History ComicBook / XMen

The Uncanny Misfits. The Children of the Atom. The Strangest Superheroes of Them All.

The Uncanny Misfits. The Children of the Atom. The Strangest Superheroes Of Them All.

The Uncanny Misfits. The Children of the Atom. The Strangest Superheroes of them all.

The Strangest Superheroes of them all. The Uncanny Misfits. '''''[[TropeCodifier The]]''''' [[RagTagBunchOfMisfits Heroic Outcasts]].

* FantasticRacism: Probably THE most iconic example of this trope in fiction. The X-Men protect a world that fears and hates them.

* CloningBlues: Jean Grey and Madelyne Pryor. Cable and Stryfe. Magneto and Joseph. Wolverine and X-23. [[spoiler:Apocalypse and Genesis.]] [[spoiler:Literally everyone in ''ComicBook/XMen2019''.]]

* ''ComicBook/{{Legion}}'', [=ResurrXion=] Phase II

* ''ComicBook/{{Magneto}}''

** ''ComicBook/X-Force2004'': Rob Liefield and Fabian Nicieza's return to the title, featuring the original cast.

* ''X-Force'' series: Various incarnations, generally with the common theme of being a hard-edged mutant strike team.
** ''ComicBook/XForce'': A continuation of ''New Mutants'', launched in 1991, with the main characters now as young adults led by Cable. In 2001 was {{Retool}}ed to star an InNameOnly publicity-hungry team with a completely different cast.

[[caption-width-right:349:The strangest heroes of all![[note]]Clockwise starting from 12 o' clock: [[Characters/MarvelComicsGambit Gambit]], Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}, [[Characters/XMen90sMembers Jubilee]], Characters/{{Magik}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsRogue Rogue]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsPsylocke Psylocke]], Banshee, Characters/{{Ma|rvelComicsMagneto}}gneto, [[Characters/XMenMojoverse Longshot]], Characters/{{Dazzler}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsNightcrawler Nightcrawler]], [[Characters/XMen70sMembers Colossus]], Xorn, Forge, [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]], Bishop, Characters/{{Emma Frost|WhiteQueen}}, ComicBook/{{Iceman|MarvelComics}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsKittyPryde Kitty Pryde]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsBeast Beast]], Danger, [[Characters/MarvelComicsAngel Angel/Archangel]], [[Characters/GenerationHope Hope Summers]]. In the center are [[Characters/MarvelComicsCyclops Cyclops]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Jean Grey]], and [[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]]. And that's not even all of them.[[/note]]]]

** The Hellfire Club's Black Queens and White Queens wear outfits like this. Characters/{{Emma Frost|WhiteQueen}}, even after leaving the Hellfire Club, continues wearing variations of her White Queen outfit, transforming it into her own identity. She's of course an AntiHero.

** ''[[ComicBook/AdjectivelessXMen X-Men (2013)]]'': Originally written by Brian Wood. Featuring an all-female team.

* '''Blue and Gold:''' At the time when a second ongoing main ''X-Men'' title was launched to run alongside ''Uncanny X-Men'', the main characters were split into two teams: the "Blue" team from ''[[ComicBook/AdjectivelessXMen X-Men]]'' consisted of Cyclops, Beast, Wolverine, Psylocke, Jubilee, Rogue and Gambit, while the "Gold" team from ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen'' consisted of Storm, Jean Grey, Archangel (formerly Angel), Iceman, Colossus, Forge and new character '''Bishop'''. Forge left the X-Men and ended up joining ComicBook/XFactor; '''Revanche''', in Psylocke's original body, briefly joined the Blue Team and left shortly before her death; Colossus defected to Magneto's Acolytes due to the TraumaCongaLine he had been living through, while at the same time Wolverine also left the X-Men after having the adamantium ripped out of his body; finally, Jubilee left to become a founding member of the new class of young mutants in ''ComicBook/GenerationX''. By the end of this era, the Blue and Gold teams had more-or-less merged into one big team.

* '''The Original Team:''' The founding team from 1963, which featured '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsCyclops Cyclops]]''', '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsAngel Angel]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsBeast Beast]], [[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Iceman]]''', and '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Marvel Girl]]''' as its central cast, and was led by '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]]'''. Later additions included '''[[AllYourPowersCombined Mimic]]''' (the first non-mutant, and only briefly), '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Polaris]]''', and Cyclops' long-lost brother '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Havok]]''' to the roster, as well as retconning '''[[VoluntaryShapeshifting Changeling]]''' into becoming a member to facilitate one of the first instances of DeathIsCheap.

** [[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Iceman]] has gotten a major upgrade in the new ''Wolverine & The X-Men'' comic. In issue #2, he defeats an army of flamethrower-wielding Frankenstein clones by activating the sprinkler system and spawning dozens of autonomous ice duplicates. It's pretty much exactly as awesome as it sounds.

* '''The Original Team:''' The founding team from 1963, which featured '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsCyclops Cyclops]]''', '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsAngel Angel, [[Characters/MarvelComicsBeast Beast]], [[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Iceman]]''', and '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Marvel Girl]]''' as its central cast, and was led by '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]]'''. Later additions included '''[[AllYourPowersCombined Mimic]]''' (the first non-mutant, and only briefly), '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Polaris]]''', and Cyclops' long-lost brother '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Havok]]''' to the roster, as well as retconning '''[[VoluntaryShapeshifting Changeling]]''' into becoming a member to facilitate one of the first instances of DeathIsCheap.

[[caption-width-right:349:The strangest heroes of all![[note]]Clockwise starting from 12 o' clock: [[Characters/MarvelComicsGambit Gambit]], Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}, [[Characters/XMen90sMembers Jubilee]], Characters/{{Magik}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsRogue Rogue]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsPsylocke Psylocke]], Banshee, Characters/{{Ma|rvelComicsMagneto}}gneto, [[Characters/XMenMojoverse Longshot]], Characters/{{Dazzler}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsNightcrawler Nightcrawler]], [[Characters/XMen70sMembers Colossus]], Xorn, Forge, [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]], Bishop, Characters/{{Emma Frost|WhiteQueen}}, ComicBook/{{Iceman|MarvelComics}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsKittyPryde Kitty Pryde]], [[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Beast]], Danger, [[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Angel/Archangel]], [[Characters/GenerationHope Hope Summers]]. In the center are [[Characters/MarvelComicsCyclops Cyclops]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Jean Grey]], and [[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]]. And that's not even all of them.[[/note]]]]

* '''The Original Team:''' The founding team from 1963, which featured '''ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}''', '''[[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Angel, Beast, Iceman]]''', and '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Marvel Girl]]''' as its central cast, and was led by '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]]'''. Later additions included '''[[AllYourPowersCombined Mimic]]''' (the first non-mutant, and only briefly), '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Polaris]]''', and Cyclops' long-lost brother '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Havok]]''' to the roster, as well as retconning '''[[VoluntaryShapeshifting Changeling]]''' into becoming a member to facilitate one of the first instances of DeathIsCheap.

* ''ComicBook/GenerationX'': A title launched in the 1990s focusing on ComicBook/EmmaFrost's own SuperheroSchool and her team of teenage mutants which included ComicBook/JubileeMarvelComics.

[[caption-width-right:349:The strangest heroes of all![[note]]Clockwise starting from 12 o' clock: [[Characters/MarvelComicsGambit Gambit]], Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}, [[Characters/XMen90sMembers Jubilee]], Characters/{{Magik}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsRogue Rogue]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsPsylocke Psylocke]], Banshee, Characters/{{Ma|rvelComicsMagneto}}gneto, [[Characters/XMenMojoverse Longshot]], Characters/{{Dazzler}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsNightcrawler Nightcrawler]], [[Characters/XMen70sMembers Colossus]], Xorn, Forge, [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]], Bishop, Characters/{{Emma Frost|WhiteQueen}}, ComicBook/{{Iceman}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsKittyPryde Kitty Pryde]], [[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Beast]], Danger, [[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Angel/Archangel]], [[Characters/GenerationHope Hope Summers]]. In the center are [[Characters/MarvelComicsCyclops Cyclops]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Jean Grey]], and [[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]]. And that's not even all of them.[[/note]]]]

* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: ''Everyone'', but special mention goes to Characters/{{Mystique}}. To be a bit more specific; Mystique joined the X-Men and left, [[Characters/MarvelComicsSabretooth Sabretooth]] joined the X-Men and left, Juggernaut joined the X-Men and left, Lady Mastermind joined the X-Men and left, Magneto joined the X-Men, left, and ''joined again'', Sebastian Shaw joined Hope's Lights and left... Really, about the only three {{Heel Face Turn}}s to have stuck are Rogue, Tessa/Sage, (who turned out to be GoodAllAlong) and Emma Frost ([[ByNoIMeanYes except Emma Frost]]). Every other villain that's joined eventually just stabs the group in the back. (Either that, or they just up and leave.) Given that, as of ''ComicBook/XMen2019'' perennial X-foes Apocalypse, Emplate, Exodus, the Gorgon, Greycrow, Magneto (still), Mister Sinister, Mystique (again), Selene, and Toad are all currently (at least nominally) on the side of the angels…

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!!Here are the different incarnations of the X-Men so far:

* '''The Original Team:''' The founding team from 1963, which featured '''ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}''', '''[[Characters/XMenTheOriginalTeam Angel, Beast, Iceman]]''', and '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Marvel Girl]]''' as its central cast, and was led by '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]]'''. Later additions included '''[[AllYourPowersCombined Mimic]]''' (the first non-mutant, and only briefly), '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Polaris]]''', and Cyclops' long-lost brother '''[[Characters/XMen60sMembers Havok]]''' to the roster, as well as retconning '''[[VoluntaryShapeshifting Changeling]]''' into becoming a member to facilitate one of the first instances of DeathIsCheap.
* '''The All-New All-Different X-Men:''' Introduced in the pivotal ''Giant-Size X-Men'' #1, in which Professor X and Cyclops were forced to recruit a new, international, multi-racial team, made up of '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]]''' from Kenya, '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsNightcrawler Nightcrawler]]''' from West Germany, '''[[Characters/XMen70sMembers Colossus]]''' from Russia, '''[[SuperScream Banshee]]''' from Ireland, '''[[PowerOfTheSun Sunfire]]''' from Japan, '''[[LightningBruiser Thunderbird]]''' from an Apache nation, and, [[BreakoutCharacter of course]], '''Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}''' from Canada, to save the old team from a failed mission on [[Characters/XMenKrakoans Krakoa]]. This team continued into the main ''X-Men'' title from issue #94 onwards; Sunfire left the team almost immediately, and Thunderbird was promptly [[SacrificialLion killed off]]. Marvel Girl soon rejoined the team, apparently died and resurrected with greatly expanded powers, and took on the new name Phoenix. Eventually Banshee had to leave the team due to injury, and the story of Jean's growing power tragically culminated in ''ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga''.
* '''From Dark Phoenix to the Brood Saga:''' Soon after the death of Jean Grey, teenager '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsKittyPryde Kitty Pryde]]''' joined the team and initially took the codename Sprite. Cyclops took an unspecified leave of absence to grieve, leaving Storm as the leader. Angel rejoined the team as well, but left after ten issues over a dispute about whether Wolverine was trustworthy. Soon afterwards Cyclops fell back into the X-Men's orbit and remained with the team until the end of the Brood Saga; during this period, a de-powered [[Characters/MarvelComicsCarolDanvers Carol Danvers]] was also a close associate of the X-Men (although not an official member).
* '''From the Brood Saga to the Mutant Massacre:''' Cyclops left the team again, seemingly for good this time, getting married and settling down for a normal life in Alaska. Kitty Pryde abandoned the codename Sprite, becoming Ariel and eventually Shadowcat. Former villain '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsRogue Rogue]]''' defected to the X-Men and soon became an integral part of the team. '''[[Characters/XMen80sMembers Rachel Summers]]''', the [[KidFromTheFuture daughter from the alternate future]] of Cyclops and Jean from ''ComicBook/DaysOfFuturePast'', travelled back to the present day and claimed her mother's mantle as the second Phoenix. Storm temporarily left the team as well after being de-powered, leaving Nightcrawler as team leader, before returning to the team as a BadassNormal and reclaiming her position as leader. Professor X departed for outer space and left charge of the Xavier School to '''Characters/{{Ma|rvelComicsMagneto}}gneto''', who had gradually undergone a HeelFaceTurn.
* '''Post-Mutant-Massacre and the Australia era:''' The X-Men underwent a drastic shift in their line-up after the Mutant Massacre, with only Storm, Wolverine and Rogue remaining as members; new recruits included '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsPsylocke Psylocke]]''', '''Characters/{{Dazzler}}''', '''[[Characters/XMenMojoverse Longshot]]''' (who was an alien rather than a mutant) and the return of Havok. Storm took a leave of absence to go on a quest to recover her superpowers, leaving Wolverine as team leader for the first time – around the same time she returned, Colossus was also able to return as an active team member. During the period where the team were presumed dead and operating from exile in the Australian outback, they were aided by the mysterious elderly portal-creating mutant '''Gateway'''.
* '''Dissolution and Rebirth:''' During a period where the X-Men were dissolved and scattered across the world, Wolverine teamed up with newcomer '''Jubilee''' and reunited with a now [[FreakyFridayFlip body-swapped]] Psylocke, the once-again-active Banshee teamed up with long-time recurring character '''[[GadgeteerGenius Forge]]''', and Storm became travelling companions with the newly introduced '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsGambit Gambit]]'''. These seven eventually came together as a new team of X-Men and reunited with Professor X, although this lineup was short-lived.
* '''Blue and Gold:''' At the time when a second ongoing main ''X-Men'' title was launched to run alongside ''Uncanny X-Men'', the main characters were split into two teams: the "Blue" team from ''[[ComicBook/AdjectivelessXMen X-Men]]'' consisted of Cyclops, Beast, Wolverine, Psylocke, Jubilee, Rogue and Gambit, while the "Gold" team from ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen'' consisted of Storm, Jean Grey, Archangel (formerly Angel), Iceman, Colossus, Forge and new character '''Bishop'''. Forge left the X-Men and ended up joining ComicBook/XFactor; '''Revanche''', in Psylocke's original body, briefly joined the Blue Team and left shortly before her death; Colossus defected to Magneto's Acolytes due to the TraumaCongaLine he had been living through, while at the same time Wolverine also left the X-Men after having the adamantium ripped out of his body; finally, Jubilee left to become a founding member of the new class of young mutants in ''ComicBook/GenerationX''. By the end of this era, the Blue and Gold teams had more-or-less merged into one big team.
* '''Onslaught era:''' Following ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse'', former ''ComicBook/NewMutants'' and ''ComicBook/XForce'' team leader '''Cannonball''' was recruited to the main X-Men team. The events of ''Onslaught'' forced Professor X to depart; around the same time, the X-Men discovered '''Joseph''', whom they believed to be a de-aged amnesiac Magneto. Archangel and Psylocke left the team not long after, and Wolverine returned. During ''Operation Zero Tolerance'', the X-Men were joined by the Morlock girl '''Marrow''', South African boy '''Maggott''' and '''Dr Cecilia Reyes'''; meanwhile, Gambit was cast out of the X-Men in disgrace. Cyclops, Jean and Iceman all took indefinite leaves of absence. Joseph left the team after learning he was ''not'' Magneto. At the end of this era Cannonball left the X-Men and soon rejoined X-Force, Maggott departed to join Generation X,[[note]]although he stayed with them only briefly[[/note]] and Cecilia quit the superhero life to work as a doctor again.
* '''From the Hunt For Xavier to The Twelve:''' Beginning with Storm, Wolverine, Rogue and Marrow as the only active X-Men, they were reunited with many former teammates: Nightcrawler, Shadowcat and Colossus rejoined after the disbanding of Excalibur; Gambit was invited back soon after; and Professor X returned in the ''Hunt for Xavier'' storyline. The enormous crossover story ''The Twelve'' also brought back many other former teammates.
* '''X-Men: Revolution era:''' After a six-month TimeSkip the X-Men's team lineup has gone through another change, with each main book featuring a different set of characters: ''Uncanny X-Men'' focused on Storm, Jean, Beast, Rogue, Gambit and former ''New Mutants'' and ''X-Force'' mentor '''Cable''', while the adjectiveless title focused on Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Psylocke, Archangel, Colossus and the new '''Thunderbird'''. Towards the end of this era, Colossus died in a HeroicSacrifice.
* '''ComicBook/NewXMen:''' A relaunch in 2001 by writer Creator/GrantMorrison which revamped the X-Men for the modern era, giving them black and yellow outfits and introducing darker, more mature, and more complex storylines, like the Genoshan genocide and having Xavier's School become an actual school, with hundreds of mutant students. The book revitalized the franchise and was critically and commercially successful, but was also controversial for some of its takes on characters, like Magneto. This era introduced the character of '''X-23''', Wolverine's clone daughter, as well as the "special class" of Xavier's students, like '''Quentin Quire''', '''Glob Herman''', and the '''Stepford Cuckoos'''.
* '''Decimation, Hope, and Utopia:''' At the end of ''ComicBook/HouseOfM'', the Scarlet Witch depowered 99% of all mutants in an event dubbed the "Decimation" or "M-Day," causing a massive period of upheaval and death in the X-Men's world. This led to a period where the X-Men were less concerned with superheroics and more with preventing their own extinction. This eventually led to a trilogy of crossovers (''[[ComicBook/XMenMessiahComplex Messiah Complex]]'', ''[[ComicBook/XMenSecondComing Second Coming]]'', and ''Messiah War'') about '''Hope Summers''', the first mutant baby born after M-Day and so-called "mutant messiah." This era also saw the X-Men move to San Francisco and then their own island made of the remains of Asteroid M, Utopia.
* '''Schism, the Phoenix Five, and the Original Five:''' An era defined by the conflict between Cylops and Wolverine. The ''Schism'' event saw Wolverine split from Cyclops and take half of the X-Men back to Westchester in order to [[ComicBook/WolverineAndTheXMenMarvelComics run the Jean Grey School]], while Cyclops ran his own [[ComicBook/UncannyXMen2011 "Extinction Team."]] And then ''ComicBook/AvengersVsXMen'' saw Cyclops, Emma Frost, [[Comicbook/SubMariner Namor]], Colossus, and Magik each get a portion of the Phoenix Force and try to fix the world. In the aftermath of that event, Cyclops was declared a mutant terrorist and found himself on the run, while Beast brought [[ComicBook/AllNewXMen the Original Five X-Men to the present.]] This status quo eventually ended with ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015''.
* '''Inhumans and [=ResurrXion=]:''' Post-''ComicBook/SecretWars2015'', mutants were again on the brink of extinction due to the Inhuman's Terrigen cloud poisoning them with "M-Pox." This led into the event ''ComicBook/InhumansVsXMen'' and the relaunch ''ComicBook/ResurrXion''. This was a return to nostalgia, with the team books again being split in [[ComicBook/XMenBlue blue]] and [[ComicBook/XMenGold gold]]. Though there were some popular decisions, like [[ComicBook/AllNewWolverine giving Laura Kinney the Wolverine name]] and [[ComicBook/XMenRed bringing back the original Jean Grey from the dead to lead her own book]], overall, many of the decisions were criticized by both fans and critics and many of the books were unpopular.
* '''Disassembled and the Age of X-Man:''' A [[ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018 new relaunch in 2018]] saw the storyline ''X-Men Disassembled'', which led into the ''ComicBook/AgeOfXMan'' event. While the event itself was considered good, this era is generally considered lackluster or downright mean, considering the number of deaths that occur in the main book. This era didn't last long, as it seemed only a stopgap until Creator/JonathanHickman took over the books and launched the next era...
* '''[[ComicBook/{{XMenTheKrakoanAge}} The Krakoan Age]]:''' Following the two mini-series ''[[ComicBook/XMen2019 House of X]]'' and ''[[ComicBook/XMen2019 Powers of X]]'' and the formation of the mutant island nation of Krakoa, a relaunch called ''ComicBook/DawnOfX'' happened. Krakoa ushered in a new era of prosperity for mutants, especially since they found a way to bring the dead back to life. The [[ComicBook/XMen2021 new Krakoan team of X-Men]] was formed, which consisted of Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Polaris, Rogue, Sunfire, Synch, and Wolverine (Laura Kinney). However, Krakoa also holds some deep, dark secrets, especially concerning Moira [=MacTaggert=].
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!!''General trope examples:''

* [[AbortedArc/XMen Aborted Arc]]
* [[AbusiveParents/XMen Abusive Parents]]
* [[AscendedExtra/XMen Ascended Extra]]
* [[CharacterizationMarchesOn/XMen Characterization Marches On]]
* [[Deconstruction/XMen Deconstruction]]
* [[DependingOnTheArtist/XMen Depending On The Artist]]
* [[DependingOnTheWriter/XMen Depending On The Writer]]
* [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness/XMen Early Installment Weirdness]]
* [[EvilCounterpart/XMen Evil Counterpart]]
* [[Expy/XMen Expy]]
* [[HeelFaceTurn/XMen Heel Face Turn]]
* [[Hypocrite/XMen Hypocrite]]
* [[ImageSource/XMen Image Source]]
* [[RetCanon/XMen Ret Canon]]
* [[Retcon/XMen Retcon]]
* [[SupermanStaysOutOfGotham/XMen Superman Stays Out Of Gotham]]
* [[TangledFamilyTree/XMen Tangled Family Tree]]
* [[ThouShaltNotKill/XMen Thou Shalt Not Kill]]
* [[WolverinePublicity/{{Franchise/Wolverine}} Wolverine Publicity]]
[[/index]]

* ButNotTooBlack:
** [[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]] is African-American, but she has fair hair and blue eyes, which is supposed to be a mark of her royal heritage. In one issue, an unconscious (and also de-aged at the time) Storm was being examined by a doctor, who said her features came from several different races.
** Characters/{{M|arvelComicsMonetStCroix}} from ''ComicBook/XFactor'' is French-African/Algerian and her skin tone has ranged wildly throughout the years, from dark caramel to "damn near white."
** Also, Bishop is black, but he was born in Australia and is part [[UsefulNotes/AustralianAborigines Aborigine]], which may account for his straight hair and his lighter skin tone. His sister Shard, meanwhile, has dark skin and blond hair. And did we mention they may ([[TangledFamilyTree or may not]]) be related to Storm and M, and possibly also Gateway (also Australian Aborigine) and the third Thunderbird (Indian) at the same time?

The team are members of a human subspecies, ''Homo superior''[[note]]otherwise known as ''Homo sapiens superior''[[/note]], colloquially referred to as "mutants". Mutants are humans who possess the "X-gene", a gene that gives them special superpowers and unique capabilities. Said to be humanity's next evolutionary phase, their presence has incited massive dissension as humans believe they will soon become extinct. While most strive for a civil coexistence, mutants are generally met with fear, hatred, violence, envy, and discrimination. Under increasing anti-mutant sentiment, mutant telepath Charles Xavier creates a haven at his Westchester mansion to train young mutants to use their powers for the benefit of humanity as well as to prove mutants can be heroes. Initially, he recruited Cyclops, Iceman, Angel, Beast and Jean Grey, calling them "X-Men" as they had power from the X-gene. Early issues introduced the team's archenemy Characters/{{Ma|rvelComicsMagneto}}gneto and his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, who fight for total mutant supremacy and would battle the X-Men for years – the Brotherhood also introduced the twins [[Characters/MarvelComicsQuicksilver Quicksilver]] and Characters/ScarletWitch, who would reform and become [[ComicBook/TheAvengers Avengers]]. While the early issues focused on typical good versus evil/law versus crime stories, they did feature an undertone (which, depending on the issue, would become more overt) of racism and prejudice as a central theme.

** There's also a dissonance where the fear of mutants is portrayed as prejudice and fear of what's different, but there have been times when mutants - even fully-trained adults -- have lost control of their powers without meaning to and caused a lot of damage. In the '80s X-Men cartoon, Storm was claustrophobic, causing her to freak out with her powers whenever she was triggered. Mutants ''are'' a danger to the normal humans around them no matter how good their intentions are and that [[ProperlyParanoid is a perfectly valid reason for fear]].

* '''The All-New All-Different X-Men:''' Introduced in the pivotal ''Giant-Size X-Men'' #1, in which Professor X and Cyclops were forced to recruit a new, international, multi-racial team, made up of '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]]''' from Kenya, '''[[Characters/MarvelComicsNightcrawler Nightcrawler]]''' from West Germany, '''[[Characters/XMen70sMembers Colossus]]''' from Russia, '''[[MakeMeWannaShout Banshee]]''' from Ireland, '''[[PowerOfTheSun Sunfire]]''' from Japan, '''[[LightningBruiser Thunderbird]]''' from an Apache nation, and, [[BreakoutCharacter of course]], '''Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}''' from Canada, to save the old team from a failed mission on [[Characters/XMenKrakoans Krakoa]]. This team continued into the main ''X-Men'' title from issue #94 onwards; Sunfire left the team almost immediately, and Thunderbird was promptly [[SacrificialLion killed off]]. Marvel Girl soon rejoined the team, apparently died and resurrected with greatly expanded powers, and took on the new name Phoenix. Eventually Banshee had to leave the team due to injury, and the story of Jean's growing power tragically culminated in ''ComicBook/TheDarkPhoenixSaga''.

* '''[[ComicBook/{{XMenTheKrakoanAge}} The Krakoa Era]]:''' Following the two mini-series ''[[ComicBook/XMen2019 House of X]]'' and ''[[ComicBook/XMen2019 Powers of X]]'' and the formation of the mutant island nation of Krakoa, a relaunch called ''ComicBook/DawnOfX'' happened. Krakoa ushered in a new era of prosperity for mutants, especially since they found a way to bring the dead back to life. The [[ComicBook/XMen2021 new Krakoan team of X-Men]] was formed, which consisted of Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Polaris, Rogue, Sunfire, Synch, and Wolverine (Laura Kinney). However, Krakoa also holds some deep, dark secrets, especially concerning Moira [=MacTaggert=].

* AcademyOfAdventure: For decades, the Charles Xavier School For Gifted Youngsters was the main hub for the X-Men team. Post-''Schism'' and during ''Avengers Vs. X-Men'', Wolverine became the headmaster and renamed it "Jean Grey School For Higher Learning".

* WeakBossStrongUnderlings: {{Downplayed}}. DependingOnTheWriter, [[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]] alternates between GeniusCripple and HandicappedBadass. After battling a {{Human Alien|s}}, his spine takes a severe injury that prevents him from walking. He, however, keeps his mighty telepathic powers, so he serves as excellent support for the other mutants, especially in finding new recruits. Offensively, he can [[BrainwashedAndCrazy brainwash]] people. Professor X is the BigGood of the ''X-Men'' franchise and most mutants training under his SuperHero school look up to him for advice or as a parental figure. Amongst his pupils, we can count several combat-adept people and a handful of overpowered mutants (some able to control climate change and one that gets a universe-destroying power at some point).