Wolverine #1
Wolverine (Vol. 4) #1 launched what is widely regarded as the most creatively ambitious solo Wolverine run of the 2000s, marking Jason Aaron's full takeover of the character's flagship ongoing title after years of groundwork laid in Wolverine: Weapon X. The issue transplants Logan into an outright horror register — his soul literally imprisoned in Hell while a demon occupies his body on Earth — a tonal departure that proved the character could sustain genuinely supernatural storytelling rather than just martial-arts action or espionage. It simultaneously introduces multiple new villains and concepts (the Red Right Hand, Hellverine, the Mongrels) whose moral architecture — Logan's past sins weaponized against him by ordinary people he wronged — gave the entire Aaron run its emotional spine. The debut issue is the first chapter of a body of work collected repeatedly in trade, hardcover, and omnibus formats and recognized across the fan community as character-defining.
In "Wolverine Goes to Hell Part 1," Wolverine’s soul is trapped in Hell while his body is taken over by demons using his form to hunt down those he cares about. When a group known as the Mongrels target his girlfriend, Melita, she’s barely saved by Mystique—setting off a deadly chain of violence in a world where even the living are not safe. Written by Jason Aaron and illustrated by Renato Guedes, with inks by Jose Wilson Magalhaes, colors by Matt Wilson, and letters by Virtual Calligraphy and Cory Petit, this 3.99 USD 2010 Marvel issue features a striking cover by Jae Lee.
Wolverine’s soul is trapped in Hell, while his body is taken over by demons hunting those he loves. With his girlfriend Melita in danger, Mystique steps in to protect her as a deadly group known as the Mongrels—led by Gunhawk, Cannon Foot, Shadow Stalker, Fire Knives, and Saw Fist—close in. As the Devil and other infernal forces watch, the line between man and monster blurs in a battle that will test Wolverine’s will from beyond the grave.
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By September 2010, Jason Aaron had already spent roughly two years building toward this relaunch: his Wolverine: Weapon X series (2009–2010) ran 16 issues and introduced threats like the Adamantium Men and Dr. Rot specifically to set the stage for his Wolverine ongoing. Marvel coordinated the launch with the companion one-shot Wolverine: Road to Hell, written by Aaron alongside Marjorie Liu, Rick Remender, and Daniel Way, which seeded storylines across the simultaneous Wolverine family of books (X-23, Daken: Dark Wolverine, X-Force). Brazilian artist Renato Guedes — previously known for DC's Superman titles — handled the main story of issue #1, while Jason Latour drew the Silver Samurai backup strip, with editor Jeanine Schaefer overseeing the book under EIC Joe Quesada. The volume ran 20 issues under Aaron before reverting to legacy numbering at #300, and was ultimately concluded at #317 in December 2012 as part of the Marvel NOW! initiative.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearances of the Red Right Hand (the villainous organization whose members are all people personally wronged by Wolverine), Hellverine (the demon possessing Logan's body), the Mongrels, Gunhawk, Shadow S., Fire Knives, Saw Fist, Cannon Foot, and The Founder — all in a single issue.
- Written by Jason Aaron with interior art by Renato Guedes (main story) and Jason Latour (backup story); cover art by Jae Lee, with Jeanine Schaefer as editor.
- Kicks off the 'Wolverine Goes to Hell' story arc — the first arc in Wolverine Vol. 4 — in which Logan's soul is supernaturally cast into Hell by the Red Right Hand while a demonic entity, Hellverine, terrorizes the people closest to him on Earth.
- Contains a self-contained backup story starring the Silver Samurai (Kenuichio Harada), in which the Red Right Hand's soldiers attack Clan Yashida and Harada dies defending his home — his apparent death serving as the opening salvo of the wider 'Goes to Hell' arc.
- The issue marks the apparent death of John Wraith (a Weapon X alumnus and Logan's pastor friend), who is attacked by Hellverine in the main story.
- Released September 1, 2010; it was preceded that same month by the companion one-shot Wolverine: Road to Hell, written by Aaron, Liu, Remender, and Way, which served as a coordinated launch primer for the entire Wolverine family of titles.
- The volume's numbering scheme — Vol. 4 ran #1–20, then jumped to legacy #300 — reflects Marvel's retroactive numbering of prior volumes (Vol. 2: #1–189; Vol. 3: #1–90 / #190–279; Vol. 4: #1–20 / #280–299).
- Collected repeatedly in multiple formats: the original 'Wolverine: Goes to Hell' trade paperback (issues #1–5), the 'Wolverine by Jason Aaron: Complete Collection' trades, and the 'Wolverine Goes to Hell Omnibus' (2025 reprint edition), which gathers Wolverine (2010) #1–20, #5.1, and #300–304 alongside related tie-in series.
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Reprints
Reprinted in X-Men: Curse of the Mutants Saga #1 (2010), Astonishing Spider-Man & Wolverine #3 (2010), Wolverine: Wolverine Goes to Hell #[nn] (2011), Wolverine #76 (2011), Wolverine: Wolverine Goes to Hell #[nn] (2011), Wolverine #1 (2011), Wolverine by Jason Aaron: The Complete Collection #3 (2014), Wolverine Goes to Hell Omnibus #[nn] (2018)
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