Ultimate Wolverine Vol. 1: The Winter Soldier

by Chris Condon, Alessandro Cappuccio (Artist), Alex Lins (Artist)

Ultimate Spider-Man, Ultimate Black Panther, Ultimate X-Men, the Ultimates and now finally Ultimate Wolverine is unleashed into the new universe as it reaches a pivotal turning point.

THE ULTIMATE WINTER SOLDIER: WOLVERINE

To maintain control of their corner of the Maker’s world, three members of his council — Magik, Colossus and Omega Red — deploy their most lethal asset: The Winter Soldier! But who is the weapon behind the mask…with the claws?

This Ultimate Wolverine will be put to the test by seeing how well he handles the Opposition — a group fighting for mutant liberation.

But when the Winter Soldier leads a strike against two members of the Opposition — Kitty Pryde and Gambit — will they recognize their deadly enemy?

COLLECTING: Ultimate Wolverine (2025) 1-6

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, X Men, Superheroes, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

160 pages, Paperback

First published September 16, 2025

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.25 stars

[Pruett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: WOLVERINE IS BRAINWASHED AND DOESN’T REMEMBER HIS PAST!

It’s not the most original Wolverine take in the world, which sort of invalidates the whole “Ultimate” conceit, but the art is really great and the costume is cool.

I asked Nadine to pick up one of the issues for me when I was at work one day, and she got swarmed by a couple of 30-something-year-old dudes at the comic shop asking her how it was, so if that’s your demographic, you’ll probably dig this.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25
Another excellent Ultimate title that's better than the 616 counterpart.

It just feels more Wolverine. And a more compelling stories.

A lot of Wolverine writers it seems try too hard to be who they think Wolverine is. And it just comes off as generic and surface level.

[Jesús De la Jara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este cómic lo leí porque sabía que aparecía una versión de Magika malvada, y como siempre algunas portadas con ella son muy buenas.
Maker creó un mundo nuevo y ahí un tridente compuesto por Omega Red, Magik y Colossus controlan la República Euroasiática creando un Directorio X. Este grupo capturó a Wolverine y le borraron los recuerdos rebautizándolo como Winter Soldier. En efecto, tiene ese especie de bozal que cubre su boca.
La dra Prostovich tiene bajo control a Wolverine, los Rasputin son escépticos y deciden ponerlo a prueba. Mientras este grupo malvado trata de usarlo, también están los demás que pugnan por combatir a la República Euroasiática. Entre ellos están Gambito y Kitty e, el primero mató a Mikhail Rasputin. También van apareciendo muchos más.
Interesante el cómic ya que ver a Magik como malvada es interesante. Así mismo, ella tiene el control de esa parte aunque conforme avanza el cómic pierde protagonismo. Logan por su parte se ve muy bien y las imágenes son crudas como en un cómic de él.

[Khurram · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. This is Wolverine taken back to his violent and violated basics. It is not a new spin on what is actually done to Wolverine but who has actually done it to him.

The Maker has changed the course of the mutants by silencing a number of the most prominent voices of the mutants before they could be heard, but there is still opposition to his new world order. However, a captured soldier reprogrammed might change the course of the war back in the Maker's favour.

This book is not just how the Ultimate Wolverine should be but how the Ultimate X-MEN should have been. I loved the artwork on the first four chapters/issues. The last two were okay but felt like a bit of a downgrade. No disrespect to the artist but to start with an anime style to a normal cartoon style does not work for me.

I am of two minds about the page of text at the end of every chapter. It is informative but I think there should be a way to incorporate it into the actual story, but I do understand that space is limited and I am used to it happening in the main X-MEN books. I think there are a lot of interesting stories ahead, I would also be interested in finding out why all the rebels look like they have claw scars on their faces. The book finishes with a variant cover gallery.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

The art is gorgeous in a gruesome way, but the story is lacking. It's fun to see the alternate world X-Men when they pop up, but it's tough to sell me on a comic where the protagonist doesn't speak and basically just mindlessly murders people. I'm really interested in where the series goes after the last issue in this volume, but I hope there are fewer extended dream sequences.

[FrontalNerdaty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brainwashed Wolverine that doesn’t remember his past and is running around angry and aggressive? Groundbreaking. Yet somehow here it does feel somewhat fresh. Whilst Logan is the main character we get much more insight from the other characters and you see how Logan, The Winter Solider, is being used. It makes Logan’s situation feel more organic and less ‘been there, done that’
The issues showing us Logan’s psyche are great and there are plenty of introductions to the Ultimate versions of established characters throughout.

4/5

[MannyLikesPie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 The art is incredible. The writing from Green arrow and here loses me a lot during the middle, which is hard when you have to wait a month for the next part. Well I enjoy the authors writing, I’d say wait for when the whole arc is finished instead of doing an ongoing

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, so that’s what Darren Aronofsky’s Wolverine movie would have looked like.

[ShamNoop · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series starts out with so much potential, so much excitement, so many hints at great things to come. At least in this first volume, it doesn’t squander all that feeling *completely*.
There’s some decent worldbuilding that is unfortunately not at all up to par with what the rest of the comics in this universe have set up; there is a supporting cast that the writer doesn’t seem to be interested in at all as characters but as functional tools to push forward the plot; there is a main character that does not work at all as a main character and would be better off as a mystery box villain in some other comic.
There’s some attempts at interesting storytelling here, like the one issue that’s entirely a metaphor for Logan’s internal struggle that’s riffing off of Barry Windsor-Smith’s classic Weapon X, or the way Nightcrawler is presented as a moral event horizon, but very little of it sticks, very little of it is memorable or substantial. It’s just disappointing overall.
But at least the art is brilliant, although I can’t help but be even more disappointed that Cappuccio left Moon Knight for this.

[Gabriel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a mix of a retelling of Weapon X and Winter Soldier early stories, but it never reaches the potential it could.

Wolverine is tortured and is forced to become a weapon without thoughts and is this universe's Winter Soldier. It's an interesting concept, but there's nothing really new in this. The only things that stand out are Colossus and Magik being the heads of this evil group that controls Wolverine. Wolverine's time as the WS feels short and there is one particular issue that is just wasted with a wolf vs a bear that's supposed to be symbolic, but it just feels as if it's trying to copy Weapon X.
I'll follow because I'm a Wolverine fan, but everything feels rushed. I hope there is a massive payoff as the story continues.

I almost wish that this story just fully embraced the Winter Soldier/Weapon X concept and had a tragic story of Wolverine fully becoming a ruthless mercenary that needs to be put down for good at the end of the run. No possible revenge/awakening arc, just a complete mind wipe with his former pals having to deal with this and come to terms with this sad reality. It's the Ultimate Universe that is soon coming to an end, so why not commit to something different?

6/10

[Brad McKeehan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The coolest part by far is how the other characters surrounding Wolverine, allies and villains alike, fill different roles in this story. As far as the story itself, it’s still too familiar to really be fresh, but Wolverine fans will still enjoy.

[NewWorldGod · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10

[Zachary Palmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of bummed with all the fresh ultimate takes that this one is pretty much every other brainwashed Wolverine story, but the ending of it has me curious for what comes next!

[Frédéric · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a lot of trouble getting into the first issues. Condon plays – badly – at being clever with a narrative that becomes confusing and overly drawn out. The atmosphere is cold and gloomy – which is good – but undermined by Capuccio, who is far from sparkling on this title, where he seems to have rushed his pencils and used lazy storytelling.
A narrative trick turns things around halfway through, and the title starts to get more interesting as stakes begin to be raised and we discover fellow mutants outside of Peach Momoko's series. What's more, Alex Lins replaces Capuccio, and I must admit I much prefer his style.

[Atomread W. Megaforce · Rating 3 out of 5]

liest sich wie ein ewig langes "Was zuvor geschah".

[Nathan Bissett · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an incredibly standard Wolverine story with "Ultimate" slapped on it and a lazy, brief "evil" arc before coming back to being on the right side.

The art elevates this incredibly subar addition to the Ultimate Universe.

[Jourdy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ultimate Universe 🤝 Absolute Universe giving new perspectives on characters while being true to said characters

[Gabriel Calderón · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poor Logan man

[Yasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

this might be better than ultimate spider-man.

[Alejandro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Logan isn’t himself!


I bought the single comic book issues, but I am choosing this TPB edition to be able to make a better overall review about the storyarch.


Creative Team

Writer: Chris Condon
Illustrator: Alessandro Cappuccio


WOLVERINE OR WINTER SOLDIER: DAWN OF IDENTITY CRISIS

This is a comic book focused in the ultimate version of Logan in the new “Ultimate Universe” created by The Maker (original Ultimate Reed Richards).

In this story, Logan was kidnapped and brainwashed (how many times a man can be kidnapped and brainwashed in his “comic book” life?!) by the Rasputin Family (Piotr Rasputin (Colossus) & Illyana Rasputina (Magik)) along with Omera Red, which are the “Tsars of Rusian and Limbo” governining what was previously known as the Soviet Union and key members of the “Maker’s Council”.

Dr. Alongya Prostovich, is the leader and best scientist of the Directorate X. She’s working for the Rasputin Family and she was responsible of the reprogramming of Logan who is essentially now the ultimate version of the Winter Soldier, and serving as assassin of the Rasputin Family and doing what is best in the interest of them.

And Logan isn’t the only “X-Man” who is in control / captivity of the Rasputin Family! (but I won’t spoil it!)

Logan will kill A LOT of “fellow allies” being under brainwashed control, meanwhile “The Opposition” (a kinda version of the X-Men) which it’s the only clandestine organization working against the Rasputin Family will find out that Logan is doing a mess and they will try to “change him back” to his previous persona.

This is a action-packed comic book title, quite good.

´Nuff said!

[Alex Sarll]

Marvel have been remarkably, uncharacteristically restrained with their current Ultimate line. After the launch event, there were four books; lead title Ultimates made a point of introducing various potential spin-offs, at least one of which (Ultimate Guardians) I would have read the hell out of, but none were picked up. Recently, it was announced that once its initial two-year story is done, and big bad the Maker returns, that's it: the imprint is done, the books finish. A sort of planned closure rarely afforded to corporate superheroes, let alone whole worlds, presumably motivated by a desire for reasonably self-contained books which can become perennial sellers, a department in which Marvel is well behind DC.

Which makes it all the more puzzling that the one extra book they did let the line add was this profoundly unnecessary retread.

Yeah, sure, Logan is called the Winter Soldier here, was remade in the frozen north of Eurasia rather than America. And yes, we get the standard alternate world beats of his tormentors and victims being characters we know from mainstream continuity as his friends. But haven't we seen all that plenty of times before, with the X-Men more than most? Ditto the main thrust of the story where, wouldn't you know it, he's been brainwashed into a killer for sinister forces! Sure, it all looks good, especially when it's Cappuccio on art (though I'd still rather he'd stayed on Moon Knight, a book worthy of his skills). And OK, I liked the take on Sabertooth, something I'm not sure I've ever said before. But this remains a superfluity, a dilution.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like DC's Absolute line, Marvel's Ultimate line has been killing it since it launched. The first new title to premiere after the original three, Ultimate Wolverine is a stellar addition to the line.

Although the world may be different, the story here isn't too different to what you've seen from Wolverine before. Trapped, brainwashed, unleashed against his friends, Logan is the Ultimate Winter Soldier, a dangerous mutant being used by other dangerous mutants to kill less dangerous mutants. But it's the details that make this work really well - the Opposition, the X-Men resistance, are great little twists on classic characters, and it's really quite harrowing seeing Colossus be such a heel.

It's fairly bold to have six issues pass without your lead character speaking a single word until the last page, but it works really well. If we're talking experimental though, Issue 4 especially is a highlight, with most of the story told in the form of an extended visual metaphor as Wolverine battles against his programming, until everything comes crashing together at the end. Great stuff from Chris Condon's scripts.

On art we have Moon Knight extraordinaire Alessandro Cappuccio for the first four issues. I hesitate to say that his art is visceral and gloomy, but that's really the best way to describe it. His skill on Moon Knight transfers easily to this character, and you can tell he's having a blast. Alex Lins handles issues 5 and 6, with a different, brighter style, but the story shifts here so it works better than I expected it to.

Another Ultimate home run!

[Ángel Javier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pues nada. A esta versión de Lobezno también es más fácil lavarle el cerebro y lanzarlo a matar a otros mutantes que cargárselo. Pero qué original, señor Condón. Raro sería que no le dieran el Eisner este año. Pero es que no es solo eso: todo suena a visto una y mil veces en este cómic. Dientes de sable bueno, como en la Era de Apocalipsis. Un montón de científicos muertos cada vez que a Logan se le va la perola, como en Arma-X. Rondador cura (aunque palma a las primeras de cambio... menuda vergüenza; Rondador, en manos de Claremont, era el mutante que más molaba, y después, con la honrosa excepción de Alan Davis en Excalibur, ya nadie supo que hacer con él). Para rematar la faena, míster Condón mezcla el origen de Lobezno con el del Soldado de Invierno y, pues ya tenemos historia guapa de un tío que mata peña como el que come pipas. Venga, ya puestos, que lo arregle todo la Viuda Negra (y va el tío y lo hace; los huevos como pedruscos tiene el amigo). Lo dicho: tooodo suena a más que visto en este tebeo, que se salva porque no está mal contada la cosa, tanto en los diálogos como en el apartado gráfico, que está bastante bien. Pero, vaya, que comparada con The Ultimates y, sobre todo, con Ultimate Spider-Man (de las otras series Ultimate no puedo hablar, porque me importan un bledo y ni las he mirado) es un poco pufo. Spoiler del próximo tomo: no me lo pienso leer.

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was kind of fun!

We see Logan back under mind control and yeah this familiar premise is explored again and its kindof fun but messed up for Logan and then seeing him do what he did to his best friend Nightcrawler, thats gonna have him haunting when his memories come back but other that I really liked how it showed the brutal side of him like him hunting down those eurasian republic soldiers in that training simulation and then the one vs Nightcrawler and Mystique was awesome!

That scene in the issue of wolf vs bear but its really Logan vs the scientists yeah that one might look cool narration wise but I was not a fan of it, would rather have it 2 pages of that allegory and just Logan slicing them up and wow brutal origin of sorts for Jean/Phoenix and what they have been doing to her!

The opposition is fun they are basically the X-MEN without calling them X-Men as its being used for the other book which really has no familiar character but oh well other than that I really liked the art and how gruesome it gets in some scenes. Could have been better and those back end notes insired from Hickman X-Men days I hate those. Just makes the comic really long and takes forever to read and not useful really.

But yeah its a fun one time read showing another what-if and like what if LOGAN was the winter soldier but next issue/volume his memory returns and he takes the fight to the republic? Lets see how that one is!

[Sam Whale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is the least bold and least experimental book in the new Ultimate U. Most of the characters seem to behave mostly like their 616 selves, like this was an alternate future in the vein of Days of Future past rather than a universe drastically altered more than sixty years ago.

Kitty, Gambit, Legion and I suspect Beast all act like their 90's selves, and Black Widow feels much the same. Colossus and Magik are again like this, aside from the fact they are evil, and Sabretooth the same except he is good.

It all feels quite unimaginative.

I will say the main gimmick of Logan being this worlds Winter Solider was very interesting, and none of the writing is bad by any means. However Logan is seemingly and X-man again as of the end of this first volume and so now the status quo feels much the same as it always is. Compared to Ulitimates, USM and UXM Wolverine pales in comparison, as a story read entirely on it's own merits it's fine however, bordering on decent; lets hope volume 2 picks things up a notch or two.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Logan is brainwashed. He's killing for the enemy. He doesn't remember who he is.

Is that any Wolverine story over the last several decades? Pretty much.

The problem is that this is Ultimate Wolverine. Supposed to be interesting twists to our characters. But this could be a 616 story.

The thing is, the nuUltimate Universe really needs an Ultimate X-Men, because the comic by that name, though great, doesn't act like it's in the Ultimate Universe. This one does, but it might as well be 616.

The story is also dragged out and really, really overly long. Plus, the author goes super artsy-fartsy in two different issues. #4 is hot garbage with beautiful images of a wolf and bear overriding an actual (overly long) battle with Wolverine. #6 just feels kind of badly written, with its (overly long) dream sequence.

There are points of redemption here and there, as we actually get to see X-Men in the Ultimate universe, and as we learn more about the Piotr and Illyana regime. But they're too far apart.

This is maybe 2.5 stars. Not great.

[Kareem Zarif · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me a while, was a bit tired of this ultimate universe after reading The Ultimates but frankly wow, this was pretty good.

I was hearing so many people hating on this and I genuinely don't know why, now granted I was disappointed about one thing and this might be where the hate stems from in general. Mind you, everything prior to this problem is amazing, it's fun, it's gritty, it's amazing but the fact that he's already not the winter soldier by the end of this is a bummer.

It was a great and cool concept to make him the winter soldier, his rivalry with people he knew and his brother were gorey and sick, but I frankly think they don't know how to take his story further, he's already back to normal by the end of this and that was the main appeal of this wolverine.

Nevertheless, I will buy the next trade paper back and see where it goes, but frankly, I won't have my expectations high considering I don't know what interesting turns this series is gonna have going forward.

[Samuel · Rating 2 out of 5]

39%

Kind of a nothing-burger, in my opinion? Not a whole lot really happened. I guess it’s kinda inspired by Weapon X by Barry Windsor-Smith, which some people might like, but I couldn’t get into that comic either, honestly. I think this comic even tries to do a whole section that’s very, very similar to a part in that comic, with some offscreen dialogue between scientists as some animals fight or whatever. Neither scene was interesting to me at all, though.

A lot of this volume is just Wolverine going around and killing people who were his friends in the mainline universe (or trying to, at least), or scenes reiterating how vicious and efficient at killing Wolvey is. Which is basically, almost directly, the Weapon X comic. I’m now realising just how derivative is it. It really doesn’t do a whole lot differently.

Now, the end part wasn’t too bad. Wolvey fights with this universe’s version of Sabretooth, which is cool. But… it’s mostly nothing all that new, in my opinion.

[Emmanuel Jamir · Rating 4 out of 5]

maybe it’s the fact that i’m on a time crunch trying to catch up with the new ultimate universe in about a few days, but ultimate wolverine was, yet again, another hit

first off, LOVE his design in this series, and making him the winter soldier is so interesting to me. this is technically my first wolverine comic, and luckily this run is not as long as the others so catching up will be easier. if i had to rank each ultimate universe series so far, it would be:

🥇ultimates
🥈ultimate spider-man
🥉ultimate wolverine
- ultimate black panther
- ultimate x-men

i have enjoyed ALL of the content this universe has to offer, and it’s definitely reigniting my love for reading