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The X-Men are a
superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...
team appearing in
American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...
s published by
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Comics'' in ...
, first appearing in ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter
Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comic book artist, writer and editor, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He gre ...
and writer/editor
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...
in 1963. Although initially cancelled in 1970 due to low sales, following its 1975 revival and subsequent direction under writer
Chris Claremont Christopher S. Claremont (; born November 25, 1950) is a British-born American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on '' Uncanny X-Men'' from 1975 to 1991, far longer than that of any other writer,Claremont, Chris. ''Marve ...
, it became one of the most recognizable and successful franchises of Marvel Comics. They have appeared in numerous books,
television shows A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...
, the
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
''X-Men'' films, and
video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedbac ...
. The ''X-Men'' title may refer to the superhero team itself, the eponymous comic series, or the broader franchise including various solo titles and team books such as the
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
,
Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...
, and X-Force. In the
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. Super-teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardians o ...
, mutants are humans who are born with a genetic trait called the X-gene which grants them natural superhuman abilities. Due to their differences from the majority of humanity, mutants are subject to prejudice and discrimination and many X-Men stories feature social commentary on bigotry and justice. The X-Men have fought against a variety of
enemies Enemies or foes are a group that is seen as forcefully adverse or threatening. Enemies may also refer to: Literature * ''Enemies'' (play), a 1906 play by Maxim Gorky * '' Enemies, A Love Story'', a 1966 novel by Isaac Bashevis Singer * '' Enem ...
, including villainous mutants, human bigots, supervillains, mystical threats, extraterrestrials, and malevolent artificial intelligences. In most iterations of the team, they are led by their founder Charles "Professor X" Xavier, a powerful telepath who runs a school for mutant children out of his mansion in Westchester, New York, which secretly is also the headquarters of the X-Men. Their stories have frequently involved
Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...
, a powerful mutant with control over
magnetic fields A magnetic field is a vector field that describes the magnetic influence on moving electric charges, electric currents, and magnetic materials. A moving charge in a magnetic field experiences a force perpendicular to its own velocity and to ...
, who is depicted as an old friend of and
foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ...
to Xavier, variously acting as an adversary or as an ally. The current iteration of the official X-Men team is headquartered in The Treehouse, a
Krakoa Krakoa is a fictional living island appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It first appeared in ''Giant-Size X-Men'' #1 and was created by Len Wein and Dave Cockrum. Initially depicted as an antagonist, Krakoa has since gro ...
n base in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, and the roster is voted on by their fellow mutants in elections held at periodic
Hellfire Gala "Hellfire Gala" is a comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics through the ''X-Men'' related title. It is the first storyline featured in the "Reign of X" relaunch after the " X of Swords" storyline. It is a twelve-chapter storyline. Krakoa o ...
s. No longer working in secret, they fight publicly for the safety of mutants, to build bridges between Krakoa and human nations, and to protect the Earth and Solar System from extraterrestrial threats.


Background and creation

In 1963, with the success of
Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the Si ...
,
the Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book ap ...
,
Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, ...
,
Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The cha ...
, and
the Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in '' The Fantastic Four'' #1 (cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the firs ...
, co-creator
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...
wanted to create another group of superheroes but did not want to have to explain how they got their powers. In 2004, Lee recalled, "I couldn't have everybody bitten by a radioactive spider or exposed to a gamma ray explosion. And I took the cowardly way out. I said to myself, 'Why don't I just say they're mutants? They are born that way. In a 1987 interview, Kirby said:
The X-Men, I did the natural thing there. What would you do with mutants who were just plain boys and girls and certainly not dangerous? You school them. You develop their skills. So I gave them a teacher, Professor X. Of course, it was the natural thing to do, instead of disorienting or alienating people who were different from us, I made the X-Men part of the human race, which they were. Possibly, radiation, if it is beneficial, may create mutants that'll save us instead of doing us harm. I felt that if we train the mutants our way, they'll help us – and not only help us, but achieve a measure of growth in their own sense. And so, we could all live together.
Lee devised the series title after Marvel publisher Martin Goodman turned down the initial name, "The Mutants," stating that readers would not know what a "mutant" was. Within the
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. Super-teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardians o ...
, the X-Men are widely regarded to have been named after
Professor X Professor X (Charles Francis Xavier) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as the founder and sometimes leader of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writ ...
avier himself. The original explanation for the name, as provided by Xavier in ''The X-Men'' #1 (1963), is that mutants "possess an extra power ... one which ordinary humans do not!! That is why I call my students ... X-Men, for EX-tra power!"
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. ( doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with the ...
's
Doom Patrol Doom Patrol is a superhero team from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in ''My Greatest Adventure'' #80 (June 1963), and was created by writers Arnold Drake and Bob Haney, along with artist Bruno Premiani. Doom Patrol has appe ...
, which debuted several months before X-Men, was suspected by its creator
Arnold Drake Arnold Drake (March 1, 1924 – March 12, 2007) was an American comic book writer and screenwriter best known for co-creating the DC Comics characters Deadman and the Doom Patrol, and the Marvel Comics characters the Guardians of the Galaxy, amo ...
and its fans of having had the basic concept copied to a great degree - including a wheel-chair bound leader - by Marvel Comics to create the X-Men. Other fans also speculate that Doom Patrol share similarities with another Marvel superhero team that preceded them, the
Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 (cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first s ...
.


Publication history


Original run

Early ''X-Men'' issues introduced the original team composed of
Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...
,
Marvel Girl Marvel Girl is an alias used by at least three fictional Marvel Comics superheroines: *Jean Grey, best known as a founding member of the X-Men *Valeria Richards, daughter of Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman (of the Fantastic Four) *Rachel ...
, Beast,
Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles ...
, and Iceman, along with their archenemy
Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...
and his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants featuring Mastermind, Quicksilver,
Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. Her first appearance was in ''The X-Men'' #4 (March 19 ...
, and
Toad Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scient ...
. The comic focused on a common human theme of good versus evil and later included storylines and themes about
prejudice Prejudice can be an affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classification of another person based on that person's per ...
and
racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagoni ...
, all of which have persisted throughout the series in one form or another. The evil side in the fight was shown in human form and under some sympathetic beginnings via Magneto, a character who was later revealed to have survived Nazi concentration camps only to pursue a hatred for normal humanity. His key followers, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch, were
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
. Only one new member of the X-Men was added, Mimic/Calvin Rankin, but soon left due to his temporary loss of power. The title lagged in sales behind Marvel's other comic franchises. In 1969, writer
Roy Thomas Roy William Thomas Jr."Roy Thomas Checklist" ''Alter Ego'' vol. 3, #50 (July 2005) p. 16 (born November 22, 1940) is an American comic book writer and editor, who was Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly ...
and illustrator
Neal Adams Neal Adams (June 15, 1941 – April 28, 2022) was an American comic book artist. He was the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates, and was a Creator ownership, creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and re ...
rejuvenated the comic book and gave regular roles to two recently introduced characters: Havok/Alex Summers (who had been introduced by Roy Thomas before Adams began work on the comic) and Lorna Dane, later called
Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...
(created by
Arnold Drake Arnold Drake (March 1, 1924 – March 12, 2007) was an American comic book writer and screenwriter best known for co-creating the DC Comics characters Deadman and the Doom Patrol, and the Marvel Comics characters the Guardians of the Galaxy, amo ...
and
Jim Steranko James F. Steranko (; born November 5, 1938) is an American graphic artist, comic book writer/artist, comics historian, magician, publisher and film production illustrator. His most famous comic book work was with the 1960s superspy feature " ...
). However, these later ''X-Men'' issues failed to attract sales and Marvel stopped producing new stories with issue #66, later reprinting a number of the older comics as issues #67–93.


Claremont Era

In ''
Giant-Size X-Men ''Giant-Size X-Men'' #1 was a special issue of the ''X-Men'' comic book series, published by Marvel Comics in 1975. It was written by Len Wein and illustrated by Dave Cockrum. Though not a regular issue, it contained the first new X-Men story in ...
'' #1 (1975), writer
Len Wein Leonard Norman Wein (; June 12, 1948 – September 10, 2017) was an American comic book writer and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' Swamp Thing and Marvel Comics' Wolverine, and for helping revive the Marvel superhero team the X-Men ...
and artist
Dave Cockrum David Emmett Cockrum (; November 11, 1943 – November 26, 2006) was an American comics artist known for his co-creation of the new X-Men characters Nightcrawler, Storm, Colossus, and Mystique, as well as the antiheroine Black Cat. Cockrum was ...
introduced a new team that starred in a revival of ''The X-Men'', beginning with issue #94. This new team replaced the previous members with the exception of
Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...
, who remained. This team differed greatly from the original. Unlike in the early issues of the original series, the new team was not made up of teenagers and they also had a more diverse background. Marvel's corporate owners, Cadence Industries, had suggested the new team should be international, feeling it needed characters with "foreign appeal". So each character was from a different country with varying cultural and philosophical beliefs, and all were already well-versed in using their mutant powers, several being experienced in combat. The "all-new, all-different X-Men" were led by Cyclops, from the original team, and consisted of the newly created
Colossus Colossus, Colossos, or the plural Colossi or Colossuses, may refer to: Statues * Any exceptionally large statue ** List of tallest statues ** :Colossal statues * ''Colossus of Barletta'', a bronze statue of an unidentified Roman emperor * ''Col ...
(from the Soviet Union/Russia), Nightcrawler (from West Germany/Germany),
Storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstorm), ...
(from Kenya), and
Thunderbird Thunderbird, thunder bird or thunderbirds may refer to: * Thunderbird (mythology), a legendary creature in certain North American indigenous peoples' history and culture * Ford Thunderbird, a car Birds * Dromornithidae, extinct flightless birds ...
(a Native American of
Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño a ...
descent), and three previously introduced characters:
Banshee A banshee ( ; Modern Irish , from sga, ben síde , "woman of the fairy mound" or "fairy woman") is a female spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member, usually by screaming, wailing, shrieking, or keening. Her name i ...
(from Ireland),
Sunfire Fire is a series of server computers introduced in 2001 by Sun Microsystems (since 2010, part of Oracle Corporation). The Sun Fire branding coincided with the introduction of the UltraSPARC III processor, superseding the UltraSPARC II-ba ...
(from Japan), and
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
(from Canada). Wolverine eventually became the
breakout character A breakout character is a character in serial fiction, especially a member of an ensemble cast, who becomes much more prominent, popular, discussed, or imitated than expected by the creators. A breakout character may equal or overtake the oth ...
on the team and, in terms of comic sales and appearances, the most popular X-Men character, even getting his own solo title. However, this team would not remain whole for long; Sunfire, who never really accepted the other members, quit shortly after their first mission, and Thunderbird died on the next. Filling in the vacancy, a revamped
Jean Grey Jean Elaine Grey is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been known under the aliases Marvel Girl, Phoenix and Dark Phoenix. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack K ...
soon rejoined the X-Men under her new persona of "Phoenix". Angel, Beast, Iceman, Havok, and
Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...
also made significant guest appearances. The revived series was illustrated by Cockrum, and later by John Byrne, and written by
Chris Claremont Christopher S. Claremont (; born November 25, 1950) is a British-born American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on '' Uncanny X-Men'' from 1975 to 1991, far longer than that of any other writer,Claremont, Chris. ''Marve ...
. Claremont became the series' longest-running contributor. The run met with critical acclaim and produced such landmark storylines as the death of Thunderbird, the emergence of
Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
, the saga of the
Starjammers The Starjammers are a fictional team of space pirates appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Starjammers have often appeared in the pages of the '' X-Men'' comic books. The Starjammers first appeared in '' X-Men'' #10 ...
and the M'Kraan Crystal, the introduction of
Alpha Flight Alpha Flight is a fictional team of Canadian superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters premiered in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #120 (April 1979), and were created to serve as part of the X-Men member W ...
and the
Proteus In Greek mythology, Proteus (; Ancient Greek: Πρωτεύς, ''Prōteus'') is an early prophetic sea-god or god of rivers and oceanic bodies of water, one of several deities whom Homer calls the "Old Man of the Sea" ''(hálios gérôn)''. ...
saga. Other characters introduced during this time include Amanda Sefton, Mystique, and
Moira MacTaggert Dr. Moira MacTaggert (sometimes spelled ''MacTaggart'', ''McTaggart'', ''McTaggert''), more recently known as Moira X, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men ...
, with her genetic research facility on
Muir Island The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...
. The 1980s began with the comic's best-known story arc, the Dark Phoenix Saga, which saw Phoenix manipulated by the illusionist Mastermind and becoming corrupted with an overwhelming lust for power and destruction as the evil Dark Phoenix. Other important storylines included '' Days of Future Past'', the saga of
Deathbird Deathbird (Cal'syee Neramani-Summers) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, and Dave Cockrum, she is usually depicted as a supervillain, an adversary of ...
and the
Brood Brood may refer to: Nature * Brood, a collective term for offspring * Brooding, the incubation of bird eggs by their parents * Bee brood, the young of a beehive * Individual broods of North American Periodical Cicadas: ** Brood X, the largest b ...
, the discovery of the Morlocks, the invasion of the Dire Wraiths and ''The Trial of Magneto!'', as well as '' X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills,'' the partial inspiration for
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
's movie '' X2: X-Men United'', which was released on May 2, 2003. By the early 1980s, ''X-Men'' was Marvel's top-selling comic title. Its sales were such that distributors and retailers began using an "X-Men index", rating each comic book publication by how many orders it garnered compared to that month's issue of ''X-Men''. The growing popularity of ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
'' and the rise of comic book specialty stores led to the introduction of a number of ongoing spin-off series nicknamed "X-Books." The first of these was '' The New Mutants'', soon followed by ''
Alpha Flight Alpha Flight is a fictional team of Canadian superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters premiered in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #120 (April 1979), and were created to serve as part of the X-Men member W ...
'', ''
X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
'', ''
Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...
'', and a solo ''
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
'' title. When Claremont conceived a story arc, the '' Mutant Massacre'', which was too long to run in the monthly ''X-Men'', editor
Louise Simonson Louise Simonson (née Mary Louise Alexander; born September 26, 1946) is an American comic book writer and editor. She is best known for her work on comic book titles such as ''Conan the Barbarian'', '' Power Pack'', ''X-Factor'', ''New Mutants'', ...
decided to have it overlap into several X-Books. The story was a major financial success, and when the later ''
Fall of the Mutants "The Fall of the Mutants" was a comic book crossover event by Marvel Comics spanning January to March 1988. It spanned three issues each of ''Uncanny X-Men'' #225-227, '' X-Factor'' #24-26, and ''New Mutants'' #59-61; unlike most crossovers how ...
'' was similarly successful, the marketing department declared that the X-Men lineup would hold such crossovers annually. Throughout the decade, ''Uncanny X-Men'' was written solely by Chris Claremont, and illustrated for long runs by John Byrne, Dave Cockrum, Paul Smith, John Romita Jr., and Marc Silvestri. Additions to the X-Men during this time were Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat,
Rogue A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software co ...
,
Jean Grey Jean Elaine Grey is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been known under the aliases Marvel Girl, Phoenix and Dark Phoenix. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack K ...
/Phoenix, Psylocke, Dazzler, Longshot,
Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...
,
Forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to th ...
and
Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...
. In a controversial move,
Professor X Professor X (Charles Francis Xavier) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as the founder and sometimes leader of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writ ...
relocated to outer space to be with
Lilandra Neramani Lilandra Neramani () is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. She is the Empress, or Majestrix, of the Shi'ar Empire and shares a lifelong bond with the le ...
, Majestrix of the
Shi'ar The Shi'ar ( ) are a fictional species of aliens appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Shi'ar Empire (or Imperium), is a vast collection of alien species, cultures, and worlds situated close to the Skrull and Kree Emp ...
Empire, in 1986. Magneto then joined the X-Men in Xavier's place and became the director of the New Mutants. This period also included the emergence of the Hellfire Club, the arrival of the mysterious Madelyne Pryor, and the villains
Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imager ...
,
Mister Sinister Mister Sinister (Nathaniel Essex) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont, the character was first mentioned as the employer behind the team of assassins known as the Mara ...
,
Mojo Mojo may refer to: *Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * '' ...
, and Sabretooth. *X-Men ** ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
,'' vol. 1 (flagship) – a team of young mutants with superhuman abilities led and taught by Professor X (1963–1970); the team expanded when Xavier recruited mutants from around the world (1980–1985); a reformed Magneto became the headmaster after Xavier had left Earth (1985–1988); the team later relocated to the Australian Outback after the events of ''The'' ''Fall of the Mutants'' (1988–1989); after the X-Men is disassembled, the team reformed to fight the mutant-rights abuse of Genosha (1991). ** ''
X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
,'' vol. 1 – the Original Five set up a business advertised as mutant-hunters for hire, and secretly trained the captured mutants to control their powers and reintegrate them into society (1986–1991). ** ''Excalibur'', vol. 1 – Nightcrawler, Shadowcat and Rachel Grey teamed up with Captain Britain and Meggan to form a group of mutants based in Europe after the apparent death of the X-Men during ''The Fall of the Mutants'' (1988–1992). * X-Men in Training ** ''
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
,'' vol. 1 – a group of teenaged students of the School for Gifted Youngsters gathered by Professor X *Other Teams ** ''Alpha Flight'', vol. 1 – Canada's premiere team of super-heroes organized under the auspices of the Canadian government's Department H.


Blue and Gold

In 1991, Marvel revised the entire lineup of X-Men comic book titles, centered on the launch of a second X-Men series, simply titled ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
''. With the return of Xavier and the original X-Men to the team, the roster was split into two strike forces: Cyclops's "Blue Team" (chronicled in ''X-Men'') and Storm's "Gold Team" (in ''The Uncanny X-Men''). The first issues of the second X-Men series were written by Claremont and drawn and co-plotted by
Jim Lee Jim Lee (Korean 이용철; born August 11, 1964) is a Korean American comic-book artist, writer, editor, and publisher. He is currently the Publisher and Chief Creative Officer of DC Comics. In recognition of his work, Lee has received a Harvey ...
. Retailers pre-ordered over 8.1 million copies of issue #1, generating and selling nearly $7 million (though retailers probably sold closer to 3 million copies), making it, according to
Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
, the best-selling comic book of all-time. Guinness presented honors to Claremont at the 2010
San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is ...
. Another new X-book released at the time was '' X-Force'', featuring the characters from '' The New Mutants'', led by
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 written by
Rob Liefeld Robert Liefeld (; born October 3, 1967) is an American comic book creator. A prominent writer and artist in the 1990s, he is known for co-creating the character Cable (comics), Cable with writer Louise Simonson and the character Deadpool with wri ...
and
Fabian Nicieza Fabian Nicieza (born December 31, 1961) is an Argentine-American comic book writer and editor who is best known for his work on Marvel titles such as ''X-Men'', '' X-Force'', ''New Warriors'', ''Nomad'', '' Cable'', ''Deadpool'' and ''Thunderbo ...
. Internal friction soon split the X-books' creative teams. In a controversial move, X-Men editor
Bob Harras Robert Harras (born January 11, 1959''Comics Buyer's Guide'' #1650; February 2009; page 107) is an American comics writer and editor, who was editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics from 1995 to 2000 and editor-in-chief of DC Comics from 2010 to 2020. ...
sided with Lee (and ''Uncanny X-Men'' artist
Whilce Portacio William "Whilce" Portacio (; born July 8, 1963) is a Filipino American comic book writer and artist noted for his work on such titles as '' The Punisher'', ''X-Factor'', ''Uncanny X-Men'', ''Iron Man'', '' Wetworks'' and ''Spawn''. Portacio was al ...
) over Claremont in a dispute over plotting. Claremont left after only three issues of ''X-Men'', ending his 16-year run as ''X-Men'' writer. Marvel replaced Claremont briefly with John Byrne, who scripted both books for a few issues. Byrne was then replaced by Nicieza and
Scott Lobdell Scott Lobdell (; born 1960) is an American comic book writer and screenwriter known for his work on numerous ''X-Men'' series for Marvel Comics in the 1990s, various work for DC Comics in the 2010s, namely '' Red Hood and the Outlaws, Teen Tita ...
, who would take over the majority of writing duties for the X-Men until Lee's own departure months later when he and several other popular artists (including former X-title artists Liefeld, Portacio, and Marc Silvestri) would leave Marvel to form
Image Comics Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-o ...
. Jim Lee's X-Men designs would be the basis for much of the ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
'' animated series and action figure line as well as several Capcom video games. The 1990s saw an even greater number of X-books with numerous ongoing series and miniseries running concurrently. X-book crossovers continued to run annually, with " The X-Tinction Agenda" in 1990, " The Muir Island Saga" in 1991, "
X-Cutioner's Song "X-Cutioner's Song" is a crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics' in twelve parts from November 1992 to early 1993. It ran in ''Uncanny X-Men'', ''X-Men'' (vol. 2), ''X-Factor'', and '' X-Force'', and featured Stryfe as the central villai ...
" in 1992, " Fatal Attractions" in 1993, "
Phalanx Covenant "The Phalanx Covenant" was a crossover storyline that ran through Marvel Comics' X-Men family of books in September and October 1994. One of its unique aspects was that the X-Men themselves only played a minor role in the story. Plot The X-Me ...
" in 1994, " Legion Quest"/"
Age of Apocalypse "Age of Apocalypse" is a 1995 comic book crossover storyline mostly published in the X-Men franchise of books by Marvel Comics. The ''Age of Apocalypse'' briefly replaced the universe of Earth-616 and had ramifications in the main Marvel Comics ...
" in 1995, " Onslaught" in 1996, " Operation: Zero Tolerance" in 1997, " Hunt for Xavier" in 1998, "The Magneto War" in 1999, " Apocalypse: The Twelve" / " Ages of Apocalypse" in 2000 and "Eve of Destruction" in 2001. Though the frequent crossovers were criticized by fans as well as editorial and creative staff for being artificially regular, disruptive to the direction of the individual series, and having far less lasting impact than promised, they continued to be financially successful. There were many additions to the X-Men in the 1990s, including
Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...
,
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 ...
, and
Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
. Gambit became one of the most popular X-Men, rivaling even
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
in size of fanbase after his debut in ''Uncanny X-Men'' #266 (Aug. 1990). Many of the later additions to the team came and went, such as
Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the m ...
, Maggott, Marrow,
Cecilia Reyes Dr. Cecilia Reyes is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Scott Lobdell and Carlos Pacheco, the character first appeared in ''X-Men'' (vol. 2) #65 (June 1997). She belongs to the subspeci ...
, and a new
Thunderbird Thunderbird, thunder bird or thunderbirds may refer to: * Thunderbird (mythology), a legendary creature in certain North American indigenous peoples' history and culture * Ford Thunderbird, a car Birds * Dromornithidae, extinct flightless birds ...
. Xavier's
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
grew up and became '' X-Force'', and the next generation of students began with ''
Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s ...
'', featuring Jubilee and other teenage mutants led and schooled by
Banshee A banshee ( ; Modern Irish , from sga, ben síde , "woman of the fairy mound" or "fairy woman") is a female spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member, usually by screaming, wailing, shrieking, or keening. Her name i ...
and ex-villainess
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
at her Massachusetts Academy. In 1998, ''
Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...
'' and ''
X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
'' ended and the latter was replaced with '' Mutant X'', starring Havok stranded in a parallel universe. Marvel launched a number of solo series, including ''
Deadpool Deadpool is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Fabian Nicieza and artist/writer Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (cover-dated Feb. 1991). Initially, Deadpo ...
'', ''
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 ...
'', ''
Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
'', ''
X-Man Nathaniel Grey (X-Man) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. Created by writer Jeph Loeb and artist Steve Skroce, the character first appeared in ''X-Man'' ...
'', ''
Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...
'', ''Maverick'', ''Rogue, Storm, Magneto, Beast, Domino, Warlock, Magik, Iceman'' and ''Sabretooth,'' but few of the series would survive the decade. *X-Men ** ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
,'' vol. 1 (flagship) – initially featured the Gold Team strike force led by Storm (1991–1995); later featured a team of X-Men recruited by Gladiator to defend the Shi'ar Empire against the Phalanx (1997); the Gold and Blue strike force merged to face new threats including Onslaught, Dark Beast, Shadow King and Magneto (1997–2000); later featured a squad led by Gambit during the ''Revolution'' revamp (2000–2001). The title is replaced by ''Astonishing X-Men'' during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' event. ** ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
,'' vol. 2 – initially featured the Blue Team strike force led by Cyclops (1991–1995); later featured a new core group consisting of Cannonball, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Storm and Wolverine took on Sebastian Shaw and Bastion during the events of Operation: Zero Tolerance (1997); members of the ''Excalibur'' team joined the combined Gold and Blue strike force (1997–2000); later featured a squad led by Rogue during the ''Revolution'' revamp (2000–2001). The title is replaced by ''Amazing X-Men'' during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' event. ** ''X-Force'', vol. 1 – Cable re-organized the New Mutants into the para-military mutant strike team (1991–1995); the team move in with the X-Men at the X-Mansion and effectively become the X-Men's junior team (1995–1997); the team later move to San Francisco to set up a new headquarter (1997–2001); the team becomes a covert ops superhero team under the leadership of Pete Wisdom during the ''Revolution'' revamp (2001). The title is replaced by ''Gambit & the X-Ternals'' during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' event. * X-Men in Training ** ''
Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s ...
,'' vol. 1 – students at the Massachusetts Academy mentored by Banshee and the former villain White Queen (1994–2001). The title is replaced by ''Generation Next'' during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' event. * Other Teams ** ''X-Factor'', vol. 1 – the new team worked for the Pentagon replacing Freedom Force as the government-sponsored team (1991–1997); Forge later leads the mutant team as an underground government strike force (1997–1998). The title is replaced by ''Factor X'' during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' event. ** ''Excalibur'', vol. 1 – the British team expanded and stays with Moira, making Muir Island their new base (1992–1998). The title is replaced by ''X-Calibre'' during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' event. ** ''Alpha Flight'', vol. 2 – A new team formed by the reinstated Department H which is involved in clandestine and criminal activities.


Morrison Era

In 2000, Claremont returned to Marvel and was put back on the primary X-Men titles during the
Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...
revamp. He was later removed from the titles in 2001 and created his spin-off series, '' X-Treme X-Men''. ''X-Men'' had its title changed to '' New X-Men'' and writer
Grant Morrison Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, humanist philosophy and countercultural leanings. Morrison has written extensively for th ...
took over. The book is often referred to as the Morrison-era, due to the drastic changes they made, beginning with "
E Is For Extinction "E is for Extinction" was the first story arc from Grant Morrison's run on the Marvel Comics title ''New X-Men''. The story was published in ''New X-Men'' #114–116 in 2001 (formerly titled ''X-Men'', the series was renamed ''New X-Men'' at the ...
", where a new villain,
Cassandra Nova Cassandra Nova is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Created by writer Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely, Cassandra first appeared in '' New X-Men'' #1 ...
, destroys
Genosha Genosha ( or ) is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is an island nation that exists in Marvel's main shared universe, known as "Earth 616" in the Marvel Universe and a prominent place in the X-M ...
, killing sixteen million mutants. Morrison also brought reformed ex-villain
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
into the primary X-Men team, and opened the doors of the school by having Xavier "out" himself to the public about being a mutant. The bright spandex costumes that had become iconic over the previous decades were replaced by black leather street clothes reminiscent of the uniforms of the ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
'' films. Morrison also introduced
Xorn Xorn is the alias of two fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared in '' New X-Men Annual 2001'', he was created by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. He is a mutant who has a miniature ...
, who would figure prominently in the climax of his run. ''
Ultimate X-Men ''Ultimate X-Men'' is a superhero comic book series, which was published by Marvel Comics, from 2001 to 2009. The series is a modernized re-imagining of Marvel's long-running X-Men comic book franchise as part of the Ultimate Marvel imprint. The U ...
'' set in Marvel's revised imprint was also launched, while
Chuck Austen Chuck Austen (born Chuck Beckum)
Kees Kousemaker's Lambiek Comiclopedia. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
is an Ameri ...
began his controversial run on ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
''. Several short-lived spin-offs and miniseries started featuring several X-Men in solo series, such as ''Emma Frost'', ''Mystique, Cyclops, Iceman, Blink, Chamber, Mekanix (''featuring Kitty Pryde''),'' and ''Nightcrawler''. Many of the second-tier X-books were relaunched with new titles: ''Cable'' became ''Soldier X'' and ''Deadpool'' became ''Agent X''. A new series titled ''
X-Statix X-Statix are a team of mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team was specifically designed to be media superstars. The team, created by Peter Milligan and Mike Allred, first appears in ''X-Force'' ...
'' spawns from and replaces ''X-Force''; it is a series that explores the crossroads between heroism and being a celebrity, and how being a mutant is only acceptable as a medium of disposable entertainment. It was known best for being a series that killed most of the introduced cast and having one of the highest team turnover rates for a superhero comic. The most prominent member to come out of X-Statix was Doop who is a green glob reminiscent of Slimer from Ghost Busters. Another series, ''
Exiles Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...
,'' started at the same time and concluded in December 2007 which led to ''
New Exiles New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
'' in January 2008 written by Claremont. Notable additions to the X-Men have been
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
,
Danielle Moonstar Danielle "Dani" Moonstar, originally codenamed Psyche and later Mirage, is a fictional Northern Cheyenne superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in the graphic novel ''The New Mutants'' (Sept. 19 ...
,
Husk Husk (or hull) in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. In the United States, the term husk often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize (corn) as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective ...
and
Northstar Northstar may refer to: * Polaris, a star Arts and entertainment * Northstar (band), an emo band from Alabama * Northstar (rap group), a rap group affiliated with the Wu-Tang Clan * "Northstar", a 2019 song by XXXTentacion from the album ''Bad Vi ...
while former villain
Juggernaut A juggernaut (), in current English usage, is a literal or metaphorical force regarded as merciless, destructive, and unstoppable. This English usage originated in the mid-nineteenth century and was adapted from the Sanskrit word Jagannath. ...
became member of the X-Men. Notable story arcs of this era are "
E Is For Extinction "E is for Extinction" was the first story arc from Grant Morrison's run on the Marvel Comics title ''New X-Men''. The story was published in ''New X-Men'' #114–116 in 2001 (formerly titled ''X-Men'', the series was renamed ''New X-Men'' at the ...
" (2001), "
Planet X Following the discovery of the planet Neptune in 1846, there was considerable speculation that another planet might exist beyond its orbit. The search began in the mid-19th century and continued at the start of the 20th with Percival Lowell's ...
" and " Here Comes Tomorrow". * X-Men ** '' New X-Men,'' vol. 1 (flagship) – The X-Men took in dozens of students expanding the school from a training center to a legitimate school (2001–2004). ** ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
,'' vol. 1 – Nightcrawler and Angel co-lead the X-Men's primary field team to face new threat (2001–2004). ** '' X-Treme X-Men,'' vol. 1 – Storm formed a globe-trotting team to hunt down missing copies of the Destiny's Diaries (2001–2004). * X-Men in Training ** ''
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
,'' vol. 2 – features a new group of teenage mutants attending the Xavier Institute. * Other Teams ** ''Exiles'', vol. 1 – a revolving team roster from different realities, which have been removed from time and space, employed by the Timebroker to fix broken realities. ** ''
X-Statix X-Statix are a team of mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team was specifically designed to be media superstars. The team, created by Peter Milligan and Mike Allred, first appears in ''X-Force'' ...
–'' featured a group of young mutants marketed to be media superstars. ** ''
NYX Nyx (; , , "Night") is the Greek goddess and personification of night. A shadowy figure, Nyx stood at or near the beginning of creation and mothered other personified deities, such as Hypnos (Sleep) and Thanatos (Death), with Erebus (Darkn ...
'' – featured a group of teenage mutants as they attempt to survive on the streets of New York City. ** ''Weapon X,'' vol. 2 – featured The Underground, a group assembled by Cable to oppose the activities of the third installment of the Weapon X Project.


X-Men ReLoad

X-Men ReLoad was the name given by Marvel Comics to their May 2004 revamp of the X-Men titles, including new visual designs for the characters. The revamp was prompted by Grant Morrison's departure from New X-Men. As a result of the revamp, Chris Claremont moved from writing X-Treme X-Men to writing Uncanny X-Men, with Alan Davis doing the art. Chuck Austen moved from writing Uncanny X-Men to New X-Men, which returned to its old name of simply X-Men, with Salvador Larroca, who had been working with him on Uncanny X-Men doing the art. Finally,
Joss Whedon Joseph Hill Whedon (; born June 23, 1964) is an American filmmaker, composer, and comic book writer. He is the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions, co-founder of Bellwether Pictures, and is best known as the creator of several television serie ...
entered as the writer of the new title ''
Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004, with its first run written by Joss Whedon and art by John Cassada ...
'', with
John Cassaday John Cassaday (; born 1971) is an American comic book artist, writer, and television director. He is best known for his work on the critically acclaimed '' Planetary'' with writer Warren Ellis, '' Astonishing X-Men'' with Joss Whedon, ''Captain Am ...
as artist. X-Treme X-Men was cancelled.
X-Statix X-Statix are a team of mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team was specifically designed to be media superstars. The team, created by Peter Milligan and Mike Allred, first appears in ''X-Force'' ...
ended in October 2004. Also, the X-Men returned to more traditional (if not slightly revised) costumes, as opposed to the black leather uniforms from the movies. '' New X-Men: Academy X'' was also launched focusing on the lives of the new young mutants at the institute. This period included the resurrections of
Colossus Colossus, Colossos, or the plural Colossi or Colossuses, may refer to: Statues * Any exceptionally large statue ** List of tallest statues ** :Colossal statues * ''Colossus of Barletta'', a bronze statue of an unidentified Roman emperor * ''Col ...
and Psylocke, a new death for
Jean Grey Jean Elaine Grey is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been known under the aliases Marvel Girl, Phoenix and Dark Phoenix. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack K ...
, who later returned temporarily in the '' X-Men: Phoenix - Endsong'', as well as
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
becoming the new headmistress of the institute. The institute, formerly run as a school (until the depowering of 98% of the mutant population), served as a safe haven to mutants who are still powered. Several short-lived spin-offs and miniseries started featuring several X-Men in solo series, such as ''Nightcrawler, Jubilee, Madrox, X-23,'' ''Gambit'' and ''Rogue''. ''Cable'' and ''
Deadpool Deadpool is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Fabian Nicieza and artist/writer Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (cover-dated Feb. 1991). Initially, Deadpo ...
s books were merged into one book, ''
Cable & Deadpool ''Cable & Deadpool'' was a comic book series published by Marvel Comics beginning in 2004. The title characters, Cable (comics), Cable and Deadpool (comics), Deadpool, shared the focus of the book. The series was launched following the cancellat ...
''. Notable additions to the X-Men have been
Armor Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or f ...
,
Pixie A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas ar ...
and
Warpath Warpath may refer to: * Great Indian Warpath, a network of trails in eastern North America used by Native Americans Games * ''Warpath'' (video game), a 2006 FPS video game by Digital Extremes for the PC and Xbox *'' Warpath: Jurassic Park'', a 19 ...
, while former villains such as
Lady Mastermind Lady Mastermind is a fictional character and supervillain, appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Salvador Larroca, the character first appeared as Regan Wyngarde in '' X-Treme X ...
, Mystique, and Sabretooth became members of the X-Men. Notable story arcs of this decade are " Gifted" (2004), "
House of M "House of M" is a 2005 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, consisting of a core eight-issue comic book limited series written by Brian Michael Bendis and illustrated by Olivier Coipel and a number of crossover tie-in books. Its fir ...
" (2005), " Deadly Genesis" (2005–2006), " Decimation" (2006) and "
Endangered Species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...
" (2007). The X-Men were also involved in the "
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...
" and "
World War Hulk "World War Hulk" is a comic book crossover storyline that ran through a self-titled limited series and various titles published by Marvel Comics in 2007, featuring the Hulk. The series consists of five main issues titled ''World War Hulk'', wi ...
" storylines. * X-Men ** ''
Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004, with its first run written by Joss Whedon and art by John Cassada ...
,'' vol. 3 (flagship) – Cyclops leads the team of X-Men and they start presenting themselves as superheroes again. ** ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
,'' vol. 1 – Storm and her team continued operating as officially sanctioned mutant law enforcers (2004–2006); post ''Deadly Genesis'', it featured Xavier taking a team to space to hunt Vulcan when he seeks vengeance on the Shi'ar Empire (2006–2007); the team returned to Earth to fight a group of rogue Morlocks (2007). ** ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
,'' vol. 2 – Havok led a new field team consisting of Polaris, Iceman, Rogue, Gambit, Wolverine and Juggernaut (2004–2006); later featured Rogue assembling a rapid response team featuring the most dangerous X-Men former villains (2006–2007). * X-Men in Training ** ''New X-Men: Academy X'' – the school is rebuilt after Xorn's attack and Emma Frost and Cyclops are named headmasters, organizing the student body into different squad who train together. *** '' New X-Men'', vol. 2 – After ''House of M'' and ''Decimation'', Emma Frost disbanded all former training squads and integrated those students she deemed capable of combat to a new team. * Other Teams ** ''
Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...
'', vol. 3 – Professor X and Magneto formed a team to rebuild the devastated mutant nation of Genosha. ** ''
X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
'', vol. 3 – a mutant detective agency founded by Madrox based on Mutant Town. ** ''New Excalibur'' – After ''Decimation'', Captain Britain brings together a new team of Excalibur as the British government decided to become more pro-active with metahuman affairs. ** ''
District X District X, also known as Mutant Town or the Middle East Side, is a fictional location appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is a neighborhood in New York City primarily populated by mutants, first seen during Grant ...
–'' Bishop is assigned to the Mutant Town to investigate rising crime rates. ** '' X-Force'', vol. 2 – Cable re-assembles the team in order to stop an immortal creature called Skornn. ** ''Weapon X'', vol. 2 – featured Wolverine, Fantomex and Agent Zero quest to find the recently revived John Sublime. ** ''Exiles'', vol. 1 – the team learned the true nature of the Timebroker and later traveled through different realities to chase Proteus. ** ''Alpha Flight'', vol. 3 – Sasquatch recruits novice Canadian heroes to rescue the members kidnapped by the Plodex.


Messiah Trilogy

In 2007, the "
Messiah Complex A messiah complex (Christ complex or savior complex) is a state of mind in which an individual holds a belief that they are destined to become a savior today or in the near future. The term can also refer to a state of mind in which an individual ...
" storyline saw the destruction of the Xavier Institute and the disbanding of the X-Men. It spun the new volumes of '' X-Force'', following the team led by Wolverine, and ''Cable'', following Cable's attempts at protecting
Hope Summers Sarah Hope Summers (June 7, 1902 – June 22, 1979) was an American character actress known for her work on CBS's ''The Andy Griffith Show'' and ''Mayberry RFD'', portraying Clara Edwards. Early life Hope Summers was born in Mattoon, Illino ...
. ''X-Men'' was renamed into ''X-Men: Legacy'' which focused on Professor X, Rogue and Gambit. Under Cyclops's leadership, the X-Men later reformed in ''Uncanny X-Men'' #500, with their new base located in San Francisco. In 2009, "
Messiah War "Messiah War" is a crossover storyline running through the issues of '' Cable'' and '' X-Force'' cover-dated May– July 2009 and a one-shot, ''X-Force/Cable: Messiah War'', published by Marvel Comics. Writer Craig Kyle described it as the follo ...
," written by
Craig Kyle Craig Paul Kyle (born November 3, 1971) is an American writer for Marvel Comics. He is best known for his creation of the character X-23. He has also produced several of Marvel's direct-to-DVD animated films and worked on several aspects of the ...
and
Chris Yost Christopher Lee Yost (born February 21, 1973) is an American film, television, animation, and comic book writer best known for his work for Marvel Studios' Marvel Cinematic Universe with '' Thor: The Dark World'' (2013) and '' Thor: Ragnarok'' ( ...
to serve as the second part in the trilogy that began with "Messiah Complex," was released. ''
Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island soc ...
'', written by Matt Fraction, was a crossover of
Dark Avengers ''Dark Avengers'' is a 2009–2013 American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. It is part of a series of titles that features various iterations of the superhero team the Avengers, with this version of the team - unbeknownst to the pu ...
and Uncanny X-Men that served as a part of the " Dark Reign" storyline. A new ''
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
'' volume written by Zeb Wells, which featured the more prominent members of the original team reunited, was launched. Magneto joined the X-Men during the
Nation X A nation is a community of people formed on the basis of a combination of shared features such as language, history, ethnicity, culture and/or society. A nation is thus the collective identity of a group of people understood as defined by thos ...
storyline to the dismay of other members of the X-Men, such as Beast, who left the team. Magneto began to work with Namor to transform Utopia into a homeland for both mutants and Atlanteans. After the conclusion of ''Utopia'',
Rogue A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software co ...
became the main character of ''X-Men: Legacy''. In 2010, "
Second Coming The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is a Christian (as well as Islamic and Baha'i) belief that Jesus will return again after his ascension to heaven about two thousand years ago. The idea is based on messia ...
" concluded the plot threads on ''Messiah Complex'' and ''Messiah War''. Several short-lived miniseries started featuring several X-Men in solo series, such as ''Daken'', ''Cable'', ''Psylocke'', ''Namor: The First Mutant'' and ''X-23''. Notable additions to the X-Men have been
Pixie A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas ar ...
,
Karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively ...
,
Sunspot Sunspots are phenomena on the Sun's photosphere that appear as temporary spots that are darker than the surrounding areas. They are regions of reduced surface temperature caused by concentrations of magnetic flux that inhibit convection. S ...
,
Magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also been discovered on other terrestrial planets and some natura ...
, Magik,
Namor Namor (), also known as the Sub-Mariner, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Debuting in early 1939, the character was created by writer-artist Bill Everett for comic book packager Funnies Inc ...
,
Domino Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also c ...
, Boom Boom,
Fantomex Fantomex is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is commonly associated with the X-Men titles. Fantomex first appeared in '' New X-Men'' #128 (August, 2002) and was created by Grant Morr ...
and
X-23 Laura Kinney (born X-23; codename Wolverine) is a fictional superhero appearing in media published by Marvel Entertainment, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character was created by writer Craig Kyle for the '' X-Men: Evolutio ...
. Other notable story arcs of this era are " Divided We Stand" (2008), "
Manifest Destiny Manifest destiny was a cultural belief in the 19th-century United States that American settlers were destined to expand across North America. There were three basic tenets to the concept: * The special virtues of the American people and th ...
" (2008–2009), "
X-Infernus ''X-Infernus'' is a four-issue comic book mini-series that started in December 2008. Written by C. B. Cebulski, with art by Giuseppe Camuncoli, it was a sequel to "Inferno". It sees the return of the character Magik searching Limbo for her soul.Tr ...
", "
Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island soc ...
" (2009), "
Nation X A nation is a community of people formed on the basis of a combination of shared features such as language, history, ethnicity, culture and/or society. A nation is thus the collective identity of a group of people understood as defined by thos ...
" (2009–2010), " Necrosha" (2009), "
Curse of the Mutants "Curse of the Mutants" is a comics storyline that ran in books published by the American company Marvel Comics from July 2010 to May 2011. The arc centers on a human bomb exploding in San Francisco's Union Square, covering dozens (including Jubi ...
" (2010–2011), and "
Age of X "Age of X" is a comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics as part of its ''X-Men'' series. The storyline is set in an alternate reality known as Earth-11326. Running from January to April 2011, it is similar in name and tone to the 1995 " A ...
" (2011). The X-Men were also involved in the "
Secret Invasion "Secret Invasion" is a comic book crossover storyline that ran through a self-titled eight-issue limited series and several tie-in books published by Marvel Comics from April through December 2008. The story involves a subversive, long-term in ...
", "
War of Kings "War of Kings" is a comic book crossover storyline written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, published by Marvel Comics, and set in Marvel's main shared universe. The six-issue limited series was published between March
", "
Siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteriz ...
", " Chaos War" and " Fear Itself" storylines. * X-Men ** ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
,'' vol. 1 (flagship) – The X-Men open their new base in San Francisco and invite the world's mutant to join them (2008–2009); Cyclops later decided to move the mutant population to Utopia and off U.S. soil to avoid further persecution by the government (2009–2011). ** ''
X-Men Legacy ''X-Men: Legacy'' is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics featuring the mutant superhero team the X-Men. The title began its publication in October 1991 as ''X-Men'' (vol. 2). From 2001 until 2004 it was published as '' New X-Men''. It ...
,'' vol. 1 – featured Professor X's road to recovery as well as the encounters he faced during Messiah CompleX (2008–2009); later featured Rogue as mentor to the younger mutants under the protection of the X-Men on Utopia (2009–2011). ** ''
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
'', vol. 3 – the original team is reunited to form a new field team for the X-Men. ** ''
Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004, with its first run written by Joss Whedon and art by John Cassada ...
,'' vol. 3 – the X-Men serve as protectors of San Francisco City. ** ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
'', vol. 3 – featured team-ups between characters of X-Men and other superheroes such as Blade, Spider-Man, Ghost Rider and the Future Foundation. * X-Men in Training ** ''
Young X-Men ''Young X-Men'' was a comic book series published by Marvel Comics. It lasted for 12 issues, from April 2008 through March 2009. The series was written by Marc Guggenheim. Plot summary Final Genesis (Issues 1–5) Blindfold has a vision of a t ...
'' – a group of young mutants tricked by Donald Pierce disguised as Cyclops. ** '' Generation Hope'' – Hope leads a new team, consisting of five new mutants ("five lights") that appeared on Cerebro after she manifested her powers. * Other Teams ** '' X-Force,'' vol. 3 – Wolverine leads a more militaristic black-ops branch of the X-Men. ** ''
X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
'', vol. 3 – the agency briefly moved to Detroit, Michigan and expanded to include several new partners. ** '' Dark X-Men'' – Norman Osborn formed his own group of X-Men during the riots at San Francisco. ** ''Alpha Flight'', vol. 4 – the team provides rescue efforts for the victims during the events of ''Fear Itself''. ** ''Exiles'', vol. 2 – a new team of heroes are brought together by Morph, acting as the new Timebroker.


"Schism" through "Regenesis"

In 2011, the aftermath of the " X-Men: Schism" storyline led to the fallout between Wolverine and Cyclops. During the "
Regenesis ''ReGenesis'' is a Canadian science-fiction television series produced by The Movie Network and Movie Central in conjunction with Shaftesbury Films. The series, which ran for four seasons from 2004 to 2008, revolves around the scientists o ...
" storyline, Wolverine's team was featured in a new flagship series titled '' Wolverine and the X-Men'', Wolverine rebuilt the original X-Mansion and named it the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning. Meanwhile, Uncanny X-Men relaunched for the first time ever and served as the flagship title for Cyclops' Team. In 2012 "
Avengers vs. X-Men ''Avengers vs. X-Men'' (''AvX'' or ''AvsX'') is a 2012 crossover event that was featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The event, consisting of an eponymous limited series and numerous tie-in books, involves the return of the Pho ...
" served as a closure to the "House of M" and "Decimation" storylines. It featured the death of Professor X and the reappearance of new mutants after the return of the Phoenix Force. Several short-lived miniseries started featuring several X-Men in solo series, such as ''Storm'', ''Gambit and'' ''Magneto: Not a Hero'' (featuring Magneto and Joseph). Notable additions to the X-Men have been Warbird and
Blink Blinking is a bodily function; it is a semi-autonomic rapid closing of the eyelid. A single blink is determined by the forceful closing of the eyelid or inactivation of the levator palpebrae superioris and the activation of the palpebral portio ...
. The "
Avengers vs. X-Men ''Avengers vs. X-Men'' (''AvX'' or ''AvsX'') is a 2012 crossover event that was featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The event, consisting of an eponymous limited series and numerous tie-in books, involves the return of the Pho ...
" storyline also took place during this period. * Cyclops' X-Men **''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
'', vol. 2 – the flagship of the Cyclops' team with the Extinction Team dealing with potential threats to mutantkind's survival. **''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
'', vol. 3 ''–'' Storm's field team operating from an aeroplane to neutralize threats before reaching crisis levels. **''
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
'', vol. 3 ''–'' Cyclops tasked the New Mutants as a clean-up team to resolve loose ends. **'' Generation Hope'' – a rapid response team locating new lights as they manifested with Rogue and later Shadowcat serving as liaison * Wolverine's X-Men ** '' Wolverine and the X-Men,'' vol. 1 ''–'' the flagship of the Wolverine's team featuring the faculty and student of the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning. ** ''
X-Men Legacy ''X-Men: Legacy'' is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics featuring the mutant superhero team the X-Men. The title began its publication in October 1991 as ''X-Men'' (vol. 2). From 2001 until 2004 it was published as '' New X-Men''. It ...
,'' vol. 1 ''–'' Rogue leads a team acting as the school's security detail ** ''
Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004, with its first run written by Joss Whedon and art by John Cassada ...
,'' vol. 3 ''–'' Wolverine's field team forming after the attack of the Marauders. * X-Men in Training ** ''Wolverine and the X-Men'' (also served as the flagship title) * Other Teams ** '' Uncanny X-Force,'' vol. 1 – a black ops team led by Wolverine with members from the previous strike force. ** ''
X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
'', vol. 3 – Havok stepped back in to co-lead with Polaris after the disappearance of Madrox. ** '' X-Treme X-Men'', vol. 2 – a group of heroes from alternate dimensions led by Dazzler to defeat the Ten Evil Xaviers. ** '' X-Club'' – the X-Men's Science Team dealing with the mutant birth crisis and the effects of M-Day. ** ''Age of Apocalypse'' – featured the X-Terminated, human resistance fighters banded together to save the human race by taking out Weapon X and his new mutant regime.


Time Displaced Original X-Men

In 2012, as part of the
Marvel NOW! Marvel Now! (stylized as Marvel NOW!) is a comic book branding for the relaunch of several ongoing comic books published by Marvel Comics, that debuted in October 2012 with new #1 issues. The relaunch also included some new titles, including '' U ...
relaunch, all X-Men titles (except ''Astonishing X-Men'' & ''Wolverine and the X-Men'') were canceled, including ''Uncanny X-Men'', ''X-Men: Legacy'', ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
'' and ''
New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, subs ...
''. New flagship title '' All-New X-Men'' was launched which featured the original five X-Men members who were brought to the present day by Beast and were made a separate team led eventually by Kitty. The relaunched ''Uncanny X-Men'' featured Cyclops, his team and the new mutants, taking up residency in the
Weapon X Weapon X is a fictional clandestine government genetic research facility project appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are conducted by Department K, which turns willing and unwilling beings into living weapons, ca ...
facility, which they have rebuilt into a school — the New Charles Xavier School for Mutants. An all female book titled simply ''X-Men'' was also launched. During All-New Marvel Now!, ''Astonishing X-Men'' was cancelled and in its place another flagship title ''
Amazing X-Men ''Amazing X-Men'' is the name of two X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics. The first was a limited series published during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' storyline. The subsequent ongoing series began in November 2013 in the aftermath of Batt ...
'' was launched which featured the return of Nightcrawler and became the flagship title of Wolverine's team. Also, ''Wolverine and the X-Men'' was relaunched and turned into mutants-in-training book. In 2013, for the 50th anniversary of the X-Men, " Battle of the Atom" was published which involved members of both X-Men schools trying to decide what to do about the time-displaced original X-Men, culminating in a confrontation with a version of the Brotherhood and the X-Men from an unspecified future date. In 2014, Wolverine was killed off in the "
Death of Wolverine "Death of Wolverine" is a 2014 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics. The story has grown from both volume 5 (''Marvel Now!'') and volume 6 (''All-New Marvel Now!'') of the Wolverine main series, and also continued with "Hunt for Wolver ...
" story arc, as the conclusion of a storyline that saw him lose his healing factor after he was infected by an intelligent virus. Several short-lived miniseries started featuring several X-Men in solo series, such as ''X-Men Legacy (''featuring Legion'')'', ''Cyclops, Magneto, Nightcrawler, Storm'' and ''All-New'' ''Doop.'' Notable additions to the X-Men have been Firestar and M. Notable story arcs of this era are " Battle of the Atom" (2013), "
X-Termination "Age of Apocalypse" is a 1995 comic book crossover storyline mostly published in the X-Men franchise of books by Marvel Comics. The ''Age of Apocalypse'' briefly replaced the universe of Earth-616 and had ramifications in the main Marvel Comics ...
" (2013), "
Death of Wolverine "Death of Wolverine" is a 2014 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics. The story has grown from both volume 5 (''Marvel Now!'') and volume 6 (''All-New Marvel Now!'') of the Wolverine main series, and also continued with "Hunt for Wolver ...
" (2014), " AXIS" (2014) and "
The Black Vortex "The Black Vortex" is a 2015 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics involving the All New X-Men and the Guardians of the Galaxy. Plot Prologue Star-Lord (Peter Quill) tries to avoid the Slaughter Lords and those hunting him for a boun ...
" (2015). * Cyclops' X-Men **'' All-New X-Men,'' vol. 1 – the flagship of the X-titles with the original X-Men brought from the past to the present to confront their future counterparts. **''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
'', vol. 3 – the flagship of the Cyclops' team with Cyclops and the remnants of his Extinction team taking up a revolutionary course to promote mutant rights. * Wolverine's X-Men **''
Amazing X-Men ''Amazing X-Men'' is the name of two X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics. The first was a limited series published during the ''Age of Apocalypse'' storyline. The subsequent ongoing series began in November 2013 in the aftermath of Batt ...
,'' vol. 2 – the flagship of the Wolverine's team featuring a field team with initial mission to search for the deceased Nightcrawler. **''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
'', vol. 4 – an all-female team dealing with new threats from Arkea and a new Sisterhood. * X-Men in Training **'' Wolverine and the X-Men,'' vol. 2 – the summer term on the Jean Grey School that focused on Logan's legacy on his students Quentin Quire, Evan Sabahnur and Idie Okonkwo. **''
Spider-Man and the X-Men ''Spider-Man and the X-Men'' is a six-issue superhero limited series written by Elliott Kalan, drawn by Marco Failla, and published by Marvel Comics between December 2014 and April 2015. Publication history Marvel began publishing a comic seri ...
–'' Spider-Man leads a Special Class to investigate the students as requested by Wolverine before his demise. * Other Teams **'' Cable and X-Force'' – a fugitive team led by Cable to face the threats that he saw in his visions. **'' Uncanny X-Force'', vol. 2 – a proactive team of misfit X-Men led by Psylocke. **''
All-New X-Factor ''All-New X-Factor'' was an ongoing comic book series published by Marvel Comics which debuted in January 2014, as part of the All-New Marvel NOW! event and a relaunch of X-Factor. Publication History Focusing on a new iteration of the X-Fac ...
'' – a corporate-sponsored X-Factor team hired by Serval Industries. **'' X-Force'', vol. 4 – the remnants of Cable's X-Force and Psylocke's X-Force merge to form a superhuman black ops. **''Wolverines'' – a group of mutants with healing factor are captured by the Paradise escapees to help them find the adamantium-petrified body of Wolverine.


Terrigen Cloud

In 2015, as part of "
All-New, All-Different Marvel All-New, All-Different Marvel (ANADM) is a 2015–2019 branding for Marvel Comics' entire main line of comics. Taking place after the crossover storyline " Secret Wars", it details the new Marvel Universe, with nearly 60–65 titles relaunched w ...
", three team books were launched: the second volume of ''All-New X-Men'', the fourth volume of ''Uncanny X-Men'' and '' Extraordinary X-Men''. X-23 took on the mantle of Wolverine and got a new solo series and
Old Man Logan Old Man Logan is an alternative version of the Marvel Comics fictional character Wolverine. This character is an aged version of Wolverine set in an alternate future universe designated Earth-807128, where the supervillains overthrew the supe ...
also received a new ongoing series when the character found himself in (from his perspective) an alternate past. During this period, the mutants dealt with the threat of the
Terrigen The Inhumans are a fictional superhuman race of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The comic book series has usually focused more specifically on the adventures of the Inhuman Royal Family, and many peop ...
cloud that circulated the world and appeared to be toxic to them, placing the X-Men at odds with the
Inhumans The Inhumans are a fictional superhuman race of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The comic book series has usually focused more specifically on the adventures of the Inhuman Royal Family, and many peop ...
. The X-Men also dealt with Apocalypse resurfacing, and the truth of what happened between Cyclops and the Inhumans that led to his death. Storm's team resided in
Limbo In Catholic theology, Limbo (Latin '' limbus'', edge or boundary, referring to the edge of Hell) is the afterlife condition of those who die in original sin without being assigned to the Hell of the Damned. Medieval theologians of Western Euro ...
and worked to bring mutants to safety away from the Terrigen. Magneto's team took on a more militant approach. Beast worked alongside the Inhumans to attempt to find a way to alter the state of the Terrigen, but later discovered that it couldn't be altered and would have rendered Earth toxic for mutants. This revelation caused the X-Men to declare war against the Inhumans, but this conflict ended when the Inhumans learned what was happening, with Medusa sacrificing the Terrigen cloud to save the mutants. Notable additions to the X-Men have been
Old Man Logan Old Man Logan is an alternative version of the Marvel Comics fictional character Wolverine. This character is an aged version of Wolverine set in an alternate future universe designated Earth-807128, where the supervillains overthrew the supe ...
and Cerebra. Notable story arcs of this era are "Apocalypse Wars" (2016), "
Death of X ''Death of X'' is a 2016 crossover miniseries published by Marvel Comics. ''Death of X'' is part of a series of story arcs that have impacted the Inhumans and X-Men titles after Secret Wars ended and Earth 616 was restored along with being relate ...
" (2016) and "
Inhumans vs. X-Men ''Inhumans vs. X-Men,'' also stylized ''IvX'' or ''IVX'', is a 2016 American comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics. The series ran for seven issues, beginning with a prologue issue #0 in November 2016 before officially beginning in ...
" (2016-2017). The X-Men were also involved in the "
Civil War II "Civil War II" is a 2016 comic book crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics. Debuting in June of that year, it is the sequel to 2006's "Civil War" and consists of a nine-issue eponymous core limited series, by writer Brian Michael Bendi ...
" and " Monsters Unleashed" storylines. * X-Men **'' Extraordinary X-Men'' – the flagship of the X-titles with X-Men relocated to Limbo following the release of the Terrigen Mists. ** ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
'', vol. 4 – Magneto leads a team of deadly mutants to deal with threats to mutantkind. ** '' All-New X-Men'', vol. 2 – the time-dispaced original X-Men embarking on a roadtrip in an attempt to live normal lives.


ResurrXion

In 2017, the ''
ResurrXion "ResurrXion" was a 2017 relaunch by the American publisher Marvel Comics of various comic book series related to the Inhumans and the X-Men franchises. This was intended to establish a new status quo for both franchises after the events in the ...
'' lineup was launched with ''X-Men: Prime''. It introduced new titles; ''
X-Men Blue ''X-Men Blue'' was an ongoing comic book published twice monthly by Marvel Comics and initially created by writer Cullen Bunn and artist Jorge Molina. The first issue was released April 12, 2017. It is a continuation of the '' All New X-Men'' se ...
'', ''
X-Men Gold ''X-Men Gold'' is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics and initially created by writer Marc Guggenheim and artist Ardian Syaf. This series builds off of plot points established in '' X-Men Prime''. The first issue was released April 5, ...
'', ''
Weapon X Weapon X is a fictional clandestine government genetic research facility project appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are conducted by Department K, which turns willing and unwilling beings into living weapons, ca ...
'', new volumes of ''
Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004, with its first run written by Joss Whedon and art by John Cassada ...
'' and ''
Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s ...
,'' new solo series for ''Cable'', ''Jean Grey'', and ''Iceman'', and continuation of the ''Old Man Logan'' and ''All-New Wolverine'' run. With the Terrigen gone, the X-Men vacated Limbo and moved to
Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated ...
where they returned to their heroic roots instead of constantly living in fear for their survival. Other notable changes include Kitty Pryde as the new leader of the X-Men, the time-displaced X-Men working with Magneto, Old Man Logan turning Weapon X into a black ops team, and mutant characters crossing over from
Earth-1610 Ultimate Marvel, later known as Ultimate Comics, was an imprint (trade name), imprint of comic books published by Marvel Comics, featuring re-imagined and modernized versions of the company's superhero characters from the Ultimate Marvel Univers ...
to the Earth-616 universe. Early 2018 saw the Phoenix Force returning to earth and mysteriously resurrecting the original Jean Grey. A new series featuring the original Jean leading a team of X-Men called ''
X-Men Red X-Men Red is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics, featuring characters from X-Men stories. The first series was an eleven-issue comic book series published by Marvel Comics in monthly installments between February and Dece ...
'' was released later that same month. Rogue and Gambit's relationship became a focal point during the '' Rogue & Gambit'' miniseries and again in the ''Till Death Do Us Part'' story arc in ''X-Men Gold'', which saw the two finally tie the knot, and once more during the ''Mr. & Mrs. X'' miniseries, which saw the new couple attempt to take their honeymoon but end up involved in an intergalactic conspiracy. Other noteworthy plot points included Wolverine's return coinciding with the arrival of a mysterious new villain named Persephone, Psylocke's return to her original body, Magneto's steady return to villainy, and the time-displaced X-Men facing the consequences of their presence in the 616 timeline, and the return of Cyclops. 2019 saw a new volume of ''Uncanny X-Men'' released beginning with a 10-part weekly story arc. Several solo series were launched, including ''Legion'', ''Multiple Man, Domino, Shatterstar'' and ''X-23'', before the revamp of the entire ''X-Men'' lineup. Mainly Charles Xavier, Cyclops, Wolverine and Jean were resurrected and time displaced X-Men returned to their original timeline during the ''Extermination'' event. Notable additions to the X-Men have been Pyro,
Gentle Gentle may refer to: * Gentleness People * Johnny Gentle, stage name of John Askew (born 1936), British pop singer who once toured with the Silver Beetles (later the Beatles) as his backing group * Peter Gentle (born 1965), Australian rugby league ...
, Scout, Trinary, Wolfsbane and
Multiple Man James Arthur Madrox, also called the Multiple Man, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Len Wein, he first appeared in ''Fantastic Four (comic book), Giant-Size Fantastic F ...
. Notable story arcs of this decade are "Weapons of Mutant Destruction" (2017), "Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey" (2017–2018), "Poison X" (2018), "Extermination" (2018), "
Hunt for Wolverine "Hunt for Wolverine" is a 2018 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, starring the character Wolverine. The storyline is the follow-up to the ''Death of Wolverine'', and is continued with '' Return of Wolverine.'' Premise The plot will ...
" (2018), "
Return of Wolverine ''Return of Wolverine'' is a 2018 comic book miniseries published by Marvel Comics. This miniseries is a continuation on the events that transpired in the "Death of Wolverine" and " Hunt for Wolverine" storylines, and explains how Wolverine returne ...
" (2018–2019), "X-Men: Disassembled" (2018–2019) and "
Age of X-Man ''Age of X-Man'' is a 2019 Marvel Comics crossover storyline featuring the X-Men. The name and premise are similar to the 1995 storyline ''Age of Apocalypse'', but change it into a utopia led by Nate Grey (X-Man). Publication history The X-Men c ...
" (2019). The X-Men were also involved in the "Venomized", " Secret Empire" and "
War of the Realms "The War of the Realms" is a 2019 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics. The storyline has been met with positive reviews, with critics praising the storyline and the art. Premise The story details the heroes banding together when Male ...
" storylines. * X-Men **''
X-Men Gold ''X-Men Gold'' is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics and initially created by writer Marc Guggenheim and artist Ardian Syaf. This series builds off of plot points established in '' X-Men Prime''. The first issue was released April 5, ...
'' – the flagship of the X-titles with Kitty Pryde leading the X-Men at the new location at Central Park; an ad hoc team is led by Iceman while Kitty Pryde and her team are in prison. **''
X-Men Blue ''X-Men Blue'' was an ongoing comic book published twice monthly by Marvel Comics and initially created by writer Cullen Bunn and artist Jorge Molina. The first issue was released April 12, 2017. It is a continuation of the '' All New X-Men'' se ...
–'' the time-displaced original X-Men mentored by Magneto; an ad hoc team is led by Polaris while the Original Five is lost in space. ** ''
X-Men Red X-Men Red is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics, featuring characters from X-Men stories. The first series was an eleven-issue comic book series published by Marvel Comics in monthly installments between February and Dece ...
,'' vol. 1 ''–'' the resurrected Jean Grey leading a team to have the mutants recognized as a nation. ** ''
Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004, with its first run written by Joss Whedon and art by John Cassada ...
'', vol 4 – an ad hoc team of X-Men members reunited in London to fight the Shadow King; later featured a ragtag team of X-Men co-led by Havok and Beast against the threat of the Reavers. ** ''
Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X- ...
'', vol. 5 – Jean Grey leads the remnants of the Gold and Red team after Nate Grey resurfaces proclaiming himself the mutant messiah and reshaping the world in his own view; Cyclops and Wolverine reformed the team following the dissolution of the X-Men after fighting X-Man. * X-Men in Training **''
Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s ...
'', vol. 2 – Jubilee's group of students at the rechristened Xavier Institute. * Other Teams **''
Weapon X Weapon X is a fictional clandestine government genetic research facility project appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are conducted by Department K, which turns willing and unwilling beings into living weapons, ca ...
'', vol. 3 – a black ops team of heroes and villains working together to take down a new Weapon X program. **''New Mutants: Dead Soul'' – a team of former New Mutants and X-Factor members founded by Karma to investigate paranormal occurring. **'' X-Force'', vol. 5 – original X-Force members Domino, Shatterstar, Cannonball, and Warpath are on the hunt for Kid Cable. **''
Exiles Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...
'', vol. 3 – The Unseen recruits champions from alternate universes to save the multiverse from the Time Eaters.


Krakoan Age of X-Men

On May 14, 2019, Marvel announced they will cancel all the X-Men titles and relaunch the entire lineup.
Jonathan Hickman Jonathan Hickman (born September 3, 1972) is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for his creator-owned series '' The Nightly News'', ''The Manhattan Projects'' and ''East of West'', as well as his lengthy stints as a writer on M ...
will have full creative control and will start with two rotating bi-weekly six-issue limited series called ''House of X'' and ''Powers of X''. After the 12 issues are released, Hickman will pen the flagship title and several new and traditional titles will be released. It was subsequently announced in July 2019 at
San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is ...
that there would be six new X-titles as part of Marvel's
Dawn of X "Dawn of X" is a 2019 relaunch of the '' X-Men'' line of comic books published by Marvel Comics in the wake of the twin miniseries ''House of X'' and ''Powers of X''. This initiative culminated in the crossover event ''X of Swords'', which was f ...
campaign. Following the end of the ''
X of Swords ''X of Swords'' is a comic book crossover event which debuted in September 2020, being published by Marvel Comics. It is the next crossover event featured in the "Dawn of X" relaunch after the ''House of X'' and ''Powers of X'' event. ''X of Swor ...
'' crossover, the sequel relaunch
Reign of X "Reign of X" is a 2020 relaunch of the '' X-Men'' line of comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is the sequel to the "Dawn of X" publishing initiative, and was followed by an additional relaunch titled " Destiny of X". Publication history T ...
will encompass a new era in the X-titles. Destiny of X featured the Second Krakoan Age of X-Men after the events of ''Inferno'' and ''X Lives of Wolverine/X Deaths of Wolverine''. Notable addition to the X-Men has been Synch. Notable story arcs of this era are "
X of Swords ''X of Swords'' is a comic book crossover event which debuted in September 2020, being published by Marvel Comics. It is the next crossover event featured in the "Dawn of X" relaunch after the ''House of X'' and ''Powers of X'' event. ''X of Swor ...
" (2020), "
Hellfire Gala "Hellfire Gala" is a comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics through the ''X-Men'' related title. It is the first storyline featured in the "Reign of X" relaunch after the " X of Swords" storyline. It is a twelve-chapter storyline. Krakoa o ...
" (2021), " Trial of Magneto" (2021), " Inferno" (2021), " X Lives of Wolverine/X Deaths of Wolverine" (2022), "
Judgment Day The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...
" (2022), "
Dark Web The dark web is the World Wide Web content that exists on ''darknets'': overlay networks that use the Internet but require specific software, configurations, or authorization to access. Through the dark web, private computer networks can comm ...
" (2022–2023) and "
Sins of Sinister ''Sins of Sinister'' is a 2023 comic book Crossover (fiction), crossover storyline published in the X-Men franchise of books by Marvel Comics. The event involves a dark future brought about by Mister Sinister's corrupt machinations. ''Sins of S ...
" (2023). The X-Men were also involved in the " Empyre", "
King in Black ''King in Black'' is a comic book event written by Donny Cates with art by Ryan Stegman, and was published from 2020 to 2021 by Marvel Comics. It is a continuation to 2019's ''Absolute Carnage'', also containing fallout from 2020's ''Empyre''. I ...
" and "
Devil's Reign "Devil's Reign" is an American comic book event written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Marco Checchetto, published from 2021 to 2022 by Marvel Comics. Premise In a ploy to increase his power, Mayor Wilson Fisk has outlawed superheroes in New York C ...
" storylines. * Dawn of X ** ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
,'' vol. 5 – the flagship of the X-titles featuring world-building stories of the mutant renaissance featuring an overlapping cast members. Some of the stories include the introduction of Apocalypse's grandson, Summoner, leading in to the ''
X of Swords ''X of Swords'' is a comic book crossover event which debuted in September 2020, being published by Marvel Comics. It is the next crossover event featured in the "Dawn of X" relaunch after the ''House of X'' and ''Powers of X'' event. ''X of Swor ...
'' crossover; a new villain group called Hordeculture, featured later in the ''Empyre'' tie-in; Professor X, Magneto and Apocalypse attending the World Economic Forum; Mystique's side mission during the attack on Orchis in ''House of X'' and the follow up mission to destroy Nimrod, leading into the ''Inferno'' storyline; the mutant rite Crucible, which is followed up in ''Way of X''; an ad hoc team of Wolverine, Synch and Darwin assault of the Vault; the King Egg of the Brood race, a follow-up on a story started in the ''New Mutants''; a tie-in to the '' Empyre'' event featuring Vulcan, and Magneto and the rest of the mutant nation fighting the Cotati; Cyclops, Marvel Girl and Storm helping with the kidnapping of Xandra, Majestrix of the Shi'ar Empire; and the X-Men election following its disbandbment upon the formation of the Krakoan government. ** ''
Marauders Marauder, marauders, The Marauder, or The Marauders may refer to: * A person engaged in banditry or related activity ** Piracy ** Looting ** Outlaw ** Partisan (military) ** Robbery ** Theft Entertainment * ''Marauder'', the second novel in the ' ...
,'' vol. 1 – a rebranding of the supervillain team featuring
Kitty Pryde Katherine Anne "Kitty" Pryde is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (January 1980) and was co-created by wri ...
(as Captain Kate Pryde),
Storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstorm), ...
, Iceman,
Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
, Pyro and
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
as pirates who travel the world via ship controlling the supply and trade of the Krakoan drugs and protecting mutantkind by smuggling of mutants into and out of nations hostile to Krakoa. ** ''
Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...
,'' vol. 4 – a title starring
Betsy Braddock Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with Captain Britain and the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Herb Trimpe in 1976, she ...
, who takes over the mantle of
Captain Britain Captain Britain is a title used by various superheroes in comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with Excalibur. The moniker was first used in publication by Brian Braddock in ''Captain Britain Weekly'' #1 by writer Ch ...
from her brother Brian Braddock, alongside
Rogue A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software co ...
,
Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...
,
Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...
, Rictor and
Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imager ...
. ** ''New Mutants'', vol. 4 – spacefaring team led by Magik with a roster including
Sunspot Sunspots are phenomena on the Sun's photosphere that appear as temporary spots that are darker than the surrounding areas. They are regions of reduced surface temperature caused by concentrations of magnetic flux that inhibit convection. S ...
, Wolfsbane,
Mirage A mirage is a naturally-occurring optical phenomenon in which light rays bend via refraction to produce a displaced image of distant objects or the sky. The word comes to English via the French ''(se) mirer'', from the Latin ''mirari'', meanin ...
,
Karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively ...
,
Cypher Cypher is an alternative spelling for cipher. Cypher may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * Cypher (French Group), a Goa trance music group * Cypher (band), an Australian instrumental band * ''Cypher'' (film), a 2002 film * ''Cypher'' ...
, Mondo and
Chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
, and co-starring the
Starjammers The Starjammers are a fictional team of space pirates appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Starjammers have often appeared in the pages of the '' X-Men'' comic books. The Starjammers first appeared in '' X-Men'' #10 ...
. A second team consists of
Armor Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or f ...
, Boom-Boom Glob, Maxime and Manon as an outreach party seeking young mutants who have chosen not to come to Krakoa. The New Mutants alumni started training young mutants in Krakoa amidst the threat of the Shadow King during the ''Reign of X'' relaunch. Magik gave up Limbo to Madelyne Pryor during the first arc of the ''Destiny of X'' relaunch. ** ''Fallen Angels'', vol. 2 – a revival of the 1987 title, this incarnation stars Kwannon (as Psylocke) who recruits
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 ...
and
X-23 Laura Kinney (born X-23; codename Wolverine) is a fictional superhero appearing in media published by Marvel Entertainment, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character was created by writer Craig Kyle for the '' X-Men: Evolutio ...
for a personal mission which could jeapordize all of mutantkind. ** '' X-Force,'' vol. 6 – the mutant black-ops team which will consist of Beast,
Jean Grey Jean Elaine Grey is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been known under the aliases Marvel Girl, Phoenix and Dark Phoenix. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack K ...
, Sage,
Domino Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also c ...
,
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
,
Colossus Colossus, Colossos, or the plural Colossi or Colossuses, may refer to: Statues * Any exceptionally large statue ** List of tallest statues ** :Colossal statues * ''Colossus of Barletta'', a bronze statue of an unidentified Roman emperor * ''Col ...
and Kid Omega dealing with the threat of XENO and
Mikhail Rasputin Mikhail Nikolaievitch Rasputin is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is the older brother of Colossus of the X-Men and Magik of the New Mutants. He first appeared in ''The Uncanny ...
. During the ''Destiny of X'' relaunch, the team faced off Cerebrax (a sentient Cerebro unit) and added Deadpool and Omega Red to their roster. ** ''
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
,'' vol. 7 – featuring the titular mutant of the same name dealing with the Flower Cartel, the Vampire Nation and the Arakki mutant Solem. Wolverine teamed up with Deadpool during the ''Destiny of X'' relaunch. ** '' Hellions'' – a team of mutant troublemakers given an outlet for their gene-given desires with initial cast consisting of Empath, Havok,
Mister Sinister Mister Sinister (Nathaniel Essex) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont, the character was first mentioned as the employer behind the team of assassins known as the Mara ...
, Nanny,
Orphan-Maker Orphan-Maker (Peter) is a fictional mutant character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. His first appearance was in ''X-Factor'' vol. 1 #31. Publication history Orphan-Maker's first appearance was in ''X-Factor'' #31 (A ...
, Psylocke, Scalphunter, and Wild Child. ** ''
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 ...
,'' vol. 4 – featuring the younger version of the titular character dealing with the abduction of mutant children and the return of Stryfe. ** ''X-Factor'', vol. 4 – a team investigating when a mutant dies and how to keep the rules of reincarnation which will consist of
Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...
,
Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnet ...
,
Northstar Northstar may refer to: * Polaris, a star Arts and entertainment * Northstar (band), an emo band from Alabama * Northstar (rap group), a rap group affiliated with the Wu-Tang Clan * "Northstar", a 2019 song by XXXTentacion from the album ''Bad Vi ...
,
Daken Daken (; birth name: Akihiro) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Daken was created by writer Daniel Way and artist Steve Dillon and first appeared in '' Wolverine: Origins'' #10 (March 2007). ...
, Eye-Boy and
Prodigy Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to: * Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer ** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess Arts, entertainment, and ...
. *Reign of X ** ''S.W.O.R.D.'', vol. 2 – the mutant nation's forefront representatives to the outer universe which consists of
Abigail Brand Special Agent Abigail Brand is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Joss Whedon and artist John Cassaday, she first appeared in '' Astonishing X-Men'' vol. 3 #3 (Sept. 2004). She is ...
,
Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...
, Kid Cable,
Frenzy ''Frenzy'' is a 1972 British thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It is the penultimate feature film of his extensive career. The screenplay by Anthony Shaffer was based on the 1966 novel ''Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Squa ...
,
Manifold In mathematics, a manifold is a topological space that locally resembles Euclidean space near each point. More precisely, an n-dimensional manifold, or ''n-manifold'' for short, is a topological space with the property that each point has a n ...
,
Wiz Kid The X-Men are a team of mutant superheroes, published in American comic books by Marvel Comics. Over the decades, the X-Men have featured a rotating line up composed of many characters. Notation: * Characters in bold are members of the team as ...
and
Fabian Cortez Fabian Cortez is a mutant supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly as an enemy of the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and writer/illustrator Jim Lee, he first appeared in ''X-Men'' #1 (October 1 ...
. **''
Children of the Atom ''Children of the Atom'' is a 1953 science fiction novel by American writer Wilmar H. Shiras, which has been listed as one of "The Most Significant SF & Fantasy Books of the Last 50 Years, 1953–2002." The book is a collection and expansion of ...
'' – a group of young vigilantes operating in New York City posing as mutants. **''Way of X'' – featuring a team Nightcrawler assembled focused on the path of answers for mutantkind's spirituality. The title is concluded in the one-shot ''X-Men: The Onslaught Revelation.'' **'' X-Corp'' – a team headed by CXOs Warren and Monet staffed with some of the brightest and most deviant minds in mutantkind. **''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
,'' vol. 6 – a new team of chosen champions of mutantkind formed after the team's disbandbment upon the formation of the mutant homeland. The initial roster of
Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...
,
Marvel Girl Marvel Girl is an alias used by at least three fictional Marvel Comics superheroines: *Jean Grey, best known as a founding member of the X-Men *Valeria Richards, daughter of Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman (of the Fantastic Four) *Rachel ...
,
Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...
,
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
,
Rogue A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software co ...
,
Sunfire Fire is a series of server computers introduced in 2001 by Sun Microsystems (since 2010, part of Oracle Corporation). The Sun Fire branding coincided with the introduction of the UltraSPARC III processor, superseding the UltraSPARC II-ba ...
and Synch officially debut during the first Hellfire Gala. Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Synch, Magik, Havok, Iceman, Forge and Firestar are elected into the new team roster during the second Hellfire Gala. **'' X-Men Unlimited Infinity Comic'' – a Marvel Unlimited exclusive series featuring a rotating adventures of the Krakoan mutants. Story arcs included Wolverine against A.I.M in "Latitude" and "Longitude", Nature Girl's vendetta against humanity in "X-Men: Green," Juggernaut and Deadpool against The Warden in "Paradise Lost," Madrox and Strong Guy's adventures in "Downtime," Maggott and his slugs' resurrection in "Eany Come Home," the attack of the mutant language in "Cypher in Cryptolect," and the secret mission of the mutants who lost the second election in "Secret X-Men." **'' Sabretooth,'' vol. 4 – featuring the titular mutant dealing with his time at The Pit and other prisoners sent in the hole. **''Secret X-Men'' – a one-shot title featuring a team of mutants who lost the first election on a secret mission to save the Shi'ar empire. *Destiny of X **''Immortal X-Men –'' one of the flagship series starring the Quiet Council of Krakoa with Magneto leaving the Krakoan leadership. During the ''Sins of Sinister'' event, the title is replaced by ''Immoral X-Men''. **''
Marauders Marauder, marauders, The Marauder, or The Marauders may refer to: * A person engaged in banditry or related activity ** Piracy ** Looting ** Outlaw ** Partisan (military) ** Robbery ** Theft Entertainment * ''Marauder'', the second novel in the ' ...
,'' vol. 2 ''–'' Captain Pryde leads a new crew (Psylocke, Bishop, Daken, Somnus, Aurora, Tempo and Cassandra Nova) for rescuing mutants. **''Knights of X –'' Captain Britain leads a team of ten knights (Rictor, Shatterstar, Gambit, Rachel Summers, Bei the Blood Moon, Gloriana, Kylun, Shogo, Mordred) into Otherworld in a quest to search the Siege Perilous. **''Legion of X –'' the mutant police force formed by Nightcrawler and Legion including Juggernaut, Pixie, Blindfold and Doctor Nemesis. During the ''Sins of Sinister'' event, the title is replaced by ''Nightcrawlers'' featuring Sinister's private army of chimera assassins. **''
X-Men Red X-Men Red is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics, featuring characters from X-Men stories. The first series was an eleven-issue comic book series published by Marvel Comics in monthly installments between February and Dece ...
,'' vol. 2 ''–'' a title featuring the Planet Arakko under the guidance of the conflicting factions of Storm's Brotherhood and Brand's X-Men Red. During the ''Sins of Sinister'' event, the title is replaced by ''Storm & the Brotherhood of Mutants''. **''X-Terminators'', vol. 2 – a limited series featuring Wolverine, Dazzler, Jubilee and Boom-Boom battling armies of vampires. **''Deadpool'', vol. 9 – featuring the titular mutate as he auditions for the elite group known as the Atelier. **''Sabretooth & the Exiles'' – featuring the mutants exiled in The Pit (Nekra, Oya, Madison Jeffries, Melter, Third Eye, Nanny, Orphan-Maker, Toad) in pursuit of an escaped Sabretooth. **''Bishop: War College'' – a limited series featuring Bishop training young mutants (Armor, Surge, Cam Long, Aura Charles, and Amass) as War Captains in training for Krakoa. **''Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain'' – a title featuring Captain Britain's new mission after the Otherworld is restored in ''Knights of X''. **''Rogue & Gambit'' – a limited series featuring the couple's next adventure after the departure from their previous teams. *Other Titles: **''X-Men/Fantastic Four'' – a limited series focusing on Franklin Richards of the
Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 (cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first s ...
being offered to join the X-Men nation of Krakoa. **''Giant-Size X-Men'' – a series of one-shots focusing on different X-Men members. Jean Grey, Emma Frost, Magneto, Nightcrawler, Fantomex, Storm and Thunderbird are featured in the series. ** ''Empyre: X-Men'' – tie-in to the event '' Empyre'' featuring a team of mutants fighting against the Cotati and the Genoshan zombies. **''
Juggernaut A juggernaut (), in current English usage, is a literal or metaphorical force regarded as merciless, destructive, and unstoppable. This English usage originated in the mid-nineteenth century and was adapted from the Sanskrit word Jagannath. ...
,'' vol. 3 – featuring the titular character of the same name dealing with his quest for Cyttorak and working for Damage Control. **''X-Men: Curse of the Man-Thing'' – Magik and her team of monster mutants, the Dark Riders, help with the threat of the Man-Thing. **''Cable: Reloaded'' – tie-in to The Last Annihilation crossover featuring Cable and the All-New X-Terminators helping the Guardians of the Galaxy defeat Dormammu. **''The Death of Doctor Strange: X-Men/Black Knight'' – tie-in to the ''
Death of Doctor Strange Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
'' event featuring
Black Knight The black knight is a literary stock character who masks his identity and that of his liege by not displaying heraldry. Black knights are usually portrayed as villainous figures who use this anonymity for misdeeds. They are often contrasted with t ...
and
Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...
protecting London from the demonic X-Men. **''Devil's Reign: X-Men'' – tie-in to the ''
Devil's Reign "Devil's Reign" is an American comic book event written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Marco Checchetto, published from 2021 to 2022 by Marvel Comics. Premise In a ploy to increase his power, Mayor Wilson Fisk has outlawed superheroes in New York C ...
'' event featuring
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
and her time working for the Kingpin. **''X-Men and Moon Girl'' – the X-Men assist Moon Girl in her fight against the High Evolutionary to save Devil Dinosaur. **''Ms. Marvel and Wolverine'' – Wolverine teams up with Ms. Marvel when a mysterious threat lands in New York City compromising Krakoan tech/security.


Team roster

The X-Men team lineup has varied throughout the years and splintered into several other newer teams. The original team lineup introduced
Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...
,
Jean Grey Jean Elaine Grey is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been known under the aliases Marvel Girl, Phoenix and Dark Phoenix. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack K ...
, Beast,
Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles ...
, and Iceman as well as
Professor X Professor X (Charles Francis Xavier) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as the founder and sometimes leader of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writ ...
. Later issues brought fan favorites and frequent members
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
,
Storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstorm), ...
,
Colossus Colossus, Colossos, or the plural Colossi or Colossuses, may refer to: Statues * Any exceptionally large statue ** List of tallest statues ** :Colossal statues * ''Colossus of Barletta'', a bronze statue of an unidentified Roman emperor * ''Col ...
, Nightcrawler,
Rogue A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software co ...
,
Kitty Pryde Katherine Anne "Kitty" Pryde is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (January 1980) and was co-created by wri ...
,
Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...
,
Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...
,
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
, Psylocke, Havok, Dazzler,
Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...
,
Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
,
Forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to th ...
and
Banshee A banshee ( ; Modern Irish , from sga, ben síde , "woman of the fairy mound" or "fairy woman") is a female spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member, usually by screaming, wailing, shrieking, or keening. Her name i ...
, among others.


Enemies

The X-Men have a gallery of enemies they regularly face, the most common of which being Professor X’s friend-turned-enemy
Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...
. Other foes include Mystique,
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
,
Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imager ...
,
Mister Sinister Mister Sinister (Nathaniel Essex) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont, the character was first mentioned as the employer behind the team of assassins known as the Mara ...
, the mutant-hunting robot Sentinels, villain teams such as the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants and the Hellfire Club, and racism and discrimination from the human race.


Themes and motifs

The X-Men use many recurring plot-devices and motifs for their various story arcs over the years that have become commonplace within the X-Men canon.


Reflecting social issues

The conflict between mutants and normal humans is often compared to real-world conflicts experienced by minority groups in
America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
such as
African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, various religious or non-religious groups, (
Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, those with
autism The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
, the
LGBTQ community The LGBT community (also known as the LGBTQ+ community, GLBT community, gay community, or queer community) is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and other queer individuals united by a common culture and social ...
, etc.) It has been remarked that attitudes towards mutants do not make sense in the context of the Marvel Universe, since non-mutants with similar powers are rarely regarded with fear; ''X-Men'' editor Ann Nocenti remarked that "I think that's literary, really - because there is no difference between Colossus and the Torch. If a guy comes into my office in flames, or a guy comes into my office and turns to steel, I'm going to have the same reaction. It doesn't really matter that I know their origins. ... as a book, ''The X-Men'' has always represented something different - their powers arrive at puberty, making them analogous to the changes you go through at adolescence - whether they're special, or out of control, or setting you apart - the misfit identity theme." Also on an individual level, a number of X-Men serve a
metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wi ...
ical function as their powers illustrate points about the nature of the outsider. *
Racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagoni ...
: Although this was not initially the case,
Professor X Professor X (Charles Francis Xavier) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as the founder and sometimes leader of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writ ...
has come to be compared to
civil rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
leader
Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
and
Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...
to the more militant
Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of I ...
. (Magneto, in the first film, quotes Malcolm X with the line "
By any means necessary By any means necessary is a translation of a phrase used by Martinican intellectual Frantz Fanon in his 1960 Address to the Accra Positive Action Conference, "Why we use violence". The phrase had also been used by French intellectual Jean-Paul S ...
.") X-Men comic books have often portrayed mutants as victims of
mob violence A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targete ...
, evoking images of the
lynching Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged transgressor, punish a convicted transgressor, or intimidate people. It can also be an ex ...
of African Americans in the age before the
civil rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
. Sentinels and anti-mutant hate groups such as
Friends of Humanity The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...
, Humanity's Last Stand, the
Church of Humanity Church of Humanity was a positivist church in England influenced and inspired by Auguste Comte's Religion of Humanity in France. It also had a branch or variant in New York City, Brazil and other locations. Richard Congreve founded the firs ...
, and Stryker's Purifiers are thought to often represent oppressive forces like the
Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and Cat ...
giving a form to denial of civil rights and amendments. :1980s storylines involving the fictional island nation of
Genosha Genosha ( or ) is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is an island nation that exists in Marvel's main shared universe, known as "Earth 616" in the Marvel Universe and a prominent place in the X-M ...
, where mutants are segregated and enslaved by an
apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
state, are widely interpreted as a reference to the contemporary situation of
apartheid in South Africa Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
. ''
Chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
'' (2002) explicitly cites the
Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of the country's culture. Rockwell is most famous for the ...
painting ''
The Problem We All Live With ''The Problem We All Live With '' is a painting by Norman Rockwell that is considered an iconic image of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. It depicts Ruby Bridges, a six-year-old African-American girl, on her way to William Frantz El ...
''. The miniseries portrays using the mutant context affirmative action,
National Guard National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. Nat ...
troops escorting a new student, sympathetic and antagonistic majority members, and majority-supremacist terrorism. Some mutants avoid confrontation and seek integration, while more militant mutants play the race card, reject their human-given names, and denounce those who do not as
Stepin Fetchit Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry (May 30, 1902 – November 19, 1985), better known by the stage name Stepin Fetchit, was an American vaudevillian, comedian, and film actor of Jamaican and Bahamian descent, considered to be the first black a ...
and
Uncle Tom Uncle Tom is the title character of Harriet Beecher Stowe's 1852 novel, '' Uncle Tom's Cabin''. The character was seen by many readers as a ground-breaking humanistic portrayal of a slave, one who uses nonresistance and gives his life to prot ...
. *
Antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...
: Explicitly referenced in recent decades is the comparison between antimutant sentiment and antisemitism. Magneto, a
Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...
survivor, sees the situation of mutants as similar to those of Jews in
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
. At one point he even utters the words "never again" in a 1992 episode of the ''X-Men'' animated series. The mutant slave labor camps on the island of
Genosha Genosha ( or ) is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is an island nation that exists in Marvel's main shared universe, known as "Earth 616" in the Marvel Universe and a prominent place in the X-M ...
, in which numbers were burned into mutant's foreheads, show much in common with
Nazi concentration camps From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps, (officially) or (more commonly). The Nazi concentration camps are distinguished from other types of Nazi camps such as forced-labor camps, as well as con ...
, as do the internment camps of the classic " Days of Future Past" storyline. In the third X-Men film, when asked by Callisto: "If you're so proud of being a mutant, then where's your mark?" Magneto shows his concentration camp tattoo, while mentioning that he will never let another needle touch his skin. In the prequel film '' X-Men: First Class'', a fourteen-year-old Magneto suffers
Nazi human experimentation Nazi human experimentation was a series of medical experiments on large numbers of prisoners, including children, by Nazi Germany in its concentration camps in the early to mid 1940s, during World War II and the Holocaust. Chief target po ...
during his time in the camps and witnesses his mother's death by gunshot. *
Diversity Diversity, diversify, or diverse may refer to: Business *Diversity (business), the inclusion of people of different identities (ethnicity, gender, age) in the workforce *Diversity marketing, marketing communication targeting diverse customers * ...
: Characters within the X-Men mythos hail from a wide variety of nationalities. These characters also reflect religious, ethnic or sexual minorities. Examples include Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat, Magneto and Sabra who are of Jewish descent.
Dust Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in ...
and M who are
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, Nightcrawler who is a devout
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
. Neal Shaara/Thunderbird who is
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
. Jubilee is
Chinese American Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage from ...
,
Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...
is born to
Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the U.S. state of Louisiana. While Cajuns are usually described as ...
parents from and
Rogue A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software co ...
is from Caledecott County,
Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
both of whom are Southerners. Warpath along with his deceased brother the first Thunderbird are Native Americans of Apache descent.
Storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstorm), ...
represents two aspects of the African diaspora as her father was
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
and her mother was
Kenyan ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...
.
Karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively ...
was portrayed as a devout Catholic from
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...
, who regularly attended Mass and confession when she was introduced as a founding member of the New Mutants. This team also included Wolfsbane (a devout Scottish
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their n ...
),
Danielle Moonstar Danielle "Dani" Moonstar, originally codenamed Psyche and later Mirage, is a fictional Northern Cheyenne superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in the graphic novel ''The New Mutants'' (Sept. 19 ...
(a Native American of Cheyenne descent),
Cannonball A round shot (also called solid shot or simply ball) is a solid spherical projectile without explosive charge, launched from a gun. Its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the barrel from which it is shot. A round shot fired from a lar ...
, and was later joined by
Magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also been discovered on other terrestrial planets and some natura ...
(a devout
Greco-Roman The Greco-Roman civilization (; also Greco-Roman culture; spelled Graeco-Roman in the Commonwealth), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and countries that culturally—and so historically—were di ...
classical religionist). Different nationalities included Wolverine,
Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...
,
Northstar Northstar may refer to: * Polaris, a star Arts and entertainment * Northstar (band), an emo band from Alabama * Northstar (rap group), a rap group affiliated with the Wu-Tang Clan * "Northstar", a 2019 song by XXXTentacion from the album ''Bad Vi ...
, Deadpool and
Transonic Transonic (or transsonic) flow is air flowing around an object at a speed that generates regions of both subsonic and supersonic airflow around that object. The exact range of speeds depends on the object's critical Mach number, but transoni ...
from
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
; Colossus and Magik from
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
; Banshee and
Siryn Theresa Maeve Rourke Cassidy is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. Debuting under the codename Siryn, she later retired the name and went by Banshee, in hon ...
from
Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
; Dust from
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...
; Psylocke, Wolfsbane and
Chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
from the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
; Sunfire,
Armor Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or f ...
,
Surge Surge means a sudden transient rush or flood, and may refer to: Science * Storm surge, the onshore gush of water associated with a low-pressure weather system * Surge (glacier), a short-lived event where a glacier can move up to velocities 100 ...
and
Zero 0 (zero) is a number representing an empty quantity. In place-value notation such as the Hindu–Arabic numeral system, 0 also serves as a placeholder numerical digit, which works by Multiplication, multiplying digits to the left of 0 by th ...
from
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
; Sunspot from
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
; M from
Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
; Nightcrawler from
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
; Sabra from
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
; Omega Sentinel, Neal Shaara,
Kavita Rao Dr. Kavita "Vita" Rao is a fictional character, a geneticist appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is part of the X-Men Series. Shohreh Aghdashloo portrayed the role in '' X-Men: The Last Stand.'' Publication history ...
and
Indra Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war.  volumes/ref> I ...
from
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
; Velocidad from
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
; Oya from
Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
; Primal from
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
; etc. * LGBT themes: Some commentators have noted the similarities between the struggles of mutants and the
LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...
community, noting the onset of special powers around
puberty Puberty is the process of physical changes through which a child's body matures into an adult body capable of sexual reproduction. It is initiated by hormonal signals from the brain to the gonads: the ovaries in a girl, the testes in a ...
and the parallels between being
closeted ''Closeted'' and ''in the closet'' are metaphors for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender and other (LGBTQ+) people who have not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity and aspects thereof, including sexual identity and huma ...
and the mutants' concealment of their powers. In the comics series, gay and
bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whic ...
characters include
Anole Dactyloidae are a family of lizards commonly known as anoles () and native to warmer parts of the Americas, ranging from southeastern United States to Paraguay. Instead of treating it as a family, some authorities prefer to treat it as a subfami ...
,
Bling! The Xavier Institute is a fictional school in the X-Men universe. This list documents the fictional staff, students and alumni of the institute. Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters * Later renamed as Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. Fo ...
, Destiny, Karma, Mystique, Psylocke, Courier,
Northstar Northstar may refer to: * Polaris, a star Arts and entertainment * Northstar (band), an emo band from Alabama * Northstar (rap group), a rap group affiliated with the Wu-Tang Clan * "Northstar", a 2019 song by XXXTentacion from the album ''Bad Vi ...
(whose marriage was depicted in the comics in 2012),
Graymalkin Graymalkin is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a member of the Young X-Men and is named after the address of the Xavier Institute. His super-human strength varies on how much light he is ...
, Rictor, Shatterstar, Shade, the Ultimate version of Colossus and later Iceman after revealing that he is a mutant; the comics version of the character was then revealed to be gay in 2015.
Transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through ...
issues also come up with shapechangers like Mystique,
Copycat Copycat refers to a person who copies some aspect of some thing or somebody else. Copycat may also refer to: Intellectual property rights * Copyright infringement, use of another’s ideas or words without permission * Patent infringement, a v ...
, and Courier who can change gender at will. It has been said that the comic books and the X-Men animated series delved into the AIDS epidemic with a long-running plot line about the
Legacy Virus The Legacy Virus is a fictional plague appearing in American comic books featuring the X-Men published by Marvel Comics. It first appeared in an eponymous storyline running through Marvel Comics titles from 1993 to 2001, during which it swept thro ...
, a seemingly incurable disease thought at first to attack only mutants (similar to the AIDS virus which at first was spread through the gay community). In the film '' X-Men: First Class,''
Hank McCoy Beast (Dr. Henry Philip "Hank" McCoy) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics and is a founding member of the X-Men. Originally called "The Beast", the character was introduced as a mutant possessing ape-like su ...
is asked by his CIA boss why he never disclosed his mutant identity, and his response was '' "you didn't ask, I didn't tell".'' *
Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...
and
socialism Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes th ...
: Occasionally, undercurrents of the real-life "
Red Scare A Red Scare is the promotion of a widespread fear of a potential rise of communism, anarchism or other leftist ideologies by a society or state. The term is most often used to refer to two periods in the history of the United States which ar ...
" are present or the events of the Red Scare in history are alluded to. Senator Robert Kelly's proposal of a
Mutant Registration Act Discrimination against superheroes is a common theme and plot element comic books and superhero fiction, usually as a way to explore the issue of superheroes operating in society or as commentary on other social concerns. Often in response to t ...
is similar to the efforts of
United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...
to try to ban
communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...
in the United States. In the 2000 ''
X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...
'' film, Kelly exclaims, "We must know who these mutants are and what they can do," even brandishing a "list" of known mutants (a reference to Senator
Joseph McCarthy Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican United States Senate, U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957. Beginning in 1950, McCarth ...
's list of
Communist Party USA The Communist Party USA, officially the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), is a communist party in the United States which was established in 1919 after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Rev ...
members who were working in the government). *
Religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...
: Religion is an integral part of several X-Men storylines. It is presented as both a positive and negative force, sometimes in the same story. The comics explore
religious fundamentalism Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishi ...
through the person of William Stryker and his Purifiers, an antimutant group that emerged in the 1982 graphic novel '' God Loves, Man Kills.'' The Purifiers believe that mutants are not human beings but children of the devil, and have attempted to exterminate them several times, most recently in the "Childhood's End" storyline. By contrast, religion is also central to the lives of several X-Men, such as Nightcrawler, a devout
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, and
Dust Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in ...
, a devout
Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagre ...
who wears an Islamic
niqāb A niqāb or niqaab (; ar, نِقاب ', " aceveil"), also called a ruband, ( fa, روبند) is a garment, usually black, that covers the face, worn by some Muslim women as a part of an interpretation of ''hijab'' (i.e. "modest dress"). Musl ...
. *
Subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture that differentiates itself from the parent culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, poli ...
: In some cases, the mutants of the X-Men universe sought to create a subculture of the typical mutant society portrayed. The Morlocks, though mutants like those attending Xavier's school, hide away from society within the tunnels of New York. These Morlock tunnels serve as the backdrop for several X-Men stories, most notably ''The Mutant Massacre'' crossover. This band of mutants illustrates another dimension to the comic, that of a group that further needs to isolate itself because society won't accept it. In
Grant Morrison Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, humanist philosophy and countercultural leanings. Morrison has written extensively for th ...
's stories of the early 2000s, mutants are portrayed as a distinct subculture with "mutant bands," mutant use of code-names as their primary form of self-identity (rather than their given birth names), and a popular mutant fashion designer who created outfits tailored to mutant
physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemic ...
. The series ''
District X District X, also known as Mutant Town or the Middle East Side, is a fictional location appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is a neighborhood in New York City primarily populated by mutants, first seen during Grant ...
'' takes place in an area of New York City called "Mutant Town." These instances can also serve as analogies for the way that minority groups establish subcultures and neighborhoods of their own that distinguish them from the broader general culture. Director
Bryan Singer Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed. After graduating from the University of Southern California, Singer ...
has remarked that the X-Men franchise has served as a metaphor for acceptance of all people for their special and unique gifts. The mutant condition that is often kept secret from the world can be analogous to feelings of difference and fear usually developed in everyone during adolescence. *
Genocide Genocide is the intentional destruction of a people—usually defined as an ethnic, national, racial, or religious group—in whole or in part. Raphael Lemkin coined the term in 1944, combining the Greek word (, "race, people") with the ...
: Genocide and its psychological after-effects, primarily
survivor guilt Survivor guilt (or survivor's guilt; also called survivor syndrome or survivor's syndrome and survivor disorder or survivor's disorder) is a mental condition that occurs when a person believes they have done something wrong by surviving a traumati ...
, are recurring elements in some of the most significant X-Men story arcs. Magneto was a survivor of
The Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europ ...
and witnessed the genocide of his people, severely scarring him emotionally and leaving him with a strong distrust of humanity. Because of this he constantly toes the line between ally and enemy of the X-Men. The iconic Days of Future Past story line saw an alternate future where Sentinels committed genocide on most of the world's mutants. In Rachel Summers' original timeline, she was captured by humans and turned into a 'hound' used to hunt down other mutants in order to capture and kill them, leaving her extremely traumatized by the experience and knowledge that she unwittingly assisted in the genocide of her own people. Bishop's childhood consisted of him being trapped in a mutant concentration camp, leaving him so emotionally scarred as an adult that upon returning to the past he was prepared to kill a baby who might have caused his future. When
Cassandra Nova Cassandra Nova is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Created by writer Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely, Cassandra first appeared in '' New X-Men'' #1 ...
committed genocide on Genosha, the event left both
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
and
Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...
traumatized by survivor's guilt as they were amongst the limited few survivors. While taking some time off in Germany, Nightcrawler witnessed the genocide of numerous mutants. The event left him as an emotional shell of who he used to be because of the trauma of what he witnessed until he had psychic therapy with
Jean Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...
to help him cope. Other characters who have either committed or have survived genocide include Mystique, Callisto, Apocalypse, Onslaught,
Bastion A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...
,
Mister Sinister Mister Sinister (Nathaniel Essex) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont, the character was first mentioned as the employer behind the team of assassins known as the Mara ...
, Hope Summers, Cable, and the Phoenix Force.


Time travel

Many of the X-Men's stories delve into
time travel Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a ...
either in the sense of the team traveling through time on a mission, villains traveling through time to alter history, or certain characters traveling from the past or future in order to join the present team. Story arcs and spin-offs that are notable for using this plot device include '' Days of Future Past'', ''
Messiah Complex A messiah complex (Christ complex or savior complex) is a state of mind in which an individual holds a belief that they are destined to become a savior today or in the near future. The term can also refer to a state of mind in which an individual ...
'', '' All-New X-Men'', ''
Messiah War "Messiah War" is a crossover storyline running through the issues of '' Cable'' and '' X-Force'' cover-dated May– July 2009 and a one-shot, ''X-Force/Cable: Messiah War'', published by Marvel Comics. Writer Craig Kyle described it as the follo ...
'', and '' Battle of the Atom''. Characters who are related to time travel include: Apocalypse, Bishop, Cable,
Old Man Logan Old Man Logan is an alternative version of the Marvel Comics fictional character Wolverine. This character is an aged version of Wolverine set in an alternate future universe designated Earth-807128, where the supervillains overthrew the supe ...
, Prestige, Hope Summers,
Tempus Tempus is a Latin word meaning time and a Finnish, Swedish and German word meaning grammatical tense. It may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Television *"Tempus, Anyone?", 1996 episode of ''Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Super ...
, and
Stryfe Stryfe is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequen ...
. A major notable period in the X-Men's history began in 2012s '' All-New X-Men'' when Beast used time-travel to bring the original five 1960s X-Men into the present. These time-displaced characters subsequently starred in their own title ''
X-Men Blue ''X-Men Blue'' was an ongoing comic book published twice monthly by Marvel Comics and initially created by writer Cullen Bunn and artist Jorge Molina. The first issue was released April 12, 2017. It is a continuation of the '' All New X-Men'' se ...
'' before returning to their original timeline in 2018s ''Extermination'' event.


Death and resurrection

One of the most recurring plot devices used in the X-Men franchise is death and resurrection, mostly in the sense of Jean Grey and her bond with the Phoenix. Though not as iconic as Jean and the Phoenix, many other X-Men characters have died and come back to life on occasion. Death and resurrection has become such a common occurrence in the X-books that the characters have mentioned on numerous occasions that they are not strangers to death or have made comments that death doesn't always have a lasting effect on them (for example, "In mutant heaven, there are no pearly gates, only revolving doors"). X-Necrosha is a particular story arc that sees
Selene In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Selene (; grc-gre, Σελήνη , meaning "Moon"''A Greek–English Lexicon's.v. σελήνη) is the goddess and the personification of the Moon. Also known as Mene, she is traditionally the daughter of ...
temporarily reanimate many of the X-Men's dead allies and enemies in order for her to achieve godhood.


Fate

Many of the characters deal with the topic of fate. In particular,
Destiny Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often ...
's abilities of precognition have affected certain plot points in the X-Men's history long after she was killed off due to both the X-Men and their enemies constantly searching for her missing diaries that foretell certain futures. The topic of fate takes center stage yet again in a story arc called "The Extremists" involving attacks against the
Morlocks Morlocks are a fictional species created by H. G. Wells for his 1895 novel,''The Time Machine'', and are the main antagonists. Since their creation by H. G. Wells, the Morlocks have appeared in many other works such as sequels, films, televis ...
due to one of them seeing a dark future for their people. Some characters believe they already know their own fates, such as Apocalypse believing he is fated to rule the mutants or Magneto believing he is fated to lead the mutants to rise up against humans. Other characters such as Jean, Prestige, Evan Sabanur, Hope Summers, and
Warren Worthington III Warren Kenneth Worthington III, originally known as Angel and later as Archangel, is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics and is a founding member of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, ...
have all been wary of their fates and have all taken measures to alter their futures.


Space travel

Space travel has been a common staple in the X-Men books beginning with the Phoenix and Dark Phoenix sagas. Since then space has been involved in many stories involving the X-Men's allies and occasional rivals the
Shi'ar The Shi'ar ( ) are a fictional species of aliens appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Shi'ar Empire (or Imperium), is a vast collection of alien species, cultures, and worlds situated close to the Skrull and Kree Emp ...
along with stories involving the Phoenix Force. Space has been the setting for many stories involving the likes of
The Brood ''The Brood'' is a 1979 Canadian psychological body horror film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring Oliver Reed, Samantha Eggar, and Art Hindle. Its plot follows a man and his mentally ill ex-wife, who has been sequestered by ...
, such as the story arc where the villainous species was first introduced. Through space noteworthy characters like The
Starjammers The Starjammers are a fictional team of space pirates appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Starjammers have often appeared in the pages of the '' X-Men'' comic books. The Starjammers first appeared in '' X-Men'' #10 ...
and Vulcan (lost brother of Cyclops and Havok) were introduced. Space Travel played a major role in Joss Whedon's run on
Astonishing X-Men ''Astonishing X-Men'' is the name of four X-Men comic book series from Marvel Comics, the first two of which were limited series. The third volume, an ongoing series, began in 2004, with its first run written by Joss Whedon and art by John Cassada ...
via the introduction of
S.W.O.R.D. S.W.O.R.D. (Sentient World Observation and Response Department) is a fictional counterterrorism and intelligence agency appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Its purpose is to deal with extraterrestrial threats to world ...
and especially in one of the final story arcs under his authorship called "Unstoppable". Other notable story arcs involving space included " X-Men: The End", "Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire", " X-Men: Kingbreaker", "
War of Kings "War of Kings" is a comic book crossover storyline written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, published by Marvel Comics, and set in Marvel's main shared universe. The six-issue limited series was published between March
", and "
The Black Vortex "The Black Vortex" is a 2015 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics involving the All New X-Men and the Guardians of the Galaxy. Plot Prologue Star-Lord (Peter Quill) tries to avoid the Slaughter Lords and those hunting him for a boun ...
".


Sanity

The topic of sanity has been addressed in many of the major heroes and villains of X-Men. Most famously this is addressed in Jean Grey when she gains near omnipotence through the Phoenix and Professor Xavier after he violently uses his powers against Magneto, unintentionally creating Onslaught. Mystique's sanity wavers throughout the franchise as her constant transformations causes more and more of her mind to fracture. Ever since swapping bodies with Revanche, Psylocke has occasionally struggled to maintain her sanity due to her more aggressive nature and new powers. The character Deadpool is famous for his blatant lack of sanity. After Magneto stripped Wolverine of his metal bones, Wolverine began to become increasingly feral throughout most of the mid to late 1990s X-Men comics. The nature of Rogue's powers affecting her sanity due to her retaining the memories of others has been a central plot device on many occasions, most famously retaining Ms. Marvel's psyche throughout most of the 1980s. Most recently Emma Frost's sanity has become fractured ever since Cyclops died in her arms, causing her to declare war against Inhumans. Other characters who have had issues with sanity include Cyclops, Sabretooth, Magik,
Quentin Quire Quintavius Quirinius "Quentin" Quire, also known as Kid Omega, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, usually in those featuring the X-Men. Quire first appeared in ''New X-Men'' #134 (January, 2003). ...
, X-23, and Prestige.


Political warfare

In the Marvel Universe, mutant rights is one of the hot controversial political topics and is something that is addressed numerous times in the X-books as a plot device. While some politicians like Valerie Cooper have legitimately tried to help the X-Men, most have made it their mission to discredit the X-Men in order to eliminate mutants once and for all. Senator Robert Kelly began his platform on a strong outspoken anti-mutant sentiment until he changed his mind after being rescued by mutants later on in his career. When Sabretooth's human son Graydon Creed ran for office, the X-Men sent in
Cannonball A round shot (also called solid shot or simply ball) is a solid spherical projectile without explosive charge, launched from a gun. Its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the barrel from which it is shot. A round shot fired from a lar ...
and Iceman to discreetly join his campaign team and find anything on his anti-mutant agenda. This continued until it boiled to a head when his assassination led to " Operation: Zero Tolerance." Some of the issues presented in the comics serve as allegory to modern issues in the real world, such as Lydia Nance suggesting mass mutant deportation.


Ideological Difference

Characters in the X-Men franchise espouse a variety of political ideologies, and these differences are a frequent catalyst for conflict. The most prominent ideological clash in the X-Men franchise is that between Xavier and Magneto; despite later interpretations of the two as analogues for Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, writer Chris Claremont (who originated Magneto's backstory and history with Xavier) saw them as more comparable to
David Ben-Gurion David Ben-Gurion ( ; he, דָּוִד בֶּן-גּוּרִיּוֹן ; born David Grün; 16 October 1886 – 1 December 1973) was the primary national founder of the State of Israel and the first prime minister of Israel. Adopting the nam ...
and
Menachem Begin Menachem Begin ( ''Menaḥem Begin'' (); pl, Menachem Begin (Polish documents, 1931–1937); ''Menakhem Volfovich Begin''; 16 August 1913 – 9 March 1992) was an Israeli politician, founder of Likud and the sixth Prime Minister of Israel. ...
. Xavier's ideology has drawn comparisons to
assimilationism Cultural assimilation is the process in which a minority group or culture comes to resemble a society's majority group or assume the values, behaviors, and beliefs of another group whether fully or partially. The different types of cultural ass ...
and
model minority A model minority is a minority demographic (whether based on ethnicity, race or religion) whose members are perceived as achieving a higher degree of socioeconomic success than the population average, thus serving as a reference group to outgro ...
politics, while Magneto, originally depicted as a mutant
supremacist Supremacism is the belief that a certain group of people is superior to all others. The supposed superior people can be defined by age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, language, social class, ideology, nation, culture, ...
, is later portrayed as a liberationist advocating
self-determination The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a '' jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It sta ...
through
mutually assured destruction Mutual assured destruction (MAD) is a doctrine of military strategy and national security policy which posits that a full-scale use of nuclear weapons by an attacker on a nuclear-armed defender with second-strike capabilities would cause the ...
. Callisto is a
separatist Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seeking greate ...
, who seeks to protect the Morlocks through
isolationism Isolationism is a political philosophy advocating a national foreign policy that opposes involvement in the political affairs, and especially the wars, of other countries. Thus, isolationism fundamentally advocates neutrality and opposes entangl ...
.
Emma Frost Emma Grace Frost is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #129 (Jan. 1980), and was ...
is portrayed as rejecting social movements, opting to use the
capitalist Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...
system for her personal benefit, or for that of individual mutants in her care.
Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imager ...
is characterized as a
social darwinist Social Darwinism refers to various theories and societal practices that purport to apply biological concepts of natural selection and survival of the fittest to sociology, economics and politics, and which were largely defined by scholars in We ...
who believes that mutants can only survive through the rule of might. The Mutant Liberation Front commits acts of
terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
to liberate mutants wrongly incarcerated by the government. Even when individual characters expressing conflicting ideologies are portrayed as either misguided or villainous, their motives and beliefs are often treated by the X-Men with nuance, sympathy, and respect; for example, during
Secret Wars ''Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars'', commonly known as ''Secret Wars'' for short, is a twelve-issue American comic book crossover limited series published from May 1984 to April 1985 by Marvel Comics. The series was written by Jim Shooter, with ...
, when The Avengers take issue with Magneto's placement among the heroic team by
The Beyonder The Beyonder () is a fictional cosmic entity appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Jim Shooter and artist Mike Zeck, the Beyonder first appeared in ''Secret Wars'' #1 (May 1984) as an unseen, self-procla ...
, the X-Men defend him as an ally, despite disagreeing with his methods. Pulitzer-winning national security journalist
Spencer Ackerman Spencer Ackerman is an American journalist and writer. Focusing primarily on national security, he began his career at ''The New Republic'' in 2002 before writing for ''Wired'', ''The Guardian'' and ''The Daily Beast''. He won a 2012 National ...
has stated that "the importance of the X-Men as a universe of stories, as a mythos, is that we should always be debating who is right."


Setting

The X-Men exist in the
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. Super-teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardians o ...
along with other characters featured in Marvel Comics series and often interact with them. The X-Men/mutant corner of the Marvel Universe has been informally called "X-Universe". For instance,
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...
was an antagonist to
the Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book ap ...
before joining the X-Men and has ties to other heroes such as
Captain America Captain America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by cartoonists Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character First appearance, first appeared in ''#Golden Age, Captain America Comics'' #1 (cover ...
, Black Widow, the Thing, Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers), Elektra and
Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the Si ...
. Quicksilver and
Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. Her first appearance was in ''The X-Men'' #4 (March 19 ...
are former
Brotherhood of Mutants The Brotherhood of Mutants (originally called the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, sometimes referred to as BoEM or B.O.E.M) is a fictional team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters are depicted as being devote ...
members who joined the Avengers, as have other X-Men characters such as Beast.
Rogue A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software co ...
got her powers via absorbing Carol Danvers (then called Ms. Marvel) who has also interacted with the X-Men. Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat has been part of the
Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It may more specifically refer to: Comic book teams * Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), the original 31st-century team fr ...
and dated
Star-Lord Star-Lord (Peter Jason Quill) is a fictional character and superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character, created by Steve Englehart and Steve Gan, first appeared in '' Marvel Preview'' #4 (January 197 ...
, she also served as a mentor to Franklin Richards the mutant son of
Mister Fantastic Mister Fantastic (Reed Richards) is a superhero character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is a founding member, and the leader, of the Fantastic Four. Richards has a mastery of mechanical, aerospace and ...
and
Invisible Woman The Invisible Woman (Susan "Sue" Storm-Richards) is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is a founding member of the Fantastic Four and was the first female superhero created by Marvel during ...
of the
Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 (cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first s ...
.
Storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstorm), ...
was once the Queen of
Wakanda Wakanda () is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Wakanda has been depicted as being in East Africa. It is located in sub-Saharan Africa, and is home to the superhero Black Panther (comics), Black Pa ...
and the wife of
Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been ...
, as well as a temporary member of the Fantastic Four.
Rachel Summers Rachel Anne Summers (also known as Rachel Grey) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-plotter John Byrne (comics), John Byrne. In h ...
was the girlfriend of Franklin Richards. Iceman and
Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles ...
have also joined the original Champions alongside Black Widow,
Ghost Rider Ghost Rider is the name of multiple antiheroes and superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Marvel had previously used the name for a Western character whose name was later changed to Phantom Rider. The first s ...
and
Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...
as well as having frequent partnerships with Firestar and Spider-Man as "The Amazing Friends". Sabretooth was an Iron Fist villain before becoming Wolverine's archenemesis. And both the X-Men and the Avengers formed a team called
Uncanny Avengers ''Uncanny Avengers'' is a comic book series first appearing in the October 2012 debut of Marvel NOW!, published by Marvel Comics. The series follows an interconnected fictional superhero team, featuring members from the Marvel Universe (specific ...
(aka Avengers Unity Division) after a conflict over the Phoenix Force. The global nature of the mutant concept means the scale of stories can be highly varied. The X-Men's enemies range from mutant thieves to galactic threats. Historically, the X-Men have been based in the Xavier Institute of Gifted Youngsters/X-Mansion located in Salem Center,
Westchester County, New York Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population ...
, and are often portrayed as a family. The Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters/X-Mansion is often depicted with three floors and two underground levels. To the outside world, it acted as a higher learning institute until the 2000s, when Xavier was publicly exposed as a mutant at which point it became a known mutant
boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of " room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exte ...
. Xavier funds a corporation aimed at reaching mutants worldwide, though it ceased to exist following the 2005 "Decimation" storyline. The X-Men benefit from advanced technology such as Xavier tracking down mutants with a device called
Cerebro Cerebro (; Spanish for "brain", from Latin ) is a fictional device appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The device is used by the X-Men (in particular, their leader, Professor Charles Xavier) to detect humans, specificall ...
which amplifies his powers; the X-Men train within the
Danger Room The Danger Room is a fictional training facility appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It first appeared in ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963) and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The facility is depicted as built for ...
, first depicted as a room full of weapons and booby traps, now as generating holographic simulations; and the X-Men travel in their Blackbird jet.


Fictional places

The X-Men introduced several fictional locations which are regarded as important within the shared universe in which Marvel Comics characters exist: * Asteroid M, an asteroid made by Magneto, a mutant utopia and training facility off of the Earth's surface. * Avalon, Magneto's
space station A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a human crew in orbit for an extended period of time, and is therefore a type of space habitat. It lacks major propulsion or landing systems. An orbital station or an orbital space station ...
that served as the primary base for him and his Acolytes to create a mutants-only safe haven after Magneto drastically reverted to his villainous ways. *
Genosha Genosha ( or ) is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is an island nation that exists in Marvel's main shared universe, known as "Earth 616" in the Marvel Universe and a prominent place in the X-M ...
, an island near Madagascar and a longtime
apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
regime against mutants. The U.N. gave control to Magneto until the ''E Is for Extinction'' story saw Genosha destroyed via mass
genocide Genocide is the intentional destruction of a people—usually defined as an ethnic, national, racial, or religious group—in whole or in part. Raphael Lemkin coined the term in 1944, combining the Greek word (, "race, people") with the ...
. *
Krakoa Krakoa is a fictional living island appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It first appeared in ''Giant-Size X-Men'' #1 and was created by Len Wein and Dave Cockrum. Initially depicted as an antagonist, Krakoa has since gro ...
, a living island which is currently home to the X-Men and other mutants. It is an official country. *
Limbo In Catholic theology, Limbo (Latin '' limbus'', edge or boundary, referring to the edge of Hell) is the afterlife condition of those who die in original sin without being assigned to the Hell of the Damned. Medieval theologians of Western Euro ...
, a hellish dimension heavily populated by demons. Whoever possesses the Soulsword bears control over and can draw power from Limbo. In Extraordinary X-Men, the X-Men made a sanctuary in Limbo called ''X-Haven'' their home after Terrigen started making earth uninhabitable for mutants. *
Madripoor The Principality of Madripoor or Madripoor is a fictional island located in maritime Southeast Asia appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, mostly associated with stories from the ''X-Men'' series. Based on illustrations, it ...
, an island in
South East Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
, near Singapore. Its location is shown to be in the southern portion of the
Strait of Malacca The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, 500 mi (800 km) long and from 40 to 155 mi (65–250 km) wide, between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connec ...
, south west of Singapore. * Mojoverse, an alternate dimension ruled by the tyrant
Mojo Mojo may refer to: *Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * '' ...
focused on creating violent
reality entertainment Reality Entertainment is a Philippine production company founded and managed by the Filipino filmmaker Erik Matti and his producing partner Dondon Monteverde (son of the film producer Lily Monteverde Lily Yu Monteverde, nicknamed Mother Lil ...
usually featuring captive mutants * Murderworld, fictional twisted amusement park designed by the Marvel supervillain known as Arcade. *
Muir Island The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...
, a remote island off the coast of
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
. This is primarily known in the X-Men universe as the home of
Moira MacTaggert Dr. Moira MacTaggert (sometimes spelled ''MacTaggart'', ''McTaggart'', ''McTaggert''), more recently known as Moira X, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in ''The Uncanny X-Men ...
's laboratory. * Mutant Town (also known as District X), an area in
Alphabet City, Manhattan Alphabet City is a neighborhood located within the East Village in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its name comes from Avenues A, B, C, and D, the only avenues in Manhattan to have single-letter names. It is bounded by Housto ...
, populated largely by mutants and beset by poverty and crime. * New Tien, a mutant-run region on the west coast of the United States where mutants outnumber humans. It was created after Hydra took over the United States. Emma Frost secretly leads New Tien by telepathically possessing New Tien's
puppet ruler A puppet ruler is a person who has a title indicating possession of political power, but who, in reality, is either loyal to or controlled by outside individuals or forces. Such outside power can be exercised by a foreign government, in which case ...
Xorn. *
Savage Land The Savage Land is a hidden prehistoric land appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is a tropical preserve hidden in Antarctica. It has appeared in many story arcs in ''Uncanny X-Men'' as well as other related books. P ...
, a preserved location in
Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...
which is home to a number of extinct species, most notably
dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...
s, and strange tribes. * Shi'ar throneworld Chandilar, the home world of the X-Men's occasional extraterrestrial allies The Shi'ar. *
Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island soc ...
, Cyclops had Asteroid M raised from the Pacific Ocean off the coast of the San Francisco as a response to the rise of anti-mutant sentiment to form a mutant nation.


Cultural impact and legacy


Impact

The insecurity and anxieties in Marvel's early 1960s comic books such as ''
The Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in '' The Fantastic Four'' #1 (cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the firs ...
'', ''
The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its main protagonist. Being in the mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a bimonthly per ...
'', ''
The Incredible Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of '' The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book a ...
'', and ''X-Men'' ushered in a new type of superhero, very different from the certain and all-powerful superheroes before them, and changed the public's perception of superheroes.


Accolades

* In 2012, ''
Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'' ranked the X-Men 4th in their "10 Best Superhero Teams In Comics" list. * In 2020, ''
CBR.com ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom C ...
'' ranked the X-Men 1st in their "Marvel: 10 Most Powerful Teams" list. * In 2021, ''
CBR.com ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom C ...
'' ranked the X-Men 2nd in their "Every Marvel Superhero Team" list and 2nd in their "Marvel: The 10 Strongest Superhero Teams" list. * In 2022, ''
Newsarama Newsarama is an American website that publishes news, interviews, and essays about the American comic book industry. It is owned by Future US. In June 2020, Newsarama was merged with the website GamesRadar+, also owned by FutureUS. History ...
'' ranked the X-Men 3rd in their "Best superhero teams of all time" list.


Other versions

* ''
Age of Apocalypse "Age of Apocalypse" is a 1995 comic book crossover storyline mostly published in the X-Men franchise of books by Marvel Comics. The ''Age of Apocalypse'' briefly replaced the universe of Earth-616 and had ramifications in the main Marvel Comics ...
'' – In a world where Professor X is killed before he can form the X-Men, Magneto leads the X-Men in a dystopian world ruled by Apocalypse. Created and reverted via time travel. * ''
Age of X "Age of X" is a comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics as part of its ''X-Men'' series. The storyline is set in an alternate reality known as Earth-11326. Running from January to April 2011, it is similar in name and tone to the 1995 " A ...
'' - a world in which anti-mutant sentiment became even worse due to a series of events and thus led to the United States government hunting down mutants with Sentinels and leading to "The Decimation" which severely reduced the mutant population and Magneto leads the mutants who are based in Fortress X. * '' Days of Future Past'' – Sentinels have either killed or placed into concentration camps almost all mutants. Prevented by the time-traveling Kate Pryde/Widget (the adult Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat). * ''
House of M "House of M" is a 2005 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, consisting of a core eight-issue comic book limited series written by Brian Michael Bendis and illustrated by Olivier Coipel and a number of crossover tie-in books. Its fir ...
'' – Reality is altered by
Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. Her first appearance was in ''The X-Men'' #4 (March 19 ...
, with her father Magneto as the ruler of Genosha and in which mutants are the dominant group with humans as second-class citizens. 2005's crossover event, it concludes with a reversion to the normal Marvel Universe, albeit with most mutants depowered. * ''
Marvel 1602 ''Marvel 1602'' is an eight-issue comic book limited series published in 2003 by Marvel Comics. The limited series was written by Neil Gaiman, penciled by Andy Kubert, and digitally painted by Richard Isanove; Scott McKowen illustrated the distin ...
'' – Mutants are known as the "Witchbreed" in this alternate reality set during the time of The Inquisition. Carlos Javier creates a "school for the children of gentlefolk" to serve as a safe haven and training ground. *
Marvel 2099 Marvel 2099 is a Marvel Comics imprint, started in 1992, that was originally one possible future of the Marvel Universe, but later revealed in a climax of ''Superior Spider-Man Goblin Nation arc'' and ''Amazing Spider-Man'' Vol. 3 #14 to be the ...
– Set in a dystopian world with new characters looking to the original X-Men as history, becoming
X-Men 2099 ''X-Men 2099'' is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics from 1993 to 1996 that chronicled the adventures of an X-Men team in the year 2099. It extends the Marvel 2099 imprint, which features other future versions of popular Marvel chara ...
and X-Nation 2099. * ''
Marvel Noir ''Marvel Noir'' is a 2009/2010 Marvel Comics alternative continuity combining elements of film noir and pulp fiction with the Marvel Universe. The central premise of the mini-series replaces super powers with driven, noir-flavored characterizatio ...
'' - The X-Men of this reality are a group of delinquent teenagers led by Charles Xavier who believes that sociopathy is the next step in human evolution. * '' Mutant X'' – Set in a world where Scott Summers was captured along with his parents by the Shi'ar and only Alex escaped, allowing him to be the eventual leader of this Universe's X-Men ("The Six"). The Mutant X universe reimagines
Mr. Fantastic Mister Fantastic (Reed Richards) is a superhero character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is a founding member, and the leader, of the Fantastic Four. Richards has a mastery of mechanical, aerospace and ...
,
Nick Fury Colonel Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury Sr. is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, he first appeared in '' Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos' ...
, and Professor X as villains and
Doctor Doom Doctor Victor Von Doom is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and first appeared in ''The Fantastic Four'' #5 in July 1962. The monarch of the fict ...
and Apocalypse as heroes. * '' MC2'' - In this alternate future,
Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...
forms the X-People in response to anti-mutant sentiment. Members include Angry Eagle, Simian, Spanner, Torque,
Push Push may refer to: Music * Mike Dierickx (born 1973), a Belgian producer also known as Push Albums * ''Push'' (Bros album), 1988 * ''Push'' (Gruntruck album), 1992 * ''Push'' (Jacky Terrasson album), 2010 Songs * "Push" (Enrique Iglesias s ...
, Bluestreak, J2, and Wild Thing. * Time-displaced X-Men - The time-displaced team was introduced as such in '' All-New X-Men'' vol. 1 #1, by
Brian Michael Bendis Brian Michael Bendis (; born August 18, 1967) is an American comic book writer and artist. He has won five Eisner Awards for both his creator-owned work and his work on various Marvel Comics books.Bendis, Brian Michael and Oeming, Michael Avon, ...
and
Stuart Immonen Stuart Immonen () is a Canadian comics artist. He is best known for his work on '' Nextwave'', '' Ultimate X-Men'', '' The New Avengers'', ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', and '' Ultimate Spider-Man''. His pencils are usually inked by Wade Von Grawba ...
, and brought to the present with time travel. They were kept as regular characters, as Bendis intended to explore their reactions to the fate of their adult selves.Truitt, Brian (September 8, 2013)
"Sunday Geekersation: Bendis takes pride in his X-Men"
''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
''.
The team was the main focus of the '' Battle of the Atom'' crossover, some months later. Bendis also used them for crossovers with the
Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It may more specifically refer to: Comic book teams * Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), the original 31st-century team fr ...
and
Miles Morales Miles Gonzalo MoralesAhmed, Saladin (w), Garrón, Javier (a). ''Miles Morales: Spider-Man'' #1 (2018) Marvel Comics (New York). () is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, and is one o ...
, that he also wrote. This was one of the few crossovers between the
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. Super-teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardians o ...
and the
Ultimate Marvel Ultimate Marvel, later known as Ultimate Comics, was an imprint of comic books published by Marvel Comics, featuring re-imagined and modernized versions of the company's superhero characters from the Ultimate Marvel Universe. Those characters ...
universe; Bendis preferred to write them sparingly. ''All-New X-Men'' has a vol. 2 in 2015, by
Dennis Hopeless Dennis Hallum, known professionally as Dennis Hopeless and Dennis "Hopeless" Hallum, is an American comic book writer from Kansas City, Missouri who has written for Marvel, Image, Dark Horse, Boom! Studios, Arcana Studio and Oni Press. Hallum h ...
and
Mark Bagley Mark Bagley (; born August 7, 1957) is an American comics artist. He has worked for Marvel Comics on such titles as ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', ''Thunderbolts'', ''New Warriors'', ''Venom'' and '' Ultimate Spider-Man'' and for DC Comics on ''Justic ...
. The comic was cancelled after the end of the ''
Inhumans vs. X-Men ''Inhumans vs. X-Men,'' also stylized ''IvX'' or ''IVX'', is a 2016 American comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics. The series ran for seven issues, beginning with a prologue issue #0 in November 2016 before officially beginning in ...
'' crossover, and the team was now published in the ''
X-Men Blue ''X-Men Blue'' was an ongoing comic book published twice monthly by Marvel Comics and initially created by writer Cullen Bunn and artist Jorge Molina. The first issue was released April 12, 2017. It is a continuation of the '' All New X-Men'' se ...
'' comic. The teenager Jean also got a solo series after the end of ''
ResurrXion "ResurrXion" was a 2017 relaunch by the American publisher Marvel Comics of various comic book series related to the Inhumans and the X-Men franchises. This was intended to establish a new status quo for both franchises after the events in the ...
'', by Hopeless and Victor Ibanez, that explored her relation with the Phoenix Force. The teenager Cyclops joins the Champions (2016 team), Champions, a comic book focused on teenager heroes but unrelated to the X-Men mythos. They guest-starred in the ''Venom (comic book), Venom'' comic, in the "Poison-X" arc. The story took the villains from the ''Venomverse'' arc and led to the ''Venomized'' crossover. The team were featured in the ''Extermination'' crossover, where they went back to their original timeline. *''Ruins (comics), Ruins'' - Although the actual X-Men don't appear, alternate versions of its members and villains are shown to have suffered under horrific circumstances. Charles Xavier is a tyrannical President of the United States, Jean Grey is a Prostitution, prostitute, Magneto and Mystique die, Wolverine suffers from poisoning from his adamantium skeleton, Emma Frost heads the Church of the Next Generation and forces children of her followers to undergo surgery, Cyclops as well as Nightcrawler and Kitty Pryde are imprisoned at a Texas jail and Sabretooth is part of a fascist cannibalistic militia based in Oklahoma alongside Bucky Barnes and Jack Monroe. * ''
Ultimate X-Men ''Ultimate X-Men'' is a superhero comic book series, which was published by Marvel Comics, from 2001 to 2009. The series is a modernized re-imagining of Marvel's long-running X-Men comic book franchise as part of the Ultimate Marvel imprint. The U ...
'' – Set in the reimagined
Ultimate Marvel Ultimate Marvel, later known as Ultimate Comics, was an imprint of comic books published by Marvel Comics, featuring re-imagined and modernized versions of the company's superhero characters from the Ultimate Marvel Universe. Those characters ...
universe. The X-Men are younger, wear black and gold uniforms and supernatural/cosmic elements are downplayed. Additionally Colossus is gay unlike his main universe counterpart, Magneto is not a Holocaust survivor and is more villainous, mutants were created by the Super-Soldier Serum, Cable is Wolverine and Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat dated Spider-Man. * ''X-Men Forever'' – An alternate continuity diverging from ''X-Men'', vol. 2 #3, continuing as though writer Chris Claremont had never left writing the series. * ''X-Men Noir'' – Set in the 1930s, with the X-Men as a mysterious criminal gang and the Brotherhood as a secret society of corrupt cops. * '' X-Men: The End'' – A possible ending to the X-Men's early 2005 status quo. * ''X-Men: The Animated Series, X-Men '92'' – Follows "Secret Wars", the X-Men of the 1992 TV Series, received their own comic book series.


In other media

The X-Men team has featured in multiple forms of media including the
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
X-Men (film series), live-action film series, X-Men in television, multiple animated shows, live-action shows, List of video games featuring the X-Men, multiple video games, numerous novels, motion comics, soundtracks, action figures, and clothing.


See also

* List of Marvel Comics superhero debuts *
Doom Patrol Doom Patrol is a superhero team from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in ''My Greatest Adventure'' #80 (June 1963), and was created by writers Arnold Drake and Bob Haney, along with artist Bruno Premiani. Doom Patrol has appe ...
, a similar team of super-powered misfits appearing in comics published by
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. ( doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with the ...
. * Harbinger (comic book), Harbingers/Psiots, another group of superpowered outcasts appearing in comics published by Valiant Comics.


References


Further reading

* * * Note: Contains a chapter on the X-Men, with special emphasis on Jewish characters Magneto and Shadowcat. *


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:X-Men X-Men, 1963 comics debuts Civil rights movement in popular culture Marvel Comics American superheroes Comics characters introduced in 1963 Characters created by Jack Kirby Characters created by Stan Lee Comics adapted into animated series Evolution in popular culture Marvel Entertainment franchises Marvel Comics adapted into films Marvel Comics adapted into video games Marvel Comics superhero teams Marvel Comics mutants Marvel Comics titles Mutants in fiction X-Men supporting characters X-Men titles