The reason why Deadpool & Wolverine's new Logan variant doesn't have adamantium poisoning may have been revealed in 2013's The Wolverine. Deadpool & Wolverine introduces the concept of anchor beings, with Paradox explaining that the X-Men movie franchise's original Wolverine variant was an essential figure to Earth-10005's stability. Since the original Wolverine died a slow and untimely death due to adamantium poisoning in Logan, Earth-10005 was sentenced to premature destruction. However, Deadpool searches through several Wolverine variants of all kinds across the multiverse until he finds "the worst" one in the multiverse to replace the original.
Custom image by Yailin Chacon
Multiversal variants can be very similar or very different from the "prime" version of the character. For instance, almost all of Deadpool's multiversal variants wear red-and-black suits and possess a healing factor, while Loki variants tend to look wildly different from each other, and Wolverine variants tend to live through painful yet unique events. Jackman's new Wolverine witnessed the death of the X-Men in his universe, but he continues to be healthy enough to fight by the time he joins Deadpool on Earth-10005 in Deadpool & Wolverine's emotional ending. Perhaps Earth-10005's anchor being could have avoided his fate, but that might have entailed a drastic change in his journey 84 years prior to his death.
The Original Wolverine’s Adamantium Skeleton May Have Been Damaged By The Nagasaki Nuclear Bomb
Hugh Jackman's Original Wolverine Variant May Have Developed Side Effects From The Nuclear Bomb Blast
In The Wolverine's opening sequence, Logan is saved by officer Ichiro Yashida in a Nagasaki POW camp. Immediately afterward, a nuclear bomb hits the ground nearby, and Logan convinces Yashida to take shelter in the pit he broke Logan out of. Logan also manages to jump inside and shield Yashida, but the nuclear blast reaches him, melting off his skin. While Wolverine's healing factor allowed him to heal from the Nagasaki nuclear bomb blast, it's possible that his body absorbed the subsequent radiation, accelerating the decay of his adamantium skeleton.
Wolverine's reunion with Ichiro Yashida decades later results in Yashida briefly removing Wolverine's healing factor
Wolverine's healing factor no longer works in Logan due to an unusual case of adamantium poisoning, as most other Wolverine variants seemingly don't have this problem. There must have been a specific event that affected the metal in Wolverine's body, and the Nagasaki nuclear bomb seems like the most likely option. On top of that, Wolverine's reunion with Ichiro Yashida decades later results in Yashida briefly removing Wolverine's healing factor, which may have weakened his body's ability to tolerate his skeleton's adamantium coating even further.
The Wolverine Proves Why Hugh Jackman’s Two Main Logan Variants Are So Different
The Original Wolverine Discovers His Fate But Rejects His Superhero Persona In 2013's The Wolverine
There are a couple of details in The Wolverine that support the idea that this Wolverine was destined to die prematurely in his timeline. The precognizant mutant Yukio accompanies Wolverine and foresees his death, telling him, "I see you on your back, there's blood everywhere. You're holding your own heart in your hand. It's not beating.” This is a clear foreshadowing of Wolverine's death in Logan, where he dies holding Laura Kinney's hand. The fact that Wolverine learns about his death through Yukio thanks to Ichiro Yashida adds to the idea that saving Yashida from the Nagasaki nuclear bomb sealed his fate.
Also, in The Wolverine's deleted ending scene, Yukio gifts Wolverine a box containing his comic-accurate, yellow-and-brown costume. Wolverine smiles when he sees the suit, but he never wears it afterward. Logan rejects his full-fledged Wolverine persona off-screen by not wearing the costume, whereas Deadpool & Wolverine's new Wolverine variant embraces it. On the other hand, the original Wolverine repeatedly put his life on the line to save those around him, whereas the new Wolverine failed to save the X-Men and thus got a new opportunity to be a hero on Earth-10005 at around the same age.
The Wolverine’s Nuclear Bomb Explosion May Have Created A Different Kind Of Adamantium
The Nagasaki Nuclear Bomb's Radiation May Have Created Carbonadium When It Hit Wolverine's Adamantium Skeleton
In the comics, the USSR developed Carbonadium — a copy of adamantium that's much weaker but much more flexible. Carbonadium is also radioactive, and it requires those who manipulate it to protect themselves through various means. One of Wolverine's comic-book archnemeses, Omega Red, wields two retractable carbonadium tentacles on his arms, which he uses to drain his opponents' energy. Neither Omega Red nor carbonadium ever appeared in Fox's X-Men film franchise, but Wolverine's radiation-infused skeleton might have been the predecessor to carbonadium in the movies.
Just like Wolverine's skeleton at the end of his life, Omega Red is slowly poisoned by his carbonadium implants unless he drains energy from his victims or wears a special carbonadium synthesizer, which can also melt carbonadium and transform it into new weapons and devices. Perhaps if mutants hadn't gone extinct and scientists like Hank McCoy had enough time to study Wolverine's adamantium poisoning, they could have discovered that Wolverine's healing factor decay came from latent radiation, and that the best way to solve this issue was to design a special synthesizer that could strip Wolverine's adamantium from extraneous energy.
