WOLVERINE

Wednesday, October 28, 2026Earth-616 canonFantastic Four #347 (1990)

Today's Fact

Verified against multiple independent sources. Issue numbers cited below.

WOLVERINE WAS ONCE IN THE FANTASTIC FOUR — RECRUITED BY A SKRULL WHO LIED THAT THE REAL TEAM WAS DEAD!
The Featured Fact

For three issues, Marvel's first family had claws. In Fantastic Four #347 (1990), by Walt Simonson and Arthur Adams, a fugitive Skrull named De'Lila knocks out the genuine Fantastic Four, disguises herself as the Invisible Woman, and summons four replacements she claims she needs to avenge her murdered teammates.

The stand-ins answering that phoney mourning call were Wolverine, Spider-Man, the grey Hulk then working as Joe Fixit, and Ghost Rider. Logan himself supplies the branding, joking that the quartet should simply call themselves the new Fantastic Four before they pile into the Fantasti-Car.

De'Lila chose that unlikely line-up on purpose, because each recruit brought one tool she needed to free a stolen Technotroid egg from its Skrull casing. In Fantastic Four #349 (1991) the Hulk smashes the ship open, Ghost Rider burns away a mystical coating, Wolverine disables a spinning laser mechanism, and Spider-Man webs the release switch.

Why It's Obscure

Logan's Fantastic Four membership lasted one Monster Isle trip, was founded on a lie, and was never an application he filled out.

1990
A Roster Built From Bestsellers. Simonson later made no secret that pairing four of Marvel's hottest solo stars in one book was a gleeful sales stunt as much as a story. Three issues was all the joke needed, and all it got.
THE HOAX
Dead, Only On Paper. The original team spent the adventure unconscious and hidden while their impostor borrowed their headquarters, their vehicle and their reputation. Wolverine was not replacing the Fantastic Four; he was unknowingly running errands for the person who had benched them.
2022
An Encore, Decades Later. Marvel returned to that brief line-up in the New Fantastic Four limited series in 2022, setting fresh adventures immediately after the original three-parter. A throwaway grouping proved too popular with readers to stay a footnote.

Sources

Every claim above is verified against at least two of these independent sources.

Bullpen Bulletins

  1. A Guide to 'New Fantastic Four' #1 — MarvelMarvel's own guide recaps Fantastic Four #347-349: De'Lila knocks out the team, poses as the Invisible Woman, and recruits Wolverine, Spider-Man, Hulk and Ghost Rider.
  2. Fantastic Four Vol 1 #347 — Marvel DatabaseIssue entry listing the New Fantastic Four's first appearance and, for #349, how each hero's abilities free the Technotroid egg.
  3. Wolverine, Spider-Man, Ghost Rider & Hulk return as Fantastic Four — CBRConfirms Simonson and Adams created the line-up after De'Lila captured the original four and tricked the replacements into serving her purposes.