As always, this post contains spoilers, and page numbers go by the digital edition.

WOLVERINE vol 8 #5
“The Call of the Adamantine”
Writer: Saladin Ahmed
Artist: Martín Cóccolo
Colour artist: Bryan Valenza
Letterer: Cory Petit
Editor: Mark Basso

This one won’t take long.

WOLVERINE

He’s able to resist the Adamantine’s attempt to take over his mind, which none of its other victims have been able to do. It’s not clear whether this is something to do with Wolverine’s own powers or strength of will, or whether it’s to do with the Wendigo interrupting the process.

Wolverine tries to get the Wendigo to abandon him and escape, rather than fight Deathstrike and the Constrictor. He seems confident that the Wendigo will lose that fight. Fortunately, Nightcrawler shows up to rescue him.

SUPPORTING CAST

Leonard the Wendigo comes to Wolverine’s aid against the Adamantine. Last issue, Wolverine told him to stay behind at the cabin and hide while he investigated an incident (which turned out to be Constrictor’s escape). Apparently the Wendigo followed him after all. Even though he can only say his own name and “Logan”, he seems fiercely protective of Wolverine, though it’s only Nightcrawler who seems to pick up on this.

Nightcrawler shows up in person. Wolverine called him last issue and asked him to arrange an ambulance and a security detail for the Constrictor, but Nightcrawler did notice something odd about Wolverine’s voice. That seemed to be to do with him recovering from a violent rage, rather than anything to do with the Adamantine, but nonetheless it prompts Nightcrawler to show up in person.

Somehow, Nightcrawler has access to a Blackbird, complete with missiles! Bear in mind, this arc takes place before X-Men #1 and Uncanny X-Men #1, so we don’t know where Nightcrawler actually is at this point in continuity. He certainly isn’t in Haven, because the Louisiana team doesn’t exist yet. He might, possibly, be hanging around in the vicinity of the Alaskan team, but they mainly use the Marauder as their transport.

VILLAINS

The Adamantine initially appears to Wolverine as a voice calling “Purify the false metal”. Wolverine understands it to be speaking to the adamantium inside him, rather than to him as a person. It seems that a failed attempt to control Wolverine doesn’t leave him permanently infected, and that the Adamantine’s influence fades as Wolverine is taken further away from it. On a second encounter, Wolverine manages to resist it on his own. The Adamantine is quite impressed by this performance and sees Wolverine as being in some way “purer” than its previous targets and a potential “true champion” – though since the others were all villains, that’s hardly surprising.

The Adamantine remains obsessed with purging the world of adamantium, and sends Cyber to attack a factory that makes one of the ingredients of adamantium.

Lady Deathstrike, Cyber and the Constrictor all appear under the Adamantine’s control, but none of them does anything of their own free will. Constrictor doesn’t even react to the Wendigo biting a chunk out of his shoulder. Wolverine figures out that the connection between these characters is adamantium (not, admittedly, the toughest of mental challenges).

REFERENCES:

Page 16 panel 4: “Breathe! Like we practiced!” Last issue.

Page 22 panel 1: “Last I saw [Cyber]…” Issue #1.