History CharacterizationMarchesOn / XMen

* [[Characters/MarvelComicsRogue Rogue]] got her start as a villainous henchwoman working for Mystique, taking on and nearly single-handedly defeating the entire team of Comicbook/TheAvengers with a bravado that would be out of place from the troubled young girl she was soon developed into. This is particularly strange when you consider that nearly all of Rogue's earliest appearances -- including the aforementioned encounter with the Avengers -- were written by Creator/ChrisClaremont.

* In the first two or so issues, Beast essentially a big dumb oaf who sexually harassed Jean Grey. As early as the third issue, he became a self-described bookworm who used a much more impressive vocabulary and was far kinder to people around him, and it was treated as if he had always been so. Interestingly, in a much later arc, the Beast, now blue and furry (which is also this trope, as ''some'' don't know he wasn't always this way), has his appearance restored to his original human form, but at the cost of his intelligence dwindling as he uses his powers. He eventually talks much like his original self.
* ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}}'s first appearances had him as a crime boss and then a ComicBook/{{Magneto}}-esque mutant supremacist, giving the same sort of speeches with more BoldInflation during [[ReplacementFlatCharacter a time when Magneto had become the New Mutants' mentor.]] The [[TheSocialDarwinist "survival of the fittest"]] aspect of his philosophy emerged soon afterward and those other characterizations quickly fell by the wayside. His backstory and status as a rare but overwhelming threat came later still.
* The original plan for the ''Comicbook/XFactor'' comic (where Apocalypse was first introduced) was that the shadowy mastermind that X-Factor had been fighting against was planned to be minor Comicbook/{{Daredevil}} and Spider-Man villain the Owl. When a new writer came in, they decided to create a new villain.
* Magneto himself is a good example of this. The Creator/StanLee/Creator/JackKirby version of the character was just a straightforward villain with essentially no character depth. Creator/ChrisClaremont gave Magneto a sympathetic backstory and changed him into a WellIntentionedExtremist, and these changes have more or less stuck over the intervening decades. Unfortunately, post-Claremont writers and editors re-cardboardified Magneto to some considerable extent.
* ComicBook/{{Rogue}} got her start as a villainous henchwoman working for Mystique, taking on and nearly single-handedly defeating the entire team of Comicbook/TheAvengers with a bravado that would be out of place from the troubled young girl she was soon developed into. This is particularly strange when you consider that nearly all of Rogue's earliest appearances - including the aforementioned encounter with the Avengers - were written by Creator/ChrisClaremont.
* According to a tenacious urban legend, Comicbook/{{Wolverine}}'s origin was ''intended'' to be that he was actually a wolverine mutated into human form. Creator/LenWein himself, Wolverine's co-creator, has made it clear that this is just a myth. Old plans that ''were'' made are that his claws were originally intended to be built into his gloves, and WordOfGod states that he was planned to be about as strong as ComicBook/SpiderMan (i.e. at the low end of superhuman strength in the Franchise/MarvelUniverse, but still able to lift about 10 tons).
* He also started out as a thug with a bad temper whose main contribution to fights was rushing in recklessly and getting [[TheWorfEffect swatted aside]] to prove that the villain couldn't be beaten without teamwork. During ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga, he TookALevelInBadass and never looked back. It's also surprising (considering how important it is to his modern characterization) how long it is between his first appearance and the first explicit mention of his HealingFactor (he says that he heals fast a little earlier, but it's in more of a "don't fuss over me just because I got myself beaten" context than an "I have a superhuman ability to heal" one).
* And how about Charles Xavier himself? In the first twenty or so issues, he used his powers a lot more, reading minds whenever he pleased, communicating telepathically even to people in the same room, harboring a secret crush on Jean Grey, and mind-wiping several of the X-Men's foes in order to get them out of the way for good. While some later writers would portray Xavier as a {{Jerkass}}, it never reached this level. Early Professor X also had a close relationship with the US government and freely deployed the X-Men as government agents, a setup that would be unthinkable in the later "hated and feared" days.
* Also, Iceman. Nowadays, he is mostly known as a funny guy. In the beginning, he would often attack his teammates during mission briefings. While this was probably intended to show him as immature (he was two years younger than the rest), it just made him look like a JerkAss and an idiot.
* Glob Herman started out as the henchman/best friend to Quentin Quire, and was nothing more than a meatheaded bully. After spending about a decade OutOfFocus, he finally became part of a regular cast in ComicBook/WolverineAndTheXMen, where he took a few laps through the HeelFaceRevolvingDoor and didn't see much character development. His appearance in ComicBook/SpiderManAndTheXMen was the first major step towards being a redeemed character, and his appearances written by Ed Brisson (ComicBook/OldManLogan2016, Dead Man Logan, ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018, ComicBook/AgeOfXMan: Next Gen and ComicBook/NewMutants2019) have fully reframed him as TheEeyore who cares deeply about his teammates and friends and seeks to solve conflicts with as little violence as possible ([[BewareTheNiceOnes usually]]). This radical shift from his early appearances was given InUniverse reasons in New Mutants, where he explains that his [[AbusiveParents father]] raised him to hate mutants, and turned the hatred onto him once his mutation manifested, leading to him [[BoomerangBigot hating himself for being a mutant]] until he [[HeelRealization realized]] that he was just continuing his father's hate.
* Quentin Quire himself, in his original arc by Grant Morrison, was a relatively nerdy and unpopular kid radicalized into violent and quasi-fascist politics. Later writers would transition him into more of a punk-alternative teenager who likes to project an outward image of rebellion against authority but is in practice more annoying than dangerous.
* Julian Keller (Hellion) was originally portrayed as arrogant, extremely overconfident in himself, and openly obnoxious to anyone he saw as beneath him, with his attraction to his classmate Wind Dancer being the only hint of a greater sensitivity beneath. Through a series of events (the death of his friend Tag, the loss of his hands, his relationship with X-23), he became a much more sensitive and sympathetic character - to the point that many writers seem to regard him as too "normal" to use much.

* According to a tenacious urban legend, Comicbook/{{Wolverine}}'s origin was ''intended'' to be that he was actually a wolverine mutated into human form. Creator/LenWein himself, Wolverine's co-creator, has made it clear that this is just a myth. Old plans that ''were'' made are that his claws were originally intended to be built into his gloves, and WordOfGod states that he was planned to be about as strong as Franchise/SpiderMan (i.e. at the low end of superhuman strength in the Franchise/MarvelUniverse, but still able to lift about 10 tons).

* Glob Herman started out as the henchman/best friend to Quentin Quire, and was nothing more than a meatheaded bully. After spending about a decade OutOfFocus, he finally became part of a regular cast in ComicBook/WolverineAndTheXMen, where he took a few laps through the HeelFaceRevolvingDoor and didn't see much character development. His appearance in ComicBook/SpiderManAndTheXMen was the first major step towards being a redeemed character, and his appearances written by Ed Brisson (ComicBook/OldManLogan2016, Dead Man Logan, ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018, ComicBook/AgeOfXMan: Next Gen and ComicBook/NewMutants2019) have fully reframed him as TheEeyore who cares deeply about his teammates and friends and seeks to solve conflicts with as little violence as possible ([[BewareTheNiceOnes usually]]). This radical shift from his early appearances was given InUniverse reasons in New Mutants, where he explains that his [[AbusiveParents father]] raised him to hate mutants, and turned the hatred onto him once his mutation manifested, leading to him [[BoomerangBigot hating himself for being a mutant]] until he [[HeelRealization realized]] that he was just continuing his father's hate.

* In the first two or so issues, Beast essentially sexually harassed Jean Grey and was a big dumb oaf, but as early as the third issue, he became a self-described bookworm who used a much more impressive vocabulary and was far kinder to people around him, and it was treated as if he had always been so. Interestingly, in a much later arc, the Beast, now blue and furry (which is also this trope, as ''some'' don't know he wasn't always this way), has his appearance restored to his original human form, but at the cost of his intelligence dwindling as he uses his powers. He eventually talks much like his day-one self.

* ComicBook/{{Rogue}} got her start as a villainous henchwoman working for Mystique, taking on and nearly single-handedly defeating the entire team of Comicbook/TheAvengers with a bravado that would be out of place on the troubled young girl she was soon developed into. This is particularly strange when you consider that nearly all of Rogue's earliest appearances - including that encounter with the Avengers - were written by Creator/ChrisClaremont.

* In the first two or so issues of, Beast essentially sexually harassed Jean Grey and was a big dumb oaf, but as early as the third issue, he became a self-described bookworm who used a much more impressive vocabulary and was far kinder to people around him, and it was treated as if he had always been so. Interestingly, in a much later arc, the Beast, now blue and furry (which is also this trope, as ''some'' don't know he wasn't always this way), has his appearance restored to his original human form, but at the cost of his intelligence dwindling as he uses his powers. He eventually talks much like his day-one self.

* [[Characters/XMen2000sMembers Glob Herman]] started out as the henchman/best friend to [[Characters/MarvelComicsQuentinQuire Quentin Quire]], and was nothing more than a meatheaded bully. After spending about a decade OutOfFocus, he finally became part of a regular cast in ComicBook/WolverineAndTheXMen, where he took a few laps through the HeelFaceRevolvingDoor and didn't see much character development. His appearance in ComicBook/SpiderManAndTheXMen was the first major step towards being a redeemed character, and his appearances written by Ed Brisson (ComicBook/OldManLogan2016, Dead Man Logan, ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018, ComicBook/AgeOfXMan: Next Gen and ComicBook/NewMutants2019) have fully reframed him as TheEeyore who cares deeply about his teammates and friends and seeks to solve conflicts with as little violence as possible ([[BewareTheNiceOnes usually]]). This radical shift from his early appearances was given InUniverse reasons in New Mutants, where he explains that his [[AbusiveParents father]] raised him to hate mutants, and turned the hatred onto him once his mutation manifested, leading to him [[BoomerangBigot hating himself for being a mutant]] until he [[HeelRealization realized]] that he was just continuing his father's hate.

* Also, Iceman. Nowadays, he is mostly known as a funny guy. In the beginning, he would often attack his teammates during mission briefings. While this was probably intended to show him as immature (he was two years younger than the rest), it just made him look like a JerkAss and an idiot.

!!''Comicbook/XMen''