Who Is Daken: Wolverine's Deadly And Deranged Son Explained

Over the years, Wolverine has collected an assortment of daughters — both biological and surrogate. Who can forget the legendary Weapon X project, Laura Kinney, full of as much rage and claw-wielding prowess as her father? And, of course, there is Gabby, a clone of X-23. In addition to many of Wolverine's children from alternate futures and universes, X-Men Kitty and Jubilee round out his adoptive daughters. But, lest we forget, another child oftentimes remains overlooked — sometimes by Logan himself.

Akihiro, aka Daken, was introduced in Marvel Comics in 2007. Born in 1946 from the union of Logan and his wife, Itsu, Daken had arguably the worst childhood out of Wolverine's offspring — and that's saying something. While in utero, the Winter Soldier kills Itsu, and Daken only survives because of the healing ability he inherits from his father. Mutant villain Romulus cuts Daken from Itsu's womb and puts him on another couple's doorstep. Because of his mixed heritage, Japanese townspeople call him Daken, meaning mongrel. His treatment only worsens when he overhears his adoptive mother admitting she never loved him. This sends him on a collision course with villainy, a mantle that he fully accepts in adulthood when he sets out to kill his biological father. Trained by Romulus to believe that Wolverine killed his mother, Daken turns into a murderous and manipulative mutant after years of abuse and neglect.

Daken has a long emotional journey, and even though he eventually learns that Logan was not responsible for his mother's death, there is no undoing the past. Because of Romulus' actions, Daken knows firsthand what it's like to be unloved, which impacts him on a fundamental level. Eventually, he makes amends with his father and even meets his younger sisters, but he remains who he is. He goes his own way, eventually joining Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers. He later assumes the moniker of Wolverine in the Daniel Way and Majorie Liu's book, "Dark Wolverine." Despite taking up his father's mantle, it doesn't mean his character will change. Redemptive stories, which are so popular in Marvel, do not apply to Daken.

"To achieve redemption requires an active desire to be redeemed," Liu told IGN about the book. "In other words, you need to believe that you've committed an act that requires atonement. Daken isn't built like that. Daken has his own moral code, which doesn't have room for guilt. Remember, everyone believes in their own righteousness, good guys or bad. And Daken thinks he's most righteous of all." At a certain point, Daken has to believe in what he's doing because he's never known any other way. He was raised in vicious circumstances, molding him into who he is. To question that would likely give anyone an existential crisis. Daken is a refreshing character in the world of Marvel, never sticking to one side or the other.