What Is the Difference Between Wolverine's First Appearance and His First Full Appearance?

Wolverine's first appearance was in The Incredible Hulk #181's final page (October 1974) — a brief cameo at the very end — but that issue is actually often called his first full appearance too, since he plays a major role throughout. The distinction gets technical: his true cameo debut is actually the last panel of Incredible Hulk #180 (November 1974, on sale earlier), where he appears in costume but says almost nothing. Then Incredible Hulk #181 is his first FULL appearance, where he gets real page time, dialogue, and battles both the Hulk and the Wendigo. Collectors treat #180 as the 'first appearance/cameo' and #181 as the 'first full appearance,' which is why both issues are highly sought after and command serious prices on the back-issue market.