I never could quite figure out how he is able to cut through the things he does. From what I understand his claws are bone that are covered with adamantium which makes them unbreakable. Are they edged like a knife or round and pointy like an animals horn. I've seen them drawn both ways but which is the "official" design of his claws. Are they for slicing or puncturing and tearing? Wolvie's strength is not even close to Spidey's so I would think his ability to tear through things is very limited. However we see him ripping through almost everything as if his claws are lightsabers. So what's the scoop with those wacky claws anyway?
"Realistically" Wolverine should not be able to cut through many of the things he does. Being coated in adamantium and therefore indestructible does not equal a mono-molecular edge or anything, and he's not strong enough to cut through serious metal plate, Hulk skin, etc. However, in practice, Wolverine cuts through that stuff all the time, so we've got to adjust what they "should be" to how they're continously represented, which is that he can cut through almost anything. However, to muddy the issue, there are a handful of characters Wolverine (or X-23) have been shown as not able to cut - the Silver Surfer, the Sentry, and Kimura, a woman with indestructible skin.
As to whether they are edged or just pointy, it changes as you've mentioned. I find that most artists draw them edged now, but sometimes they still look like slightly curved BBQ skewers. I personally vote for edged, but there's no definite ruling on this that I'm aware of.
Nobody ever accused Marvel of sticking to real-world physics, or even consistency. Obviously his look and the details of his powers have varied from artist to artist and writer to writer and storyline to storyline. If there is an "official" take on Wolverine's claws, it would be in the Marvel Handbook. Which, obviously, Marvel doesn't always stick to.
Wolverine has been shown both slicing and puncturing with his claws, so he does both. Are the claws realistically designed for that purpose? Probably not, but I leave that to the professional engineers to figure out.
The classic design of his claws depicts them as thin and blade-like. The implication was that he was retrofitted with them. But later stories established that the claws are a part of his mutant physiology and admantium-plated just like his skeleton. As usual, Marvel can be expected to reverse themselves on this point whenever it is convenient.
Best answer? They just work.
Does
Quote from: BlueBard on October 25, 2008, 11:24:18 AM
Nobody ever accused Marvel of sticking to real-world physics, or even consistency. If there is an "official" take on Wolverine's claws, it would be in the Marvel Handbook. Which, obviously, Marvel doesn't always stick to.
As usual, Marvel can be expected to reverse themselves on this point whenever it is convenient.
Best answer? They just work.
Isn't this the standing on "everything" in the comic industry. I can't recall any superhero or character in general that doesn't have changes that just seem convenient. There's no thick rule for "any" character because it'll all change when a new writer or artist comes in with "fresh, new" ideas.
Heh, that not really the most hard to swallow thing about his claws. The most one that's sticks out the most for me would be it's frequent cutting of things much too large. like a sentinel head for example, his claws are like what 4-8 inches at most? With the diameter of a sentinel's head, even if it was significantly longer and he circled around the sentinel while cutting around the circumfrence, he still wouldn't be able to reach the center of the head. So he'd have to forcibly tear it off or something, instead, he achieves a nice, clean slice with a single slash! Simply atrocious! And speaking of his claws, with the length they are, how does he bend his wrists when they're retracted? I see no way of "storing" those massive things within his arm.
The sharpness issue I can live with, hard things cut very well, even when not terribly sharp, further his claws are usually drawn as edged on the bottom, although he does tend to slash with the side of his claws sometimes, which wouldn't make sense. I say just drop the things, given wolvie's popularity on PG stuff, they're making it seem like all he can do his tackle people and um, threaten people by unsheathing them repeated, that way he can at least punch people.
Superheros aren't really supposed to be realistic though I'm sure you know? Despite having said all that, wolverine isn't too unrealistic as a marvel/dc hero, although he'd probably have to eat a to regenerate so much tissue. I can think of countless off the top of my head with no basis for their powers. Storm, Scarlet witch, and um superman. Yes Superman, I find the way he flies particularly anoyying, as he would need some form of propulsion. Maybe he should inhale a good amount of air fart it out or somethin. That would make sense, yeah. And cycke's "concussive" blasts would likely blow his glasses off, and his visor, and his neck, and crush his eyeballs(to push something you need to push back against something you understand) Seriously they should make it burn everything and such, since it's derived from sunlight and all.
Rant Ova?
cant explain the claws but you have to give marvel credit for atleast trying to explain their characters.you'll never see anything close to character bios,powers & abilities,strengths, and weaknesses like the marvel handbooks.dc doesnt pin down their characters because they always want their characters to be better(which is understandable).yeah...wolverine doesnt have the power to cut through what he does.
In his original appearance, his claws were rounded on top and concave on the underside. They were also meant to be a part of his gloves, not actually coming out of his arms.
Dana
qazwsx, family forum. You've been here awhile now, so you should probably watch the swearing. :P
Quote from: Previsionary on October 25, 2008, 08:43:30 PM
qazwsx, family forum. You've been here awhile now, so you should probably watch the swearing. :P
lol maybe, but putting things into perspective I'm probably one of the younger members here.
I've wondered about this at times too. Heck, even ginsu knives have to be wiggled back and forth a few times to cut through everything-even this tomato!
Oooh...FR member Tomato better look out. :lol:
Dana :D
Well, adamantium works on the same principles as Thundar's Sun Sword. The only thing wolvie has to truly fear is the Statue of Liberty somehow coming to life and attacking. Sunswords and adamantium have no effect on it. :P
"Demon Dogs!!!
Followup question: Wouldn't it be awesome if Wolverine had lightsabers in his forearms?
Quote from: BWPS on October 30, 2008, 07:47:15 AM
Followup question: Wouldn't it be awesome if Wolverine had lightsabers in his forearms?
Or four arms, each, ahem,
armed with a lightsaber? Ooooh!
ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Fop o' th' Morning
Quote from: BWPS on October 30, 2008, 07:47:15 AM
Followup question: Wouldn't it be awesome if Wolverine had lightsabers in his forearms?
That would be nasty. If he just had a switch he could activate them with from external....lights between his knuckles that would be cool.
Why does the light from a lightsaber stop dead after a few inches anyway? And why is it called a saber? I don't know too much about sords, but enough to know it isn't one.
Yeah, they'd more accurately be called "Plasma Katanas" I think...
Quote from: Cardmaster on October 31, 2008, 12:06:31 PM
"Plasma Katanas"
Yeah, that just rolls off the tongue . . .
In response to the thread title:
[spoiler](http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y107/Zipolo/NEWMANG002_400_solicit.jpg)
I guess it depends.[/spoiler]
Ok, that pic is just ridiculous. His claws are longer than his arms.
that's from the manga verse, right? That's why. :P
Some artists do draw Wolverine's claws as stupidly long though, even in the regular Marvel-verse.
Quote from: qazwsx on October 25, 2008, 01:10:46 PMAnd speaking of his claws, with the length they are, how does he bend his wrists when they're retracted? I see no way of "storing" those massive things within his arm.
If they were actually stored along the forearm it'd work. They only cross the top of his hand when retracted.
:lol: I love it! I wish Marvel did have a plausible explanation why Wolvie's claws can cut through almost anything though. At least Black Panther's claws have an explanation that they dissolve metal on contact. That at least makes sense. Bone claws coated with admantium cutting through almost anything does not make sense.
Wait...wait:
you have characters like Superman running around shooting eye beams and being weakened (and other side effects) by a rock, Black Cat and her bad luck abilities, several men that can shrink down to the size of an atom, a wonder woman that was at one point a statue (depending on continuity), a sorcerer supreme, a frozen hero that survived hypothermia and tosses around a shield, several bow and arrow characters that probably shouldn't be able to accomplish half the feats they do succeed at, and several men in armor suits floating about...but you want wolverine and his sharp claws explained? Can't we just continue to suspend our beliefs and believe that the little, furry, Canadian can cut through almost everything he wants and leave the science alone? I mean...astonishing tried to inject science/math/reality into Storm's wind control and it just looked awkward. :P
I'd rather it not be explained because most of those explanation sound increda-stupid or get changed later on anyway by writers that don't understand the elements of science/math to begin with. Even things with solid explanations have been changed over the years and I can just imagine how certain fans would argue with any type of science implemented into any character right now. It'd be like a "Heroes" discussion...only more expansive and blown out. :mellow:
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Quote from: captmorgan72 on November 05, 2008, 03:40:32 PM
At least Black Panther's claws have an explanation that they dissolve metal on contact. That at least makes sense. Bone claws coated with admantium cutting through almost anything does not make sense.
Yes...BP uses anti-metal (vibranium...same as capt's shield, but should be weaker than adamantium). Instead of absorbing sounds, it produces sound at the exact wavelength to dissolve through all metals (even adamantium) at the molecular level. I'm not sure how much sense it makes (I'm not Wakanadan), but I won't debate it either. ^^
Cutting through very tough substances is a unique Canadian trait. It comes from when Canada was first colonized; starving colonists had to cut up rocks and trees to eat because their crops had been planted too late in the growing season, as they were unaware of the lengthy Canadian winter. Wolverine's ability to survive nearly any injury is also attributed to his Canadian heritage, rather than mutant ability, as is commonly thought.
It really is a pity how our southern neighbors know so little about the Canadian people. :P
:blink: This guy needs to work for Marvel!
Quote from: Zippo on November 05, 2008, 05:29:08 PM
starving colonists had to cut up rocks and trees to eat
So that's how their people developed the ability to stomach that stuff they call beer!
Ok, I've never drank any Canadian beer, but I figured it sounded like a good zing.
So, nobody that hangs with Logan should ever starve. He can just cut off some flesh off the arm, add some seasons and cook it up on the stove. I wonder what he taste like?
Quote from: thanoson on November 05, 2008, 10:19:56 PM
So, nobody that hangs with Logan should ever starve. He can just cut off some flesh off the arm, add some seasons and cook it up on the stove. I wonder what he taste like?
Whatever it is, I bet it's a taste that keeps comin' back on ya.
if you cut wolverine right down the middle, would the 2 halves regrow, and you then have 2 wolverines? would that explain all his guest appearances over the years?
Quote from: thanoson on November 05, 2008, 10:19:56 PM
So, nobody that hangs with Logan should ever starve. He can just cut off some flesh off the arm, add some seasons and cook it up on the stove. I wonder what he taste like?
Furry, I'd imagine.
Remember folks...this is a family friendly forum...suggesting cannibalism to help the starving might be crossing the line.... :D :D
Hmmm, if people are going to get technical when it comes to Wolverine, one really has to ask how he gets around the law of conservation of mass.
Quote from: Zippo on November 06, 2008, 08:26:02 PM
Hmmm, if people are going to get technical when it comes to Wolverine, one really has to ask how he gets around the law of conservation of mass.
Yeah, but that's hardly a unique concern to Wolverine - the Hulk, all giant-growing heros and all shape-shifting heros don't really worry about it either.
i'd just like to have ALL supermans abilities explained.he throws scientific explanations right out the windom.this would be another good thread.
I recommend you read "The Physics of Superheroes". It does a good job of explaining how, if at all, the powers of various superheroes would have to function to possibly work.
They'd simply have to eat a lot. Like I mentioned earlier. Though wolverine doesn't seem to do this, I think remember the Ang Lee Hulk movie having a go at something like this. And when the Hulk turned back into Banner, there'd be a massive pudle of (green)protein forming around him :P Feeding wolverine to people is stupid though, since indigestion is incomplete, and not fully efficient either. For every person fed, he'd probably have to eat two of them back, with his metabolism :mellow:
QuoteI recommend you read "The Physics of Superheroes". It does a good job of explaining how, if at all, the powers of various superheroes would have to function to possibly work.
Yes, a good book. I found it at my library and quite enjoyed it.
Quote
i'd just like to have ALL supermans abilities explained.he throws scientific explanations right out the windom.this would be another good thread.
His original set of abilities, however, do work scientifically. It's only when they started adding new ones on just to make him more awesome that it stopped making sense and they had to change the source of his powers.
(For those who don't know, he originally just came from a high gravity planet and just had normal human physical abilities that were just a bit stronger.)
Quote from: catwhowalksbyhimself on November 16, 2008, 12:05:50 AM
QuoteI recommend you read "The Physics of Superheroes". It does a good job of explaining how, if at all, the powers of various superheroes would have to function to possibly work.
Yes, a good book. I found it at my library and quite enjoyed it.
Quote
i'd just like to have ALL supermans abilities explained.he throws scientific explanations right out the windom.this would be another good thread.
His original set of abilities, however, do work scientifically. It's only when they started adding new ones on just to make him more awesome that it stopped making sense and they had to change the source of his powers.
(For those who don't know, he originally just came from a high gravity planet and just had normal human physical abilities that were just a bit stronger.)
Except that doesn't work either. If a human grew up on Mars after spending a brief part of their childhood on Earth, they wouldn't be any stronger there - the body adapts to low-gravity, and pretty fast. Also, the amount of gravity required to allow Superman to do the feats even early-Superman could do would require a planet of prohibitively high mass to exist. Bringing real science to superheroes is generally an exercise in futility.
Quote from: Talavar on November 16, 2008, 11:33:43 AM
Quote from: catwhowalksbyhimself on November 16, 2008, 12:05:50 AM
QuoteI recommend you read "The Physics of Superheroes". It does a good job of explaining how, if at all, the powers of various superheroes would have to function to possibly work.
Yes, a good book. I found it at my library and quite enjoyed it.
Quote
i'd just like to have ALL supermans abilities explained.he throws scientific explanations right out the windom.this would be another good thread.
His original set of abilities, however, do work scientifically. It's only when they started adding new ones on just to make him more awesome that it stopped making sense and they had to change the source of his powers.
(For those who don't know, he originally just came from a high gravity planet and just had normal human physical abilities that were just a bit stronger.)
Except that doesn't work either. If a human grew up on Mars after spending a brief part of their childhood on Earth, they wouldn't be any stronger there - the body adapts to low-gravity, and pretty fast. Also, the amount of gravity required to allow Superman to do the feats even early-Superman could do would require a planet of prohibitively high mass to exist. Bringing real science to superheroes is generally an exercise in futility.
Actually, ini the early Superman stories (as shown especially in the comic strip, published simultaneously to the comic book, which went into much more detail about Superman's origin), Kryptonians had super powers on Krypton, as well as on Earth. It had nothing to do with the gravity of their home planet; Kryptonians simply were much stronger, faster, etc. than Terrans.
Quote from: Alaric on November 16, 2008, 01:22:59 PM
Actually, ini the early Superman stories (as shown especially in the comic strip, published simultaneously to the comic book, which went into much more detail about Superman's origin), Kryptonians had super powers on Krypton, as well as on Earth. It had nothing to do with the gravity of their home planet; Kryptonians simply were much stronger, faster, etc. than Terrans.
True; I'd forgotten about that. Superman's powers (and those all the early Kryptonians had) wasn't due to any difference between Earth & Krypton, but because Kryptonians were more "advanced" than humans both technologically and biologically - ie. products of superior evolution, which is also garbage science. That's why one of Superman's tag lines is "Man of Tomorrow" after all, suggesting, as it does, that humans could be like him at some point in the future.
QuoteActually, ini the early Superman stories (as shown especially in the comic strip, published simultaneously to the comic book, which went into much more detail about Superman's origin), Kryptonians had super powers on Krypton, as well as on Earth. It had nothing to do with the gravity of their home planet; Kryptonians simply were much stronger, faster, etc. than Terrans.
You're not going back far enough. That was explanation #2. The original one was that they evolved on a high gravity planet, and thus had to be faster and stronger just to survive. They were, I suppose, strong even on Krypton, but the original reasoning was that they had to be because of Krypton's gravity.
Quote
Except that doesn't work either. If a human grew up on Mars after spending a brief part of their childhood on Earth, they wouldn't be any stronger there - the body adapts to low-gravity, and pretty fast. Also, the amount of gravity required to allow Superman to do the feats even early-Superman could do would require a planet of prohibitively high mass to exist. Bringing real science to superheroes is generally an exercise in futility.
But they WOULD be stronger than a natively evolved Martian creature.
Quote from: catwhowalksbyhimself on November 16, 2008, 02:58:28 PM
QuoteActually, ini the early Superman stories (as shown especially in the comic strip, published simultaneously to the comic book, which went into much more detail about Superman's origin), Kryptonians had super powers on Krypton, as well as on Earth. It had nothing to do with the gravity of their home planet; Kryptonians simply were much stronger, faster, etc. than Terrans.
You're not going back far enough. That was explanation #2. The original one was that they evolved on a high gravity planet, and thus had to be faster and stronger just to survive. They were, I suppose, strong even on Krypton, but the original reasoning was that they had to be because of Krypton's gravity.
Um, no. This (http://xroads.virginia.edu/~UG02/yeung/actioncomics/page1.html) is from Superman's first appearance, in Action Comics #1; no mention of high gravity at all. He has super powers because he comes from a superhuman race.
Quote from: catwhowalksbyhimself on November 16, 2008, 02:58:28 PM
Quote
Except that doesn't work either. If a human grew up on Mars after spending a brief part of their childhood on Earth, they wouldn't be any stronger there - the body adapts to low-gravity, and pretty fast. Also, the amount of gravity required to allow Superman to do the feats even early-Superman could do would require a planet of prohibitively high mass to exist. Bringing real science to superheroes is generally an exercise in futility.
But they WOULD be stronger than a natively evolved Martian creature.
There's no reason to suppose that. It might seem logical, but it's pure speculation. In the absence of stronger gravity, a human being will have a weaker skeleton, which greatly limits the muscle load that can be placed on it. Supposing a near-identically evolved Martian humanoid, after a relatively short time in the low gravity an Earth human would be no better off physically.
guyz goko ssj1 traind on a planet with superhi gravtity and he got super strong strong enuff to taek freeza down and thats hella stron i bet he cud taek supes if he needed to there should be a dbz/dc show man thatd be tite well im out peace
Quote from: BWPS on November 28, 2008, 04:46:36 PM
guyz goko ssj1 traind on a planet with superhi gravtity and he got super strong strong enuff to taek freeza down and thats hella stron i bet he cud taek supes if he needed to there should be a dbz/dc show man thatd be tite well im out peace
What?
I'm not Candadian, but I will defend their beer.
Off topic remark, anybody remember the movie Canadian Bacon?
To stay on topic, I love bashing the unreality of many comic books and sci-fi and action movies, but don't let this confuse into believing that I don't enjoy the genres. Realistic when super strong characters pick up a bus to throw at another character, they should be driven into the ground like nail driven into a piece of wood.
To try to answer the problem with the length of Wolvie's claws, I always assumed the were telescoping, but they weren't drawn that way for aesthetic reasons. After all, comics are a highly aesthetic medium.