Warning! Spoilers for last year’s Wolverine #50, and speculation about this year’s Wolverine #7 ahead!
The advanced synopsis for an upcoming issue of Marvel’s current ongoingWolverineseries teases “a surprising return you’ll have to read to believe” – and, for better or worse,I have a feeling it’s going to be the hero’s arch-nemesis Sabretooth, less than a full year after he was killed off in a climactic confrontation with Logan at the end of theSabretooth Wararc, which concluded the previousWolverineseries.
Wolverine#7 – written by Saladin Ahmed, with art by Martín Cóccolo – also promises a “shock twist,” as Marvel continues its attempt to push its most iconic mutant character in a bold new direction.
That said,Sabretooth Warwas a genuinely epic culmination of over four years of ambitious storytelling. It set an imposingly high bar, and constituted an incredibly hard act to follow for the relaunched title – something that will be even more acutely apparent if the book brings back Sabretooth too soon.
We All Know Sabretooth Is Wolverine’s Greatest Foe – But Marvel Has To Let The Conflict Go (For Now)
Wolverine#7 – Written By Saladin Ahmed; Art By Martín Cóccolo; Color By Bryan Valenza; Available August 08, 2025 From Marvel Comics
Let me start with a disclaimer: I am just speculating here. So far, nothing about Saladin Ahmed’sWolverinerun has telegraphed that Sabretooth’s comeback is imminent. Currently, Marvel has an in-progressSabretoothminiseries coming out, entitledThe Dead Don’t Talk, which circumvents the “problem” of his demise by telling a story set in the early 20th-century – so even post-mortem, the character continues to have a strong presence in the publisher’s plans. No, I’m talking about a gut feeling here: I’m honestly concerned that Marvel doesn’t have the patience to keep Wolverine’s #1 enemy off-limits for too long this time.
It’s not that I never want Sabretooth to come back, or never want him to fight Wolverine again – but right now, we’re less than six months removed from what felt like a definitive ending to their story.
I hope I’m wrong, and thankfully, I have been wrong with my plot predictions, such as whenMarvel faked me out with its bigUltimateIron Man “death” of 2024, as often as I have been right, like when I guessed thatMark Millar would use time travel to undo the major deathsin hisBig Gameminiseries. It’s not that I never want Sabretooth to come back, or never want him to fight Wolverine again – but right now, we’re less than six months removed from what felt like a definitive ending to their story.
This is comics, so it won’t be, but I do think Marvel should giveSabretooth War’sconclusion some breathing room. I’ve been trying to consider what the benefit of such a quick resurrection for the character would be. Beyond the fact that he’s undoubtedly Wolverine’s GOAT villain, and his appearance immediately raises the stakes of anyWolverinestory, I’m hesitant to say there is a benefit. The opposite, in fact –I hope Marvel doesn’t bring Sabretooth back yet, because the longer he is out of action, the more impactful his return will be.
Wolverine#50 – Written By Benjamin Percy & Victor LaValle; Art By Geoff Shaw & Corey Smith; Ink By Oren Junior; Color By Alex Sinclair; Lettering By Corey Petit; Released July 18, 2025
Marvel’sSabretooth Warwas an extended 10-part arc, but even before that it was years in the making – with seeds planted, and pieces maneuvered into place, over the course of the entire five-yearKrakoan Era ofX-Mencomics, the end of which the release ofWolverine#50 coincided with. I find this important, because it emphasizeshow patient Marvel had to be with Sabretooth during this Era, to save this monumental storyline for the final act of Wolverine’s Krakoan Era journey.
Author Benjamin Percy elaborated on this in a fascinating 2022 interview, in which he explained why Jonathan Hickman’s 2019 kickoff to the Krakoan Era – theHouse of X/Powers of Xminiseries – took Sabretooth out of circulation for the franchise’s other creators. Namely, Hickman and Percy, and Marvel’sX-Office, were playing the long game, “benching” Sabretooth in the first quarter, if I can hazard a sports analogy, so he could be put into the game at the pivotal moment of the fourth.
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Sabretooth Waralso served as an anniversary celebration for Wolverine, who debuted fifty years prior in 1974, and for me, as a reader, it felt like a truly worthy story to commemorate half-a-century of comic book excellence. For me, it instantly shot to number one on my personal list ofbest Sabretooth vs. Wolverine stories. If new or returning comic readers are looking to watch Marvel’s two most vicious enemies tear each other to pieces, I’d saySabretooth Waris an absolute must-read.
I Hope Marvel Pulls Out Something Truly Unexpected With This Upcoming “Surprising Return,” As Wolverine Nears Another Milestone
Wolverine#7 – Variant Covers By Alessandro Cappucio, David Baldeón, & More TBD
Though the currentWolverinetitle is still relatively fresh,Wolverine#8 represents a major distinction of sorts in the canon of the character’s publication, as by Marvel’s “Legacy” numbering standard, it doubles asWolverine#400 – meaning all series bearing that name have together released a total of four-hundred issues. So, my feeling that Sabretooth is about to return is predicated, in part, on the logic that Marvel is going to want to do something big for this milestone, something thatWolverine#7/#399 will likely set up in its final pages.
Sabretooth: The Marvel Villain’s Powers & History Explained
Exploring Sabretooth’s powers & physicality reveal how he has developed over the years into one of Marvel’s deadliest mutants since his debut.
Admittedly, as I’ve written this, I have realized this is less of a prediction, and more of a worry. My hope is that the “surprise return” teased forWolverine#7 will turn out to be someone I never saw coming.If it does wind up being Sabretooth, I will take that for what it is, and I’m confident author Saladin Ahmed can deliver another great story with the character, whether it lives up toSabretooth War’slofty achievement or not. In any case, I’m greatly looking forward toWolverine#7, and the issues leading up to it.
Wolverine#7will be available June 05, 2025 from Marvel Comics.
Wolverine
The human mutant Wolverine (a.k.a. Logan) was born James Howlett, blessed with a superhuman healing factor, senses, and physiology. Subjecting himself to experimentation to augment his skeleton and claws with adamantium, Logan is as deadly as he is reckless, impulsive, and short-tempered. Making him the X-Men’s wildest and deadliest member, and one of Marvel Comics' biggest stars. He’s played in Fox and Marvel’s movie franchises by Hugh Jackman.
