X-Men ’97: What Did Magneto Do to Wolverine?

Warning: The following article about Magneto and Wolverine contains spoilers for X-Men ’97 Season 1, Episode 9, “Tolerance Is Extinction – Part 2.”

Magneto dealt Wolverine a devastating blow in the closing moments of X-Men ’97 Season 1’s penultimate episode, “Tolerance Is Extinction – Part 2.” But what exactly did Magneto do, and does it also happen in Marvel’s X-Men comics?

Magneto’s Attack on Wolverine in X-Men ’97, Explained

Magneto ripped the adamantium coating off Wolverine’s skeleton in “Tolerance Is Extinction – Part 2.” It’s easily the most brutal attack the X-Men ’97 incarnation of Magneto ever unleashed on a member of the show’s titular team. But then, Wolverine had just dished out an equally hardcore stab wound on the Master of Magnetism moments earlier. It’s not immediately apparent what Magneto is doing, although Wolverine’s reaction confirms it’s nothing good. And by the time streaks of blood appear on the mutant berserker’s glowing body, most viewers will figure it out.

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Fortunately for those who still can’t connect the dots, the final shot of the episode eliminates any ambiguity. Here, we see swirling strips of liquidized adamantium emanating from Wolverine as he writhes in agony. It’s a shocking closer that will leave many X-Men ’97 devotees desperate to know whether Wolvie will survive. If he does, will the X-Men figure out how to re-coat his bones in indestructible metal? And if so, when?

Does Wolverine Lose His Adamantium in Marvel’s X-Men Comics?

Yep, and it happens in 1993’s X-Men (Vol. 2) #25 — Part 4 of the “Fatal Attractions” storyline — by Fabian Nicieza and Andy Kubert. What’s more, Nicieza and Kubert’s original version of the scene looks almost identical to how it unfolds in X-Men ’97. Subsequent comics confirm that Wolverine survives Magneto’s attack (barely), kicking off a multi-year arc exploring its aftermath. Highlights include Wolvie discovering his bone claws and briefly going feral and losing his nose (seriously!), before receiving a shiny new coat of adamantium courtesy of Apocalypse of all people. The best part? Apocalypse sources the materials for Logan’s procedure from the skeleton of his arch-nemesis, Sabretooth.

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Funnily enough, the whole odyssey spun out of a snarky comment by Marvel writer Peter David. “[W]e were all discussing how we were going to have Magneto’s return be a big deal,” David recalled in a 2007 CBR interview. “The other writers were bouncing around the notion of a huge Magneto/Wolverine slugfest and I said, thinking out loud, ‘Boy, y’know, if I’m Magneto, I don’t even bother with Wolverine. I just yank out his skeleton and be done with him.’ And there was dead silence for a moment, and then everyone looked at me and said, ‘That’s a great idea.'”

X-Men ’97 is now streaming on Disney+, with Season 1’s final episode dropping on Wednesday, May 15, 2024.