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If Wolverine can get within striking distance of an enemy, he can pretty much obliterate them – but he’s even stronger with a partner. Logan’s Adamantium Claws and healing factor mean that he’s an unstoppable physical force, but he’s only good if he can actually reach his enemies. While Wolverine is absurdly durable and pointy, he’s not particularly adept at closing distance. But five characters in particular make up for that weakness, though anyone could technically be part of the iconic “fastball special.”
Wolverine is no stranger to being on teams. In fact, he’s been on so many teams that even Marvel has made fun of his team spirit in the past. While Wolverine tends to have the identity of a loner who keeps to himself, he’s more than capable of working with other people, and his most famous move makes use of his teamwork. There are a few teammates he’s had over the years that truly make up for his low mobility. Wolverine is fast, but he can’t cross chasms or get his claws on people flying in the air. Thankfully, Wolverine’s most powerful teammates help Logan overcome his one major weakness by becoming the ideal fastball special partners.
5
Carol Danvers’ Fastball Special Launched Wolverine From Above
New Avengers Annual #1 by Brian Michael Bendis, Olivier Coipel, and More
Wolverine and Carol Danvers haven’t interacted that much in the comics, but everyone knows the fastball special, even in the Marvel Universe and on teams outside the X-Men. Usually,the fastball special involves throwing Wolverine at a character who is far away or high up in the air, but Carol – back when she was Ms. Marvel instead of Captain – managed to put a spin on this classic Wolverine move by launching Logan from midair at Yelena, who, at the time, had developed the powers of the Super-Adaptoid.
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This move allowed Wolverine to knock Yelena out of the air as well as save Jessica Drew, who was currently in her lethal grasp. As far as fastball specials go, this one making use of Carol’s wild strength was a pretty good one. It achieved its goal and saved the victim while injuring the villain in the situation.
But considering Wolverine and Carol Danvers rarely get to team up together, she isn’t his ideal fastball special partner. Though her ability to fly and use Wolverine from other angles does make her a good potential partner, they just don’t interact enough for their potential to really be realized. Maybe the next time they share a team, they can recreate this highly successful move.
4
Despite Being an X-Man, Storm’s Fastball Special Lacks Control
Herc #7 by Fred Van Lente, Greg Pak, June Brigman, Roy Richardson, Jesus Aburtov, and Simon Bowland
The team that Wolverine is most famous for being a part of is undoubtedly the X-Men. Wolverine and the X-Men have been together for decades, and Wolverine is capable of working together with just about any member of this iconic team. In fact, the fastball special was created by Wolverine and a fellow X-Man.
Over the years, Wolverine has had tons of fastball specials with different X-characters, and one of the most surprising pairings is Storm. While Storm doesn’t have the brute strength to launch Wolverine through the air like some of her mutant compatriots, she does have power over the air itself. Ororo’s mutant abilities allow Storm to manipulate wind currents to fling Wolverine towards their desired target, making their partnership one of the most unique fastball specials in Marvel history.
Unfortunately, this combination likely isn’t anywhere near as accurate as other fastball specials, as throwing someone with physical strength is likely very different from using air currents. While this move from Storm and Wolverine did prove effective in this particular moment, its success was likely due to the fact that Wolverine was being thrown at Hercules, who isn’t exactly a small target.
They’ve been working together for decades, and, given the time, there’s no doubt that Storm could practice and become one of Wolverine’s best teammates for the fastball special.
It would be hard to miss him, no matter the powers. Still, Storm and Wolverine are fellow X-Men members. They’ve been working together for decades, and, given the time, there’s no doubt that Storm could practice and become one of Wolverine’s best teammates for the fastball special. But she’s not quite there yet, especially compared to some other X-Men and Avengers.
3
She-Hulk Threw Wolverine Faster Than Any Other Hero
She-Hulk #16 by Dan Slott, Rick Burchett, Greg Horn, Cliff Rathburn, and Dave Sharpe
There are few beings as physically powerful in the Marvel Universe as the Hulks. The Hulk himself has been called strong enough to crack the world. She-Hulk has a similar level of strength, and it’s no surprise that this makes her spin on the fastball special one of the deadliest so far.
When She-Hulk tossed Wolverine at Wendigo in She-Hulk #16, he went straight through and didn’t stop. It’s possibly one of the most gruesome versions of the fastball special seen so far in Marvel’s comics, and it shows just how absurdly deadly a small man traveling at several hundred miles per hour can be.
Especially when that tiny man has razor blades – that are practically unbreakable – coming out of his knuckles. Despite this scene including one of the deadliest versions of the fastball special, it’s another case where Wolverine simply doesn’t spend much time with She-Hulk, especially since they’re often on different teams.
While it’s true that Wolverine made his first appearance in a Hulk book, he hasn’t hung around the green giants all that much since then. When the two characters do meet up, it’s usually for a flashy and gruesome fight. While She-Hulk definitely threw Wolverine harder and faster than most other Marvel characters, readers aren’t going to see much more of this variation of the iconic X-Men attack.
2
Beast and Wolverine Made a Deadly Combo in One of the X-Men’s Most Iconic Eras
X-Men #1 by Chris Claremont, Jim Lee, Joe Rosas, Scott Williams, and Tom Orzechowski
It’s no secret that Wolverine can have a bit of an abrasive personality, even in a cast full of characters with abrasive personalities. It can be hard for people to get close to him, and he doesn’t always get along with everyone. While Wolverine tries to stay on good terms with most of his mutant teammates, he has been on bad terms with Beast more often than not, especially during the recent Krakoan Era.
Despite their shaky history, however, the two did manage to come together and do an iconic fastball special in the early days of Claremont and Lee’s X-Men. In fact, their version of the iconic attack was so fast and so hard that it took down Delgado, a massive mutant, despite how Chrome used his abilities to make Delgado’s skin ultra-dense.
Wolverine had to have been traveling fast in order to break Delgado’s skin – or perhaps he was thrown at just the right angle, due to Beast’s genius-level intellect. On paper, these two classic X-Men should be the perfect match for a fastball special and other team-up attacks. After all, they’re both X-Men, and they spend a significant amount of time around each other.
But fates hasn’t worked out in their favor, despite their similarities. They’re both considered animals by the world at large and both have struggled with whether they are more beast or man. It seems like an absolutely great team-up, but unfortunately, due to Beast’s less-than-moral behavior on multiple occassions, the two simply don’t get along well enough to work together. While they could have been the greatest, fans will have to settle for this one fastball special from days gone by, long before they had a falling out.
1
Colossus Is Simply the Greatest Choice for a Wolverine Team Up
The X-Men #100 by Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum, Bonnie Wilford, and Annette Kawecki
Without Colossus, no other Marvel characters would have tossed Wolverine in the classic fastball special move. Wolverine and Colossus have been working together for a long, long time – since the earliest days of their X-Men membership. While they’ve had falling-outs here and there, they’re incredibly good friends and consider one another to be brothers.
Colossus and Wolverine first invented the fastball special together during training, and they’ve been using it to incredible effect for years. They’ve put tons of twists on it over the decades, including the screwball special – and even a time when Wolverine threw Colossus at Jean Grey to murder her.
Not only does Colossus have the strength and the trusting relationship with Logan, he’s around Wolverine enough to consistently do fastball specials when the need arrives.
On top of being an unimaginably powerful pairing for their sheer strength and sharp blades, their imagination in how they find new ways to use the special move that they created prove that they’re the best duo for the fastball special. Not only does Colossus have the strength and the trusting relationship with Logan, he’s around Wolverine enough to consistently do fastball specials when the need arrives.
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When it comes to other people who’ve done the fastball special, they just can’t compare to the original combo. Colossus hits every mark for being Wolverine’s perfect partner for this iconic tag-team ability. As long as these two heroes are together, there’s no doubt that there will be plenty of new versions of the fastball special, and tons of villains will see Wolverine coming at them at borderline light speed – and as quite possibly the very last thing they see.
“}]] These characters make Wolverine a better fighter. Read More