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A Wolverine like me - Finding a positive role model in Wolverine

Wolverine and I are both 5’3” and he’s taught me a thing or two about how to be a short guy in this world

An image of Jules Chin Greene cosplaying as Wolverine (Patch) — Image credit: Jules Chin Greene

Features by Jules Chin Greene, Contributing Writer

Published on Tue Jan 21 2025

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At the 81st Academy Awards in 2009, Hugh Jackman ended his musical theatre-inspired opening number by singing "I am Wolverine." To underscore this dramatic moment, the stage lights flickered and the orchestra swelled in one final crescendo. I watched it all unfold while eating a bacon cheeseburger at a dimly lit pub, and felt something fall into place for me. This clip would end up becoming a kind of mantra for me all these years later.

Part of the fun of being an X-Men fan is that there is a mutant for everyone. That is, there is at least one character who just about anyone can feel represented by. I know teenage me would have felt seen by Chamber from Generation X because I, too, wore black outfits, listened to The Smiths, and melancholically trudged around in the darkness. But the older I get, the more I'm reminded of the impact that Wolverine had on my consciousness as a short brunet dude who enjoys spending time in the woods. I wasn’t exactly aware of it when I was younger, but I think Wolverine offered a positive image of who I could be, and who I was becoming.

But the older I get, the more I'm reminded of the impact that Wolverine had on my consciousness as a short brunet dude who enjoys spending time in the woods. I wasn’t exactly aware of it when I was younger, but I think Wolverine offered a positive image of who I could be, and who I was becoming.

I first got the nickname 'Logan' when I was in high school. My much taller friend, Timothy, gave it to me because I'm 5'3", the same height as Wolverine. And though I didn't have an adamantium skeleton, I was every bit as feisty as Logan. While I thankfully wasn't spending my time bare-knuckle brawling everywhere, Tim was amused by how someone so small could have so much rage about tourists standing in bike lanes or subway pole leaners. On top of that, my family has affectionately called me 'Bub' since birth, and I have a scar on my back that I got from a tree branch while I was running through the Nova Scotian backcountry (it’s a long story). My friends now say that my scar comes from my 'Weapon X era.'

Even so, I wasn’t supposed to be Wolverine-sized. I was projected to grow much taller, but for a whole host of reasons, I ended up here. But I don’t mind being a little guy, I fit on airplanes very comfortably. Logan certainly isn’t bothered by it either. Because of Wolverine, I actually take pride in it sometimes, because what’s cooler than a Fastball Special, where Colossus picks up Wolverine and throws him at their enemies?

Something I appreciate more and more in my adulthood is how Wolverine embodies a sense of positive short-dude masculinity. Writer Benjamin Percy beautifully highlighted this dynamic during his four-year run on the character’s solo comic book series. He doesn’t feel emasculated or threatened by taller people, nor does he bully others to gain a sense of power. I feel strange saying this, but Wolverine is someone I think Paul Simon could learn a thing or two from. In the first issue of Percy’s run, Logan admits that his skills are in “punching and stabbing things,” so he leaves it to brainy mutants like Sage who “are good at figuring out who deserves to get punched and stabbed.” He’s wonderfully self-aware, and has got the spirit of a true collaborator - a model for us all.

Jen Bartel’s cover for X Lives of Wolverine #3 — Image credit: Marvel Comics

And yeah, Wolverine certainly fits into this established mold of 'angry man with a lot of body hair doing violence,' but there’s a lot more going on with his character than such an outdated surface level reading. I mean, the dude is named after one of North America’s fiercest predators, whose jaws can bite through bones and teeth. Wolverine’s violence (and hairiness) isn’t a symptom of his masculinity so much as it’s part of his animalistic nature. And it doesn’t negate his dedication to being a father and mentor to younger mutants like Jubilee, Ms. Marvel, and Kate Pryde. Let’s also not forget that some of Marvel’s most powerful mutants are women like Storm and Jean Grey, both of whom Wolverine has consistently supported over the years.

Obviously, there is something about Wolverine that appeals to people of all genders and walks of life. I think he inspires all of us to heal from our physical and emotional injuries. Wolverine’s comic book journey is about how a man was turned into a thing, and then a weapon, and then a man again. And while I was never fitted with a giant helmet that brainwashed me into becoming violent, I’ve certainly got wounds and scars of my own that give me an emotional kinship to the character. My connection to Wolverine goes beyond being 5’3”, my memories of seeing the first X-Men film in theaters, the hours I spent poring over Frank Quitely’s New X-Men artwork as a kid, even my Bub and Logan nicknames. It’s the commitment to becoming a better man and using my anger to help others that binds me to Wolverine.

There aren’t a whole lot of short guys in pop culture, but I’m grateful every day that I can count Wolverine as among us.

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Jules Chin Greene: Jules Chin Greene is a journalist and Jack Kirby enthusiast. He has written about comics, video games, movies, and television for sites such as Nerdist, AIPT, Multiverse of Color, and Screen Rant.