"Man and Wolf" is a

story arc A story arc (also narrative arc) is the chronological construction of a plot in a novel or story. It can also mean an extended or continuing narrative, storyline in episode, episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strip ...

that ran in ''

Captain America Captain America is a superhero created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby who appears in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in '' Captain America Comics'' #1, published on December 20, 1940, by Timely C ...

'', an

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

series published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

, from July to October 1992. It was written by

Mark Gruenwald Mark Eugene Gruenwald ( ; June 18, 1953 – August 12, 1996) was an American comic book writer, editor, and occasional penciler known for his long association with Marvel Comics. Career Early career Gruenwald got his start in comics f ...

and drawn by Rik Levins. The story follows

as he is transformed into a

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (from Ancient Greek ), is an individual who can shapeshifting, shapeshift into a wolf, or especially in modern film, a Shapeshifting, therianthropic Hybrid beasts in folklore, hybrid wol ...

while investigating the disappearance of John Jameson.

Synopsis

teams up with

Doctor Druid Doctor Anthony Druid, also known as Doctor Droom and Druid, is a fictional mystic and a supernatural monster-hunter appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller Jack Kirby, he de ...

to investigate the disappearance of John Jameson, formerly the superhero Man-Wolf. Their investigation takes them to a town overrun by

werewolves In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (from Ancient Greek ), is an individual who can shapeshift into a wolf, or especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf–humanlike creature, either purposely or after bei ...

controlled by Dredmund the Druid, where Captain America skirmishes with the werewolf-hunting Moonhunter and a brainwashed

Wolverine The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...

. Captain America is then captured by the supervillain

Nightshade Solanaceae (), commonly known as the nightshades, is a family of flowering plants in the order Solanales. It contains approximately 2,700 species, several of which are used as agricultural crops, medicinal plants, and ornamental plants. Many me ...

, who transforms him into a werewolf. "Capwolf" finds that he has been captured alongside superheroes with werewolf-like powers, such as Jameson, Wolfsbane, and

Werewolf By Night The Werewolf by Night (also known as the Werewolf) is the name of two Werewolf, werewolves appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first incarnation of Werewolf by Night, Jack Russell, first appeared in ''Marvel Spotlig ...

, and leads them to defeat Nightshade. They then face Dredmund, and destroy the magical stone that gives him his powers. Captain America is then suddenly attacked by a doppelganger of himself, whom he defeats after he is given an antidote mid-battle that cures him of his lycanthropy.

Production and release

"Man and Wolf" ran in ''

'' from issue #402 (

cover date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unusu ...

d July 1992) to #408 (October 1992). It was written by

and drawn by Rik Levins. A trade paperback collecting the storyline was published by Marvel on January 19, 2011. The storyline features multiple cameos by Marvel characters, such as

and

Cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

; it was a common publishing strategy to include characters from more popular books, such as ''

X-Force X-Force is a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Conceived by writer/illustrator Rob Liefeld, the team first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #100 (April 1991 ...

'' and ''

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...

'', in titles like ''Captain America'' that had lower sales. The conclusion to "Man and Wolf", which sees Captain America fight his doppelganger, ties the story into the 1992

crossover Crossover may refer to: Entertainment Music Albums * ''Cross Over'' (album), a 1987 album by Dan Peek, or the title song * ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987 * ''Crossover'', an album by Intrigue * ''Crossover'', an album by ...

series ''

The Infinity War ''The Infinity War'' is a six-issue comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics in 1992. The series was written by Jim Starlin and penciled by Ron Lim, Ian Laughlin, Al Milgrom, Jack Morelli and Christie Scheele. The storyline is a d ...

''.

Reception and legacy

Chris Sims of '' Comics Alliance'' described "Man and Wolf" as the "most famous oddity of Gruenwald's tenure" on ''Captain America'' and noted its reputation as "one of the most bizarre moments of the core

Marvel Universe The Marvel Universe is a fictional shared universe where the stories in most American comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Comics take place. Superhero teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardia ...

", but commended it as a "highly enjoyable, insanely over-the-top story". Capwolf has appeared in various spin-off and licensed media, including as a

skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different ...

in the 2020 video game '' Marvel's Avengers'' and as a

Funko Pop Funko Inc. is an American company that manufactures licensed and limited pop culture collectibles, known for its licensed vinyl figurines and bobbleheads. In addition, the company produces licensed plush, action figures, apparel, accessories a ...

. ''Capwolf & The Howling Commandos'', a

limited series In the field of comic books, and particularly in the United States, a limited series is a comics series with a predetermined number of issues. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is finite and determined ...

written by Stephanie Phillips and drawn by Carlos Magno, was published by Marvel in 2023. A 2022 storyline in ''Captain America: Symbol of Truth'' in which Joaquin Torres (Falcon) is transformed into a life-sized bird was noted by critics as reminiscent of "Man and Wolf".

Synopsis

Production and release

Reception and legacy

Notes

References

Further reading