Published May 2019 by Marvel
Written by Len Wein
Art and Cover by Herb Trimpe

The issue that introduced an icon! Just when you thought a battle between the Incredible Hulk and the Wendigo couldn't get any more ferocious - the Wolverine crashes the party! It's the deadly debut of the world's first and greatest Canadian super hero - who would soon go on to become arguably the most popular and successful member of the X-Men! Encounter the Wolverine for the first time all over again in an action-packed throwdown that establishes a rivalry for the ages between the Jade Giant and the Best There Is! It's one of the all-time great Marvel comic books, boldly re-presented in its original form, ads and all!

The clawed hero Wolverine leaps out from the top of a rocky hill landing between the Hulk and The Wendigo. Scurrying onto the Hulk's back, he begins swiping at him with his diamond-hard Adamantium claws, but even they cannot pierce the Hulk's skin. Realizing that the Wendigo may prove to be an easier target, Wolverine springs over the Hulk's head and launches himself at the Wendigo. His suspicions prove correct, and his claws rake into the woodland creature’s hide.

The Hulk, confused by this sudden turn of events, concludes that the "enemy of my enemy is also my friend", so he assists Wolverine in stopping the Wendigo. The Hulk picks the monster up and smashes him through a grove of trees. Wolverine finishes the job by sinking his claws into the Wendigo's throat. The Wendigo is an immortal creature, however, and even this seemingly fatal blow is not enough to kill him. For the time being, though, the Wendigo is unconscious.

Now Wolverine turns his attention onto the Hulk. The fight is furious, but brief, until two bystanders, Marie Cartier and Georges Baptiste, use chemicals to knock them both out.

Marie Cartier prepares once again to conduct an occult ritual that will remove the spirit of the Wendigo from her brother's body and transpose it onto the Hulk. With the Hulk unconscious, he slowly changes back into Bruce Banner. Georges refuses to take part in Marie's plan any longer, arguing that it was bad enough when she intended on placing the curse on a mindless monster, but now she plans to subject an innocent human being to the curse of the Wendigo. Georges angrily storms off.

Marie tries to drag Banner's body back into the cave with the unconscious Wendigo, but Banner awakens and just as quickly turns back into the Hulk. Wolverine revives as well, and the two begin fighting once again. Marie flees from the battle and races back into the cave. The Hulk swings a mighty punch, but Wolverine manages to roll just in time so that it is only a glancing blow. The punch is still strong enough to knock him out, however.

Inside the cave, Marie discovers that Georges has completed her occult ritual. He has transferred the power of the Wendigo out of Paul Cartier's body and placed it inside his own. As the new Wendigo, the last vestiges of Georges' intellect quickly fade away, but not before he manages to profess his love for Marie Cartier. The Wendigo turns and smashes through a section of cavern wall and runs off into the forest. Paul Cartier is now forever free of the curse of the Wendigo.

Incredible Hulk #181 is the defining issue of the Bronze Age of comic books. While there were many other characters created and that debuted in this span of time, Wolverine is by far the most popular in comics and film.

One thing is certain, sometime in the near future Wolverine is going to make his debut in the MCU.  Will it be in Doctor Strange Multiverse of Madness?  Will it be Hugh Jackman?  Nobody knows for sure but we do know its going to happen!  And here is your chance to own his very first appearance in Marvel Comics!  It's not an actual first printing but you'd expect to pay at least $50,000 for one of those!  It's an exciting time to be an X-Men fan and here's your chance to own a part of history!!!

‘Moon Knight’ star can’t wait for the X-Men’s MCU debut

Even though we don’t have a clue when the X-Men are going to make their official debut as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the ball could begin to start rolling in a few short weeks.

Having spent an entire weekend denying his involvement in the wake of the Super Bowl trailer, Patrick Stewart eventually confirmed that he’d be back as Charles Xavier in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, where it would appear that he’s heading up the Illuminati.

While that’s no guarantee that his merry band of mutants will be following close behind, a star of the MCU’s latest project is still hyped that the X-Men are on the way. Speaking to Variety at the red carpet premiere of Moon Knight, Rey Lucas admitted that he can’t wait to see the former Fox residents back on our screens.

“That’s what I love about Marvel. They’re always introducing new characters and finding different ways to tell the story, and even the same characters have new elements of them developed and introduced, so it was really exciting for me personally. I grew up a big fan of the comic books. Not as much Moon Knight. I was pretty X-Men. Uncanny X-Men. But, uh, not to play favorites. I’m glad they’re bringing them over, finally.”

Coincidentally, Moon Knight‘s leading man Oscar Isaac has history with the X-Men on film, but we can all agree that his turn caked under the prosthetics of Apocalypse left a lot to be desired. We’ve already seen the team in 13 movies, but if anyone can successfully reboot the property, it’s Kevin Feige.

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