For the past week, Marvel has been hyping up this epic match-up soon to come next month with Predator versus Wolverine in the first-ever Predator appearance in the Marvel comics universe. And to be quite honest, it’s hard not to be excited about this.
Written by Benjamin Percy, with art by Greg Land, Andrea Di Vito, Ken Lashley, Kei Zama, and more, the series will reveal a long-lost rivalry between Wolverine and a Yautja Predator. One who’s been stalking him since his earliest days, which is kind of awesome, given how James Howlett (Wolverine) was born in the early 1800s and we’ve most recently seen Predators hunting in the 1700s in the most recent hit film in the franchise, Prey. So the lores of both are ripe for crossover, at least, culturally speaking where we can feature origins stories along the American/Canadian frontier.
Early reactions on social media have been that given Wolverine’s healing factor and his neigh indestructible adamantium skeleton, that he’s got the obvious advantage. Add in the fact that the Predator’s cloaking technology is likely useless against a mutant who can smell you a mile away, and the battle seems almost lopsided. However, this is comics and battles are dictated not by power level but often by demands needed from the writer and I think most fans are just excited to see the inevitable claw-versus-claw to come.
Now, both characters have had long successful comic runs for decades now. They’ve also been used as warriors in epic crossover battles in their respective universe franchises. For Marvel, the most notable of which was probably Hulk versus Wolverine, which historically also featured the introduction of the Wolverine character into the universe in Incredible Hulk #181.
As for The Predator, there has been a slew of face-offs in its own comic and story history. The most famous of which was obviously its run on Predator vs Alien, a franchise not only adapted into a movie in 2004 after a successful comic series beginning in the late 80s but also, a fun potential spin-off of my favorite comic in the franchise: Predator versus Alien versus Terminator. In terms of crossover face-offs, Predator has also already gone up against Batman, Tarzan, Judge Dredd, Superman, and strangely, even Archie. Meaning this crossover, especially now that Marvel owns 20th Century Fox, was eventually bound to come.
“I’m not going to say I was born to write this crossover… but sometimes the universe reveals why you were created,” said writer Benjamin Percy in a recent statement by Marvel. “I am a child of the eighties. I cannot tell you how many times I watched Predator, just as I cannot tell you how many Wolverine comics I have read, because that would be like telling you how many breaths I’ve taken or cheeseburgers I’ve eaten. The mythologies of both are ingrained in me so deeply they might as well be strands of DNA or wisps of soul. The guns, claws, beef, and blood of both franchises have been stewing in my brain since 1987, when I read myself to sleep every night with a stack of Marvel comics and my friends and I used to play ‘Predator’ with Nerf guns in the woods and river near our neighborhood.”
“This epic hunt will span decades, as both of these giants learn and harden and grow deadlier with time,” Percy continued. “Neither will have time to bleed, but you better make time to read, because I’m putting everything I’ve got into this event, and I’m thrilled to join forces with some of the best artists in the business.”
To say that these are two of the most visceral characters in both Marvel and in the Alien/Predator franchises is an understatement. With both the Predator and Wolverine being famous for essentially, being the greatest hunters in their respective universes. So what happens when these universes collide into places such as the wintery Canadian Wilderness and the slumming deadly streets of Madripoor?
You’ll have to check out PREDATOR VS WOLVERINE to find out, available on September 20th!
