X-Men 100: Ye Bloody Homicidal Maniac

From Uncanny X-Men #100: "Wolverine... ye bloody homicidal maniac... what have ye DONE?!"

This was apparently the first time the All-New X-Men realized what Wolverine used those claws for. Or at least, the first time they saw him do it. None of the X-Men had ever seen a superhero do ANYTHING like this - and neither had the readers. 😮

In retrospect, the fact that the opponent Wolvie had slashed was an android probably softened the blow. The other X-Men would have plenty of time to get used to the idea - Wolverine wasn't the star of the company yet, but he would be, and this was definitely one of his earliest defining moments.

To be fair, Wolverine had been VERY restrained up to this point; Canada's Department H (that runs Alpha Flight, his previous team) did a solid job on curbing his worst impulses. But it really was just a matter of time until something made Logan lose his temper and cut some fools. Even so, Wolverine would only cut loose on human foes on-panel several years later, during the "Hellfire Club" storyline. 

Younger readers have to keep in mind that at this point in history, superheroes killing or using lethal force was a HUGE taboo. There was no Deadpool, no Lobo, and even the Punisher was still years away from his first regular series. Wolverine was very much the trailblazer of these lethal anti-heroes, a wave that would engulf the whole genre during the '90s (with Wolverine riding the top of that wave all the way to the bank).

At this point in the character's evolution, Wolverine was still a mystery, and the readers were being fed small pieces of the puzzle each month. One month we'd learn that Wolverine liked to hunt non-lethally, just touching deer without scaring them away; and on the following month we'd learn about Logan's previous jobs, or the fact that he spoke japanese. This was one such moment - the first time Logan actually sliced an opponent like sushi. Wolverine's mystery was unfolding before our eyes, and it was awesome. 👍

Story by Chris Claremont, Art by Dave Cockrum.