

New arm is quickest one to regrow.

You have to see wolverine's brain as the centre and all regenerations stem from that centre. Other wise he could make a clone army by chopping his arm of off all the time. Also seeing as he has only had the metal bones a short while in his very long life (most of which spent in wars) this would have happened at some point.

I'm quite sure in fact that during his fereal years (after magneto tore the metal straight off of his bones) he would often break his claws and have large parts of his body torn off.

And another thing; His blades are longer than his hands, so how could he bend his hands back whilst they're retracted?

Well the lenght of his claws varies from comic to comic. This can be explained by saying due to his regen the length of the claws can vary; so long claws may in fact break upon rentering the body (bone claws were not that strong (but were sharp)). This can be shown by how his claws were longest in feral point.

 

[WolfThomas]

This is even dafter when you look at how they explain the presence of these muscles in the first place. Before the adamantium was added to his body, they made a story up about him having bone claws. But bone claws wouldn't be able to penetrate through the 8 carpal bones in his wrists. So the only option we have left is to say that his bone structure is different and that there are gaps in his wrist that allow this to happen. But that's silly, also, while we're at it, if they were a natural appendage the claws wouldn't have to break his skin to come out. They'd have slits in the skin that don't heal over, like cats do.

In the comics he is indeed been depicted with slits that they come in and out of. Also the claws come out higher and more superficially. Still silly but more workable than the films.

Spoiler: A bad JRJR picture which shows what I'm talking about

I think the real question about wolverines claws, is:

Can a lightsaber cut through them?

Unlikely, lightsabers cut by pure heat, right? They're plasma contained in a force field. Pure adamatium is frequently described as indestructable once forged (the rock form can be melted). It's also likely that Wolverine's skeleton would transfer the heat from the blade directly to his skin and body, which the healing factor would repair. Also adamantium has had some strang properties over it's time in comics, like being able to cut intangible enemies.

This little dilemma tickled me a little while back;

If you cut off Wolverine's arm (I know it's not possible because of his unbreakable skeleton, but bear with me), would his body grow a new arm, or would his arm grow a new body?

Grows from the trunk out, taking off the head would kill him if it wasn't near impossible due to the indestructible spine. That said he's probably like deadpool where he'd regrow if his head was put back on the torso quickly.

Well I don't care for Marvel's excuses since it was supposed to be science it's stupid and he shouldn't be able to swim.

I don't know what the others were getting their info from he has a lot of difficulty swimming. Heck even X23 his opposite sex clone (long story) who only has admantium on the claws in her hands and feet (they're awesome), commented how hard it was for her to swim recently. But he has been shown as being able to hold his breath for a long time and walk along the bottom of the water.

 

[WolfThomas]

That was more of an early 90's thing. I think the animated series made that popular. Most of the newer comics show it coming out of his skin.

Spoiler

Still, at least it makes a lick of sense. I think more recently they've been inspired by the movies.

Spoiler: Especially when you consider the original

 

[Dominic Burchnall]

I don't reckon it would, after all the claws are quite literally skin-tight to the joins bewteen his knuckles, so it would likely act as it would when swordsmen wiped a cloth over their sword after a battle to brevent it corroding to blade, and wipe the blood away from the claws.

 

[Aurgelmir]

A while back, I was watching Unskippable's video for a Wolverine game and they brought up an interesting question. I'd never thought about it before, then promptly forgot to ask about it. Then I watched said video again, and decided to make a thread before I forgot again.

When Wolverine retracts his claws, if said claws have blood on them, does said blood go into his body too? Or does it get wiped off onto his knuckles? Also, if the blood does go into his body, would Wolverine's healing factor be able to counter whatever pathogen was in the blood?

It probably goes into him, and yes the healing factor probably heals him, though it would make for an interesting story to have him being poisoned that way

 

[Queen Michael]

How can he get adamantium poisonong like he did when the High Evolutionary and Mr. Sinister removed his healing factor if adamantium is indestructible? If it's indestructible then it shouldn't be able to leak into his blood.

 

[Fiad]

I have never really seen him get sick, so I am assuming his healing powers would get rid of anything in the blood.

 

[funguy2121]

A while back, I was watching Unskippable's video for a Wolverine game and they brought up an interesting question. I'd never thought about it before, then promptly forgot to ask about it. Then I watched said video again, and decided to make a thread before I forgot again.

When Wolverine retracts his claws, if said claws have blood on them, does said blood go into his body too? Or does it get wiped off onto his knuckles? Also, if the blood does go into his body, would Wolverine's healing factor be able to counter whatever pathogen was in the blood?

No magic involved in Wolverine's mutation. Therefore, the blood would stay on whatever surface it stuck to, including the claws and the skin. Unskippable, being a humor feature, was making what is commonly referred to as a joke.

If Wolverine's older than Prof. X, it stands to reason part of his healing factor is immuno-defense.

 

[rutger5000]

Although that is puzzling I am more confuse by the fact that he can swim, I mean if all of his bones are covered by a metal that is indestructible said metal should be VERY heavy because it'd need to be very dense to make it indestructible thus transforming him into a human anvil, so how come he can swim?

False that is not how physics works, density does in no way equal indestructibility. Sometimes they are related, but there is no fundamentel law that relates them.

 

[The Funslinger]

Although that is puzzling I am more confuse by the fact that he can swim, I mean if all of his bones are covered by a metal that is indestructible said metal should be VERY heavy because it'd need to be very dense to make it indestructible thus transforming him into a human anvil, so how come he can swim?

And another thing; His blades are longer than his hands, so how could he bend his hands back whilst they're retracted?

I always thought of them as residing in his forearms. So while he was extending/retracting them, he'd have to keep his wrists basically straight.

As for the swimming, his healing factor enhances his muscles, so I imagine they developed to compensate.

I think the real question about wolverines claws, is:

Can a lightsaber cut through them?

The question to confound all geeks!

In all honesty, I'd probably say so. I mean it's still a metal and it can still be melted. That's how they applied it to his bones in the first place. So depending on how hot a lightsaber actually is, I'd say yes. Unless they already though about this and decided that after adamantium has set after the forging process, it can't be melted again.

I don't know.

No, it can't be melted again. Lightsabers are implied to cut through anything (though light saber resistant materials exist in the Star Wars universe, such as Beskar, or Cortosis. Adamantium is stated clearly to be unbreakable. Defined, rather than implied, and there are no in-marvel examples of anything cutting through adamantium as far as I know. So I doubt a light saber would do it.

 

[bruggs]

I have a question for those who are more learned in marvel lore than me!

What's the limit to his regeneration? If wolverine was stuck at the bottom of a pit with no adamantium skeleton and a nice sharp tool, would he be able to make a mountain of limbs to climb?\

If so, where does all the mass come from?

 

[WolfThomas]

I have a question for those who are more learned in marvel lore than me!

What's the limit to his regeneration? If wolverine was stuck at the bottom of a pit with no adamantium skeleton and a nice sharp tool, would he be able to make a mountain of limbs to climb?\

If so, where does all the mass come from?

The regeneration has changed over the years, initially he only "healed fast" and could be taken out of a fight quite easily. His healing factor got a boost when the adamantium was removed by Magneto because the healing had been fighting the adamantium, but even then he took like days to heal from being badly gutted by a Wendigo. After he got the metal back, his healing factor still stayed quite good, it started to get more and more powerful to which in Civil War he surived being at the epicenter of a nuke (well sort of it was Nitro an exploding mutant). But that was later retconned as having a deathgoddess/spectre interefering with his life. So he is no longer at that level. So yeah it's whatever the writer wants at the time.

Without the skeleton he probably could make the mountain of limbs but it would probably take days and it's a poor choice to climbing out with his claws (they're bone underneath).

The mass come from the meat-dimension just like like Cyclop's beams come from the punch dimension (old internet joke).

 

[Misho-]

I mean... It's probable that Wolverine has AIDS or some other diseases like that in his body. According to his Bio, he's immune to diseases. But he could very well be a carrier. The problem with Wolverine is the same problem I have with many other characters. Their powers can't be logically explained and measured. And even if you could, some other writer and artist will come and ret-con the whole thing and change it to "make more sense".

I mean think about the regenerating factor. He grew back from ONE cell. What would happen if more than 2 cells (separate by a great distance) survived? Would they grow back TWO wolverines? Would he grow back from just one and the other then... erm no? In one of the Xavier protocol to kill off his own X-men should the need arise he reccommends choppin' off his head. But if he can grow back from one cell (what's the point??). I'll tell you the problem. Different writers... They all come in and fuck the whole shit up.

Once I saw Wolvie fighting Hulk, when I saw a weird thing. He cut the Hulk skin. I told my friend (the comic owner) how could that be?? And he was like well duh, that Adamantium in his bones. And I was like "But this is a post-Magneto incident" "He has just his BONE claws (no Adamantium plating)". And my friend said (without a pause) yeah well, he lived so long with his Adamantium in his body that his bone structure absorbed some of the properties of the metal thus becoming indestructible (he used another lingo but it's the same thing). And I was like... Ok... Then it hit me. My friend was the same as the new writer taking over his predecessor. Just taking the shit he wanted/assumed he wanted to keep and re-work everything else.

Did you know in his original appereance in Hulk, Wolvie was a regular hit man with ADAMANTIUM GLOVES that had some claws. Neither the claws or the regeneration/healing factor were part of his character just yet. Oh and supposedly (even tho' his face was covered by his mask) he was supposed to be young looking and almost hairless. He was later changed when the character proved to be popular.

 

[WolfLordAndy]

I have a question for those who are more learned in marvel lore than me!

What's the limit to his regeneration? If wolverine was stuck at the bottom of a pit with no adamantium skeleton and a nice sharp tool, would he be able to make a mountain of limbs to climb?\

If so, where does all the mass come from?

Purely dependent on how popular he is at the time, as with all superheroes. As he's gotten more popular he can now walk through nukes and survive, where as you go back and he'd have to take a day off to heal a bullet wound.

Although I believe he's always been immune to diseases, and was actually deliberately infected with the anti-mutant plague so he created a cure for it (from the 90s cartoon).

 

[LaughingJester]

I think the real question about wolverines claws, is:

Can a lightsaber cut through them?

The question to confound all geeks!

In all honesty, I'd probably say so. I mean it's still a metal and it can still be melted. That's how they applied it to his bones in the first place. So depending on how hot a lightsaber actually is, I'd say yes. Unless they already though about this and decided that after adamantium has set after the forging process, it can't be melted again.

I don't know.

wow... this one has me thinking... i would say so... A lightsaber which can melt anything except another one of itself... or those spear thingies from the third movie for some reason should (albeit slowly) be able to cut through his claws it might just take a little longer.

 

[FalloutJack]

A while back, I was watching Unskippable's video for a Wolverine game and they brought up an interesting question. I'd never thought about it before, then promptly forgot to ask about it. Then I watched said video again, and decided to make a thread before I forgot again.

When Wolverine retracts his claws, if said claws have blood on them, does said blood go into his body too? Or does it get wiped off onto his knuckles? Also, if the blood does go into his body, would Wolverine's healing factor be able to counter whatever pathogen was in the blood?

Oh, I remember that one. Good 'sode. Anyway...

My guess is that he doesn't ever get wiped clean in fullness. Microscopic whatevers will atill cling to the blades anyway. But GOOD NEWS, EVERYBODY! Logan will be just fine. His healing factor does indeed protect him from all forms of pathogens. It even created the antidote to the mutant plague introduced by Apocalypse. Wolverine's body is of course very much like Deadpool's, who has the factor weighed against aggressive cancer. You could probably find the cure for AIDS in those two.