As a figurehead of avengers, Captain America is often considered one of the best leaders Marvel Comics. With decades of experience as one of the world’s greatest crime fighters, there are few heroes more experienced than Steve Rogers and characters like Wolverine. But while the Sentinel of Liberty is a master strategist, when it comes to being Marvel’s ultimate leader, that honor goes to none other than the x-menit is Storm.
Storm has proven herself to be a great leader time and time again, surpassing the likes of her fellow X-Men Cyclops and Professor X. And while she and Cap share a few similar attributes, the real difference between their leadership abilities is distilled by their respective relationships with a common teammate – the fan-favorite X-Man called Wolverine. And if Logan is known as a loner, between these two leaders, there is only one he follows without hesitation.
Weird X-Men #142 by Chris Claremont and John Byrne sets the tenor of the relationship between Wolverine and Storm that has persisted over the decades since its release. As the X-Men battle the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants at the climax of the famous “Days of Future Past” story arc, new team leader Storm orders Wolverine to sheathe his claws in order to minimize casualties. Logan initially resists by insisting that he wouldn’t follow this order from Cyclops to which Storm replies, “You will be take it from me”, before arguing that along with his other attributes, claws should be a last resort. Logan eventually relents, and from then on hardly ever questions Ororo’s leadership abilities – a dynamic that continues to this day. And compared to Wolverine and Captain America’s relationship, there’s a very distinct difference in Logan’s willingness to listen.
From the moment Iron Man suggests Wolverine join the Avengers in New Avengers #6 by Brian Michael Bendis and David Finch, Cap objects to Logan’s inclusion by calling the X-Man a murderer. While the two eventually get along, Captain America never fully trusts Logan, even abandoning him in the Arctic for Avengers vs. X-Men by Matt Fraction, John Romita Jr. and others. Steve ends up kicking Wolverine off the team by Strange Avengers #9 by Rick Remender and Daniel Acuña and calling his belonging to the team “a mistake.” Obviously a very different take on the more facilitative nature of Storm.
Although Logan ultimately respects Captain America, he’s not the die-hard soldier who will follow Steve’s orders to the letter. Wolverine is the best at what he does, and while he doesn’t always make the right choice, he respects a leader who doesn’t force him to fill a role that isn’t him. Captain America can’t help but hold Wolverine to a very specific standard, and in doing so, force independent Logan to chafe at those expectations.
Meanwhile, Storm, as one of Wolverine’s closest friends, truly understands Logan. And while she doesn’t always agree with her friend’s sometimes brutal methods, she has a much better understanding of the threats that confront and shape them thanks to their shared history as mutants. Storm’s time with the X-Men taught her the harsh realities that come with leadership, and as such made her more adept at respecting Logan’s individuality as well as that of her teammates – something with which Captain America is clearly struggling.
In Captain America’s defense, Wolverine isn’t always the easiest guy to be around. But while Steve Rogers is arguably one of comics’ greatest leaders, his rigid nature holds him back when teaming up with someone like Logan. Ororo may not always be as ruthless as Wolverine, she respects him as an individual. And when it comes to choosing the leader he will always follow, Wolverine is certain to stick to x-men and choose Marvel Comics‘ Storm above Avengers’ Captain America.
